Terra Force

Terra Force is the fourth entry, as well as the second spin-off, in the Cresta series, after Ufo Robo Dangar. The game's gimmick: It switches between being a top-down shooter in the outside sections, and a side-scrolling shooter in the underground sections.

Debug Menus#

A hidden debug menu can be accessed in this game through the following method:

1. Hold 2P Up + Button 1 + Button 2.
2. Keep those buttons held and turn Service Mode on.

Pressing 2P Button 1 exits the test in the US and Japan sets. Due to changes in the game's code in the World ROM set, pressing 2P Button 1 crashes the game.

This is a simple test of the character graphics ROM.

• 1P Start: Go to next test.
• 1P Left/Right: Change palette number.
• 1P Up/Down: Change graphics ROM offset.

This is a slightly more complicated test of the object graphics ROM.

• 1P Start: Go to next test.
• 1P Left/Right: Toggles horizontal / vertical tile flipping.
• 1P Up/Down: Change graphics ROM offset.
• 2P Left/Right: Alters the "XCG" value used for palette cycling effects.
• 2P Up/Down: Change palette number.

A test of every sidescrolling and top-down area in the game.

• 1P Start: Go back to character graphics ROM test.
• 2P Start: Switch between sidescrolling and top-down modes.
• 1P Up: Toggles foreground layer.
• 1P Down: Toggles background layer.
• 1P Button 1: Move forward 80 pixels.
• 1P Button 2: Move backward 80 pixels.

Unused Graphics#

The Nichibutsu owl is in the object graphics ROM, just there, being an owl.

Regional Differences#

Japan/US	Europe

While the Japanese and US versions start the game aboveground, the European version starts the game underground. The ship that drops the player off had to be redrawn as well.

Revisional Differences#

Whether it's a bug or intentional, the Japanese and old US version (terrafua in MAME) uses the Underground theme on your first life, despite the game starts aboveground. To fix this, you have to intentionally lose a life or reach a point to enter in the underground and later return in the aboveground.

This was later fixed in the new US version (terrafu in MAME) and being completely absent in the European version, as it starts the game underground.