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Phantom Fighter FAQ
by The Deacon
e-mail:mmacinni@cs.oberlin.edu
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Before we start, even though they are probably out of business, the
game "Phantom Fighter" for the NES is trademark copyright etc. FCI and
whoever else made it. Feel free to toss this FAQ to the winds, just
don't be a lamer and put your name on it; if you have anything to add,
e-mail me and I'll insert your info (as well as credit you with the
addendum).
Contents
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I.Why is this in FAQ format?
I. Why is this in FAQ format?
I know the term "FAQ" gets bandied about a lot, but since I'm
something of a wordsmith I feel that we should nail down exactly
what a "FAQ" is. You are reading a "FAQ", a compilation of
"Frequently Asked Questions". Christ, if you have net access you
should know by now what a FAQ is. Anyhow, it's also a FAQ because
walkthroughs are really lame. The way I see it, any kind of aid on
a game signals one's inability to rise to the challenge, however
in the greater scope things I figure we can call getting level
passwords the "little white cheat", reading a FAQ a medium or
venial cheat, and working the keyboard/mouse with one hand while
holding the walkthrough in the other and looking at the screen only
to perform the walkthrough's dictated actions is a "mortal" cheat.
And besides, walkthroughs are really only the kind of thing I could
see a reasonable person using in a game with some kind of plot to it.
I know a fellow who isn't very good at video games at all, and with
as little patience as he has, when he gets a game he gets the walkthrough
and goes through the game just to see the plot. However, Phantom Fighter
(how's bout we shorten that to "PF") has _no_ plot. Really. You'll see.
II. What's the plot?
I just told you. There isn't one. (see above). However, if you
want a basic rundown of the pseudo-plot, well then here you are:
You are Kenchi, martial artist and aspiring Phantom Fighter. With
your trusty sidekick you travel from town to town seeking fortune and fame
as a wandering hero, driving out evil hopping vampires and rescuing innocent
townspeople using only your wits, a few sacred items, and your superior
kung-fu.
That's about the size of it.
III. What's the point of the game?
Well, as with all games, it's to have fun...:). Besides that, there
doesn't really seem to be much of a point...if you were to say that the
"point" of the game is to be defined as what is required to beat a game,
then I suppose there is a point. That definition makes the point of this
game thus:
You go from town to town (there are 8 in all), driving out vampires
with your fists (and feet) of fury. Along the way, you pick up sacred items
and ancient scrolls (more on them later) and improve your kung-fu until the
final confrontation with the evil witch Obe. ("obay")
IV. Anything I should know before I start the game?
Since I didn't have the manual I'll take the time to explain the
basic game mechanics for you.
A: Kick. (or, if you prefer, "Boot to the Head")
B: Punch.
Start: Pause the game.
Select: Does nothing as far as I know.
V. What's the basic pattern of the game?
Basically, you'll come to a town with your sidekick in tow. The
mayor (I suppose) comes out and kowtows to you, weeping with gladness; for
they called the thunder and now they got it.
When you enter town, you'll be in a far-off side-scroll view with
Kenchi and his sidekick walking around near buildings. When in front of a
door, push A or B to see a brief message telling you what's going on
inside. (I'll explain them later.) To enter a house, stop in front of the
door and press Up.
When you enter the house, your energy will be displayed on the left
side of the screen, and any enemies in the room will have theirs displayed
on the right. As you will soon see, a purple bar means you have full
health, and as you take hits the little boxes turn pink until you get wiped
out (and your sidekick speaks ill of the dead). In this screen, pressing up
makes you jump, down makes you crouch. You cannot attack while crouching.
(A BIG PISSER IMHO) Obviously, when you see a vampire come hopping up at
you, kick and punch it until it falls over and bursts into flame, then
continue to the right.
Events vary, but after getting to the end of the house you will be
presented with either scrolls or a sacred item, sometimes information (other
times just blather).
Some houses contain lots of enemies, make your way to the end,
defeat a moderately tough enemy, and collect a jewel that instantly refills
your health. You'll see it sit one of the empty stands in the upper right
corner of the screen. Collect three of these things and you will have the
magical power necessary to break a sealed portal.
When you have three gems, you can enter the building that is always
all the way at the far right end of town. Inside is a town boss, the source
of the vampire scourge (for this area, anyhow). Teach him a lesson ("Don't
think. Feeeeeeelll!") and you'll enjoy being toadied to by your sidekick.
Then the happy mayor will give you a password and you're on your way to the
next town.
VI. What the hell ARE these things I'm fighting?
Those, gamer, are hopping vampires -- China's version of the
ubiquitous super- natural parasitic entity that has frightened many a
superstitious person for hundreds of years. I believe the game's term for
them -- "Kyonshi" -- is Mandarin Chinese for "hopping vampire". However, it
could be a bastardized Chinese put into a game for mainly Japanese players.
I think in Cantonese the term is "Jiangshi". I'll refer to them throughout
this document as "Kyonshi", simply because that's what the game calls them.
What makes these guys different from their Romanian "cousins"?
Well, their origins are slightly different. Kyonshi are "undead", as in
those who have died, but somehow have had their souls trapped in their body
instead of escaping to the Nine Heavens (or Hells) after death. This could
be for any number of reasons; bad chi flow through the house, suicide, lots
of angst, etc. Anyhow, because they have died, their bodies aren't alive,
they're just "undead". This means that they're not as limber as they once
were, hence the hopping; it's the only way they can get around.
What motivates them? Not much. Unlike the Western vampire, a
Kyonshi has little or no conscious thought. Its only thought is to attack
living things and eat their bodies. Since they don't consume their victims
whole their victims become vampires as well. Kyonshi don't speak, don't
respond intelligently to problems. This is a noticable advantage that the
phantom fighter has over his unnatural opponents. A nimble phantom fighter
should dance about to keep his assailant's long fingernails (so sharp
they're almost claws) at bay.
For those interested in Kyonshi I'll provide a bibliography at the
end of this FAQ -- they're pretty cool. It also helps to know something
about them for later (see below).
VII. Do the towns follow a basic pattern?
Yes. For the most part they are a bunch of houses, a temple, a
"boss shack", and a martial arts studio.
You can always recognize the temple and the studio, they're the same
in every town. The temple is a large building with pillars in the front and
lots of pillars and Buddha statues inside. The studio is a long, one-level
wooden building.
There will be three places where you can get gems as well, and the
rest of the little shacks round out the town with places to kill Kyonshi and
get ancient scrolls.
This seems as good a time as any to explain what the little messages
you get when you press A or B in front of a house mean.
"Kyonshies are here": Ahem.
"Kyonshies are not here":Ahem. Ahem.
Okay, besides the obvious, these mean there is just a basic bunch of
Kyonshies in the house (or the house is empty). Fight through all of these
and you'll get some ancient scrolls. Empty houses seem to have no point;
you walk all the way to the end and some cowering peasant thanks you or says
something worthy of the term "non sequitir."
"This is a temple.": What the Christ. It's a temple.
"There's danger in the air": This means that inside is either a
sacred item or one of the three gems you need to bust them ghosts.
"What, nothing's happening?":or something like that. Basically one
of those houses with goodies or gems in them that you've cleared out already.
"Open the sealenter": Obviously an error in the programming, this
should read something like "Open the seal to enter". This is the "boss
shack" that you need the gems to get inside.
"Enter with courage":When you have the gems, you can open the seal
to the "boss shack" and instruct the Kyonshi on the finer points of kung
fu. ("I hope you were paying attention.")
VIII. From the looks of things, I'm not a very good phantom fighter. I just
got my butt kicked. Any way to improve on this sad situation?
Fortunately, yes. At the beginning it may seem like you'll have a
lame kick and punch for the entire game, but fear not. You can improve to
such powerful kung-fu that you'll easily steamroll enemies.
So, how do you go about improving your skills? Easy. First, you
have to do a little struggling; you need to earn ancient scrolls. Just pick
a small house and go in. When you get some scrolls go to the studio.
When you enter, a fat guard accosts you, and asks you if you
understand that you won't get kung-fu lessons for free (This is basically
to spare you from the annoying un-skippable dialog that follows if you don't
want to enter after all). When you say that you understand, he asks you a
question, to test your knowledge.
A. What the hell is this? Copy protection?
I have no idea why this in the game. I can only guess that
at the time this was made, it made sense, or really was to protect from
people pirating the game. I don't have the manual, so I don't know.
Don't sweat it too much, the questions are pretty easy, often it's
obvious what the correct answer is, and if you fail you can always try again.
B. Fuck that. Just give me the questions and answers.
Ok, I guess quiz games aren't your thing. Here are some of
the questions that the fat guy asks, and their answers: (These are from
memory, more to come)
"Name an FCI video game." I think all of these are FCI games,
pick "WCW" just to be sure.
"Why do Kyonshies only come
out at night?" They hate the sun, obviously.
"How do you capture a Kyonshie?" Although you never see it in the game,
you use an Urn.
"What is a Kyonshies least
favorite food?" I don't know where this hell this came
from, by process of elimination it's
ice cream.
When you answer correctly the fat guy lets you pass and you can
enter the Master's chambers, where they gather for the feast. And though
they stab it with their steely knives, they just can't kill the beast.
Sorry. If you got that reference you'll know the special sort of anguish I
feel now at selling my copy of that album.
Anyhow, the master will train you in kung fu in exchange for ancient
scrolls. Why, I don't know, but my motto is do what works. So, cough up
scrolls and train in the martial arts. The different moves you can select
are listed with their scroll cost to the left of them.
X. What are the different kung-fu moves, how much do they cost, and what do they do?
Good question, grasshopper. There are three basic move categories:
"moves" ("mv"):your movement
"thrust" :punching moves
"kick" :ahem, kicking moves.
Here's a breakdown by category:
MOVES:
Wolf Move ("wolf mv.")
Cost: 2 scrolls
What it does: Makes you move faster. Useful.
Tiger Move ("tiger mv.")
Cost: 6 scrolls
What it does: see above.
Mirage Move ("mirage mv.")
Cost: 6 scrolls
What it does: see above.
Dragon Move ("dragon mv.")
Cost: 18 scrolls
What it does: see above.
Mirage Walk ("mirage wk.")
Cost: x scrolls
What it does: Allows you to walk while crouching.
Mirage Thrust ("mirage th.")
Cost: 50 scrolls
What it does: Allows you to punch while crouching.
A terrific move.
High Jump
Cost: x scrolls
What it does: you jump higher. Absolutely necessary
for airborne vampires.
Windmill Jump ("wind jump")
Cost: x scrolls
What it does: you jump still higher, and you flip in
the air as you do. Allows you full
range with airborne enemies and looks
really cool.
THRUSTS:
2 Thrust
Cost: 2 scrolls
What it does: Gives you two lightning-fast
punches instead of one.
3 Thrust
Cost: x scrolls
What it does: Basically same as above, except
now it's a 1-2-3 punch.
4 Thrust
Cost: 90 scrolls
What it does: Now, you punch both high and low, twice.
The most powerful move in the game,
believe it or not.
KICKS:
2 Kick
Cost: 6 scrolls
What it does: the 1-2 kick. One for both ears. :)
Side kick
Cost: 18 scrolls
What it does: you lean to the side and use your hips
to put a little torque action into your
kick. Good damage, another move you'll
use right up to the end.
Windmill Kick ("wind kick")
Cost: 50 scrolls
What it does: When you jump straight up in the air and
kick, you'll spin around in a flurry of
feet. Really only useful for airborne
enemies, and doesn't always come off
clean.
Jump Kick
Cost: 80 scrolls
What it does: Run at your enemy and kick and you'll
leap at them with both feet forward.
("Mind your Manners!!!") Great as
an opening move, as well as for enemies
who like to jump a lot.
XI. What are some good fighting tactics?
Stick and move. If you stand in one spot you'll get
creamed, as more often than not enemies will soak one or two kicks and swipe
you with them claws. This is most important at the beginning of the game,
when you can't do anything but punch and kick, and move around a little bit.
The main method of attack Kyonshies use is to take little
hops at you, then when they get close enough to a big Kyonshie leap into
your face. What you want to try to do is to place yourself at a point where
the Kyonshie will be in midleap when it comes into kick range. Then, when
it leaps, kick it, and it'll fall over. It won't die, but knocking it down
gives you breathing room.
You'll take a lot of hits from Kyonshies just steadily
leaping towards you. That's their other fighting tactic...they just keep
coming, soaking up the kicks and punches until they can cut you. If you can
kick them enough times, however, they'll fall over. Different kyonshies
take more or less kicks/punches in a row to be knocked down, size is one
factor.
Later, when you learn more kung fu, it will be easier to
defeat enemies, although the enemies will get progressively harder as you go
from town to town. One good move that will help you out a lot is the "Wind
Jump". This allows you to leap high into the air (doing a cool kung-fu
flip) above the reach of the dreaded hoppping demons. When enemies come at
you, kick them once or twice, and if they don't fall down hop over them just
before they get to you. A little practice helps, but soon you will be able
to drop down right on the other side of them and kick them in the back of
the head while they are turning around.
Kyonshies are very stupid. It helps a lot to remember this,
as the next trick shows. See, Kyonshies (as you will know if you read the
above section on them) are in the throes of rigor mortis, their bodies in an
arrested state of decay. So they can only see straight forward, right? So
if you crouch down, they will turn back and forth, their tiny minds trying
to figure out how you pulled your disappearing act. This will not be very
useful in the beginning, as you can't walk while crouching. DON'T try this
just before a Kyonshie gets to you -- their turning back and forth motion
will still be able to hit you, as you are not completely under their arm
level (unless you are fighting a really tall kyonshie, see below). This
move becomes more useful when you learn the Mirage Walk, as you'll be able
to shuffle about under their vision, just don't attempt to get too close to
them as they can often still hit you. Later, when you learn Mirage Thrust,
this becomes a winning tactic, allowing you to stand under tall enemies and
bosses and punch them in their unfeeling vampire gonads mercilessly.
(WARNING: This is kind of a cheapo move, as you really can kill tall kyonshi
bosses with this tactic. It certainly doesn't _look_ very exciting.)
XII. Alright. I'm in town. What do I do first?
Wander through town until you find the temple, then try to fight
your way through it, shouldn't be to difficult. In the first town, it's one
of the first buildings, later on it will be farther into town, or sometimes
nonexistent. Anyhow, it's important to start here, so that you can fill up
your health, you'll need to often and there's only one other way to do it in
the game, and that involves more fighting.
Once you've done that, go to the kung-fu studio and see how many
scrolls you'll need to learn the various kung-fu moves. The dialog trees
can be annoying, but get used to them because they are all through the
game. :P Anyhow, leave the studio with the moves you want to learn in mind,
and find a house with Kyonshies in it. Then enter and work your way to get
the scrolls. Surprisingly (or perhaps not, depending on how well versed you
are in "game logic"), you can enter the same house again and again,
continuously obtaining scrolls. You can get up to 99, but don't bother
trying that here unless you are sick in bed with chicken pox or something --
you'll have better oppportunities later on when you recieve lots more
scrolls for rescuing townspeople. Learn all the moves you can, when the
master tells you you've tapped him out, you can move on.
A. Just to make it easier on myself, what moves should I learn first?
Since your kung-fu is puny, learn attack moves first. Specifically, get 2
Kick and 2 Thrust. Throughout the game, when you have an opportunity to
learn an attack move, learn it, and learn the other moves later. While the
"Move" moves may seem pointless, they are actually very useful, since being
able to move quickly will allow you to dance in an out of a kyonshie's range
without getting creamed every time you try to hit them. It's also highly
important to learn the jump moves, since they allow you to attack airborne
enemies, of which there are 3 in the game, all of them important. While I
suppose you could beat the game without all of the moves, I wouldn't
recommend it, simply because it wouldn't be as fun, as learning new moves is
one of the high points of the game.
After you've learned all the moves you care to, head for the houses
with the gems in them, collect the gems, and head for the boss shack. Don't
forget to write down your password!
XIII. Hey, these Kyonshies aren't all alike!
Quite right. There are several different types of Kyonshies.
Basically, there are four basic types of Kyonshi, differentiated by body
type: the little one, the medium one, the tall one, and the big fat one.
Within these different morphical categories there's lots of room for
variation in the different colors they wear. You'll no doubt become quite
familiar with the types as you play the game, and certain ones will become
infamous. ("ARgh! Not more green ones!")
XIV. Okay, so there's different types. What are they like?
Without further ado:
little: This little bastard is fast and hard to hit. He'll be a toughie
when you're duking it out in the first town and don't have awesome kung-fu.
His basic weakness is that he can't jump that far, and he's really short,
making him easy to hop over. Fortunately he's still just tall enough to
kick in the face.
medium: Your basic vanilla Kyonshi. Some types jump a lot, some are fast,
etc.
tall: The tall guy moves ponderously slow, and thanks to his height is hard
to jump over. He also jumps very high while attacking as well. Naturally
enough this is a big mistake on his part; he jumps so high that you can
crouch and let him go over you, then "boot to the head" while he's turning
around. Later on when you learn the Mirage Thrust the tall guy will be at
your mercy as your firsts pound mercilessly into his undead loins, and his
turning back and forth schtick won't be able to nail you.
fat: This guy is tougher than he looks. He's very strong, such that even
though he moves slowly, he packs a real wallop. Also, he doesn't jump that
high, but is still tall enough that jumping over him is a bit of a sticky
wicket. Your big advantage over him is speed. While he can soak up hits and
really wummox you when he gets a hit in, if you play it right you can kick
once or twice then get the hell out of the way when the Kyonshi express
comes through.
XV. I won some kind of item, what does it do?
Aha, one of the coveted mystical items that you can use in the
game. Don't confuse these with scrolls -- ancient scrolls sound cool but
don't do jack except buy you kung-fu. However, the items are quite nice.
First, here's how to use an item once you've got it. Whenever you
obtain an item, you will see it appear at the top of the screen, in a long
box to the left of the stands that hold the three gems you'll need to get
out of town. However, make no mistake, you are NOT carrying that item.
Your faithful sidekick (who has no name that I could tell) is carrying
them. Thus, whenever you enter a building, and you want to use an item,
turn back as if to leave. Your boy will pop his head in and ask if you want
to split, use an item, or ignore him and get back to butt-kicking. Well,
ask for an item, and he'll give you a list: strangely enough, he lists all
the items you can get, even if you don't have them yet. Pick one, and it
will be outlined by a red square at the top of the screen. This means you
are now carrying the item, and will use it instead of punching when you push
A.
Now, here's all the items, and what they do.
Talisman: Freezes enemies in their tracks sometimes.
Tonten: Knocks baddies onto their cans with a flash of light.
Sword: Knocks guys down, you can also slice 'em with it.
Bell: Controls the demon-boy.
A note of warning: your items will also take hits for you if you get
hit. However, this will also break the item, making it useless. Hey, it's
an antique. Keep this in mind when fighting with an item. It's a good idea
to grab them, they're nice for keeping enemies at bay, and the Tonten is
pretty damn invaluable for beating the game.
XVI. I bought one of those Game Genies. Any codes for this game?
CODE KEY IN . . . EFFECT . . .
1 VTVKEGSA + KAVKOGNA Start with Sword
2 VTVKEGSA + SAVKOGNA Start with Bell
3 VTVKEGSA + UAVKOGNA Start with Tonten
4 VTVKEGSA + XAVKOGNA Start with Talisman
5 LASKNGAA + VAVKOGNA Start with 3 Scrolls
6 TASKNGAA + VAVKOGNA Start with 6 Scrolls
7 SXSZLUSE Infinite energy
8 OVSZPLSV + PESZZLAA Take less damage when attacked
(author's note: This is taken verbatim from Galoob's master list of all Game
Genie codes for NES games that they ever published. There may, of course,
be some home- grown codes floating about. So all due credit goes to Galoob
for the above blurb.)
XVII. This isn't the most complete FAQ I've ever read, you know...
Sorry. This is mostly from memory. If I get e-mails requesting
updates I'll saunter back into the game with my rightfully earned cheat
codes and research it fully for those who desire it. And besides, if you
think this FAQ is incomplete, check out some of the other (admittedly)
sparse fare at TSR's NES FAQ page.
For right now I'll call an end to this FAQ, just because I figure this is
enough to be written about any NES game that wasn't made by Square. :) I'll
send my regards first and foremost to TSR, who's NES page is truly one of
the best place for NES info on the 'net, not to mention skilled use of
graphics and delightful content like the NES oddity page. Also, here's to
the place that posted the ROM I used for this FAQ, Big Daddy's International
House of ROMs, THE place to get ROMs on the 'net. In my experience, if he
doesn't have it here, it doesn't exist yet (at least for NES, anyhow). I'll
also send out greets to John Turk, who's NES Underground Library is probably
the most ambitious of all the NES pages I've seen. And finally I'll send
shots out to all the other NES pages, all those who've stayed cool despite
NESticle's appearance, and to all the fellows on IRC channels like
#emuroms, #emulator, and #emu who are out there circulating coolness in less
than 200k. :) Also a shot out to my friends on #1980Warez, who have nothing
to do with NES ROMs, but are cool anyway.
Jibes go to all those who feel the need to charge excessive amounts of money
for their emulators. Say what you will about effort and reward, guys, but
in the end you're creating something used to do something that's, shall we
say, a trifle off-color in the eyes of the law. Jibes also go to those who
run IRC channels so huge that no chatting goes on in them, and channels that
have nothing but DCC bots in them. Thanks for helping turn IRC into a
wasteland, guys.
So much have I written for gamers, now give me a drink!
