Super Mario RPG
Beetle Mania FAQ
By Ed the Moogle
Version 1.0
Copyright 1999 Ed the Moogle

Don't copy this FAQ without permission. I am not responsible for any
damage done with this FAQ. Do not alter this FAQ in any way. This FAQ's
latest version is available at http://www.gamefaqs.com. Check the latest
version before emailing me with questions.

Introduction

First of all, you may be asking "Ed, what the hell is Beetle Mania?!"
It's a little nifty game you can buy after getting the Princess on your
team! Just talk to the kid in the Mushroom Kingdom Inn a few times and
he'll sell it to you for 500 coins! Trust me, it's really addictive!

Gameplay

You play as a little beetle who spits stars and tries to destroy bouncing
turtle shells to get points. It starts out easy enough, shells appear one
or two at a time and generally aren't much of a threat. But after getting
so many points, the shells get faster and faster and appear in greater
numbers, making them all the more dangerous. But you can blast them to
set off combos for major points! 

Just avoid the shells and the explosions they set off when you shoot one,
they damage your beetle. Tap A repeatedly to pick up your beetle after he
gets nailed. But with each hit, it gets a little harder to get him back
up. You varying get point values for setting off combos. Each shell
nailed in a combo will net you more points. See below for the scores.

Combo Points

1
2
4
8
16
32
64
128
256
500
1000
2000
4000
8000
9999

After getting about 10000 points, a heart will appear, which will make
your beetle slightly easier to get back up. Collect these as soon as you
see them, they dissapear after about a second. I'm still not positive
about what scores are needed to gain more Hearts. Some help on this would
be appreciated.

Tricks

Use a turbo controller! Sure, it's cheating, but it makes it much easier.
All you have to do is dodge and pick up hearts. Note, however, that your
beetle can still be killed if he takes too many hits.

When you've been hit too many times and your beetle explodes, you can get
some last-second points by setting off a combo.

Questions/Corrections/Comments? E-mail brunerp@juno.com