PUNKY SKUNK
Game Guide
By Shanya Almafeta (com dot playful at shanya -- you figure it out)
First Release: The first two worlds are described
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1. Introduction
2. Characters
3. Controls And Operation
4. Gear
5. Stage-By-Stage Guide
5a. Woodlands Island stages
5b. Kahuna Bay stages
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1. INTRODUCTION
=========================
Punky Skunk is probably one of the most obscure Playstation games
to have ever been released. It was released half-finished by a company
that isn't exactly a game giant. But even then, it's a good game; you'll
find yourself playing this again and again. I say 'good' as in 'pick it
up when you have bucks to spare', not 'good' as in 'spend years of your
life hunting it down'.
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2. CHARACTERS
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PUNKY (Kuri in Japanese?)
The hero of our game, and as the title of the game might suggest,
a skunk. He's had it with Badler, and he's going to fight back. Think
of a punk not as in the Ramones or Avril Lavine, but as in Scooby-Doo:
"You meddling punks better keep your nose out of my business if you know
what's good for you!"
KELLY
A red bunny, and the game's prerequisite sex symbol. Oh wait, this
is a kid's game: the game's prerequisite cute symbol. She gives Punky
advice as the game advances.
NASH
A badger gadgeteer, who for some unexplained reason always wears a
flight helmet.
BADLER
The wolf who is threatening Punky's island with his massive
amusement park. (Don't bad guys in video games know about zoning
ordinances?)
CHEW
Their name describes their function in the game. They're these
little mice who dress up like MAD Agents (from the Inspector Gadget
cartoons). Chews in this game will begin with no gear, but as Punky
gets more equipment, they'll start getting equipment of their own.
BB BRIGADE
Badler's army.
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3. CONTROLS AND OPERATION
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CONTROLS
D-Pad: Move left and right.
X: Jump.
Square: Spray, while you have no gear equipped.
O: Equip or remove whatever gear you're carrying. If you remove a
piece of gear, you keep it; you do not lose it unless you pick up another
piece to replace it. While you're equipping gear, you go into an
animé-esque 'transformation whirl' that can give you another second or
two of hang time in the air, or let a bad guy's attacks go through you.
OPERATION
Punky starts with three hit points (NOT four as the manual says,
although you don't die when you are at zero hit points; see below), his
trusty pogo stick, three lives, and zero stars. Hit points can be
increased by collecting pieces of tomato; once you've got a full tomato,
you earn an extra hit point. (Shades of Zelda!) If you are hit and you
have zero hit points, you get to see a grown skunk cry. You can get
extra lives by picking up a one-up or collecting 100 stars -- not sure
where I've seen that before.
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4. GEAR
==================
DIGGERS
These claws add on to Punky's, allowing him to dig through soft
earth and snow a la Dig-Dug. However, you can't jump with Diggers on,
because they weigh you down. (Doesn't make sense to me either -- how
come they weigh you down when in use, but not when you're carrying them
around? Oh well.) When you attack with the diggers, you throw them
out, and they slice up enemies.
IN THE FUR
When Punky is not encumbered by gear, he gains a twirl-and-spray
attack that can be done by hitting Square. Be warned, though, that the
spray is not permanant; although a spray will temporarially take an
enemy out, it will not affect all enemies, and they come back. (If a
skunk fights a starving wolf, the wolf becomes stinky and the skunk
becomes dinner.)
PARAGLIDER
Gives Punky a nice pastel green wardrobe. While in the air, press
and hold X to open the paraglider; you can release the paraglider to
build up speed falling, or lean the direction you fall by tilting the D
pad. While falling with the paraglider, you can kick at enemies; this is
hard to do, because if they don't come in contact with your legs, you take
damage. Also, while the paraglider is open, you can be affected by air
currents; these can lift you up or act as one-way corridors.
POGO STICK
Punky's pogo stick (you start with this in the game) can be whipped
out to get a boost to your jumps: hold down the button, you'll keep
jumping. Each time, you go a little bit higher, until you reach your max
at the third jump. Also, while using Pogo, you can do the Commander Keen
thing and bop enemies by coming down on them with the stick; good players
can use this to rebound off of multiple enemies to reach otherwise
unreachable places.
SKATES
This item gives Punky a nice pastel blue wardrobe. You can go
really fast while on these, by holding right. It's also hard to stop;
press and hold Down to brake quickly, or stop holding right to glide to a
stop. With these skates on and a bit of speed, Punky can bowl over an
enemy by jumping on it.
SNOWBOARD (mistranslated as 'skyboard' or 'skysurfer')
Punky's snowboard. On flat land, he goes sloooowly by 'scooshing',
but when on a downhill slope, he builds up speed like gangbusters! You
can attack by whacking enemies with the bottom of the board, or when at
top speed, just crashing through them -- when he's fast enough, Punky
will become invincible on the snowboard.
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5. STAGE-BY-STAGE GUIDE
==================================
These stages are listed in rough order. Punky Skunk is as linear as
Super Mario World, in that you have one ending and one path but can
accomplish the goals on that path at different times.
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5a. WOODLANDS ISLAND STAGES
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DROP ZONE
Most video games start off with an easy tutorial level, and Punky
Skunk is no exception. But I'll do this for the sake of completion.
You'll start in front of a Pri Pri Ravine sign with a Chew coming
right at you; spray him and be done with it. Keep going to the right,
jumping holes and spraying Chews. You start with a pogo stick, and if
you want some practice with it, equip it and try to bop the Chews on the
head instead of spray. Soon, you'll come to a wide jump with spikes at
the bottom -- now it gets interesting.
Spray the rock before you pass it, because there's a Chew hiding
behind it. Keep going to the right, and you'll see two big stars you
can't get to quite yet. These stars are worth 10 little stars, so even if
you don't bother getting the little stars, you'll want to get the big stars.
Keep going to to the right, and past the air vent. Just on the entrance
to the ravine, you'll get your parachute. Now go back to the air vent,
jump into the airflow, and hold the button. The air vent will lift you
up. Go to the left, and pick up your fifth of an extra life!
Go to the right again, and use your paraglider to cross the large
gaps with huge air flows coming out of them. In the second one, release
the paraglider for a moment to drop down and collect an extra star; then,
hold the parachute open as long as possible and glide to the left, where
you'll be awarded with an extra skunk. Gliding back to the large updraft,
you'll see a wind going to the right. This will take you to a draft up,
then a draft to the right; in the next draft up, again release your
paraglider long enough to get a big star, then turn back into regular
Punky and spray the flagpole to end the stage. You'll get 5 bonus stars
for every hit point you have left at the end of the stage.
End-Of-Stage Bonus Game: Captain Flag. You'll have to react before
Nash's robot to raise or lower the correct flag; do the wrong thing or go
too slow, and you'll lose a point to the robot. Get them all right, and
you'll get a quarter-tomato, good for one-fourth of a hit point.
New Gear: Pogo Stick. Yes, Nash gives you something you already
had.
MUSHROOM ROMP
You start this stage naked, with no gear. Go to the right, and
spray the Chew. You'll see a new type of Chew here: the Caterpillar
Chew, who climb trees with spikes on their backs. If you spray any Chew
using a piece of gear, they'll drop a hit point or a star when they die.
Keep going on the mushroom tops; soon after you're done with them, you'll
find the pogo stick. (Don't pogo onto spikes, including enemies with
spikes -- they still hurt you!) Pogo up the shelf mushrooms, then go to
the left on the mushroom tops. When you come to another mushroom stalk
with shelf mushrooms on it, go up that (avoiding a Caterpillar Chew on the
way up), and you'll see a 1-Up hanging in midair. Grab that, and don't
worry about having to do half the stage again; you'll land on a shelf with
a star and a full heal. Go back up the stalk, and bounce to the right.
Pogo across the mushrooms, being careful to make the jumps exactly, and
thump the Big Badler flagpole with your pogo.
End-Of-Stage Bonus Game: Pedal Generator. You have 60 seconds to
mash buttons: pedal hard enough to get each of four lights to turn on.
The charge slowly diminishes if you're not pedaling, so it's virtually
impossible to get all four lights on at once. I've never done it, so I
don't know what a perfect entails. Maybe a turbo controller could do it?
Even a 'mediocre' performance -- two lights on at the end of the game --
will net you a quarter-tomato.
New Gear: Snowboard.
COOL RUNNIN' (Called Pri Pri Glacier in the japanese)
Two new enemies this stage: the Helichew, who flies about
erratically, and the Bowling Chew, who chucks bowling pins at you. (Good
thing Badler can't afford to give his goons guns.) Now, jump in the
basket, and take the road up. Get the 10-star, and go up the next basket.
You can't move while the basket's rails are up, so make sure to spray the
Helichew first. Jump up some more platforms, take the final basket up,
and once you're at the top of the mountain, snag that snowboard!
This half stage is unlike the first half of the stage. Go to the
right, and don't jump yet -- you'll gain a huge burst of speed. When you
get to top speed, you'll begin glowing, and burning through enemies. And
that is the majority of it; in this stage, you have no enemies that can
hit you. On the first steep drop, jump a small jump; you'll hit a patch
with an extra star and an extra hit point. On the second steep drop,
jump halfway down; you'll land on the Flag platform.
End-Of-Stage Bonus Game: Slot Machine. The more Punky Skunks you
line up, the better your prize. The fourth reel has four Badler Wolves
and one Punky; hit this first, because every time you hit a reel, the
others speed up. The third reel has three Chews and two Punky Skunks;
hit this second. Then, hit the second wheel (with two Kelly Bunnies
and three Punky Skunks), and hit the first reel (with one Nash Badger
and four Punky Skunks) last. You'll net yourself another quarter-tomato.
New Gear: Skates.
DESERT DERBY
You'll see the Skates right in front of you. Snag those; the stage
won't go on until you're rolling. Now, when you're rolling, you'll see a
new kind of enemy: a Ostrich Chew. These enemies appear in the
background, and throw spears into Punky's way; running into a spear trips
Punky, and since the stage is scrolling, you're liable to be scrolled
off-screen and out of the game. Every play is different, so I can't tell
you anything specific here; just worry about the spears, and pay attention
when one is thrown from offscreen. You'll get a 1-Up just before a series
of difficult-to-jump gaps: remember that you're going to land on the
small patches of land still rolling, and you'll do fine. When you see the
Japanese sign advertising Badler's amusement park, you're home free.
End-Of-Stage Bonus Game: Matching. You'll see a lot of small
pictures in similar poses; you'll have to pick the one on the board that
exactly matches the one show. You have 30 seconds to match. The more
matches you make, the better gear you get -- I got 12 matches once and
ended up with four extra lives.
New Gear: Diggers.
PATHGRINDER
There's a new enemy in this stage: the Pratfalling Chew. They can
use a dangerous leap attack, but they trip 50% of the time. You still
get a bonus star/HP for beating a Pratfalling Chew, however.
Keep going to the right. Go down the first sand tube you come
across, but be wary of the spikes at the bottom; there's two 10-stars in
that little nook. Go up the sand tube by jumping back up, and head to
the right, spraying Chews as you go. Ignore the extra skunk for now;
we'll get back to it. Go down the next sand tube, again being wary of
the spikes; you'll grab the Diggers. Now, go through the sand to the
left, and be careful not to let the Bits out; the stars and hit point
aren't worth it. Follow the sand, and you'll end up facing right. Hit
the Helichew, and jump over the sand tube here if you can; although you
can go down a little, there's nothing down there, and it's easy to fall
off the screen. Go through the tube, and use the lower entrance to the
dirt. It's going to be more difficult to not let the Bits out here,
because you have to breach some of their chambers to squeeze through.
You'll come out of that tube again above ground, and right in front of
the flag -- but it's not quite over yet. Jump on that small rock
outcropping, then onto the big pile to your left; go though, and
carefully jump onto the 1-Up platform. Go back to the right, and hit
the flagpole.
End-Of-Stage Bonus Game: None. See cutscene.
New Gear: None. See cutscene.
WOODLAND ISLAND CUTSCENE
Commander Chew and the BB Brigade find Nash cowering -- Badler Wolf
wants him to make gadgets for him, not Punky! The Brigade takes him,
bound, to somewhere unknown Punky gives the wost outtake to grace a
videogame when he hears the news, and pledges to find wherever Badler's
keeping Nash. Now Punky has a friend and a home to save -- suspense!
Also, now you can access the world map.
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5b. KAHUNA BAY STAGES
=================================
FOUNTAIN FOLLIES
This is an interesting stage: you're in a water park. Go to the
right and up the stairs, but be careful; a Diver Chew will attack from
below. The water currents in this stage act like the quicksand; you can
jump up to go against the flow. There are two other new enemies here: a
Faucet Chew, who will drop mines into the water, and a Sailboarding Chew,
who will try to get you when you are in the water's stream. Go to the
right, and when you get the choice of a high road or a low road, choose
the high road. When you come to the block with spikes on three sides, if
you're confident in your jumping skills, you can try to jump atop it to
get the two 10-stars; otherwise, take the stream under the block.
Continue to the right, past the Diver Chews, and ignore the pogo stick;
you can't get it. Jump from current to current here.
Soon, you'll see a green platform that's crying (?). Jump on it,
and it'll get happy for being used, and fall; so don't tarry. There is a
hidden bonus game here: jump up the stream going up repeatedly, and
you'll go behind the blocks. Spray the candle, and it'll turn into a
bonus game entry! You'll get to play Captain Flag again. It'll be a
little harder this time, but not by much; just don't freak and you'll beat
him. Now, you'll have to start the stage over from the beginning -- but
with another quarter tomato and a 1-up!
Get back to where you were before. Follow the current, and make the
jump to go across the gap up the next current. Hit the two divers and the
Fountain Chew, and if you're confident, try for the 10-star near the
bottom of the gap before the next jump. You've cleared the stage.
RAINFOREST RALLY
This is another skating stage. In the background, you'll see a
second track, with a Slingshot Chew launching cherry bombs onto the stage;
you can't do anything about him. You'll also see Walker Chews bouncing
in the stage, but you can defeat them readily by bopping them with your
skates. Again, there is little to say about a skating stage; don't run
into the cherry bombs, and don't fall down!
There is an extra 1-up in the stage. To get it, jump on its
platform, then quickly jump back to the left to gain the altitude to cross
the gap.
PATHGRINDER II
Another digging stage. Snag the claws and follow the dirt tube down.
You'll find a new kind of 'enemy' in this stage: rocks that will fall if
you dig out all the dirt underneath them. They don't hurt you, but they
can force you to take the long way, so plan ahead. Also, you'll find
Burrowing Chews, who can dig through the ground like Punky now can --
only they don't leave trails, and they can move behind the dirt. When
you come to a T-junction, you have to choose: big risk for big rewards,
or just finish the darn stage?
If you want to take a risk, go to the right, then up. To get the
two big stars here, you'll have to dig, fall, manage to land on the ledge,
make a flying leap, and use your transformation ability in midair to catch
your claws back onto the dirt -- difficult!
If you're a more conservative player, go to the left. You'll find a
metal door that unleashes Burrowing Chews; beat so many Burrowing Chews or
attack the door directly and the door goes bye-bye. Go to the right, and
pick one of three paths down; the left nets you a 10-star, the right nets
you a full heal, and the center nets you a hit point. Go to the left, and
down the next tunnel. Follow the serpentine path; you should be able to
pass all the Bits with ease. Hit the door and let the PS load a new
tileset, and it's on to part two of the stage!
Jump up to the platform, grabbing the heal sphere if you need to, and
grab another set of diggers. Go up and grab the two big stars, then go
back down; you can't make the jump up from here. Go down, and and two the
left, then go back up; now you can make the platform jump. If you spray
the candle again, you'll see another bonus game icon, but you're going to
lose it; it's that darn pedal-bike game, and I can't beat it, but I assume
you get another quarter-tomato if you win. Go to the right instead, and up
that thin area. Go up, clear out ALL the dirt under the loose rock, and
get out of the way; then, jump on the rock and continue. Repeat one more
time, then go to the left and start jumping across the walls. Going into
the dirt to the right, kill the Burrowing Chew Tube, and follow the path.
There's a lot more of these tubes, and they're releasing a lot more Chews!
DRILL SERGEANT
It sounds like a bonus game, but it's actually a boss! Commander
Chew has a new weapon, and he's dying to try it out on poor Skunky.
From the dozen holes in the stage, flame jets and screws will come after
you; ignore the flames and spray the screws, for that's Commander Chew.
If you spray a flame jet, it'll explode and send shrapnel all over,
hurting Punky. The longer you wait, and the more the Commander is hurt,
the more flame jets will appear; don't dally!
When you win, you see the 'Island Clear' screen (but no cutscene,
boo!). Congrats! Kahuna Bay Island is free from Badler!
More to come!
