Note: you will need to turn on keyboard control to use the arrow keys !! to do this press c on the help menu. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- | Hints for | | Janitor Joe! | ---------------------------------------------------------------------- WARNING: The following information is top secret. Only authorized Personnel may view! Also, any not wishing further hints on the aforesaid game are encouraged to stop reading here. These hints were obtained both by official testing of the software and sneaky decoding of it (called 'cheating' in other terms.) 1) First screen: Major problem is jumping over enemy robots. Two methods: head on and from behind Head on) get a running start and jump when about two characters away. (from now on small distances will be refered to by character width [in 80 column mode]) From Behind) start running and jump just before hitting the robot (about 1/2 to 3/4 characters) also on first screen are pits. Just remember to jump at the last second. Many times you should wait on the level below a robot until it passes over you and then go up. 2) Second screen: Must watch out for slides and robots. Possible hangups: run over slide top without jumping and accidentally slide down. Get the key on the far right side before the others. This one must be gotten last because there is no way to get off the platform. Some secrets: the major problem with a robot will be the one in the middle who you will encounter very early in the game. I've found the safest way to get by him is to wait on the ledge on the right side of him until he comes towards you and starts back. At that moment jump onto the same ledge as him. Then when he turns back at you, run towards him and follow the previous instructions for jumping a robot head on. Be sure to jump again when you land on his head so you don't die there. There are many keys just beyond slide entrances. Be sure to jump over the slides before getting the keys. 3) Third screen: This is an easy one. Just push the joystick button or spacebar to start the elevators. Remember to get off the elevators between floors, not when you are right next to a level. 4) Fourth screen: Interesting. The main thing you will need to know is where those ladders are. One is just right of where you start. It goes up. Another starts on the far left side at the bottom and goes all the way up the side to the next floor level. Another is at the far right side and starts at the second floor up. The last that I've found starts on the long floor in the middle, towards the left side. It is right under a lone platform. Go up it then go down and you will get flashing colors and the next key you get will be worth many points. The author's name also appears. If you can find a ladder that I haven't mentioned, please let me know. I would greatly appreciate it. 5) Fifth screen: This is a toughy to describe. First go to the top of the screen and be sure to jump onto the mover. Then jump off when you get across. Go down the ladder part way, but not so far as to let the robot get your legs when he passes under you. Just as he passes you going left, you go down and jump to the ledge on the right. Jump across all the little ones (there is one that you will have to jump from the far left edge to make it) then climb up the ladder and get the key. Then go down and go to the far left side of that platform before jumping again. Jump back to the floor with the robot (when he's on the other side, of course) and walk off to the right. Then go left down the slope and stop. This part gets tricky. You are going to walk off to the left and the mover will go to the right. See that ladder over there to the right that you will pass right over? You are going to have to walk off onto it in mid flight. Just as you approach it, start walking to the left. Then walk off and you should fall onto it, providing you walked at the right time. Then jump and walk to the left and get that key. Then land on that last mover and push up. Keep pushing it until you start going up the ladder that you passed under. Get that key and get back on the mover. Jump off and climb back up to the old mover. Jump either straight up or to the right, depending on where you stopped the mover when you jumped off. Now you have a real job. Remember robots? Well you have to jump on this guy's head and past him to the right side. Just pretend you are on a solid piece of ground and do a head on jump. From there on it's easy. 6) Sixth screen: there is no normal sixth screen. Normally you will get a little intermission and start over at a harder level. The program mentions a Secret Room in the instructions. I have failed to find an entrance to this room. If anyone can tell me how to get there from the regular game, please tell me. I have gotten there illegally and all it is is an extra credit screen. Lots of keys and 3 robots. Through looking at the program with DEBUG, I was able to locate a way of getting to any screen from the very start of the game. When you are at the menu (with P>lay, J>oystick, S>ound, etc.) type the following: JOEn with a capital JOE and where n stands for the screen you want to start at, 6 being the secret screen. Then type P and the desired level of difficulty. Those are all of the hints and advice I can come up with at the moment. If anybody has found an easier or more reliable way to get through a section, I'd be glad to hear about it. As I said, I would especially like to know how to get to the secret room the real way. Happy gaming.