Proto:Dynamite Headdy (Genesis)/April Prototype

Compiled in April 1994 (if the header is correct), this near-final prototype was somehow leaked onto the internet.

General Differences

 * There are no flying stages (Scenes 6-1 to 6-4 in the final game) in the prototype! In fact, based on the way the scenes are stored by ID, the flying stages were among the last things added to the game, even after the ending sequence!
 * There's no assigned button for cancelling heads in the prototype: Instead, pressing A+B+C will cancel heads.
 * Headdy jumps into frame at the start of each scene in the final version. In the prototype, he's just there by default.
 * The Bonus Game hasn't been designed yet.
 * The ending sequence hasn't been programmed yet.

End of Stage Differences

 * Getting a continue requires just 5 continue icons. This means that multiple continues can be earned per stage boss! In the final Japanese game, the requirement was upped to 10 icons.
 * The stage's palette doesn't fade while bonus points are being tallied.
 * "Time Points" are called "Clear Points".
 * Most of the Secret Bonus Points aren't present in the prototype game.
 * After completing a level, Headdy does not do his celebratory animation.

Head Differences
Bomb Head In the prototype, this head can only be cancelled after it explodes. It can be cancelled at any time in the finished game.

Buddha Head This head can be cancelled in the prototype, making it pretty much pointless.

Liberty Head

This head's animations are complete, but getting this head will not transport the player to the Bonus Stage, seeing as it's not yet in the game and all.

Use the PAR code and hit Mokkun (HeadCase) in Scene 2-2 to get this head.

Sleepy Head In the prototype game, Headdy will be healed after he falls asleep on the ground. (This is also how it works in the Game Gear port!)

In the final game, Headdy will be healed as soon as he picks the Sleepy Head up.

Super Head
 * Headdy has a higher maximum speed in the prototype, moving at 7 pixels / frame. The final game caps this at 5 pixels / frame.
 * Headdy's vertical shooting speed is out of control in the prototype, moving at around 20 pixels / frame, or about twice as fast. It also reaches twice as far.

Ticker Head This head is never available from HeadCase in the prototype, though it is partially coded. Use the PAR code and hit HeadCase in Scene 2-2 to get this head.


 * The Ticker Head uses a (possibly incorrect) blue palette in the prototype.
 * Stage 2-2's background, the 500 point bonuses, and Fukkun (HangMan) have their animations properly frozen.
 * HeadCase's cycling heads are frozen, but HeadCase himself is not.
 * All other animations are not frozen. No object has been coded to freeze while the Ticker Head is active.

Triple Head Hitting something with the center head will retract the two other heads in the prototype. This was fixed in the final version, making the head a lot more useful.

Damage Values
The amount of damage taken from enemy attacks is usually just 1 HP in the prototype. Most attacks do different damage in the final game:

Treasure Logo

 * The Treasure logo screen is slightly longer, with the Treasure name animated onto the screen.
 * The Treasure logo is missing its trademark symbol.
 * Both the SEGA and Treasure logos can be skipped in the prototype.

Title Screen

 * The ™ sign near the logo is missing. Dynamite Headdy's face was slightly redrawn to seem a little less frightening and his bow-tie became a little more detailed.
 * Bizarrely, the copyrights have logos (which do have ™ signs) and it says "Press Start" even though it is based off the Japanese version.
 * The stage select is enabled by default.

Options

 * The options screen has a difficulty selection of Easy, Normal, and Hard which does not have any effect.
 * There also seems to be an option to select between one-player and two-player modes. This also doesn't do anything.
 * Controls can't be reassigned in the prototype.

Attract Mode
Since Scene 2-2's HeadCase placement was changed, the demo had to be rerecorded. The final demo is 30 seconds longer and than the prototype's demo.

Debug Mode
A debug mode is present in the game, but is somewhat buggy. When you pause the game, you can press the following:


 * A - Look at tile collision...in theory. On most levels this just crashes the game.
 * B - Activate debug mode; change object.
 * C - Place object.
 * Start - Resume gameplay.
 * Direction Pad - Move around the map.

Additionally, pressing A+B+C+Start will reset the game.

Tileset Graphics
''These are only general graphics changes. For more specific level graphic changes, see the level comparison pages.''

Unused Graphics


This is the original graphic for the Ticker Head. In the final game, is used for the Ticker Head, but in the prototype it's used for the unimplemented stopwatch head!

Since the stopwatch head was never worked on after this point in development, the Ticker Head took its HeadCase icon, and the visor graphic was deleted from the ROM.



These two planetoids are found in the Final Scene's parallax BG tileset in the prototype, but they're not used. They were overwritten with new star tiles in the final game.

Voice Samples
With the exception of the track "Maruyama Appears", there are no voice samples in the prototype. At all.

Music Differences
Most of the percussion samples in the prototype version were redone for the completed soundtrack.

Escape Hero

The prototype track is missing about a second of music at the end.

Maruyama Appears

Maruyama's intro theme is pitched lower in the prototype, more than half of the track is missing, and the track only plays once.

North Town's Theme

A few of the notes in the track's intro were changed to doubled half-notes. The final track's intro gradually increases in volume.

Why, Figgy

Another track that was pitched higher for the final game.

Hustle Maruyama

Like "Maruyama Appears", this track is still a work in progress. The last half of the track hasn't been composed yet, there are several instruments missing, and the drum loop is a skosh simpler.

South Town's Theme

The last part of the main track has some fancy trills, but only in the final version.

Tower of Puppet

Six orchestral hits were added to the final track's intro piece.

Paradise?

The percussion part of the prototype track uses obvious placeholder instruments. The final piece fills those gaps with tambourines and hi-hats.

Headdy Chant

Obviously the prototype track is missing the actual Headdy Chant.

Missing Tracks
Note: This doesn't count tracks for sequences that haven't been programmed yet (the flying stages, the ending sequence, and the number pad screen).

Sound Effects
The confirmation/tally sound's harsh mechanical plunk was changed to mellifluous chimes.

Puppet Tower makes a sound when it rotates. The sound was changed. Yes.

Balloon Kelly's deflation sound effect is substantially longer in the prototype, enough to last the entire time that they're uncontrollably flailing in the air.

A lower-pitched version of the metallic plink-ing sound is present in the prototype, even though nothing in the game uses it yet.