Author Topic: High Score Competition #171: Kangaroo (Read 21400 times)

yamatetsu · « **on:** July 27, 2015, 11:07:50 am »

High Score Competition Rules and Scoreboard

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Game Name : Kangaroo
ROM Name = kangaroo
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Settings:
default : 3 lives / easy / no bonus life

Controls:
8 way joystick, 'Jump' button

Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kangaroo_%28video_game%29

KLOV: http://www.arcade-museum.com/game_detail.php?game_id=8275

Description from KLOV: Mama Kangaroo must save Kid Kangaroo from an entire gang of nasty monkeys. She must climb up ladders, jump onto platforms, leap across gaps and so on to rescue him.

The monkeys will oppose her by throwing apples at her, either overhand or underhand. If they throw apples at her underhand, Mama Kangaroo must jump over them, but if they throw them overhand, she must duck. The monkeys will also drop apple cores and Mama Kangaroo must either avoid them or punch them to score points. Mama Kangaroo can also collect fruits and vegetables including strawberries, pineapples, cherries, tomatoes, etc. to score points. Mama Kangaroo can also ring a bell to make more fruits and vegetables appear.

Whenever Mama Kangaroo is close to a monkey, she can punch the monkey and knock him out. There is also a boxing gorilla called Big Ape who will occasionally appear on some levels and will try to deprive Mama Kangaroo of her boxing gloves and leave her defenseless, but she can punch Big Ape to knock him off the screen. If Mama Kangaroo is disarmed of her gloves, she must reach Kid Kangaroo before the dangers increase.

There are four different levels. The first level just has three floors connected to three long ladders. The second level is the same as the first except that on each floor, there are platforms that Mama Kangaroo must jump onto to get to each short ladder on each floor. On the third level, the cage in which Kid Kangaroo is imprisoned is held up by an entire stack of monkeys and there is an entire horde of apples that the monkey will unleash if five of them climb up there. On this level, Mama Kangaroo must punch each monkey in the stack several times until the cage is lowered and when the cage has been lowered enough, Mama Kangaroo must climb to the next floor to get to Kid Kangaroo before the cage is raised again or before the monkeys have the horde of apple cores unleashed. On the fourth level, there are odd connections of floors, platforms and ladders and the monkeys will throw apples and drop apple cores more unpredictably.

On each level, Mama Kangaroo must rescue Kid Kangaroo in order to proceed to the next. Everytime Kid Kangaroo is rescued, he says "MOM" while "Oh! Susanna" plays. After all four levels are completed, the game starts over again and with increased difficulty.

Jumping is kind of tough in this game because you have to make a quick direction change. The game play would be improved if a jump button had been added to the original control panel. The graphics in this game have a lot of glitches.

Note : Since this is a boxing game (ha !), the levels are actually called rounds. There are four rounds per level.

2nd note : The screenshots are from the american version, the ROM is the japanese version. I was just too lazy to hunt down japanese screenshots.

yamatetsu 200,200

2. popsicle 119,300

3. WakiMiko 90,200

4. jasonbar 19,300

Last day: Sunday, Aug. 9 2015 midnight Pacific
-------------------------------------------------------

- Quest for the Bronze Joystick! The most successful competitor of each calendar year will possess & display the BYOAC Bronze Joystick Trophy. See this thread for details:The BYOAC Bronze Joystick.
Happy Gaming!

pbj · « **Reply #1 on:** July 27, 2015, 11:14:14 am »

Fffffffffffuuuuuuuuuu

harveybirdman · « **Reply #2 on:** July 27, 2015, 11:54:13 am »

Wtf this game has horrible scanlines on my setup.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #3 on:** July 27, 2015, 12:07:30 pm »

Quote from: harveybirdman on July 27, 2015, 11:54:13 am

Wtf this game has horrible scanlines on my setup.

Mine looks like that, too.

The gameplay is fine, though.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #4 on:** July 27, 2015, 01:11:20 pm »

Strange, MAME 0.72 = no scanlines.

popsicle · « **Reply #5 on:** July 27, 2015, 05:55:16 pm »

I used to play this at the skating rink. And Pengo.

26,200 after a handful of tries.

jasonbar · « **Reply #6 on:** July 28, 2015, 01:23:56 am »

18,300. Normally, I have an exceptional memory when it comes to games, but I have zero recollection of the big boxing ape...I'm worried about my brain...

-Jason

yamatetsu · « **Reply #7 on:** July 28, 2015, 06:56:33 am »

29,600

WakiMiko · « **Reply #8 on:** July 30, 2015, 07:03:26 am »

28,300

Do you guys collect all fruits in each level or do you just try to finish as quickly as possible?

yamatetsu · « **Reply #9 on:** July 30, 2015, 10:40:08 am »

A mix of both. Fruit collecting in round 1, rush through round 2-4.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #10 on:** July 30, 2015, 11:18:05 am »

I've never made it to round 4.... But I improved my score

32,700

You can farm the big ape for quite some points.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #11 on:** July 30, 2015, 03:13:06 pm »

36,000

Quote from: WakiMiko on July 30, 2015, 11:18:05 am

You can farm the big ape for quite some points.

I find it hard to time the sucker, most of the time I end up menacingly brandishing the white flag in front of him.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #12 on:** July 31, 2015, 07:11:39 am »

When you advance the big ape from the front, just step back until he does the high punch, then crouch and wait until his attack is finished before you punch him.

He doesn't appear to be able to steal your gloves right after he appears, so if you are close to his spawn point thats a free 800 points. It's even better when you can get behind him. Wait until he is like 2/3 through the lane, then sucker punch him. He will reappear facing you but won't attack right away, so punch him again, this time in the face. 1600 points.

He can't kill you btw, only steal your gloves temporarily. Another thing that's easily missable is that you can punch the apple cores the monkey throws from the top for 200 points each.

42,700

yamatetsu · « **Reply #13 on:** July 31, 2015, 10:57:24 am »

Interesting. I never thought of crouching. I just barely keep out of his reach and then jump in when he has finished his punches. That requires spot-on timing, though. If you jump a hair too soon, you touch him and it's white flag time.

Quote from: WakiMiko on July 31, 2015, 07:11:39 am

He doesn't appear to be able to steal your gloves right after he appears, so if you are close to his spawn point thats a free 800 points.

...

Another thing that's easily missable is that you can punch the apple cores the monkey throws from the top for 200 points each.

Another method of getting points in round 1 is punching the monkeys climbing up the tree for 200 points.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #14 on:** July 31, 2015, 02:46:56 pm »

43,200

leapinlew · « **Reply #15 on:** July 31, 2015, 06:18:53 pm »

I logged in just to say this game is taro ball.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #16 on:** July 31, 2015, 09:28:40 pm »

44,900

popsicle · « **Reply #17 on:** July 31, 2015, 09:41:53 pm »

A little better. Bouncing apple cores do me in the most.

34,400

yamatetsu · « **Reply #18 on:** August 01, 2015, 01:33:57 am »

49,100

WakiMiko · « **Reply #19 on:** August 01, 2015, 11:03:50 am »

51,900

yamatetsu · « **Reply #20 on:** August 01, 2015, 11:51:15 am »

52,000

jdbailey1206 · « **Reply #21 on:** August 01, 2015, 09:46:23 pm »

Ginsu Victim · « **Reply #22 on:** August 01, 2015, 11:01:04 pm »

Always liked this game, but my attempts at a presentable score are coming up a bit short. I'll sit the rest of this one out.

popsicle · « **Reply #23 on:** August 03, 2015, 11:00:41 am »

56,200

Farming the heck out of the first board. Got to round 3.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #24 on:** August 03, 2015, 05:34:09 pm »

59,700

Ginsu Victim · « **Reply #25 on:** August 03, 2015, 05:36:26 pm »

Rub it in....

yamatetsu · « **Reply #26 on:** August 03, 2015, 05:54:26 pm »

C'mon, we're just a week into this. There probably will be a lot more rubbing going on

WakiMiko · « **Reply #27 on:** August 03, 2015, 09:41:11 pm »

62,200

yamatetsu · « **Reply #28 on:** August 04, 2015, 02:00:44 am »

62,800

WakiMiko · « **Reply #29 on:** August 04, 2015, 03:56:47 pm »

74,600

yamatetsu · « **Reply #30 on:** August 04, 2015, 04:32:30 pm »

Oi ! That's one of the pics I was going to use !

Ginsu Victim · « **Reply #31 on:** August 04, 2015, 04:47:12 pm »

Quote from: yamatetsu on August 04, 2015, 04:32:30 pm

Oi ! That's one of the pics I was going to use !

I kept wondering who would finally use it.

jasonbar · « **Reply #32 on:** August 05, 2015, 01:35:21 am »

When is a kangaroo not a kangaroo?

When it's a dog, like this game.

Can't believe I used to put quarters into this...

19,300

WakiMiko · « **Reply #33 on:** August 05, 2015, 10:01:34 am »

I'm sorry guys, I think I found the ultimate strategy. Which I can't reveal until this contest is over because it would be too easy to copy

90,200

yamatetsu · « **Reply #34 on:** August 05, 2015, 11:16:32 am »

115,600. Took you long enough.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #35 on:** August 05, 2015, 11:36:31 am »

Now I feel stupid.

Did you srsly beat my scores by only a few points on purpose all this time??

yamatetsu · « **Reply #36 on:** August 05, 2015, 11:59:33 am »

For the last 3-4 days, yes. The 'ultimate strategy' I found sunday or monday, I don't remember exactly. Without it, my best score was 96k.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #37 on:** August 05, 2015, 12:04:47 pm »

You are playing dirty. Purposely posting "bad" scores should not be allowed. Especially when you already have a much higher score.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #38 on:** August 05, 2015, 12:25:15 pm »

Question : Do you really want to see a score that's almost better than your's and a half ?

Second question : What does it matter when I post my highest score ? I play the game for two weeks to get the highest score possible. For me it doesn't matter if you post the highest score one week into the competition or at the last second. If my score is better than the rest, fine. If not, also fine.
If I were playing just to beat everyone else by a hair, I'd have to accept that it might backfire. Sooner or later someone would hold back a better score until the last moment and then I'd be screwed.

I'll post some better scores when I achieve them if you want, but as I said, it shouldn't matter anyway.

popsicle · « **Reply #39 on:** August 05, 2015, 01:05:44 pm »

Jesus, you guys broke this game too?

Stop sandbagging, yam. Guess I'm going for 3rd, since I don't know the secret knock.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #40 on:** August 05, 2015, 01:47:42 pm »

I expect to get a better score, so far I haven't managed to string a good run together. The 115,600 was about 108k on the first life, followed by two rapid and stupid deaths

Right now I'm frustrating myself by restarting if my score is below 50k on the first round, which happens too frequently for my taste.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #41 on:** August 05, 2015, 05:06:44 pm »

Quote from: yamatetsu on August 05, 2015, 12:25:15 pm

Question : Do you really want to see a score that's almost better than your's and a half ?

Of course. I would immediately realize that I'm missing something/doing something wrong.

Quote from: yamatetsu on August 05, 2015, 12:25:15 pm

Second question : What does it matter when I post my highest score ? I play the game for two weeks to get the highest score possible. For me it doesn't matter if you post the highest score one week into the competition or at the last second. If my score is better than the rest, fine. If not, also fine.

If I were playing just to beat everyone else by a hair, I'd have to accept that it might backfire. Sooner or later someone would hold back a better score until the last moment and then I'd be screwed.

Deliberately under-performing is just bad sportsmanship in my opinion. Now this obviously can't be enforced, but I will always post a new high score as soon as I get it.

Quote from: popsicle on August 05, 2015, 01:05:44 pm

Guess I'm going for 3rd, since I don't know the secret knock.

The secret is to stand just the right distance from the playfield border to always make the big ape spawn right in front of you so you can punch him right as he appears and before he has a chance to attack you. At least that is my strategy, dunno if yam found something else.

I position myself so that the tip of the kangaroo's foot is in the middle of the left bar of the ladder. Then you just spam punch. When done correctly you can hit the monkeys climbing up the tree at the same time.

Only thing to watch out for is the apples from the top and occasionally a monkey might throw an apple from the side, but they generally don't while the big ape is in the lane. You can get like 40-50k on your first life in the first level. Works in the second level too.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #42 on:** August 05, 2015, 05:25:09 pm »

That's the strategy. That's also what takes the fun straight out of the game. I can play the game, get to level 4 round 3, make 46k, OR I can stand around in level 1 round 1, spam punches and get around 50k. Whoopee.

popsicle · « **Reply #43 on:** August 05, 2015, 08:14:30 pm »

Yea, I found this trick on another forum about an hour ago. Already getting 90k. But I'll echo that a broken game exploit like this sucks the fun right out of it.

popsicle · « **Reply #44 on:** August 05, 2015, 08:59:39 pm »

119,300

WakiMiko · « **Reply #45 on:** August 06, 2015, 05:23:50 am »

Quote from: yamatetsu on August 05, 2015, 05:25:09 pm

That's the strategy. That's also what takes the fun straight out of the game. I can play the game, get to level 4 round 3, make 46k, OR I can stand around in level 1 round 1, spam punches and get around 50k. Whoopee.

Told ya to pick a shmup

yamatetsu · « **Reply #46 on:** August 06, 2015, 09:00:26 am »

That would imply that shmups are fun.

harveybirdman · « **Reply #47 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:05:04 am »

Blasphemy!

yamatetsu · « **Reply #48 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:26:00 am »

Woe unto me, I seem to have offended a priest of the Holy Church of Shoot 'Em Ups ! Seriously though, I have played thousands of games, the only shmup I have in good memory is Battle Squadron on the Amiga. That one I played to death. That, however, was about 30 years ago. Nowadays you won't catch me playing a shmup voluntarily.

yotsuya · « **Reply #49 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:30:50 am »

Quote from: yamatetsu on August 06, 2015, 10:26:00 am

Nowadays you won't catch me playing a shmup voluntarily.

But you'll sit there for 15 minutes just to punch a monkey?

yamatetsu · « **Reply #50 on:** August 06, 2015, 10:43:35 am »

If that's the only way to get the highest score in a competition, yes. Outside the compo, I'd try to get as far into the game as possible.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #51 on:** August 06, 2015, 11:13:31 am »

124,500. Exploiting the exploit seems to make the game harder. I had a monkey throwing 4 apples in a row at me on lvl 1 rnd 1. That should normally happen first at lvl 4 or 5.

RayB · « **Reply #52 on:** August 06, 2015, 01:36:46 pm »

Trivia: Sun Electronics (Sun Denshi) is the same Japanese company later known as Sunsoft. Best known for the awesome Batman game for NES.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #53 on:** August 07, 2015, 09:35:48 am »

137,300

yamatetsu · « **Reply #54 on:** August 08, 2015, 01:16:13 pm »

139,900

yamatetsu · « **Reply #55 on:** August 08, 2015, 03:35:32 pm »

151,500

popsicle · « **Reply #56 on:** August 08, 2015, 06:57:14 pm »

We all knew you enjoyed 'punching the monkey', yam, but you're out of control.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #57 on:** August 08, 2015, 10:37:44 pm »

Now I'm confused. Memory is fuzzy but I think that someone told me to post good scores

yamatetsu · « **Reply #58 on:** August 09, 2015, 09:04:24 pm »

200,200

pbj · « **Reply #59 on:** August 09, 2015, 09:27:03 pm »

You guys are scaring me. I've yet to crack 2,000 on this one ever.

popsicle · « **Reply #60 on:** August 09, 2015, 09:56:49 pm »

It's a parlor trick, Jim. Watch the video at the bottom for hot and heavy monkey punching action.

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/207503-arcademame-hsc-season-52-kangaroo/page-2

jasonbar · « **Reply #61 on:** August 09, 2015, 11:41:15 pm »

I'm still waiting for my 2nd submitted score to be posted...it totally blows away my first score...

yotsuya · « **Reply #62 on:** August 09, 2015, 11:45:38 pm »

I was going to try this challenge because I love Kangaroo, but if I'm gonna punch the monkey for a half hour, there's going to be some sweet, sweet porn involved.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #63 on:** August 10, 2015, 09:35:23 am »

The 'punch the monkey' strategy only is possible because one of the MAME devs. The game is missing one ROM, which happens to contain the code for the big ape behavior. So in order to get the game running, one of the devs wrote his own code for it, thus enabling the exploit.
I specifically chose this game because it has a simple score system, a timer, and no extra lives, making it ideal for this challenge. That went really well

The scores.

yamatetsu 200,200

2. popsicle 119,300

3. WakiMiko 90,200

4. jasonbar 19,300

Waki, it's your shot for the next game.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #64 on:** August 10, 2015, 09:35:56 am »

Unofficial scoreboard.

pbj · « **Reply #65 on:** August 10, 2015, 09:41:18 am »

How is this game possibly missing one ROM? I used to see this turd at Super Auctions all the time, surely the boardset is reasonably easy to find.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #66 on:** August 10, 2015, 10:28:57 am »

Because apparently nobody was able to dump it correctly.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #67 on:** August 10, 2015, 11:56:07 am »

Sorry for no new score, been quite busy IRL, plus I just couldn't be arsed to punch the monkey any more

200k is quite impressive, exploit or not.

Does anyone want to pick the next game in my stead? I won't have any time this week to try out new games.

harveybirdman · « **Reply #68 on:** August 10, 2015, 12:05:20 pm »

how bout by committee? I'd have half a mind to pick a SHMUP just for punishment.

suggestions....

Mirax (Gold Leader Standing by)
Rod Land (Because I want to see pbj play a game called "Rod Land")
Jungler (Head On style game that hopefully won't be an exploit fest like Fast Lane was)

yamatetsu · « **Reply #69 on:** August 10, 2015, 12:25:02 pm »

Punishment ? I had to suffer through two weeks of Wizard of Wor, that punishment enough.

The only other game I was considering for this round was, oddly enough, a shmup called Ordyne.

So that would be my suggestion.

harveybirdman · « **Reply #70 on:** August 10, 2015, 12:26:04 pm »

that's a fun little game. and we've not played many horizontal SHMUPS.

WakiMiko · « **Reply #71 on:** August 10, 2015, 12:28:06 pm »

Quote from: harveybirdman on August 10, 2015, 12:05:20 pm

how bout by committee? I'd have half a mind to pick a SHMUP just for punishment.

I like that suggestion.

Yam: That ooks nice.

I haven't played any of these 4 games so I'm fine with all of them. I'm out for today guys. Feel free to pick what you want <3

yamatetsu · « **Reply #72 on:** August 10, 2015, 03:01:17 pm »

Soo, after having had a look at Harv's suggestions :

Mirax. I flat out refuse to play anything that uses a movable crosshair for aiming. I even quit one of my all time favorite games (Dead Space), because some idiot decided to put a crosshair shooting sequence into a survival horror game. That guy himself should be shot.

Jungler. Another feast for all who don't have a 4 way stick. I've had enough cheap deaths in Wizard of Wor because of that.

Rod Land. Too similar to Saboten Bombers and Tumble Pop, but should at least be playable.

For me it's either Rod Land or Ordyne, with Ordyne being the favorite.

harveybirdman · « **Reply #73 on:** August 10, 2015, 03:12:00 pm »

Ordyne it is man, make the thread.

yamatetsu · « **Reply #74 on:** August 10, 2015, 04:03:13 pm »

I obey. High Score Competition #172: Ordyne


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