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FINAL FANTASY IX
Hippaul Racing Guide by Sybillium
Version 2.0
sybillium2@hotmail.com
1/1/2001
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Introduction/Version History
II. Where do I Race Hippaul?
III. How to Play
IV. Prizes/Details
V. Tips/Techniques
VI. FAQs
VII. Conclusion/Email/Credits
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|____ |____ \___|======| \ Part I
| | |======| / Introduction/Version History
| | | |/ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Of the many minigames in Final Fantasy IX, I have chosen the Hippaul
Racing game to write a FAQ for. Why? Well, it's a tough game, and it can be
pretty fun! Most people play it once or twice and simply dismiss it as a
stupid way to get common carrds. WRONG! I am near the end of the game, and
one of the cards I won here is my BEST card (EA7C).
Enjoy, and don't forget to email me!
Version 1.0 - Completed 1/1/01 - 8:36:20 PM
-Initial Release.
Version 1.05 - Completed 1/2/01 - 11:00:33 PM
-Fixed a really blatant error.
Version 1.5 - Completed 1/4/01 - 11:00:47 PM
-Got the Athlete Queen info.
-Changed Copyright policy.
Version 2.0 - Completed 1/6/01 - 12:51:24 PM
-Added decorative titles.
-Changed version problem.
-Added a bit of extra information.
Coming soon: Possibly a list of Hippaul's times for each level...as soon as
I restart the game and make my way up to Alexandria!
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|____ |____ \___|======| \ Part II
| | |======| / Where do I race Hippaul?
| | | |/ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
At the beginning of Disc 3, when you control Vivi and are walking around
Alexandria, you can race Hippaul. Be warned, this is the ONLY place you can
race Hippaul.
You'll find Hippaul in the long street in Alexandria, on the left side
standing with Hippolady. Talk to Hippolady and say that you want to race
Hippaul.
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|____ |____ \___|======| \ Part III
| | |======| / How to Play
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The basic premise of this minigame is simple. All you must do is
alterantely tap SQUARE and CIRCLE as quickly as possible. The faster you do,
the quicker Vivi runs. When you do it slowly, each press of each button
corresponds to one stride of Vivi's legs. However, when you tap the buttons
very fast, the length of Vivi's strides increases, rather than the amount of
strides.
Hippaul starts out very, very slow. As you beat him, he increases in
level and gets faster and faster. You get prizes (mostly cards) for every
ten levels he increases.
Here are some additional points you should take note of:
1. Most of the time, each time you race Hippaul, his level increases by one.
It will increase by more at the beginning.
2. The maximum level Hippaul can reach is 99. Yes, this means you must race
him about 85 times.
3. You can and should start mashing the buttons beforeHippolady actually
says "GO". This ensures that you start ASAP.
4. At the beginning, Hippaul is painfully slow. Once you get tolevel 40 or
so, though, you must really start paying attention. You'lllose a few times,
but it can be overcome.
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|____ |____ \___|======| \ Part IV
| | |======| / Prizes/Details
| | | |/ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Here is a detailed list of the cards you will receive when Hippaul reches
certain levels.
___________________________________________________________________
|ATHLETE QUEEN - key item |
|___________________________________________________________________|
|Obtained at |Level 80 |
|_______________|___________________________________________________|
|The item says: |I only do what makes my mom happy. You cal call me |
| |a coward, but only if you aren't one yourself. |
| | =Hippaul= |
|_______________|___________________________________________________|
|Moogle says: |Good luck, Hippaul! Reach for the stars! |
|_______________|___________________________________________________|
|The item does: |Nothing that I know of... |
|_______________|___________________________________________________|
If you get the Athlete Queen, the Mognet letter in Treno that says: "There
is a new champion sprinter in Alexandria. His name is Hippaul!" now hs
Vivi's name. Just a little something extra, but not useful.
>>>CREDIT: Thanks to PlayOnline for the INITAL info about the Athlete Queen.
>>>Boxed information regarding Athlete Queen in this FAQ version is my own.
>>>Thanksto BARBUARY for the info about the Treno letter.
What to do:
DO use one hand, generally the hand you write with. Use your index and
middle fingers, and alternate back and forth very quickly, hardly lifting
your fingers from the surface of the controller.
DO take frequent breaks.
DO create a game save before leaving Alexandria if you give up before
getting everything.
DO look below for more tips.
What NOT to do:
DON'T use a finger from each hands to hit the buttons. This causes you to
tense up, and your hands can't coordinate the hits that well.
DON'T play more than a few races at a time if you're having trouble. After a
while, your hands get tired.
DON'T watch the screen. Either stare at the controller or a picture or
something. Looking at the screen and seeing that Hippaul may be catching up
to you causes your fingers to go wild and lose a good, tight rhythm.
DON'T give up. You can do it!
MORE POINTS OF INTEREST:
1) THIS IS IMPORTANT! Remember, you can always change the buttons you want
to push by going to "Config" then "Controller" in the main menu. To set the
buttons you want, look at the right column on icons. See the circle and
square? To the left of these, input the buttons you want to use.
Try the following combinations to see which works best for you. Remember,
every person has a different set of hands, so there's no single combination
that works best overall.
________________
|1 |2 |
|________|_______|
|TRIANGLE|X |
|L1 |L2 |
|R1 |R2 |
|X |CIRCLE |
|SQUARE |CIRCLE |
|________|_______|
If you have a Dual Shock controller, the right analog button can actually
get in the way if you use Square + Circle once Hippaul starts getting over
level 60. Use a different combination.
2) Hippaul actually starts out slow at the beginning of each race and speeds
up. Don't be lulled into a false sense of security!
3) Sometimes, When you get to REALLY high levels, like past 80, if you beat
Hippaul by a long distnace, he doesn't gain a level. You must almost tie him
but win to make him gain a level.
CREDIT: Thanks to Brainslug for the previous tip.
4) This is a theory: If you start pushing the buttons RIGHT when Hippolady
says "go", you may be faster than if you start mashing beforehand.
Obviously, though, you must have quick reaction times for this.
Right now, I'm at level 80. However, I plan to level up to 99.
Q. What do you get at Level 90.
Nothing. Yeah, I know, it stinks, but
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| | / \ |\ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
|____ |____ \___|======| \ Part VII
| | |======| / Conclusion/e-mail/Credits
| | | |/ =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Thank you for using this FAQ!
- Thanks to gamefaqs.com for giving me the venue to post it.
- Thanks to readers for reading it.
- And to my parents for letting me move the computer to my room! ^_^
Also, various people are given credit throughout the FAQ.
If you have a tip to give, a suggestion to make, or an idea for a future
section of this FAQ, contact me at:
===============================
IMPORTANT COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
===============================
This ENTIRE FAQ is copyright protected. 2000. What does this mean? For one,
this means that the FAQ cannot be edited in any way or altered from its
original state. This also means that you cannot use the FAQ for profitable
purposes. That includes selling it for money, trading it for something else,
or giving away as an incentive to attract buyers.
So what can you do with this FAQ?
-You can read it and use it to help you through the game.
-You can print a copy for your own personal use.
-You can print out several copies and freely distribute them. FREELY!
But you can not...
-As I said, use it for any profit.
-Edit it in any way.
-Include it in any printed work. This includes compilation CDs!
You can do the following things by asking my permission first.
-Link to it from your own website.
-Use it on your own website.
