Nastar Warrior

Nastar Warrior
Also known as: Rastan Saga II (JP), Nastar (EU) Developer: Taito Publisher: Taito Platform: Arcade (Taito B System) Released internationally: March 1989 This game has unused graphics. This game has unused text. This game has a hidden level select.

Nastar Warrior is the sequel to the game Rastan, often considered underwhelming compared to its predecessor.

Round Select

This game uses the Taito Code: While the game boots up, hold the Service Coin button until a "SERVICE SWITCH ERROR" message pops up on the screen. Then, press 1P Start (x3), Service Coin, 1P Start.

This triggers a stage select feature.

Scenes 1, 2, and 3 will place the player at the start, middle, and end, respectively, of the select round.

Scene 4 will place Player 1 and Player 2 at the end of a two player game, when the players must fight to decide who the true winner is.

Unused Enemy Behavior

Upright Blade

The mobile blade obstacles that appear in Round 2 are always on the ceiling, but setting their subtype to 00 will make them move on the ground. Place the following code in MAME's nastar.xml cheat file and enable it after the Taito logo appears to change the first mobile blade in Round 2 to an upright blade:

  <cheat desc="Upright Blade">
    <script state="run">
      <action>maincpu.mb@2750F=0x00</action>
      <action>maincpu.mb@27511=0xD0</action>
    </script>
    <script state="off">
      <action>maincpu.mb@2750F=0x01</action>
      <action>maincpu.mb@27511=0x70</action>
    </script>
  </cheat>

While this variant works as intended, the sparks that are generated when a player hits it will spawn further up than they should.

Alternate Stalactite Speeds

The stalactite-dropping enemies that are found in Round 3 have a frame delay between when their stalactites are destroyed and when they drop another one down. This is normally 8 frames, but there are also 45 and 90 frame variants that aren't placed in any round. Place the following code in nastar.xml and enable it to replace the first stalactite dropper in Round 3 with one of the slower versions:

  <cheat desc="Stalactite Speed">
    <parameter>
      <item value="0x01">Slower</item>
      <item value="0x02">Slowest</item>
    </parameter>
    <script state="run">
      <action>maincpu.mb@276AE=param</action>
    </script>
    <script state="off">
      <action>maincpu.mb@276AE=0x00</action>
    </script>
  </cheat>

(Source: Original TCRF research)

Unused Graphics

Three different versions of the previously mentioned moving blade: One that would move up and down the side of a wall, and two that wouldn't move at all. Tilemaps for these sprites are defined in the ROM, but the sprites aren't referenced anywhere.

Used	Alternate

The eagle enemy uses its own exclusive palette, 48. However, palette 45, which is used by several other enemies, seems to fit it a lot better; this was probably its original intended palette.

(Source: Original TCRF research)

Unused Text

SO, TWO COURAGEOUS YOUNG MEN HAVE RISEN IN REVOLT AGAINST THE WICKED GROUP!

The game has alternate intro text that should appear at the start of a two-player game. However, the intro plays as soon as one player enters the game, and it's not possible for the other player to join until the intro is over, so this text is never seen.

Put the following code in nastar.xml to trigger this intro text:

  <cheat desc="Alternate Intro Text">
    <script state="run">
      <action>maincpu.mb@04BDC=0x66</action>
      <action>maincpu.mb@04C14=0x66</action>
    </script>
    <script state="off">
      <action>maincpu.mb@04BDC=0x67</action>
      <action>maincpu.mb@04C14=0x67</action>
    </script>
  </cheat>

(Source: Original TCRF research)