Nintendo of America Inc. P.O. Box 957, Redmond, WA 98073-0957 U.S.A. www.nintendo.com PRINTED IN USA INSTRUCTION BOOKLET PLEASE CAREFULLY READ THE SEPARATE HEALTH AND SAFETY PRECAUTIONS BOOKLET INCLUDED WITH THIS PRODUCT BEFORE USING YOUR NINTENDO ® HARDWARE SYSTEM, GAME DISC OR ACCESSORY. THIS BOOKLET CONTAINS IMPORTANT HEALTH AND SAFETY INFORMATION. WARNING - Electric Shock To avoid electric shock when you use this system: Do not use the Nintendo GameCube during a lightning storm. There may be a risk of electric shock from lightning. Use only the AC adapter that comes with your system. Do not use the AC adapter if it has damaged, split or broken cords or wires. Make sure that the AC adapter cord is fully inserted into the wall outlet or extension cord. Always carefully disconnect all plugs by pulling on the plug and not on the cord. Make sure the Nintendo GameCube power switch is turned OFF before removing the AC adapter cord from an outlet. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION: READ THE FOLLOWING WARNINGS BEFORE YOU OR YOUR CHILD PLAY VIDEO GAMES WARNING - Seizures Some people (about 1 in 4000) may have seizures or blackouts triggered by light flashes or patterns, such as while watching TV or playing video games, even if they have never had a seizure before. Anyone who has had a seizure, loss of awareness, or other symptom linked to an epileptic condition should consult a doctor before playing a video game. Parents should watch when their children play video games. Stop playing and consult a doctor if you or your child have any of the following symptoms: Convulsions Altered vision Eye or muscle twitching Involuntary movements Loss of awareness Disorientation CAUTION - Motion Sickness Playing video games can cause motion sickness. If you or your child feel dizzy or nauseous when playing video games with this system, stop playing and rest. Do not drive or engage in other demanding activity until you feel better. CAUTION - Laser Device The Nintendo GameCube is a Class I laser product. Do not attempt to disassemble the Nintendo GameCube. Refer servicing to qualified personnel only. Caution - Use of controls or adjustments or procedures other than those specified herein may result in hazardous radiation exposure. To reduce the likelihood of a seizure when playing video games: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Sit or stand as far from the screen as possible. Play video games on the smallest available television screen. Do not play if you are tired or need sleep. Play in a well-lit room. Take a 10 to 15 minute break every hour. CONTROLLER NEUTRAL POSITION RESET If the L or R Buttons are pressed or the Control Stick or C Stick are moved out of neutral position when the power is turned ON, those positions will be set as the neutral position, causing incorrect game control during game play. WARNING - Repetitive Motion Injuries and Eyestrain Playing video games can make your muscles, joints, skin or eyes hurt after a few hours. Follow these instructions to avoid problems such as tendinitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, skin irritation or eyestrain: Avoid excessive play. It is recommended that parents monitor their children for appropriate play. Take a 10 to 15 minute break every hour, even if you don't think you need it. If your hands, wrists, arms or eyes become tired or sore while playing, stop and rest them for several hours before playing again. If you continue to have sore hands, wrists, arms or eyes during or after play, stop playing and see a doctor. To reset the controller, release all buttons and sticks to allow them to return to the correct neutral position, then hold down the X, Y and START/PAUSE Buttons simultaneously for 3 seconds. L Button R Button Control Stick C Stick Prologue It was at this point that society saw the rebirth of an old profession: the bounty hunter. Our story follows a young man acting on the last words of his long-lost father--he must become a custom-robo commander. With his father's final words on his mind, he joins up with the bounty hunters of Steel Hearts. There are worlds slightly different from our own. This is the story of one of them. Small, powerful robots have become the number-one tool of criminals around this world. These tiny, remote-controlled robotic weapons operate within restricted virtual battlefields known as holosseums. The ability to mix and match the different parts of these mechanical marvels earned them the name "custom robos." The people who control custom robos are known as commanders. The only people who can battle and defeat commanders are other commanders. The Police Squad, the law enforcement officials of this world, faced with this new crime wave, formed their own corps of elite commanders. They saw many brave people step forward and join them. However, the number of robo-related crimes increased with such speed that the police were quickly and severely outnumbered. At first, our hero is a raw recruit with no training, but he soon finds that he has a talent for his chosen profession. Spending his days battling crime with his coworkers Harry and Marcia, he quickly hones his skills to a high degree. One day, our hero learns of a strange, autonomous robo of tremendous power. As he and his friends strive to unravel the mystery of this robo, they unearth hints of a greater secret concerning a catastrophic event that transpired centuries ago... Controls Controls during battle ( P10 ) are different. R Button Customization Screen Enter Practice mode. Confirm parts selected and test abilities. Press START and select RETIRE to return to the customization screen. Menus / Story Mode / Customization Screen Control Stick Menus and Story Mode Move character. Move cursor and make selections. Customization Screen Make selections. Z Button + A Button Customization Screen Make random selections. Robo parts are chosen randomly from the available parts. Control Pad Customization Screen P22 Viewer Mode Zoom in with , zoom out with . Rotate camera with . Press to return to the customization screen. Y Button Customization Screen Display detailed part information in Vs. and Story modes. X Button Customization Screen Display help screen. Press and hold to confirm button functions on the customization screen. START Story Modes Display Story menu. Customization Screen Finish customization. In Story and Arcade modes, this brings up the Battle Preparation screen. In Vs. mode, this begins the battle. A Button B Button Menus and Story Mode Cancel selections. Customization Screen Cancel selections. Press again to return to the previous screen. Menus and Story Mode Speak with other characters. Investigate objects. Confirm menu selections. Customization Screen Confirm customization. Controls Battle For more information, see the Battle section. P23 R Button Move targeting reticle. Press and hold , then use move the targeting reticle. Attack with bombs. Press to launch bombs. to L Button Attack with pods. Use + to change the pod's launch direction. Y Button Control Stick Move robo. Switch between targets in multi-enemy battle scenarios. If you are player 1, press to change your target from P2 to P3 to P4, in that order. Switch places with your partner in Tag Battles. START Pause the game and retire from battle. P25 B Button Attack with guns. X Button A Button Jump. Charge enemies. Use this to charge into and knock down foes. If you lose a battle in Arcade mode, a timer will begin counting down. Press to speed up the countdown. Press START to continue your game. Each robo type has its own unique abilities. P44 *This is the default button configuration. *You can change the button configuration for battles in the Options menu. Getting Started 1 Step 1 Put the Custom Robo Game Disc into the Nintendo GameCube, A, insert a Memory Card into Slot A close the cover, and press the POWER Button to turn the power on. On the title screen, press START to move to the SELECT MODE screen. If your Memory Card contains no Custom Robo save files, the game will ask if you want to create a Custom Robo file. (This game requires one file and 15 blocks.) Game Modes Here are brief explanations of the game modes available in Custom Robo. Single Player Only Story Mode P14 Mystery and adventure await in this RPG adventure. As a young robo commander, you'll work with your friends to protect and serve the local citizenry. Along the way, you'll find new robos and parts for use in Arcade and Vs. modes. 2 Select Mode Select the mode you would like to play on this screen. P13 Single Player Only Arcade Mode P30 Battle test the parts you've collected. You must defeat your computer-controlled opponents on eight different stages. There are various battle types to be played. Playing for the First Time The first time you start the game, you can choose either Story mode, Vs. mode, or Options. Select Story mode and press to confirm. 1 to 4 Players Vs. Mode P32 Straight-up combat for you and up to three friends. You can play in a number of different types of robo battle. Continuing a Previous Game If you already have a Custom Robo save file, you will see a different menu. Custom Robo contains the following game modes; Story, Arcade, and Vs. You can also adjust Controller functions and game rules in Options and view detailed information for parts you've used in Arcade mode in the Parts Index. Arcade mode, Vs. mode, and the Parts Index become available as you progress through the Story mode. This game requires one file and 15 blocks on the Memory Card to save game data. If you have saved game data, you can continue playing at any time. Check to make sure you have a Memory Card inserted that contains Custom Robo game data. For more information on managing Memory Card data and formatting Memory Cards, see the Nintendo GameCube Instruction Manual. Options P40 Choose controller configurations and adjust game settings. Only robos and parts you have found in Story mode are available in Arcade and Vs. modes. Those robos and parts will not disappear if your saved story data is deleted ( P14 ). However, if you delete all game data on the Options screen, your available robo and parts data will be deleted as well. Be careful. Story Mode: A New Journey (Excluding customization details) This is a brief introduction of the basic elements of Story mode. 2 Selecting a Story Mode Choose which story mode you would like to play--either A New Journey or The Grand Battle--and then press to confirm. In the beginning, you can only play A New Journey. The Grand Battle becomes available once you've completed A New Journey. 1 Selecting Saved Data Files Select which saved data file to play. You can save up to three game data files. Playing for the First Time Playing for the First Time If this is your first time playing, you will see three save-file slots for your game data. Use to highlight a slot and then press to confirm. Then, select A New Journey. If you're playing for the first time, select A New Journey and press to begin. There are a number of differences between A New Journey and The Grand Battle. P28 Continuing a Previous Game Use to select a saved file and press to begin the game from where you last saved. You can also copy or delete files here. 3 Starting Story Mode This is it! It all starts here! Use to move next to characters you want to talk to and press . If you see a , press to scroll through to the rest of the message. Start Story Mode Begin a new game or continue a saved game. If all three file slots contain saved data and you want to start a new game, you'll have to delete a saved file first. Copy a saved data file into an empty file slot. If all three file slots are full, you can overwrite a file. However, once you write over a file, the old file can never be retrieved. Delete saved data files from Story mode here. *Deleted saved data files can never be restored. Think carefully before deleting a saved data file. You can even speak to people who are engaged in robo battles. Helpful game hints appear in green letters. Important terms appear in blue letters. Copy File Erase File Once you step onto the city map, you'll find many different places waiting for you. Use to move your character in any direction. The degree to which you tilt determines your movement speed--tilt a little to walk, tilt a lot to run. Buildings with name plates above them are ones that you can enter freely to meet and speak with people. 4 Story Menu Press START anytime outside of battle or conversation to view the story menu. From this menu, you can check your robo's status, change game settings, or quit the game. Use to choose an item, and press to confirm your selection. To return to the game, simply select Return to Game or press . Preparing for Battle Because sooner or later, you'll have to fight! 1 The Flow of Battle This is the way most battles will unfold. Story Menu Customize Robo P19 Step 1 Speak with your opponents. Use the parts you've acquired to customize your robo. ...