Download Escape From Base 57 ROM Hack

                              -=================-           
                            -=ESCAPE FROM BASE 57=-
                              -=================-
                                  Version 1.0
                          A Graphics Hack of Bomberman
                           Graphics (C)2002 BMF54123
                          Program (C)1987 Hudson Soft


***INCOMING MESSAGE***

TO: [email protected]
FROM: [email protected]
SUBJECT: Held captive by Bad Blobs...attempting escape
ENCODING: MC/ALPHA#31914$AAZRRTXZLLQMJ$

I hope this message reaches you, M.C...this comm terminal doesn't seem to be
in the best shape, and I don't know if this network is monitored or not...

As you know, I was on my way to Dr. Borobo's lab to run a few tests on the new
liquid fuel I've been working on. When I arrived at Arne Lake, about halfway
to the lab, a group of Bad Blob soldiers appeared and shot my jetpod with some
kind of energy weapon, destroying the main navigational circuitry and forcing
me to crash-land in the lake. Next thing I knew, I was completely surrounded
by Bad Blobs! I tried to escape, but being outnumbered 50 to 1, I was rather
unsuccessful. Everything after that point is a blur, since I was injected with
some kind of tranquilizer...

I woke up just a few hours ago in a holding cell, #62a to be exact. I'm not
quite sure where I am, or how long I've been here. I was able to bring up a
glitchy map of the building on this terminal, and I seem to be in Cell Block
01, on the very bottom floor...that's all the information I could get.

You're probably wondering how I escaped from my cell. For some reason, the Bad
Blobs didn't bother to scan me before placing me in my cell, so they never
found the vial of fuel I had hidden in my back. I knew the fuel was fairly
corrosive, so I tried throwing some on the cell door...within seconds, the
door fell to pieces! It turns out the stuff is far more corrosive than I
thought!

Uh-oh...I hear footsteps, so I'd better wrap this up. According to the map,
there's a small, unused laboratory on this floor...I'm going to find it and
see if I can replicate a few dozen more vials of the fuel. I have a feeling
it'll come in handy very soon.

Please message Dr. Borobo and let him know I'm going to be a bit late...Blob
out.

***END OF MESSAGE***


Here's where you come in!
-------------------------
In Escape from Base 57, you control Blobby Slimeson. Your mission, should you
choose to accept it (and I certainly hope you do), is to work your way through
all 50 Cell Blocks, using the experimental fuel to melt down walls and defeat
the prison guards. Along the way, you'll encounter a multitude of chemical and
electronic kits, which will allow you to enhance your fuel--and yourself--in
many different ways!


Alright, how do I play?
-----------------------
The controls in this game are simple...

Control Pad
-----------
Moves Blob around; selects letters on the password screen.

A Button
--------
Drops a fuel vial. The vial will appear directly underneath Blob, and will
begin pulsating. After a short time, the vial will explode, releasing a wave
of corrosive fuel in four directions. The amount of fuel released and the
number of vials that can be dropped simultaneously will vary depending on how
many Fuel Expanders and Extra Vials you've collected.

The A Button is also used to enter letters on the password screen.

B Button
--------
Detonates a fuel vial manually, provided you've found the Remote Detonation
Kit.

Start Button
------------
Starts the game; pauses or resumes it during play.

Select Button
-------------
As the name implies, selects "START" or "CONTINUE" on the title screen.


Stuff that gets in your way
---------------------------
It wouldn't be a game if there weren't obstacles to overcome, now, would it?

Brick walls
-----------
Not just ordinary brick walls, but _reinforced steel_ brick walls! Normally,
an obstacle like this would be near-impossible to pass, but luckily, Blob's
experimental fuel eats through the stuff as though it weren't even there. The
exit door in a Cell Block is always hidden behind one of these walls, as are
power-up goodies and, unfortunately, enemies!

The higher floors of the base are reserved for the toughest prisoners, so
you'll find more and more brick walls as you progress towards the top.

Impenetrable walls
------------------
The whole reason you have to go through all 50 Cell Blocks in the first place:
reinforced ferranium tetraclodiate walls. These surround the perimeter of
every Cell Block, and are found amongst the steel brick walls. Just about
nothing on Blobaria can destroy these.

Exit door
---------
All right! The exit! But wait--what's this? It's locked! Apparently, these
doors remain locked until a Cell Block is uninhabited, which means you'll have
to get rid of every last prison guard you see. Joy.

NOTE: Tossing fuel at an exit door is NOT RECOMMENDED. Sure, it'll melt, but
another one will quickly slam shut in its place, usually after some enemy
reinforcements have passed through...


Stuff that you want to find
---------------------------
These items will make your escape a LOT easier!

Fuel Expander (vial with explosion behind it)
-------------
One of the most abundant--and most helpful--items in the game. Consists of
chemicals that, when added to your fuel supply, will increase the amount of
fuel released when a vial explodes. A must-have for the higher levels, where
enemies must often be tagged from afar.

Extra Vial (small vial with +1 next to it)
----------
Allows you to drop two (or more) fuel vials at once. Very useful for
surrounding fast-moving enemies and finding the exit in a hurry!

Remote Detonation Kit (little remote control)
---------------------
Quite possibly the most useful item in the game, a Remote Detonation Kit
allows you to detonate vials at will, in the order they were dropped, from any
location in the Cell Block! You'll wonder how you ever lived without it...

Super High-Energy Vitamin Mega Pack (streaking arrow)
-----------------------------------
Scarfing down these vitamins will give you an extra burst of speed! Perfect
for escaping from fleet-footed enemies or exploding vials!

Fuel Stabilizer (white arrow on vial)
---------------
Eliminates the toxic fumes that rise from a pulsating fuel vial, allowing you
to walk right over it in case you accidentally trap yourself.

Phase Shifter (white arrow on brick wall)
-------------
What an interesting device...it partially shifts Blob's body into another
dimension, allowing him to pass through brick walls! Strangely enough, though,
exploding vials and enemies can still hurt him...

Biohazard Suit (shield with "S" in the middle)
--------------
A transparent suit that protects you from the corrosive effects of fuel,
allowing you to stand right next to a vial when it goes off and escape without
a scratch!

Mystery Items (???)
-------------
Can you find them?


Game Over and Access Codes
--------------------------
If you should happen to lose all your lives, the Game Over screen will be
displayed. At the bottom of the screen is an access code--write it down! It
will allow you to continue from the Cell Block you were defeated in.

At the title screen, select "CONTINUE" and press Start. You'll be taken to the
code entry screen. Select a letter, A-P, with the Control Pad, and enter it
with the A Button. If entered correctly, you'll be whisked away to the last
stage you played, with your Fuel Expanders and Extra Vials intact! However, if
you made a mistake, you'll have to reset the game and try again...


Important notes
---------------
- Once you've found several Extra Vials, you can drop multiple vials in a row
  to create massive chain reactions, which is often the only way to destroy
  some of the faster and more intelligent enemies. Be careful not to get
  caught in the crossfire!
- Some power-ups are only active for a limited amount of time (the Biohazard
  Suit, for example). When the background music reverts to normal, the power-
  up has worn off. Other power-ups are active until you lose a life. The only
  power-up items whose effects are permanent are the Fuel Expander and the
  Extra Vial.
- You gain an extra life every time you clear a Cell Block.
- You can earn lots of extra points by defeating multiple enemies with either
  a single vial or a chain reaction.
- Watch the timer! You have a limited amount of time to clear each Cell Block
  before enemy backup arrives from higher (tougher) floors.
- The power-up items are just as important to the Bad Blobs as they are to
  you. If you should happen to destroy one, chances are you won't live to see
  the next Cell Block...
- Each enemy has its own unique movement pattern. Study them from far away and
  plan your attacks accordingly. But be careful, some enemies have a few
  unusual tricks up their sleeves!


           Alright, enough about gameplay, how do I use this patch?
           --------------------------------------------------------

What you need
-------------
- B57Patcher.exe (or ESCAPE57.IPS and an IPS patcher).

- A Bomberman NES ROM (U.S. version, verified good dump, no menu trainer,
  24592 bytes).

- A decent NES emulator. loopynes is best for DOS users, while FCE Ultra is
  best for Windows users. (NOTE: older betas of loopyNES either won't run the
  game at all, or won't allow you to enter passwords. Please use the latest
  beta with this game!)


How to apply this crazy thing
-----------------------------
** BACK UP YOUR ROM FIRST! **

- Windows users: Just run B57Patcher.exe, enter the location of your Bomberman
  ROM, then click "Patch". Easy as pie!

- Non-Windows users: Download an IPS patcher for your particular OS, and apply
  ESCAPE57.IPS to your Bomberman ROM. Please don't ask me how to use an IPS
  patcher--read the instructions!


What was used to make this hack?
--------------------------------
Tile Layer v0.50b - graphics editing
XTree Gold - hex editing (palettes, ending)
X-Late 3.0 BETA - graphical hex editing (title screen, tile mappings, ending)
IPS2EXE v1.5 - executable ROM patcher
PATCHMK.EXE - IPS patch creation tool


Special thanks to...
--------------------
The authors of the above utilities; and, of course, to Hudson Soft, for
creating one of the most fun, addictive games for the NES. =)


Contact me, BMF54123
--------------------
E-mail:
bmf54123(at)rustedmagick(dot)com

Website:
RuSteD LOgIc
http://bmf.rustedmagick.com


Disclaimer
----------
I will not be held responsible for any damages caused by using this patch
and/or the program(s) included with it. You use the patch/program(s) at your
own risk.

You may freely distribute this patch (ESCAPE57.IPS), as long as this file
(README.TXT) is included with it, and the contents of both are unchanged. This
patch may not be distributed as a pre-patched ROM, or included with a ROM
collection of any sort.

Bomberman is (C)1987 Hudson Soft. Contents of the patch (ESCAPE57.IPS) and
this file (README.TXT) are (C)2002 BMF54123. This patch is not sponsored,
endorsed, or approved by Nintendo.


That's all
----------
Go! Play!