Mappy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Developer(s) | Namco |
| Publisher(s) | Namco, Bally/Midway |
| Release date(s) | 1983 |
| Genre(s) | Platformer |
| Mode(s) | Up to 2 players, alternating turns |
| Platform(s) | Arcade |
| Input | 2-way Joystick; 1 button |
| Arcade cabinet | Upright and cocktail |
| Arcade system(s) | Namco Super Pac-Man |
| Arcade CPU(s) | 2x M6809 @ 1.536 MHZ |
| Arcade display | Vertical |
Mappy is a 1983 arcade game by Namco. In the U.S., it was manufactured and distributed by Bally/Midway. Mappy is a side-scrolling platformer that features cartoony characters, primarily cats and mice. The game's star character itself is a mouse. Mappy runs on Namco Super Pac-Man hardware, modified to support horizontal scrolling.
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[edit] Game play
The player guides Mappy the police mouse through the mansion of the cats called Mewkies (Meowky in the U.S. version) to retrieve stolen goods. The mansion has six floors of long hallways in which the items are stashed. The items come in pairs; should Mappy get the same items twice in a row, the player earns more points. In addition to Mewkies, the boss cat Nyamco (Goro in the U.S. version) also roams around. He is faster, but less clever than the Mewkies. Should Mappy get an item wherein Nyamco is hiding behind, the player gets a bonus of 1000 points. He only hides behind an object for three seconds, though.
Mappy and the cats move between the floors by bouncing on trampolines at the ends and middle of the hallways, and landing on a floor in the way up, but not on the way down. The trampolines will break if Mappy bounces on them continuously. When they pass in the air, Mappy is unharmed by the cats, but should Mappy run into a cat anywhere else, he will lose a life.
If Mappy tarries too long, a "Hurry" sign appears and the music and the cats are faster. A level is completed when all the loot is retrieved. If the player waits to long after this, the cat coin "Gosenzo" will drop onto the top-middle platform and chase Mappy in a manner similar to the Mewkies.
Many of the hallways have doors which Mappy can slam open or shut to temporarily knock out the Mewkies or Nyamco. Some of these are special "microwave doors" which release a wave which sweeps away any cat in its path (even off the edge of the screen). Every Mewky is 200 points; Nyamco is a multiplier of 200 points times 2. Any cat that is swept away reappears after a short while, jumping from the top center opening in the roof.
The third level and every fourth level after that is a bonus round. Mappy, unbothered by the cats, must bounce across a series of trampolines, popping suspended balloons along the way. A bonus is awarded if all the balloons are popped before the music ends. It is possible to pop the Nyamco balloon even if there is one balloon above him, because Nyamco will break any trampoline and will grab one balloon above him for Mappy.
The eighth to tenth levels have bells, which Mappy can hit so that it temporarily knocks out any cats below. Starting from these stages, the "Hurry" sign will also appear earlier, and there are more Mewkies.
The player uses a left-right joystick to move Mappy and a single button to operate the doors.
[edit] Ports and Sequels
A Japan-only port of the game was released for the Famicom (Japanese version of the NES) and MSX in 1984. This was followed by a video game console-only sequel called Mappy-Land in 1986 (released in the U.S. by Taxan). In the late-1990s, it was released as part of Microsoft's Revenge of the Arcade PC collection. Also, Mappy had several Japan-only sequels, including Hopping Mappy in 1986 for the arcades and Mappy Kids for the Famicom in the late-1980s. There is also a version called Mappy Arrangement which was released in 1995 as part of Namco Classics Collection Volume 1 for the arcade. The Famicom version of the original Mappy was re-released in Japan as part of the Famicom Mini Series in 2004. Mappy is included on the Ms Pac-Man collection manufactured by Jakks Pacific. It is also Featured in the 2005's Namco Museum 50th Anniversary Collection, released on Gameboy Advance, Xbox, Gamecube, PC, and Playstation 2.
[edit] Trivia
- "Mappy" is likely derived from mappo, a Japanese slang term (slightly insulting) for a policeman.
- "Nyamco", besides being a play on "Namco", comes from nyanko, the Japanese equivalent of "kitty cat".
- Nyamco was renamed "Goro" in the U.S. release.
- Mappy's hat is an equippable item in Namco × Capcom
- In Ridge Racer, there are two cars that share the racing team name of this game. The blue car is named "RT Blue Mappy" while the pink car is named "RT Pink Mappy". They were used in Ridge Racer, Ridge Racer 2, Rave Racer, Ridge Racer Revolution, and Ridge Racer 64.
- In R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, there is a racing team that uses this game's name, and in Ridge Racer 64 there is a car that shares this game sponsor used in R4: Ridge Racer Type 4. In R4: Ridge Racer Type 4, "Micro Mouse Mappy" is a racing team that can be selected from the get-go, but Ridge Racer 64 requires that you win Stage 4 (the novice "EXTRA" courses) and beat the car in a Car Attack on Ridge Racer Novice EXTRA.
- Mappy is featured as a cameo in the North American version of QuickSpot.
- There is a Mappy game for the Palm OS, by NI.
[edit] External links
- Mappy at the Killer List of Videogames
- Mappy guide at StrategyWiki
- Mappy Maniac, cataloging all Japanese home conversions.
- Mappyland, a full webpage devoted to Mappy.
