Earning the Dungeon Dash Trophy

After escaping the dark, dreary cell, the young Blumaroo and his sister, a small blue Aisha, looked around, bewildered.

"Where are we?" Abigail whispered anxiously.

"I don’t know," Aristotle A. Avinroo said, correcting his glasses to get a better view of his surroundings, "but I don’t think we should stay here any longer than necessary. We’d better get moving."

But just as AAA had hissed his plans to Abigail, a grinning Wocky dressed in black appeared from a cell.

"You will not escape," he said, "Only a true gamer can break out from these walls. It takes skill, determination, and cunning, abilities that young children cannot comprehend."

"RUUUUN!" AAA yelled as he grabbed his sister’s hand and ran towards a door. Abigail screamed and tried desperately to keep up with his brother. AAA glanced behind him and saw the Wocky dashing towards him and his sister. He had no idea where he was going, but he prayed the doorway would lead to safety.

***

Your aim is to help AAA and Abigail navigate their way out of the dungeons by leaping, digging, and defending against a number of obstacles, including flying ice-cream, falling blocks, and angry Kougras. You can find Dungeon Dash by either searching for the title in the Games Room or by looking in the arcade classics section. This article will give you a level-by-level guide to earning the Dungeon Dash trophy for your cabinet!

The Basics

In order to earn a trophy in this game, you should complete the game and earn the full 5,000 points, which will place you on the high score table. When you see the character selection screen, you must choose AAA. AAA is the only character who is able to gain the complete 5,000 points by the end of the game. However, if you have never played Dungeon Dash before, I strongly advise you to learn the basics of the game by using Abigail as your character. This is because she is able to run up slopes in the second level – an issue we will deal with later in the guide. However, Abigail only earns 800 points per level, which in total makes 4,000 points. This is not enough to earn yourself a shiny trophy!

When you begin your game, you will see your character (either AAA or Abigail) in the centre of the screen. He or she will begin running and you will soon find out that your job to avoid the obstacles in your way! At the top of the screen you will see a bar showing your progress – how far your character (the black shape) is from completing the current level. You will also see a red shape – this is the mischievous Wocky, whose aim is to put you straight back into that dungeon! If the Wocky catches you, you instantly lose the game and you are sent straight back to the dungeon!

The bottom left box shows you all of the items and tools you have picked up on your journeys. To use these items you are able to press the keys ‘x’, ‘c’. ‘v’, ‘b’ and ‘n’ or click the little icons with your mouse. I strongly advise you to use the keys for this game, as during the later levels you must be very quick to change between items and using your mouse will slow you down. Do not worry if this box is empty at the start of the game, you will quickly pick up these items. The middle box shows "End Game", which will exit your game and take you to the send score screen, where you can choose to send your score or restart your game. Remember, you can only send three scores in Dungeon Dash a day! The last box shows the number of lives your character has.

Level One – Snowmuncher

If you have ever played Snowmuncher before, you will instantly recognise this level. AAA must run from the Wocky by jumping over big blocks of pastel coloured snow. This is the easiest level, and should be seen as an opportunity to familiarise yourself with the game, especially as there is no way to lose a life in this level. Use the space bar to make AAA jump over blocks of snow that are in the way. Early in the level, you will also see a shovel lying on the snow. In order to pick this up, simply run past the item – you should now see the shovel on the panel at the bottom left of your screen. This means that you can use the item by either clicking it or using pressing the ‘x’ key on your keyboard just before you reach a snow column that blocks your way. Also, press the ‘x’ key to use the shovel when you are two blocks of snow away from the column – this will enable your character to move the snow and keep running. You don’t want to slow down, as the Wocky guard may catch you!

Later in the level, you will also pick up a bubble item. You do not need to use this until the second level, so do not worry about it until then. Concentrate on helping AAA through the first level!

Continue jumping and digging through snow blocks to get to the second level, which begins at roughly 1,000 points.

Level Two – Turmac Roll

The second level is based on another popular game, Turmac Roll. This is another fairly easy level as there is no way you can lose a life. This level should increase the gap between AAA and the Wocky significantly and chances are you will need this gap later on in the game. Early in the level you will pick up a spring, which enables you to jump much higher. To use this, press the ‘c’ key, and watch AAA fly into the air!

You will also meet new obstacles. First, you will see puddles of mud. These are easily avoided by using the bubble that you picked up in the first level. To use this, you must use the ‘c’ key on your keyboard. The bubble will surround your character, enabling you to run through the mud without slowing down. You may have to press the ‘c’ key again while you are travelling through the puddle, depending on how early you used the bubble, so that it does not burst leaving you stuck in the mud.

The second obstacle is the tree stump. There are two ways to deal with this – the first is by using the spring, which you should have picked up earlier in the level. Just as you are approaching the tree stump, hit the ‘c’ key and AAA should rocket up into the air and over the tree stump. This method is best for people who are not familiar with the game. The second method uses the basic jump – when AAA is close to the lump on the root of the tree stump, press space and AAA should jump over it. This method takes less time, which means that the distance between AAA and the Wocky will increase; however, if you don’t time this right, you will waste more time trying to jump over it than if you had simply used the spring method as I mentioned earlier! You should choose the method that you feel most comfortable with. It is possible to earn the trophy with either method, although the basic jump method will increase the gap between AAA and the Wocky slightly.

The third obstacle is a steep hill. If you use Abigail, you will not notice any problems – Abigail will run straight over it with no difficulties although she may slow down slightly. However, if you use AAA, you may notice that he is unable to run over the hills; he becomes stuck. This is a bad situation to be in as the Wocky will soon catch up with you and end your game! The only way to solve this is to make AAA jump at the foot of the hill. He may jump halfway up the hill on the first attempt and become stuck, in this case you must press the space bar to make AAA jump up the remainder of the hill. Obviously, you want to make him jump as soon as possible, as any time spent wasted being stuck on the hill is an opportunity for the Wocky to catch up!

By now you will have reached 2,000 points and will progress to the next level…

Level Three – Destruct-O-Match

The third level you must face in order to escape the dungeon is Destruct-o-Match. This level is a little harder than the previous two; however, you should be able to complete it easily with a little practice. Use the spring to jump over any towers of blocks that are over three blocks high, as without the spring AAA cannot jump over them. However, if they are only two blocks high, use the basic jump as it wastes less time.

You will also obtain a new item in this level. This is a helmet that can be used by hitting the ‘b’ key on your keyboard to prevent the falling blocks from hitting AAA on the head, causing him to lose one of his three lives. This item may be quite difficult to get to if it is behind a tower of three blocks. This is because – as you fall and run forward, you may miss the item and be unable to run backwards to get it. If this happens, I advise you to restart the game, as the helmet is a very important item. However, to prevent you from being forced to restart the game, stop behind the tower with the helmet on the other side and press the ‘x’ key to use the shovel. This will make the blocks disappear one by one and you can then go ahead towards the item and pick it up.

Complete this level with 3,000 points, ideally with all three lives intact, to reach level four – where you’re in for a bit of a surprise!

Level Four – Ice Cream Machine

The fourth level is based on the Ice Cream Machine game and is quite a jump in difficulty from level three. Early in the level, you will pick up a new item. This is a shield, which can be used by pressing the ‘b’ key on your keyboard. In this level you must avoid three types of obstacles in your path. First, you will see high blocks that you must jump over. Chances are, you will see a tower of three or more blocks high. As AAA cannot jump over these himself, you must press the ‘v’ key to make him spring through the air and over the obstruction.

The second obstacle you will meet is the pools of ice cream on the floor. These will slow you down considerably, so be sure to press ‘c’ to use the bubble. This will enable AAA to travel through the ice cream without slowing down. Remember you may have to press it again before you get to the end of the pool of ice cream just incase the bubble pops, causing AAA to slow down.

The final obstacle you will face is likely to be the most difficult throughout the entire game – the flying ice cream. These ice creams will fly from right to left and you must avoid them by using either the helmet on the ‘b’ key – or your new shield, which can be activated by using the ‘n’ key. You should use the helmet if the ice cream is going to hit AAA’s head and the shield if it is going to hit his body. If you are not sure about where it will hit AAA, the best thing to do is jump and quickly press the shield button. You will jump above the ice cream scoop and the shield will protect AAA’s body when falling back down.

Complete this level with 4,000 points and as many lives as possible. Prepare yourself for the fifth – and final – level.

Level Five – Stowaway Sting

This level is based on the game ‘Stowaway Sting’ and is the final level that AAA must face in order to escape the dungeon. There are many new obstacles and you will need to use the bubble, the spring, the helmet and the shield to complete this level. You will need fast reactions and you should also know the buttons for the items very well! This way you will not need to look at the items box at the bottom left to remind yourself of what button to press. If you do this during this level, you may lose a life or several, which could be disastrous!

The first obstacle you will meet is a hole in the deck. This does not appear on the crates and if you hit it, you will be slowed down and lose a life! In order to avoid this, use the bubble to protect AAA. As the bubble bursts when you hit the hole in the deck, I suggest you tap the ‘c’ key quickly so that you do not accidentally hit it without a bubble to protect AAA. It is possible to jump over it; however, you must time it perfectly, which is very difficult to do.

The second obstacle is the pile of sharp objects, which can be found on top of the wooden crates. This can be dealt with in a similar manner to the hole in the deck, by simply tapping the ‘c’ key to create a bubble around AAA which will protect him.

The third obstacle is the angry green Skeith. He will try to kick AAA, which means you must use the shield to protect AAA from these blows. You must use the shield in plenty of time as the Skeith can kick quite far! The fourth obstacle is the furious Kougra, who will try to punch AAA. To protect him, you must use the helmet to guard his head and a life. Both the Skeith and the Kougra can jump up from behind the crates, so be prepared for this! A useful way to remember which item to use against certain enemies is this – the Skeith is green, so you must use the green shield against him. The Kougra is orange, so you must use the orange helmet against him.

If you find this level goes too fast for you and you have a sufficient gap between AAA and the Wocky, I advise you to use the wooden crates to stop AAA and plan ahead for the small section you can see. You can normally see a portion of the Skeith or Kougra from behind the crates so you should also be able to plan for these effectively, too!

Hopefully, you should have achieved the full 5,000 points by now. Simply press the ‘Send Score’ button and rush to the high score table to see your name. Trophies are awarded once a day, so you may need to wait up to 24 hours for your trophy to be awarded to you. However, when it is awarded to you, you will receive a coveted gold trophy for your efforts and 750 neopoints for every day your name is on the high score table. Congratulations!

***

Aristotle A. Avinroo saw the end of the level – finally, no more flying ice cream, no more falling blocks, and most importantly – no more dungeon. He sprinted towards the end of the level, quickly forcing a glance over his shoulder, where he saw the Wocky was far away in the distance. There was no way he would catch them now.

"Aristotle, I can’t keep up with you, slow down!" Abigail wept, clinging desperately to her brothers hand.

There was a flash of a brilliant white light and AAA and Abigail suddenly felt nauseous. They felt like they were spinning, twisting and turning into nothingness. They had never experienced this before – had the Wocky caught them after all?

Abigail was first to open her eyes. She squinted – the light was blinding.

"AAA?" she shouted, looking around. She found him lying on his back, perched up on his elbows looking at her.

"Where are we?" he whispered as he clambered to his weary feet.

Abigail looked around for any signs. The Neopian bank, the Money Tree, the Neolodge – they were home again! A smile of relief spread across their faces as they hugged tightly – never before had freedom felt so wonderful.

"Come on," AAA said as he took his sisters hand in his. "Let’s go home."

They walked slowly, hand in hand, not daring to talk about the weeks in that dungeon until one brave Aisha spoke.

"AAA?" Abigail spoke softly.

"Hmm?"

"I never want to play Stowaway Sting again."