The Milon's Secret Castle Guide         {Milon's Secret Website}
a Milon's Secret Castle walkthrough

by Matt McGrath and Defgav

version 2.2 (February 20, 2013)

CONTENTS
Introduction & Credits
Story
Characters
Items
Tools
The Bonus Stage
Tips For The Game
Floor 1
Floor 2
Floor 3
Floor 4
Closing Notes


 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
INTRODUCTION & CREDITS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Defgav: This walkthrough was originally written by someone named Matt McGrath in 1997-98. I wanted to get in touch with him about integrating it into my Milon Secret Castle website, but it's over a decade since it was written and now the email address provided (mcgrath@acad1.stvincent.edu) has become inactive. But I went ahead and assumed he wouldn't mind me turning his text file and map images into a handy webpage as long as I give proper credit (since he says, "distribute this freely. All I ask is proper credit."). So, again, this document was largely written by Matt McGrath. I made some formatting changes and clarified a few things in the text, as well as added some screenshots and additional information. If Mr. McGrath ever comes across this page and requests his current email address be included, or any other amendments be made, that is totally cool.. just let me know. Again, huge thanks to Matt McGrath, graduate of St. Vincent Academy (ostensibly from his old email address), for all his hard work putting this guide together originally with all of the map grid images and the majority of the text. I will even make his original zip file available here in case anyone wants it, and as a show of respect to Mr. McGrath.

Here's part of Matt McGrath's original introduction: "I've been a fan of Milon's Secret Castle since I first played it about seven years ago. While playing this game I was constantly looking for some sort of strategy guide to all the hidden items. After months of looking through old gaming magazines and finding nothing, I decided to write one myself. Hopefully it will answer all of your questions, especially the location of the honeycombs."

Version history:
1.0 - (1997) Matt's original version.
1.1 - (March 11, 1998) Matt fixed a grammatical error.
2.0 - (October 1, 2009) Defgav edited the text file and map images into a webpage.
2.1 - (March 9, 2010) Defgav fixed a couple typos and added a couple more tips.
2.2 - (February 20, 2013) Fixed a couple more typos and minor things.

Let me know if you discover anything important that is left out in this guide or any glaring mistakes in it. Likewise, if you found this guide helpful, it's always nice to receive email from people who've beaten the game with help from it and want to say thanks. I'm pretty sure this walkthough must be helping, because I used to get lots of questions emailed to me from people who found my site (well, not a ton, but a few here and there), but since putting up this walkthough, I rarely get email about the game anymore.
Anyways, thanks for reading and good luck with the game!
defgav@yahoo.com

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
STORY
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Milon lives in the land of Hudson, where everyone can communicate through music. Milon is the only one who can't, so he decides to depart and search for musical knowledge all across the world. When he comes back he finds out that the evil warlord Maharito has taken over Castle Garland and captured Queen Eliza. Milon is determined to rescue the Queen and the castle from the clutches of Maharito and his minions who guard the seven magic crystal balls.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHARACTERS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ITEMS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
TOOLS
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

TOOL		COST	WHERE YOU FIND IT	USE
O	Bubble	free	already have it	This is Milon's only form of attack. At the start of the game, it's small and has a short range, but as you level-up, it will improve.
	Jump Shoes	$16	Shop 1-B	With these, Milon can jump much higher when on spring platforms (they look like picnic tables).
	Shrinking Potion	$5	Shop 1-A	Touch the green boxing glove to shrink down to half Milon's regular size. Touch the glove again or exit the screen to return to normal.
	Lantern (expensive)	$50	Shop 1-D	Helps Milon see better in the dark part of the well. (But don't buy it, because there is a cheaper lantern, below.)
	Lantern (cheaper)	$15	Shop 2-A	Same as the other lantern, only now it's affordable.
	Crystal Ball	free	defeat a boss for each	Every time Milon defeats one of the 7 main bosses, you'll get a crystal ball. Some of them will make the bubble bigger or go farther. Also, after you die, press LEFT + START at the title screen to continue.
	Vest	$25	Shop 2-B	This vest protects Milon somewhat from the fire in he well. He'll still get hurt but not as much as if he didn't have this item.
	Hammer	free	defeat Boss 2-A	Blocks on the main outside map that have ledges underneath them can be broken into with the hammer. Just press UP like you're entering a door.
	Saw	free	Shop 1-E	Windows on the outside of the castle can be entered once Milon gets the saw.
	High Jump Shoes	$60	Shop 1-F	Milon can jump higher after buying these.
	Whistle	$40	Shop 3-A	The invisible blocks Milon shoots in level 3-6 can be seen if he has this item. (I call it a whistle, though maybe it's a paint can. Whatever!)
	Feather	$35	Shop 3-B	Milon can ride the elevator in level 3-2 if he has the feather.
	Sword	$50	Shop 3-C	Once he has the sword, the bubbles Milon shoots are more powerful.
	Balloon Ship	$40	Shop 3-D	Milon can float down slowly after jumping if he has this item; just hold A.
	Canteen	free	defeat Boss 3-A	Milon needs this item to beat the crows in level 3-6. Additionally, the fire monsters in the well and fireplace cannot be killed unless you have the canteen.
	Cane	free	defeat Crow 1	One of two items needed to get into Floor 4.
	Crown	free	defeat Crow 2	The second necessary item to enter Floor 4.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE BONUS STAGE
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
When Milon touches the Music Box in some levels he'll be taken to the bonus stage. Seven Hudson Land inhabitants will play a short tune for him while the notes, sharps, and flats will fly up from the staff Milon is standing on. Grab as many music notes and sharps (#) as you can while staying away from the flats (b). When the song is over, Milon's points will be totaled up and then divided by four. The result is how much money he'll receive in return. Well, usually. A kindly reader named Ryan wrote in with some additional info: "I recently collected 53 notes and got a bonus of $26 for them. So apparently it's linear up to 44 (or maybe 48), but I think it really takes off after this."



A cool little feature of this game is each time you enter a bonus stage, a new instrument will be added to the song playing (notice that the guys above you hold instruments). At first it's just the drums... pretty boring. But the song gets more interesting with each new instrument added. If you find all 7 music boxes, you'll get to hear the full song during the last bonus stage.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
TIPS FOR THE GAME
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Life & Damage
Expect to take a lot of damage in this game! First of all, when you get hit, there is no "invincibility period" like with most similar games. Plus, most enemies "regenerate" just a few seconds after you kill them. There is a benefit to this, however: When you kill a bad guy, there's about a 30% chance that it'll leave behind a heart. So if your life meter gets low, you can just kinda camp out by an easily-killed enemy, and continually "ambush" him each time he comes back, collecting enough hearts in the process to fill up your life meter. A great place to do this is the bottom of the very first room. You can run back and forth, alternately taking out the slug-guy on the floor, the slug-guy on the ledge to the left, and the bouncing tiger-head.

The Nature of the Rooms
Milon can enter stages even after you've cleared them. This is handy in a few respects, such as the above mentioned method for filling up your life meter in level 1-1. And you don't necessarily have to take each room in order. The levels are not even numbered in the game, but we've labeled them in this walkthrough to cut down on confusion. In fact, many rooms of the castle don't even have to be cleared at all! But it's still a good idea to play through each level, collecting money and power-ups. This "freedom of choice" to somewhat take your own path is a nice aspect, though it can also lead to getting lost/stuck at certain points (i.e., if you haven't gotten a certain item). The original name of this game when it was released in Japan (a year before the US version) was "The Maze Suite." And as that name implies, there are maze-like parts of the game that often frustrate new players. But hopefully this walkthrough will clearly explain it all.

Power-Ups
Nearly every room has a hidden Honeycomb (adds to your life meter), Hudson Bee (gives you a shield for damage protection), and Music Box (let's you enter a bonus stage where you earn additional money). Enemies will also sometimes leave behind an item, such as a heart (fills up 1 bar on the life meter) or umbrella (enables rapid-fire bubbles).

Financial Implications
There are many items to buy within the castle and only a limited amount of hidden cash (at least on the first 2 floors). So you need to be diligent about searching for money blocks. Either that, or be willing to get by without all the items. There are some items in the game that will help out in a particular room, but aren't absolutely necessary for advancing in the game. With a little patience, the lantern, whistle, and feather can be ignored without much added trouble.

Shoot First, Ask Questions Later
This is one of those games where you pretty much want to be firing almost constantly while you're running around, since several levels have flying enemies that will swoop in at you from all angles with little time for you to react. If your controller has a turbo-fire button, you'll definitely want to enable it.

Careful Outside
Don't hang around outside the castle for too long.. or if you have to, remember to pause the game. Lightning storms are something to watch out for.

Benefits of Being Small
In rooms with a boxing glove, it's often a good idea to touch it to shrink Milon down, that way there's only half the area for bad guys to hurt him. He doesn't have the ability to duck, after all! Additionally, there are some areas with hidden money, shops, and power-ups which are tough (sometimes impossible) to get at when full size.

Fighting Bosses
The bosses are probably the hardest part of the game. They're all pretty similar, but as you go deeper into the game, the bosses move faster and take more hits to beat. It's pretty tough to not take damage from them, so try to be sure your life meter is full before taking them on. If you have a controller with a slow motion button (ie, NES Advantage), it really helps out in boss fights. Another tip for enemies that take several hits (bosses, eye-ghosts, the fire monster, crows, Maharito) is to get close to them when you attack, since you can shoot more frequently (again, a rapid-fire button comes in handy). Be aware that both the crows and the fire monster cannot be killed until Milon gets the canteen item.

Reading the Maps in this Walkthrough
Refer to the map of the castle at the top of this page labeling the rooms. The grid maps below lay out each room. When coordinates are given, the first number is along the bottom, and the second number is along the side. So.. 0,0 is the bottom left corner, and 28,31 is the top right corner, and so on.

FLOOR 1


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 1-1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
Exit Door : 29,23
Exit Key : 11,12 [sometimes it will appear at 19,18 or 30,0 instead]
Honeycomb : 3, 7
Music Box: 17, 2
Hudson Bee: 23,14


Shop 1-B : 22, 0 (Push the block to the left and shoot the area where the block was.)
Hint : Bump head to find box.
Hint : Secret entrance in the front wall.
Jump Shoes: $16

Shop 1-F : 9,23 (You can't reach this shop from the first floor; you have to wait until floor 3.)
Sold
Power : $15 (completely fills up your life meter)
High Jump Shoes : $60


This level is quite easy so familiarize yourself with Milon's jumping ability and how he shoots the bubbles. Collect everything you can in this stage and buy the Jump Shoes. You'll have to wait until much later in the game to reach the money area and Shop 1-F (in the top left corner) and buy the High Jump Shoes there.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOP 1-A
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hint : Crystal has mysterious power.
Hint : Find a saw.
Shrink Potion: $5



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 1-2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 29,11
Exit Key : 30, 0
Honeycomb : 19,22
Music Box: 21,19
Hudson Bee: 24,13


Shop 1-C : 14,21 (Push this block to the right and shoot the area where it was.)
Sold
Power : $5 (only replenishes a few life bars)
Sold

Shop 1-D : 31,23 (Shoot this block and then walk off of the screen.)
Hint : Secrets in the well.
Power : $5 (only replenishes a few life bars)
Lantern (expensive) : $50

Trap Door block: 28,23
Break the blocks on both sides of this block. Push the block for a couple seconds and you'll fall down.

The boxing glove makes it's first appearance here, so make sure you have the shrink potion. If you don't have it, you may want to exit the room, buy the shrink potion from Shop 1-A outside ($5), then come back. Shrink down to enter Shop 1-D and also to get the money at the bottom right hand corner of this stage. You can skip Shop 1-D because the lantern will be sold for a cheaper price a little later in the game (chances are you won't even have enough money at this point anyway). If you do go into the shop, you'll have to use the trap door to get out of the upper area because when you come out of shops or bonus areas you'll be returned to normal size.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Jumping Dragon (tan color)

All of the bosses in this game follow the same pattern. They'll bounce towards Milon and then bounce away from him in a straight line. During this they'll also lob fireballs in a random fashion.

Since you don't have the Balloon Ship or High Jump Shoes yet, the best strategy is to pay attention to the boss's firing pattern. Stay just close enough to them so that your shots will hit their heads. Now jump over the low fireballs and run under the high ones. While doing this fire as many bubbles as possible. It's easier to fire down towards their heads while jumping than trying to shoot up at them while standing.

After you defeat the boss you'll receive the first crystal. This one is very important as it will let you continue if you happen to die. Just press the LEFT and START buttons at the title screen.

Now enter the door on the right side of the boss room and it's off to floor 2 where we'll dive into the mysterious well...

Also note that from now on you can travel up to floor 2 of the castle by returning to this passage. To get back down to floor 1, simply jump down from the left side when you're outside the castle.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------



FLOOR 2

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 2-1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 1,26
Exit Key : 21,8
Honeycomb : 18,13
Music Box: 5,25
Hudson Bee: 15,10

Shop 2-A : 14,21 (Shoot the block and then the area where the block was)
Hint : The well is climbable.
Hint : Balloon makes the bubble bigger.
Lantern (cheaper) : $15

Most of the blocks that look like tables fall down after you step on them... Others work like trap doors... And two have springs in them where your Jump Shoes will come in handy. If you've done a good job collecting money, go ahead and buy the cheaper lantern. But you don't absolutely need it (all it does is light up the first part of the well, but you can still get past it with some patience), so it might not be a bad idea if you'd rather save your money for other items later in the game.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 2-2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 22,12
Exit Key : 26, 0
Honeycomb : 15,19
Music Box: 3, 9
Hudson Bee: 18,15

Shop 2-B : 31, 0 (Shoot this block and then walk off of the screen.)
Hint : The vest isn't 100% against heat.
Power: $5 (replenishes a few life bars)
Vest : $25

Shop 2-C : 1,25 (Shoot the block and then shoot the area where the block was.)
Hint : Push for 4 seconds on the fire place.
Power : $15 (replenishes all your life)
Free Money : A suddenly generous Barnaby gives you $10!

What that hint in Shop 2-B means is that you will still get burned from the fire even if you own the vest, but you won't take as much damage as without. You don't absolutely need the vest, but it will make things much easier on Milon if you have it. The only other thing to mention about this level is that the blocks that look like tables will tumble if you step on them.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WELL (PART 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door: 0,11 and 0,10
Hudson Bee: 5, 3

Just break the blocks at 0,11 and 0,10 to get out of this stage. If you don't have the lantern, it'll be dark down there and so it will take a bit of "blind" jumping around the blocks till you make your way to the hole in the left side of the wall.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WELL (PART 2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door: 12,0
Honeycomb: 7,14
Hudson Bee: 8,18

Watch for the fall-away trap doors in the middle of this section. Grab the Honeycomb on your way down but leave the Hudson Bee for later. There's another bee in the next part so there's no sense in wasting this one. Avoid the ghost-octopus things that fly around and shoot at you; at this point, they take too many hits to kill, plus they move around and disappear, making them a tough target.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WELL (PART 3: Fire Room)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 

Exit Door : 29, 0
Honeycomb : 29, 2
Hudson Bee: 19,18

Grab the Hudson Bee along your way down to the lower right hand corner of this stage. Shoot at the the fire above the exit blocks and you'll reveal the Honeycomb. Grab it and fall onto the exit block to face the first boss of floor 2!



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 2-A
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Bouncing Brown Creature

Wow, this guy looks like a jumping piece of poop! Gross! As stated before, each boss follows the same pattern. Jump over the low fireballs and duck under the high ones. Jump up and fire downwards at his head and you'll be victorious.

The second crystal will make the bubbles Milon shoots bigger.

Go through the right door and you'll be taken to a shop where Barnaby will give you the hammer. What a great guy; first $10 and now this...

You'll be placed in the lower left hand corner of the Well Part 3. Work yourself all the way back out of the well and onto the house map screen. As an alternative to going back the way you came, you can also try to kill an eye-octopus thing, which will be slightly easier now with Milon's bigger bubble. After several hits, they turn into a balloon and float upwards. Quickly grab the balloon before it floats away and it'll carry you all the way out of the well.

Now go back to Shop 1-E on the first floor and get the saw.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOP 1-E
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sold
Power: $5 (only a few life bars are replenished)
Saw : Free

Has Barnaby lost his mind? This is the second item in a row he's given away for free. Oh well, now that you have the saw you can get into those sealed windows. Boss 2-B awaits...



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 2-B
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jumping Pterodactyl

I wish I could say this boss does something different but he doesn't. The only thing that has changed is that your bubbles are now bigger which makes hitting the boss' head a little bit easier.

After defeating this boss you'll be taken to floor 3 where Milon will explore the two mysterious towers of Castle Garland.



FLOOR 3

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-1
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 4,25
Exit Key : 1,15
Honeycomb : 24,12
Music Box: 9,18
Hudson Bee: 25,12

Shop 3-B : 29,27 (Break this block and use the spring beneath it to jump up off of the screen.)
Hint : A room below the fireplace.
Hint : A trap in left tower.
Feather: $35

Buying the feather isn't necessary and you might want to save your money (the feather just lets you ride a special elevator in the next stage that makes it a bit easier to get to a shop). However, don't worry about running out of money at this point because that's impossible thanks to the infinite money available in level 3-2. But by avoiding unnecessary items, you won't have to take the extra time gathering money for items you need.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 11,25
Exit Key : 22,23
Music Box: 1,19
Hudson Bee: 25,15

Shop 3-C : 25,20 (Push the block above the door to the left and you'll fall down.)
Hint : A crown and a cane is needed at the 4th floor.
Hint : There is only one Maharito
Balloon Ship: $40

Trap Door block: 28, 4
Push this block to the left and you'll fall into the fireplace. Walk to the right and you'll drop down to face the first boss. You don't want to do this the first time through however...

The first thing to note is that the money reappears in this stage. Every time you re-enter, the money you've collected will be back. If you don't have enough money to buy any of the next few items, just come back here to collect what you need. Buy the Balloon Ship from Shop 3-C but don't fight the boss yet. We'll come back later on to do that.

Another different thing about this room is it's the only main stage without a hidden honeycomb anywhere.

After you exit (through the door at the top, remember, not the fireplace yet), now that you have the Balloon Ship you can enter the window that takes you to the top of Level 1-1. To get to this window, jump off of the ledge to the right (see outside castle map above) and float over by holding down the A button.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 1-1 (the top)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shop 1-F : 9,23 (Just walk into the door.)
Sold :
Power : $15 (refills all of your power)
High Jump Shoes: $60

Right when you enter there will be money that you want to collect. You can come back and do this two more times, so you might as well do it now. Just go into the shop and then exit. You'll be out on floor 1, so go back to floor 3 and enter the window again. After the third time through, buy the High Jump Shoes from the shop.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-3
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 3,26
Exit Key : 23, 9
Honeycomb : 30,11
Music Box: 10, 3
Hudson Bee: 23,14

Shop 1-D : 16,25 (Shoot this area and the door will appear. If you bought the feather, just ride the elevator up to the door. If you didn't buy the feather, break the blocks to the right of the door. Now jump off the blocks and float down by holding in the A button. It may take you a few tries to get it.)
Hint : Watch out for a phony princess.
Power: $5
Sword: $50

If after collecting all of the money from this stage you still don't have enough to buy the Sword, just go back to level 3-2. The Sword makes Milon's bubbles more powerful and colorful.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
RIGHT TOWER (part 1: Ice Room)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 7, 0
Honeycomb : 9,11

The ice blocks on this level melt when you step on them. Use the above map and picture to help you plan where to stand to have access to the honeycomb. Since the ice doesn't melt horizontally, if you're not standing directly beside where the honeycomb is hidden, you'll be helpless to grab it. Here's a tip: try to step on two blocks of ice at once, that way you'll melt yourself a wider tunnel, as seen in the picture above.

Stand on the exit block on the bottom center to drop down to the next part.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
RIGHT TOWER (part 2: Electricity Room)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 15, 0

Make your way downward, watching out for the electricity that flows from certain blocks. Once on the bottom, walk off screen to get to Boss 3-A.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 3-A
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jumping Pterodactyl (red)

Guess what? This boss is exactly the same as the previous ones...You have the High Jump Shoes and the Balloon Ship now which is a definite advantage. Jumping over the shots is easier, plus you can float down over multiple shots without getting hit.

After defeating this boss you'll receive a crystal and then the canteen. Now we can go defeat the two crow bosses in level 3-6.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOP 3-A
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hint : A waterpot in icy room.
Power: $5 (only replenishes a few life bars)
Whistle : $40

The whistle (or is that supposed to be a paint can?) is another "helpful, but not completely necessary" item. It makes the invisible blocks Milon shoots at in level 3-6 visible. If you have the money, go ahead and buy it (There are no more items to buy, assuming you've followed the path set out in this walkthrough, so don't worry about saving anymore). But with a little patience, you can use your memory in navigating Milon over the invisible blocks without buying the whistle.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-2 (return)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first time through, we got every item but didn't go to the boss. Defeating him should be pretty easy now that you have the Balloon Ship, Sword, and High Jump Shoes. Go to the trapdoor block above the fireplace. Now that you have the canteen, the fire monster can be killed (but it still might be easier to just avoid him).

Trap Door Block: 28, 4 (Push this block to the left and you'll fall into the fireplace. Walk to the right and you'll drop down to face boss 3-B.)



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 3-B
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Red Jumping Dragon

Not much new with this boss.

After defeating him you'll be taken to level 3-6.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-6 (part 1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exit Door : 31,0
Hudson Bee: 14,22

This room has hidden blocks that activate when Milon shoots at them. If you've bought the whistle, you'll be able to see them. Otherwise, they'll remain invisible. It's still possible to navigate through the room, but just a bit of a pain... especially if you fall through one of the trapdoors and are forced to re-enter the room from the fireplace in level 3-2 again... and let's face it, it's probably going to happen at least once.. sorry! Best advice is try not to walk on top of the tall columns.. or rather, only step on the actual Roman column things (sides), since inbetween them is where trapdoors wait. (See the above picture? That's where you don't want to be!)

Work your way to the far left hand side of this stage to find the fake princess. When you find her, stand on the block right above the section she's in to fall down. Touch her and she'll turn into her real form, an evil crow. As long as you constantly shoot the bird you should get rid of it pretty quickly. He'll leave behind the Princess' cane which you'll need to get into the main boss room of floor 3. Be sure you've bought the canteen before taking on the crow, otherwise it's invincible (you'll know your attacks aren't doing any damage if there's no noise when you hit it with a bubble).

Now it's off to the left tower. Exit this room by walking off the lower right side of the screen.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEFT TOWER
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 

Exit Door : 5, 0
Hudson Bee: 11, 9

This level is pretty confusing, so watch out. You'll start out at the very top of the tower and work your way down. However you don't go down one level at a time; instead you skip an additional level each time. When you finally reach the bottom you're taken to the second level and the process repeats.

I know this is weird but follow me as best as you can. Look at the map and locate where you start at. Notice that level is labeled "A". Here's the order in which you'll descend: A - C - E - B - D - F

At level F you'll fall down through the floor and end up back at A. But this level is different. You can break the blocks above your head that are labeled in the above map with stars. After breaking them, jump up towards the empty blocks and push yourself right off the screen. You should now be on floor G, where you'll fall down and to the next boss.

If for some reason you messed up on floor A then just go through and try again. You can always die and come back in to this stage if you want.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 3-C
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bouncing Blue Creature

This boss thing is getting really annoying. On the bright side I don't have to write strategies for all seven bosses though...

After beating this boss you'll be taken to level 3-6, part 2.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 3-6 (part 2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

 
Exit Door: 0,0
Hudson Bee: 14,22

This room is exactly the same as part 1 except the boss is in a different location. Be careful not to fall down the trapdoors in the middle of the tall columns, otherwise you'll have to enter from the left tower all over again. Go to the far right side of the stage and break the two money blocks in front of the fake princess. Touch her to turn her into a crow and defeat it.

You'll receive the crown; now we can beat boss 3-D and go to the last floor!


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOSS 3-D
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jumping Skeletal Creature

When I first saw this boss I thought "Wow, this guy looks different so maybe he'll attack different too..."
Needless to say he doesn't.. he's just a bit stronger and faster. Use the regular strategies against him.

Ahhh...the last boss. Now it's time to kick Maharito's butt and get the castle back!



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

FLOOR 4



-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LEVEL 4-1 (the final stage)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exits: 0,12 and 10,0 and 21,0 and 31,12

Hudson Bees:
Blue room: 11,4
Green room: 15,23 [at Marharito's throne]
Red room: 17,11

This is the final stage, but thankfully, it's not too tough. The first thing you'll notice is that there a four separate rooms that all look similar. The main difference is the background color (brownish-orange, blue, reddish-purple, and green). Three of them contain Maharito clones, and only one has the real Maharito.

The room you start in is the orange room. It seems the true Maharito is usually in the blue room. Enter it by walking over to the right. Each room is guarded by three crows, whom you'll probably want to kill, since they'll be shooting at you and being a pain if you try to avoid them. Make your way to the top near where you'll see Maharito hopping around. Shrink with the glove. Break the blocks off of the two columns to the right. Stand in the space between them; there will be a spring placed in this block so you'll be constantly bouncing. When Maharito jumps towards you fire your bubbles at his chest. The only time he's vulnerable is when he shoots at you, opening his arms. More of your shots will hit them than his will hit you, so bringing him down isn't too hard. If it's a fake Maharito, he will turn into a crow after a few hits, and if so, you should repeat the process in one of the other color rooms.

Each room has exit trapdoors at the bottom accessible by shooting the bricks over them. You can also exit from the openings on the either side of the room's third floor. So you can leave to fill up your life meter if you want. Any fake Maharitos that you've beaten will still be gone when you return.

After beating the true Maharito, the screen will flash and you'll see the brief ending sequence.
Good job!




-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
CLOSING NOTES
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
While I feel Milon Secret Castle is one of my favorite NES games, it certainly is not without it's faults. First, after being hit by an enemy there is no 'invincibility period'. So if you run into an enemy, chances are you'll be hit more than once. The only way to stop taking damage is to move away which isn't the case for most games. My second complaint is the lack of boss originality. Three of the four bosses reappear again in a different color. Also the bosses' attack patterns were really terrible. Even Maharito followed the same pattern as the rest of the smaller bosses! My last complaint, which is the most important, is the awful ending. I won't spoil it, but all I'm saying is not to expect much. I would have even settled for some decent credits and a cool drawing of Milon resting in his castle with Eliza. Oh well, Super Mario Bros. is considered a classic and it's ending is no better than this one. Other than these few complaints I enjoyed this game a lot.

 

{Milon's Secret Website}