__ / \ /| /| / / \ / / | / | __ __ /__/ __ __/_ ___ \/ / | / | ___\ \/ \ / / ___ /\ ___\ / /___) / \ / | / | / / / / / / \ / / / | / \/ / |/ | \__/ / \__/ / \ \__/ / \___ \__/ \ / \__/ /| / | __ / / ___ /--| (__ /_ / /___) / / . / | \ / \ / | / / / | \__/ / / / \___ \__/ . / \__/ __ __ __ _ __ _ __ | /\ | | |\ | |\ | | | \ / / / | | \ / | | | / \ | | | \| | \| |-- |__/ \__ | | |__/ | | |-- \/ \/ | | | | | |__ | \ ___) \_ | | \ \_ |__ |__ =============================================================================== Table of Contents =============================================================================== [INTRO] Introduction [MODES] Modes of Play [WALKT] Walkthrough [QUEST] Frequently Asked Questions [PASSW] Passwords [RECRD] Vinny's Records [VERSN] Version History [COPYR] Copyright [CONTC] Contact Information Navigation tip: Press Ctrl and F to bring down a search bar. Then type in the name of the section you're looking for - like [VERSN] for the ever-popular Version History. =============================================================================== Introduction [INTRO] =============================================================================== Denis of Cork, you really let me down at the Belmont. The reason I'm writing this guide stems from losing a horse-racing bet (no one really thought Da' Tara would actually win). This is my 31st FAQ/Walkthrough, although I'm not sure if I really want to be known as the author of a guide for a game as silly as this one is. Mary-Kate & Ashley: Winner's Circle is obviously aimed at kids; in particular, those of the feminine gender. Unless you really like the Olsen twins, horses, and/or equestrian events, you probably won't get too much out of this game. The graphics and sound are typical of a Game Boy Color title; they're on about the level of an NES game, and that's not great. Nonetheless, they get the job done. There's not a huge amount of challenge or variety in this game once you've played for about 30 minutes. I think a two-player mode would've helped, as would a mechanism to keep track of record times. Overall, it was a little more fun than I thought it would be. There are a good number of horses you can unlock, and that's always a good thing. Plus, the ending credits are presented in the most unusual way I've ever seen in a game. Yet as I write this guide, I cannot stop Epona's Song (from Zelda games) from playing in my mind... By the way, this is my 31st FAQ/Walkthrough! I'm not demanding a standing ovation, but I think that's a pretty impressive achievement. It's taken many hours of work and just a little lost sleep. =============================================================================== Walkthrough [WALKT] =============================================================================== When you turn the game on, there will be more opening screens (recognition for the companies that developed the game, copyrights, self-promotion, and finally the title screen) than any other game I know of. Keep pressing A until they shut up. Once you finally get the menu screen, you'll probably want to select "New Game" unless you have a password from a previous game, when you should select "Load Game" and enter it. You can also select "Control" to change the way you steer the horse, but you won't notice much of a difference. The "Music/SFX" option lets you turn music and sound effects off if you don't like them. I'll assume you selected "New Game" to get to the action. At this point, you can choose your rider - Mary-Kate or Ashley. It doesn't matter a single bit, even if Ashley is arguably cuter. However, the Control option does let you change the way the horses handle for both twins. After you pick your twin, you get to select the colors of her outfit! This game is getting more exciting by the minute... Press Up or Down to cycle through jacket colors, and use Left and Right to browse through the colors of the jodhpurs (pants). Both garments are available in red, lavender, dark blue, orange, pink, sky blue, yellow, and green. Press A when you've made up your mind about how your character should look. Now we get to make a more meaningful choice: the horse we'll be riding with. When you first play, four horses will be available, but you'll be able to race with eight different horses later in the game. Until you unlock new horses, I recommend using Sparkle or Dolly, especially for beginners. Sputnik and Satin (that's one A, by the way) aren't very good. The diction and vocabulary used in the horse descriptions obviously indicates that this game was designed with the elementary-school set in mind. Once you pick your horse, you'll finally be able to hit the track. There are two basic modes: Tournament and Challenges. In a Tournament, you will be riding on a standard equestrian course, trying to complete the course as quickly as possible. Along the way, there will be several hurdles and other obstacles you must jump over by pressing the A button right before you reach the obstacle. If you jump the object cleanly, one of your horse's attributes (acceleration, jumping, top speed, or control) will increase at the end of the race. If you clear the object but knock it down, you'll score a "fault" and receive a five- second penalty. If you fail to jump altogether, your horse will crash into the object and stop with a thud. If that happens, turn around and try to regain your momentum, then turn back around and jump back over the object. Alternatively, you can press the A button a few times (while NOT holding B) to reverse. If you get really stuck, press SELECT to pause the game and then START to quit the event. Then you can restart the event (you won't lose points obtained from earlier rounds in the tournament). If you can't find the next hurdle, just go in the direction of the yellow arrow found on the bottom-right corner of the screen. You won't usually get off track if you follow the main trail, which is well-marked on most courses. To complete the course, you must clear every hurdle and in the proper order; if you miss a jump, turn around and try it again. Check the number in the upper-left corner of the screen to know how many hurdles are remaining. Once you've successfully cleared every hurdle, keep riding until you cross the finish line. At the end of the race, you'll receive points and a ribbon based on how you finished. The better you finish in a race, the more points you'll earn, and if you finish in first place, you receive a coveted blue ribbon. The "Groom Horse" screen, which shows the bonuses you earned by safely clearing hurdles, will also be shown after each event. When you finish the last event in the tournament, you will see your final standing, and if you accumulated more points than any of your opponents, you'll win a gold trophy! Afterwards, check the "Bedroom Wall" to admire your achievements, and then you'll be ready to move on to the next tournament. In Challenges, you must collect a series of objects in three minutes or less. If you can't find a goodie, follow the yellow arrow displayed on the bottom of the screen. I highly recommend using an easy-to-control horse like Sparkle. For every two challenges you complete, you'll gain access to a new horse. Note that each challenge can only be attempted once; if you want to play one again, you'll have to start a new game (my passwords can also help). I'll start by giving a few tips for Tournaments: ---Tournament 1--- Event #1 - Gentle Loop: This is a very simple course. Simply trot around this oval-shaped turf course and jump over the ten hurdles. It may take a few tries for beginners to get the hang of the game, but experienced players will have no problems with this. A time of 1:26.4 or quicker will earn you a blue ribbon. Event #2 - Cactus Cool: This event takes place in a desert-like environment. This is also a simple loop, but it's very slightly longer than last time. Watch out for the groundhog that occasionally pops its head out of the ground, but there aren't any serious obstacles. You need to finish the event in 1:32.3 or less to earn first-place points. Event #3 - Inside-Out: We return to turf here, although this has a more manicured appearance than the Gentle Loop (all surfaces handle the same, though). This course is basically a simple oval, although it's slightly irregular near the top. A 1:19.4 time or better is needed to win this event. ---Tournament 2--- Event #1 - The Pretzel: This course is the first to cross over itself. Keep following the yellow arrow at the bottom of the screen and you'll stay on track. Record a time of 1:20.4 or faster to win. Event #2 - Hacienda: We return to the desert at Hacienda, which is a little bit longer than we're used to. Watch out for the tires in the path near the halfway point, and once you clear the final hurdle, be prepared to zig-zag for a while before you cross the finish line. A time of 1:41.7 is good enough for a liston azul (I left out the accent mark so this page will work on all web browsers). Event #3 - The Crossroads: This course is extremely similar to The Pretzel. Follow the yellow arrow to go where you're supposed to go, and take the upper- right fork (not upper-left) if the arrow points up and you're confused. Finish in 1:09.2 or quicker to earn nine points. ---Tournament 3--- Event #1 - The Vortex: This is by far the hardest course we've seen so far. If you fault just four times or so, your time will exceed the 1:17.3 needed to win. With 16 hurdles, it's hard not to make a few mistakes. Fortunately, though, the hurdles are placed fairly far apart, so there's little quick maneuvering to do. After four hurdles, stay high to avoid slamming into the small bushes; the hit detection is a little off, and you can easily crash to a stop. With two hurdles to go, you can cut some of the corner by veering left. Event #2 - Rubble Trouble: While you still have to remember to jump over the hurdles, the main challenge here is avoiding the walls and random junk that litter the track, especially near the beginning. Complete this event in under 1:15.6 to guarantee a blue ribbon. Event #3 - Hedgeblazer!: Another profoundly difficult circuit. Hedgeblazer! requires you to make jumps in very quick succession. At the start, hold down B until your horse reaches a trotting pace. Clearing the first two fences will be much easier at a slower gait. After the first two hurdles, you can hold B for a bit to reach a gallop, but you might not want to go too fast even then. Try to adhere to the path the best you can so it'll be easier to jump the required hurdles. You must finish in 1:25.3 or faster to earn first place. ---Tournament 4--- Event #1 - Creepy Hollow: To access the fourth tournament, it's necessary to complete the first three tournaments and all eight challenges. This is the first graveyard event in Tournament Mode, but fortunately there's no Headless Horseman. Creepy Hollow is actually a pretty easy event, especially if you're using Storm. Follow the yellow arrow, and remember that you have to jump over the log. Complete this event in 1:07.2 to guarantee a trip to the top step of the podium. Event #2 - Grave Danger: This is significantly harder than Creepy Hollow because you must make jumps in very quick succession. You'll find it easiest if you ride at less than full speed. If your horse touches the briars, you'll rear up and stop, so steer clear. 1:08.7 is the time to beat. Event #3 - Trick or Treat?: The final tournament event in the game! This ultra- tough circuit combines the rapid-fire jumping of Grave Danger with the crossing effects of The Pretzel and The Crossroads. You definitely want to ride at less than a gallop here. Beat a time of 1:22.5 to win the final blue ribbon. ---Challenge 1--- In the first challenge, you will be riding around the track, collecting the apples that appear periodically. To complete this challenge, you must collect 21 apples before the time limit of 3 minutes expires. There's nothing particularly hard to do here. If you can't find an apple, just keep following the yellow arrow on the bottom-right corner of the screen and you'll find the missing apple pretty soon. I recommend using a slow but agile horse such as Sparkle in this mode. ---Challenge 2--- This is a lot like Challenge 1, except now you need to get 22 apples to complete the challenge. When you're finished, you'll be able to race with a new horse, Elvis. ---Challenge 3--- Here you must collect 16 donuts in 3 minutes or less. As before, the challenge is pretty easy. You won't need to do much jumping, but the various obstacles (cacti, old tires, groundhogs, etc.) can be tricky to avoid. ---Challenge 4--- Challenge #4 takes place at the same course as the last challenge, but this time the difficulty has been increased a notch. Not only must you collect more (25) donuts in the same amount of time, you'll often have some pretty tricky maneuvering to do. You may have to jump over a hurdle into a pen to collect a donut and then turn around and jump back out. If you complete this event, you'll unlock Scarper. ---Challenge 5--- The fifth Challenge, which requires you to collect 33 baseballs in 3 minutes, will involve a lot of jumping. Near the end, your horse may be going too quickly and passing the baseballs before they appear. Try to zig-zag a little to prevent that from happening. Also, remember that you have to jump the final fence to where Lefty is standing before you can complete the challenge, in addition to finding all of the baseballs. ---Challenge 6--- Similar to the last one, but this time you're looking for 35 baseballs. You'll be riding over a pretty long distance, so you may prefer a faster horse than Sparkle here. After about 10 baseballs, you'll have to jump the hedge flanked by the flowers and horse statues. I'm taking note of this because it's easy to miss. Once you have all the baseballs, remember to jump the final hurdle to get to Lefty. Complete this challenge to add a great new horse, Babe, to your stable. I assume he's named after Babe Ruth. ---Challenge 7--- Challenge #7 occurs at a graveyard, which looks very different from any tournament course we've seen so far (and more like the Kakariko Graveyard of Zelda 64). You're allotted 3 minutes to collect 26 strawberries. It's not too tough, but it can be tricky to figure out which objects can be jumped (the thickets and high fences can't). Remember that if you touch the briars, your horse will rear up and stop. When you've collected all the strawberries, you must jump the northern gate to the character who arranged this event. ---Challenge 8--- This is a lot like Challenge #7, except there are 29 strawberries to collect and that you'll have to ride a little farther to collect them all. You'll be able to ride with Storm, a really great horse, if you can complete this challenge. You'll also unlock the final tournament, which you can play once you've completed the other three tournaments. =============================================================================== Frequently Asked Questions [QUEST] =============================================================================== Q: What are the controls? A: It takes about thirty seconds to figure out the controls for this game. A: Jump B: Accelerate Control Pad: Maneuver horse SELECT: Pause When the game is paused, press B to resume play, or START to return to the main menu. You might want to do this if you don't like the way things are going in a race. Thankfully, you won't lose any points accumulated from earlier tournament events if you quit an event in progress. On menus, press A to select an option and advance to the next screen, or press B to backtrack. Q: What makes the twins different? A: In this game, it doesn't matter which girl you select; the character selection won't affect the manner in which the horses operate. However, you can go to the Control menu from the main menu to choose between two different control methods. If you select the Mary-Kate system, you'll control the horse from your perspective (whether or not you play as Mary-Kate or Ashley). If you select Ashley's control set, Control Pad movements will maneuver the horse from the horse's perspective (even if you use Mary-Kate). In Ashley mode, pressing Up or Down on the Control Pad will have no effect. Either way, each time you press the Control Pad will change your horse's trajectory by 45 degrees. Q: How many horses are there in this game? A: Eight. Four of them can be unlocked by completing the Challenges. Here are the attributes of each horse in the game: Control Jump Speed Accel. Avg. How to get? Dolly 2.5 3 2.5 2.5 10.5 Available at start Sparkle 2.5 4 1 2.5 10 Available at start Sputnik 2.5 2.5 4 1 10 Available at start Satin 2 3.5 4 1 10.5 Available at start Elvis 2.5 3 4.5 2.5 12.5 Beat Challenge #2 Scarper 2.5 5 5.5 1.5 14.5 Beat Challenge #4 Babe 3 4 4.5 2 13.5 Beat Challenge #6 Storm 5 5 5 2.5 17.5 Beat Challenge #8 Q: My horse is going too fast! What can I do? A: Sometimes, particularly in later Tournament events, it's not to your advantage to ride at full speed. When you hold down the B button, your horse will accelerate until the maximum speed is reached. However, if you release B while accelerating, your velocity will stop increasing (and eventually you'll start slowing down). Once you reach the desired speed, stop holding B and you'll stay that speed for a while. Q: If I earn first place in a tournament I've already completed but while using a different twin, will I receive a different trophy? A: No. As I state elsewhere in the guide, there's no difference between Mary- Kate and Ashley in this game. There are only four trophies, and it doesn't matter who wins them. Q: Can I keep hurdle bonuses longer than the duration of a tournament? A: No. These bonuses, which are earned by successfully clearing hurdles and are quantified on the Grooming screen, apply only for the current tournament. Q: Are they identical twins? A: No. Mary-Kate and Ashley are fraternal twins. I'm not going into the Olsens' life story or the distinctions between fraternal and identical twins. =============================================================================== Passwords [PASSW] =============================================================================== GMFMJJ CHHQML (after Tournament 1) HMFCGJ CHHKML (after Tournament 2) CMFCGM QHHHML (after Tournament 3) LGPMJJ CHHPPL (after Challenge 2) PGPMJJ CHHPSL (after Challenge 4) BGPMJJ CHHPFL (after Challenge 6) GGPMJJ CHHPKL (after Challenge 8) FMFMJJ CHHQKM (after Challenge 8, Tournament 1) GMFCGJ CHHKKM (after Challenge 8, Tournament 2) BMFCGM QHHHKM (after Challenge 8, Tournament 3) BMFCGM QNCGKM (after Challenge 8, Tournament 4 - the ending credits) =============================================================================== Vinny's Records [RECRD] =============================================================================== Here are my personal best times for each event. Send me an e-mail message (check the Contact Information section first) if you break any of these records. ---Tournament/Event--- 1-1 25.2 1-2 25.8 1-3 26.8 2-1 35.4 2-2 35.3 2-3 35.9 3-1 37.9 3-2 34.6 3-3 45.8 4-1 30.3 4-2 37.8 4-3 41.5 ---Challenges--- C1 53.0 C2 1:09.4 C3 47.1 C4 1:21.1 C5 1:45.2 C6 1:44.9 C7 1:14.8 C8 1:37.1 =============================================================================== Version History [VERSN] =============================================================================== The Version History might be the best part of the guide this time. Date | Version | Size | --------|---------|------|----------------------------------------------------- 6-21-08 | 0.1 | 8KB | Began guide. 6-22-08 | 0.5 | 18KB | Made significant progress. 6-23-08 | 1.0 | 26KB | Completed and proofread guide. =============================================================================== Copyright [COPYR] =============================================================================== (c) 2008 Vinny Hamilton. All rights reserved. All trademarks mentioned in this guide are copyrights of their respective holders. You can print this guide out for your personal use. You can download this guide to your computer for personal use. You can post this guide on your Web site as long as you give proper credit to me AND you don't change a single letter, number, or symbol (not even a tilde). Remember that the latest version will always be available at GameFAQs.com, but don't count on there being many (if any) updates. You can translate this guide into a foreign language and post the translation on your Web site if you ask for permission first. You can't post this guide on your Web site and say you wrote the guide yourself. You can't post this guide on Web sites that contain (or have links to sites that contain) sexually explicit images of naked humans (that is, pornography). You can't post this guide on your Web site if you're going to change anything in this guide that took me so many hours to write. If you don't comply with these guidelines, your hard drive will be reformatted (permanently erased) inexplicably and you will suffer from constipation for the rest of your life. Heed this warning. =============================================================================== Contact Information [CONTC] =============================================================================== If you have any questions or comments about this guide, send an e-mail to [email protected]. Remember that not all e-mails will be read. Please follow these rules: Do include "Winner's Circle" in the subject line. Do tell me if you find any errors or omissions you see in this guide. Do send polite suggestions about ways to make this walkthrough better. Do send information about any glitches, tricks, or codes you find. Do tell me if you break one of my records. Do ask any questions you have about Mary-Kate & Ashley: Winner's Circle gameplay. I will answer them eventually if you follow all of these guidelines. Do make a reasonable effort to use decent spelling, grammar, usage, punctuation, and capitalization so I can understand what you're saying. Do use patience. I check my messages rather sporadically. Do not send spam, pornography, chain letters, "flaming," or anything that contains profanity or vulgarity. Again, violation of this rule will result in permanent constipation. ******************************************************************************* Current list of VinnyVideo guides available on GameFAQs.com and Neoseeker.com: F1 ROC: Race of Champions FAQ/Walkthrough F1 ROC II: Race of Champions FAQ/Walkthrough SimCity 3000 Walkthrough/Strategy Guide Nigel Mansell's World Championship Racing FAQ/Walkthrough Kyle Petty's No Fear Racing FAQ/Strategy Guide Madden NFL '96 (SNES) FAQ/Strategy Guide Madden NFL '97 (SNES) FAQ/Strategy Guide Madden NFL '98 (SNES) FAQ/Strategy Guide ESPN Speed World FAQ/Strategy Guide The Oregon Trail: Fifth Edition FAQ/Walkthrough The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Master Quest Low-Spoiler FAQ/Walkthrough Off Road Challenge FAQ/Walkthrough F-1 World Championship Edition (SNES) FAQ/Walkthrough Donkey Kong 64 FAQ/Walkthrough Where in America's Past is Carmen Sandiego (PC) FAQ/Walkthrough Michael Andretti's Indy Car Challenge FAQ/Walkthrough Mario Open Golf (Japan) FAQ/Walkthrough Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (SNES) FAQ/Walkthrough MicroLeague Football 2: The Coach's Challenge FAQ/Strategy Guide Scooby-Doo: Unmasked! (GBA) FAQ/Walkthrough All-Star Baseball 2004 (GBA) FAQ/Strategy Guide BS Super Mario USA 2 (Japan) FAQ/Walkthrough BS Super Mario USA 1 (Japan) FAQ/Walkthrough BS Super Mario USA 3 (Japan) FAQ/Walkthrough BS Super Mario USA 4 (Japan) FAQ/Walkthrough All-Star Baseball 2003 (GBA) FAQ/Strategy Guide Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego (PC) FAQ/Walkthrough Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest (GBA) FAQ/Walkthrough Formula One 2000 (GBC) FAQ/Walkthrough All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros. (FDS) FAQ/Walkthrough F1 Championship Season 2000 (GBC) FAQ/Walkthrough Mary-Kate & Ashley: Winner's Circle FAQ/Strategy Guide And lastly, a public service message: Fight for and affirm the rights of all humans, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, or creed! And... Say no to drugs, whether "recreational" or performance-enhancing. No one's going to read this section, anyway. - For H.V.H.