Chack'n Pop/Gameplay

Controls
Note: The following controls are for the Famicom, but they apply equally to every version.
 * or : Pressing left or right makes Chack run to the left or the right. He will continue to run in that direction until he bumps in to something. Hold left or right to make Chack attempt to climb over an obstacle.
 * : When you press up, Chack's legs will extend. They will extend his entire height as long as he has both feet standing on the ground. If only one foot is on the ground, he can only extend half of his height. While extending, if he touches a ceiling, he will immediately flip upside down and stick to the ceiling.
 * : Press down any time Chack is hanging from the ceiling to drop back down.
 * : Press B to drop a bomb to Chack's left. He can only release one bomb to his left at a time.
 * : Press A to drop a bomb to Chack's right. He can only release one bomb to his right at a time.

Mr. Chack'n
Mr. Chack'n is our hero. He alone must maneuver through each maze, freeing the hearts from their cage and escaping to the next level. He can toss two bombs, one in each direction. He must avoid contact with any Monstas or the smoke from his own bombs. Chack can cling to ceilings and ealk on them. He can also extend his legs to reach the ceilings.

Miss Chack'n
Miss Chack'n is our hero's motivation. After having the hearts of their love stolen by Monstas, she tells Mr. Chack'n to go after them and get them back. Miss Chack'n appears in the introduction, the ending, and some of the intermissions, but she does not appear during game play.

Mighta
Mightas are the brains behind the evil scheme to steal the hearts of love. Once Chack is in the maze, a Mighta appears at the top, busying himself with the task of pushing a green stone towards the exit. If he manages to get it close to the exit, five more Mightas will appear and help him with the final push to plug the exit, signifying that your time is over and you lose one life. Beyond this, the Mightas pose no threat.

Monsta
Monstas hatch out of the eggs that are attached to the ceiling. When the egg is ready to hatch, it changes color and falls to the floor. Upon landing, the Monsta pops out of the egg and proceeds to float around the stage. They don't directly attack Chack unless they get very close to him. They move slightly randomly and are difficult to predict. Approach cautiously and try to remove as many as you can with your bombs. Bomb smoke can even destroy eggs. If you destroy one Monsta, you earn 200 points. If you kill two at once, you earn 600 points, three earns you 1200 and four earns you 2000 points. Additionally, if you kill more than one Monsta at a time you earn a bonus fruit, or potentially a super heart.

Heart
These are the hearts that are imprisoned behind cages. Only bombs can free a heart from the cage, and the entire bottom of the cage must be destroyed, not just one corner. Once freed, the heart floats on its own to a brick that is blocking the exit and destroys it. Once all of the hearts are freed and all of the bricks destroyed, Chack is free to make his escape.

Super Heart
As stated above, when you kill multiple Monstas with one bomb, you usually earn a bonus fruit, but you might earn a Super Heart instead. Collecting a Super Heart will turn Chack red and invincible for ten seconds, allowing him to kill Monstas just by touching them. He also moves a little faster and can extend his legs a little higher. But how do you get a super heart? It's as easy as Pi. Not pie, but Pi, 3.1415926525897. In order to earn a Super Heart, you must use the right number bomb to kill multiple Monstas on each stage. Use the following chart:

Water Vial
Water vials only appear on two stages. When they are hit by bomb smoke, they break open and spill down on to the floor. As you break open more vials, the water gets deeper. Chack can swim freely through the water, but the Monstas can still float through it. Bombs do not work underwater, so all Chack can do is avoid the Monstas. Filling the stage with water is necessary to escape the maze.

Round Bonus

 * If you manage to destroy every Monsta in a stage (and as Monstas, not eggs) you will earn 5,000 bonus points.
 * If you somehow manage to destroy no Monstas or eggs, you will earn a 20,000 point bonus and an extra life. This is extremely difficult to do.
 * Note that any Monsta left alive in the previous stage will be added to the next stage, up to a maximum of 14 Monstas.