Proto:Dynamite Headdy (Genesis)/April Prototype/Scenes 5 to 8

This is a sub-page of Proto:Dynamite Headdy (Genesis)/April Prototype.

Scene 5-1

Prototype	Final

This scene has another Liberty Head in the final version, so it's not completely pointless anymore. Some of the tiles on the left side of the bridge aren't properly oriented in the prototype. The brightest color of the bridge (used on the rivets) is duller in the final.

Prototype	N/A
Final

Scene 5-2

Prototype	Final

The background of this scene uses a markedly darker palette in the prototype.

Maruyama's Tower Crasher behaves differently. Maruyama sways back and forth in the air, getting close enough to get into Headdy's range. In the final version, he flies more-or-less in place, out of range. Maruyama will never charge at Headdy as he does in the final version. Maruyama can be hit at any time in the prototype! In the finished game, he can only be hit after charging at Headdy, and even then he can only be hit once. The Tower Crasher takes 8 hits to defeat, just as it does in the international versions. In the final Japanese version, it takes just 4 hits. When the Tower Crasher is defeated, the body explodes, and the head and claw fall. In the final version, all three pieces fall, and the "winding down" sound is used. After the Tower Crasher is defeated, the player is immediately taken to the next stage. In the final version, the player must climb to the top of the screen first.

Scene 5-3

Prototype	Final

The location and quantity of flamethrowers changed: The prototype has two flamethrowers placed on opposite sides. They're in the same place on both levels. The finished game has four flamethrowers equidistant to each other. The ones on the top level are placed in-between the ones on the lower level.

Prototype	Final

The rotating tower continues above the screen in the prototype. The cannonball shooters, like the flamethrowers, are placed differently. The two shooters in the prototype are on opposite sides, with one placed below the Hangman to the next tier. The five shooters in the prototype encircle the Hangman to the next tier. There's no HeadCase in the prototype, making the Armored Soldier fight take quite a bit longer. There's no health fruit either.

Prototype	N/A
Final

The boss arenas in the prototype don't move. In the final game, they constantly move upward. After defeating the Armored Soldier, Headdy walks to the center of the screen in the final version. In the prototype he just kinda warps there.

Scene 5-4

Prototype	Final

In the prototype background, the sun uses Headdy's palette instead of the background's palette.

Motor Hand has no intro animation, so Beau points at the battery pack when it's not even on-screen. Like in Scene 2-3, Bino isn't worth a Secret Bonus Point, and he explodes upon defeat rather than just falling off the stage.

Scene 6-1

Prototype	Final

In-between the prototype and the final version, the Sale sign was changed and the game was demoted from No.1 Action to Head Action. Whatever those mean.

Prototype
Final

The white cows face right in the prototype and left in the final version. Good change. Worth it. Three of the butterflies were removed to make room for more cows. Never enough cows. The weird Secret Bonus cow is missing from the prototype version. The reliable Liberty Head shows up here as well, but only in the final game. As usual.

Prototype	N/A
Final

The Bino / Fat bird takes two hits in the prototype and just one in the final version. This is a proper Secret Bonus Point in both versions! Since there are only four Keymaster bosses in the prototype, Yayoi's pack takes 4 keys. This was appropriately changed to 5 keys in the retail game. Izayoi is a pushover in the prototype. She doesn't cover her face after being hit, and she has no counter-attack sequence. The Dark Demon Castle background isn't animated in the prototype. There is a total of 7 secrets listed in the score tally, compared to 3 in the final. Maruyama doesn't show up for his short post-boss scene.

Scene 7-1

Prototype	Final

The first pit area in the prototype isn't, well, a pit area. This was fixed, and the Dark Soldiers & HeadCase were moved to the right. This is the only change. Really!

Scene 7-2

Prototype
Final

The "Welcome!" sign and Headcase were placed further to the left. Not much else to say about that, really.

Scene 7-3

Prototype	Final

There are a total of 4(!) health fruits in the first section of the prototype. One of those was replaced by a 500 point bonus. The other fruit was replaced by the last Liberty Head Headcase. The platform he's on was extended slightly to accommodate him. The second Head Spitter was moved up to the platform on the left. With where it is in the prototype, Headdy can just jump over it.

Prototype	N/A
Final

The stone bricks in the prototype act like platforms; they're not solid at the bottom. They're completely solid in the final game. The brown-yellow blocks that make up the stage are completely solid in the prototype. This is a bad thing: Headdy can easily get himself crushed by using the Spike Head on ceilings. They were changed to alternate between solid and hollow every 8 pixels, which is how blocks act in every other stage. The "DON'T SHOOT" bricks don't do anything in the prototype. The graphics for the Buddha and Bino markers are in the game, though.

Scene 7-4

Prototype	Final

The screen-flipping graphics in the prototype bleed a little bit, mostly at the top and bottom. This was fixed in the final version.

Prototype	Final

HeadCase is absent yet again in the prototype stage. The "SHOT" sign was straight-out removed from the final game.

Prototype	Final

HeadCase. Added. The sun blocks in Thunder Captain's arena are star blocks in the final version.

	HeadCase Set 1	HeadCase Set 2
Prototype	N/A	N/A
Final

The stage signs in the prototype are incorrectly rotated 180 degrees. They're supposed to be flipped vertically like everything else. The Floor Sweeper enemy has 5 HP in the prototype and 2 HP in the final game. The Trick Hat enemy has 5 HP in the prototype and 3 HP in the finished game.

Scene 7-5

Prototype	Final

The background in the prototype version uses a darker, redder palette.

Prototype
Final

The layouts are completely different between versions. There's no real point between versions where the layouts match up. The prototype's section focuses on spike pits, while the final section focuses on quick screen switching.

Prototype
Final

There are a number of points in the prototype where Headdy can stand on the wooden floor / ceiling. The red girder blocks in the prototype don't show up anywhere in the final stage layout. A HeadCase was added to the middle of this section (flipped side only).

Prototype
Final

The holes that periodically appear in the wooden floor / ceiling are absent from the prototype. Overall, the block layout in the prototype is messier than in the final version, which is mostly made up of flat surfaces.

Prototype
Final

Like the first section, the focus here changed from spike pits to quick screen flipping. A particularly hard bit was added near the end. That last switch has to be hit quickly or Headdy will be crushed. HeadCase was added to the end of the section.

	HeadCase Set 1	HeadCase Set 2
Prototype	N/A	N/A
Final

Rever Face doesn't have a green palette in the prototype; He's red all day, every day. Rever Face takes 17 hits to defeat, just as he does in the NA/EU versions. In the final JP version, he takes 33 hits. Rever Face's projectiles use garbage tiles in the prototype. He has only one type of shot which moves in a parabolic pattern.

Scene 8-1

Prototype	Final

The chains in the stage aren't as rusty in the final game.

Prototype	Final

The design of the beams was simplified for the final version.

Prototype	Final

Furthering this simplification trend, the platforms guides were shortened to one bar.

Prototype	Final

And again, two become one. Two ropes, that is.

Prototype	Final

The yellow lines were removed from this piece of scenery at the end of the stage. Improvement?

Prototype	Final

Two of the normal crates were changed to Hammer crates. Of course, a HeadCase with a Hammer Head needed to be added as a result. Too bad he also has a Buddha Head! The two Ojizos switched platforms in the final layout.

Prototype	Final

This section is more difficult in the finished game. Headdy has to jump onto the first row of spikes, go all the way to the left, then get in the right position to get past the final row. One of the spike platforms was deleted from the final version due to the above change.

Prototype	Final

There are no platform tracks in the prototype stage. The Pin Head path is more difficult in the final game, with more turns required to avoid getting crushed. The last Battle Tanky is improperly placed in a wall in the prototype. An increase in difficulty should mean better rewards, so the 500 point bonus and health fruit were replaced with extra lives.

	Headcase Set 1	Headcase Set 2
Prototype	N/A
Final

The cutscene at the end of the stage is missing all sound effects, and the music doesn't stop playing like it does in the finished game.

Scene 8-2

Prototype	Final

The clouds in this stage were redrawn. The slowest-moving row of clouds was removed, and the remaining two layers were enlarged.

There's a health fruit at the start of the stage in the final version. It takes 8 hits to dislodge Maruyama in the prototype, but just 4 hits in the final game. The stage ends right after the Spider Phantom breaks down in the prototype. It lasts a little longer in the finished game.

Scene 8-3

Prototype	Final

The final stage's BG had a bit of a makeover between the prototype and final builds.

There's a skylight in the prototype's foreground. This was removed from the final game, presumably due to the changed star graphics (see below). The yellow rings around the pillars are missing from the prototype's foreground. All of the pillars are at the same height in the final version. The two torches were replaced by gargoyles. The endless hallway behind the curtain was replaced by a modestly-sized throne. The eagle atop the doorway was changed to some kind of demon man. A "FINAL SCENE" sign was added in the finished game.

The old room design is still used in the Game Gear port!

Prototype	Final

The background is more star-studded in the final game. The stars at the top and bottom are also more detailed in the final version.

Prototype
Final

All of the blocks in the prototype's stone crusher use the same design. One of the one-block gaps in the middle was widened to a two-block gap. This way, wherever the crusher stops, there will always be a two-wide gap for Headdy to crawl into.

Before each Dark Demon attack, four different heads out of a set of eight circle Headdy. Only two of those heads were changed.

Prototype
Final

The Empty Head was removed because it trivialized every attack, and the Sleepy Head was removed because being able to refill health made the fight too easy.

Dark Demon can be attacked multiple times per phase in the prototype. Obviously, this makes the fight a lot faster and easier to get through. Dark Demon has 17 HP, as he does in the final international game. In the final Japanese game, this was lowered to 9 HP. The crusher has no collision detection in the prototype. It can't harm Headdy at all! Though the post-boss cutscene is complete, there's no ending programmed yet. In this build, Smiley is stuck to Headdy's face for all of eternity.

Secret Boss

Even though the Bonus Stage and Number Pad screens aren't in the game yet, the secret final boss screen is! Use Pro Action Replay (PAR) code FFE8C3:0034 on the Stage Select screen to access it.

Prototype	Final

There's no actual boss fight here yet, though. The background is static in the prototype. In the final game, the clouds have parallax scrolling, and a helicopter moves in and out of frame. The pen holder and paper stack are part of the background in the prototype. In the final game these were both changed to sprites, so that when the boss slams his desk, they both fly up. Exiting the stage right leads to the Game Over screen.

Cast Roll

This is partially coded as well. Use Pro Action Replay (PAR) code FFE8C3:003E on the Stage Select screen to access it.

Prototype	Final

The prototype reuses the title screen's background as a placeholder for the final version's unique design. The sign was also moved to the right, just a tad.

Prototype	Final

The villagers stop on different frames in each version.

Prototype	Final

The torch-bearing D.D. Soldier was moved to the top of the sign. The sword-carrying D.D. Soldier is animated in the final game, making the freaked-out soldier's reaction more reasonable.

Prototype	Final

Two more Flying Soldiers were added on both sides.

Prototype	Final

The deflating Balloon Kelly flies further in the final version.

Prototype	Final

HangMan's graphics aren't properly loaded in the prototype.

There are no enemy names in the prototype. Smiley's dialogue from Scene 8-3, え (What?), is used as filler. In the final game, all of the enemies are silent. They still have their sound effects in the prototype. After finishing with the Scene 8 enemies, two garbage objects walk across the screen. After that, the game locks up.

(Source: Original TCRF research, http://ristar-cluster.info/dh/index-dh.html)