Lupin Sansei: Pandora no Isan/Stage 4

Driving

 * The fourth stage is divided into two parts. The second part is the exploration that you've become familiar with through the first three stages.  But the first part is an all new driving section that can be a little difficult at first and takes some getting used to.
 * You can speed up the car by pushing or slow it down by pushing .   still jumps and  still attacks.  One of the obstacles you will face the most early on is indestructible boulders.  As a result, Goemon is a good choice for this section since he can simply slice the boulders apart instead of having to dodge them.
 * There are three basic sections to pass in the driving part. The first is a gentle ride across the sand as you jump over rocks, leap over lakes, dodge (or slice) falling boulders, and watch out for bomb-dropping birds.  When a bird approaches with a bomb, release the direction pad, and your car will coast to the back while the bomb drops harmlessly in front of you.
 * The second part is a jumping section. Timing is very critical here.  The first set of jumps aren't too difficult, but the following set include a bomb dropping bird before one of the platforms.  You must let the bird drop the bomb before attempting to leap to the next platform.  Don't hold  down if you need to move forward.  Rather, tap it.  This way, when you land, your momentum won't carry you over the edge of the platform while you wait for the bomb.
 * The third part is driving along the sand dunes. The dark shady sand in the background is dune that you can climb and descend using  and .  There are rocks scattered throughout the dune.  If you jump while driving on the dune, you will land on the lowest ground or the nearest rock below you instead of the height you jump from.  Though jumping and then landing on the rocks will not harm you, hitting them from the top while decending using  will.  If you land on top of the rocks, you will stay at that height for the remainder of the dune.  In most cases, this will protect you from other rocks, but you may need to jump or move up or down to avoid an even higher rock ahead.  A few buzzards float about.  Get rid of them or jump over them, but be prepared to land back on the ground if you do.  When you get through the dunes, there is only a short distance until you make it to the pyramid.

Pyramid
Welcome to the interior of the pyramid. It takes a little getting used to, but the pyramid levels are fully three dimensional. The game always presents the player in the traditional side view, but your perspective changes when you enter through doorways and passages. If you don't intend to use the maps provided for you here on this page, it is highly recommended that you try to map your own progress through each level.

Level 1

 * You start where the green "S" is in the center of the map, and your goal is to reach the green "G" near the bottom. There are two strategies to get through the pyramid.  One is to take the shortest route possible to get through the pyramid quickly and reduce your vulnerability, while the other is to explore as many passages as possible to look for doors that may contain items (or captured partners).
 * On the first floor, there are two enemies to watch out for. One is the sword wielding women that try to stab you.  The other is the skeleton.  These skeletons don't go down easily.  For one thing, when they are struck, bones go flying all around them.  This makes it impossible to fight them at close range, and thus impossible for Goemon to attack them.  Additionally, they take two hits to completely defeat, and they spray bones both times.  There are also little traps on the floor containing a blade that rotates above and below the floor.  Pass over it while it is below.
 * If you're looking for the shortest route to the exit, run left from the start, push up into the darkness on the side, then run right. You'll have to hop over a gap in the floor (a balloon will save Lupin if he falls in), and then push up into the darkness.  In the next hallway, run to the left and push up into the darkness at the end.  Then head right.  Hop over the rocks, and get a good running jump over the gap to the doors that lead to the second level.

Level 2

 * If the walls appear green, you have made it to level 2. In addition to sword women and exploding skeletons, falling boulders and mummies join the fray.  Mummies are slow moving, but they take a tremendous number of bullets to stop.  The first hit turns them red, but they do not speed up or anything.  You must simply continue to fire at them until they drop, or jump over them.  Lastly, there are arrow firing Aztecs in this pyramid.  Yes, presumably this is an Egyptian pyramid, but there are South Americans defending it as well.
 * In addition to the enemies, Zenigata will become a lot more relentless in the pyramid. You may turn a corner, and he will be the first thing you see.  Always be prepared to react to his presence.  Either return to the previous scene that you came from, or duck into a room.  Remember that as long as Zenigata is in the area, no other enemies will appear.  Likewise, if there are enemies around, Zenigata will not appear.  You have to pick your poison.  In a pinch, you can always radio out your current character to reset the screen.
 * There is a dead-end, and a few areas on this level that only Lupin can get through. In the case of high walls that have openings at the top, only Lupin can jet pack over them.  In one case, you will see a tall thin wall and two pools of water on either side.  You must dive underwater as Lupin and swim to the opposite opening to continue on.
 * Speaking of swimming, just like in the previous stage, items will begin to appear while you are underwater. This can be an incredible opportunity to stock up on items, particularly valuable ones like oxygen tanks and bullet proof vests.  Only a select set of items appear to show up in particular pools.  If you are not seeing the items you want, do not waste more than two oxygen tanks, and never go below 4 or 5, because the tanks are critical to getting through the pyramid.
 * There are a couple of ways to reach the goal here, but the shortest would be as follows: From the start, run left and push up against the very first dark passage. Run right until you find a large door in the background.  Run right hopping over (or more likely into) the water, and push up against the first dark passage.  Now run left all the way to the end.  Push up against the passage, and run left again until you reach another large door.  Run to the right and push up into the dark passage.  Run to the left, push up again, and you should be at the door.

Level 3

 * Blue walls mean you have made it to the third level. All of the threats you have encountered so far will continue to appear, with one more addition: the harpies.  Harpies are flying creatures that start at the top of the screen and slowly descend, alternating direction every now and then.  They take two shots to defeat, and if you hit them once, they will speed up and be much more difficult to target.  Snake hop out of jars in certain sections.  There appear to be fewer skeletons in this level, making it slightly safer to use Goemon, but Zenigata will appear just as frequently as before, if not more.
 * As one might expect, the map continues to get larger and more confusing. There are a few dead ends, and wall that prevents passage just above the starting location.  At this point, you are no longer encouraged to explore the level any longer than you have to.  Protective items become harder to find, although you may luck out in certain pools of water.
 * From the starting location, the shortest path to the goal contains a lot of zig zagging through the level. Run to the right and push up into the passage.  Continue running all the way to the right and push up into the passage.  You will come out through a door, run to the left an up at the end.  Run to the right and push up at the end.  Once again, run to the left and push up, run to the right and push up.  Repeat this one more time: left, up, right up, and you should now be on the far left outer passage of the pyramid.  Now all you have to do is go straight up from here to the end.  You'll need Lupin to do it, as you'll have to:
 * Use a jet-pack to fly over the first wall,
 * Dive into the water and swim beneath the second wall,
 * And plant a bomb at the base of the third wall to blow a hole open. From there, push up into the darkness, and run to the right to reach the exit door.

Level 4

 * Golden-yellow walls are used to signify your presence in the lowest, and what is designed to be the most confusing level of the entire pyramid. You will absolutely need to map your progress through it, or follow the one provided here for you in order to find your way through, as it's unlikely that you will simply stumble upon the goal.
 * One final new enemy appears on this level, women who carry a boomerang. When held, the boomerang completely shields them from getting shot.  You can only shoot them when they release the boomerang which, quite naturally, returns to them after a short distance.  They take two hits to defeat no matter how you kill them.  This means they take two shots, or two sword slices from Goemon, or even two bombs!
 * The path from the start to the goal is not simple, but this is the shortest path you can take. From the start, run left and push up at the first passage.  You will be on the left outer passage of the level, traveling down.  Your best bet here is to dive into the first water hole that you come to, and swim all the way over to the right.  It is faster and substantially safer (although if you get hit here, you are automatically captured.)
 * Once you pop out of the water, continue right and pass through the first large door that you encounter. Run to the right, and keep going (although you may wish to push up at the passage, and then return just to clear the area out of enemies.)  Then use a jet pack to float over the next pool of water.  Keep the jet pack on and continue to fly over the large body of water in the middle of the passage (or alternatively swim under it) and push up at the next passage that you come to.
 * Run to the right a short distance until you come to another large door, and push up. You may need to bomb a hole in the next wall to get through, and then push up at the next passage on the left.  Run to the right until you come to a large door, and push up.  Hop over the rocks as you run to the left, and push up at the next passage you come to.  Then run to the left and push up, and you will arrive at the door to the final boss.

Boss
The final boss of the game consists of two statues which come to life. They are each capable of flying around the room. They carry a sword which they eagerly wave around, but they are also able to fire blasts of energy from their eyes which either travel diagonally up, diagonally down, or straight across. Due to the amount of health these bosses have, and the ease with which Goemon and Jigen can be defeated, it is far better to rely on Lupin for this battle. Not only will his bullet-proof vest protect him from getting captured right away, he can also use bombs to attack the bosses. 12 bombs will take out both bosses simultaneously. You can also use up all the rifles you have saved up if the bosses are two far away. If you do use Goemon or Jigen, the best strategy is to hunch down on the far left side of the platform right above the entrance, and attack repeatedly. It takes some luck to avoid getting shot from this position, but if you are far enough to the left, you can avoid getting hit by collision, even if it looks like the bosses are backing in to you when they get hit. When you defeat both statues, you will get to see the ending of the game, which may take a little explaining. See the spoiler below.