Proto:Darkwing Duck

This Darkwing Duck prototype is a late build: Most of the game content is present, though there are a lot of small changes to level layouts and object graphics.

Intro
The copyright information was updated to include the copyright year. "Capcom Co., Ltd." was shortened to "Capcom".

The bridge lights were changed from pink to yellow. The shadow by the last blue building was also adjusted slightly.

General


After beating a boss, Darkwing will jump up clear through the screen! This was taken out of the final version.

Darkwing does his little spring jump when you continue in the prototype, while he flies by in the Thunderquack in the final version. Note also that the prototype does not have an option to go to the stage select, but rather an option to quit the game.

The highway design was changed from a flat perspective to slightly overhead. The exclamation point by the special point bonus was removed, as were the leading zeroes of the total point score.

This is nitpicky to a sad extreme, but aside from the aforementioned perspective change, Darkwing is placed one pixel lower in the final version.


 * Darkwing's hanging physics are still quite buggy in this version. He will often fail to hang on something even after coming in contact with it, and when he does hang, it will be to the left, right, or above where he's supposed to be.
 * Gas pickups don't carry over to other stages in the prototype.
 * Select gives a clean pause in the prototype. This means that to switch gas, you have to press Select twice.
 * Steelbeak's message at the end of the game is missing.
 * Two debugging features are enabled on the second controller – Down resets the game, B toggles invincibility mode (Darkwing will pass through enemies and power-ups, and will not take damage from spikes).
 * There are two bugs with the cape shield that were fixed for the final version:


 * If the player has the cape up while standing on an arrow platform, a bug occurs when the platform falls. Darkwing will float in the air until the player either drops the cape or jumps.


 * Darkwing will also fail to take damage from spikes if the shield is up. This means the player can jump from spike to spike as long as they don't hold let go of the Up button.

Bonus Stages
The bonus stage intro text was completely rewritten for the final. Here, the first bonus stage's items went from being stolen by F.O.W.L. to being taken by some random burglars. With the added text, it almost makes sense now!

Here, J. Gander Hooter (actual name) gives an explanation as to why you're in the sewer blocking capsules with your cape. The prototype doesn't really have an explanation. The final version definitely added some personality to the game's text.

Bonus Stage 1
The bonus stages' artwork was totally altered for the final build. The first bonus stage's location changed from a rocky cliff at night, to a rooftop at daytime. Aside from a small gap under the left cliff, the layout is identical between versions.

Bonus Stage 2
More scenery changes. This amusement park(?!) location was changed to some kind of sewer. Again, the layout is unchanged. The clouds in the prototype are still used in the final version's first bonus stage.

Stage Select
There's a bug present here in the prototype, where Launchpad will continue to use his talking animation while the player is choosing which stage to select.

A lot of the stage select text was altered. In the stage intro, Launchpad now uses his familiar moniker for Darkwing, "DW".

Just a minor grammatical correction here.

"Wolfman Duck" was corrected in the final version to "Wolfduck", but the text was not realigned to compensate.

The third stage's level name changed from the Underpass to the Sewers.

Some L/R confusion! "Moriarty" completely bungles the pun in the character name. Luckily this was fixed in the final version.

Launchpad steals Darkwing Duck's catchphrase! This blatant theft is not present in the final.

Bridge (Quackerjack)
Another bat was added to this section for the final version.

All pulleys were moved 16 pixels to the right.

A lot of objects here were shuffled around. The diamond in the prototype was changed to gold bars and moved over to the left, and a large health pickup was added. The third platform was moved up 16 pixels, placing it on the same plane as the first platform.

City (Wolfduck)
The tires here were moved closer to the walls in the final. The Arrow Gas pickup is positioned a bit higher in the prototype.

The gold bars and health are level in the prototype, but in the final build the gold bars were moved to the right, and the health to the left.

The last platform before the spikes was longer in the prototype.

This brown building was lowered for the final version, and the buildings in the background were altered as well.

Sewers (Liquidator)
This hidden room of the Sewers is a lot more sadistic in the prototype, and the rewards are less plentiful. The final removes the floor spikes and places the floating platforms lower. It also adds two extra lives: one new, and one replacing the large gas pickup.

The green platform here no longer goes in-between the two spike bars, making this section a bit more forgiving.

The kangaroo enemy was moved one pillar to the right.

Woods (Bushroot)
A recurring theme in this stage, the placement of the background rocks differs between the prototype and final release. The tree tile in the upper-tile corner was also changed.

More background rock placement changes. The large platform extends further down in the prototype.

Yet more background rock differences, and the first lantern here was moved down 16 pixels.

And yet again.

Wharf (Megavolt)
The steel platform was moved further to the left. A ceiling was added to hold the hook platforms, and a second hook tacked on as well. Like the bridge stage, the pulleys here were moved 16 pixels to the right.

The extended ledge in the prototype makes it possible for the platform to pass through you. This was fixed in the final.

The standard pulley change. The first spike on the ground is elevated higher in the prototype, and the rings around the ceiling spikes were lowered for the retail version.

More stage elements were moved to the right. This includes all pickups, the pulley, and the pole at the bottom. The final also has less cracks in the walls.

The largely pointless small health pickup was replaced with a large gas pickup. The final also removes one of the cracks in the walls and extends the top of the bottom platform.

Tower (Moliarty)
The two connectors on the bottom I-Beam aren't present in the final.

The number of lanterns was reduced from four to two and recentered. The bottom I-beam was lowered to match.



As a result of this change, these shadow tiles are only used in the prototype. The tiles are blanked out in the final version.

Sections of wall now jut out at the ends of this spike pit, and the red platform was moved up 8 pixels.

The second I-Beam protrudes more to the left in the prototype.

Moliarty's boss room is harder in the prototype. All the machines are active at the start, while in the final version the lower machine starts out broken.



Moliarty's A.I. isn't quite finished yet. He will not move horizontally at all unless it's to fix one of the machines. While he's fixing the machines, he fires a steady supply of hammers. This thankfully doesn't happen in the final.

Fortress (Steelbeak)
The final version adds a heavy gas pickup here, making all three gas types available at the start.

The prototype has two platform switches, while the final build has one platform switch and two of those donut platforms. The background tiles were also adjusted.

One last orange platform was added in the final version. The two pickups were moved up a whopping 1 pixel.

The lights on the wall aren't present in the prototype.

Object Graphics
Differences abound, as do graphics erased completely from the final version!

General
The standard gas shot is smaller in the final version.

This also applies to the gas seen in the heavy gas pickup.

The light on top of the Eggman Gel enemy is larger in the final version.



Some of the banks are numbered in the prototype. These numbers were blanked out in the final version.

Bridge


The prototype has a hook sprite. This hook appears in the final game, but as a background graphic. It's possible it was meant to move. There's also what appears to be a spear.

Sewers
The crow's eyes in the prototype are half-closed. They're fully open in the final version.

The black outline around the Kangaroo's bombs was removed in the final build.



A larger fragment that would have been created by the Hammer Eggmen.

Forest
The owl in the prototype was made more menacing by turning it into some kind of hawk.

Wharf
The more dangerous-looking platforms were redesigned to look more natural. Since the platforms can't damage you in the prototype either, this is no big loss.

Tower
Moliarty's machines had their lights redrawn.



This ash and flame were probably intended to be used when Darkwing Duck is hit by the flame. These graphics were overwritten in the final version with the Steelbeak's cycling lights.

Fortress
Steelbeak's chair was touched up a bit, and Steelbeak himself was put in a more relaxed pose.

Steelbeak's face was changed to more closely match his design in the cartoon.