Games - http://maxpages.com/jonnys765/Bakusou_Dekotra

Table Of Contents
I. What Is Art Truck Battle?
II. What about the "Art?"
III. Why make a FAQ?
IV. Game Menus
A. Main Menu
B. Miscellaneous Options & Features
B1. Drawing Mode
B1a. Background Editor
B1b. Drawing Mode Save
B1c. Drawing Mode Load
B1d. Exit Drawing Mode
B2. Option Mode
B3. Controller Setup
B4. Background Music Player
B5. Exit
C. Country Battle Mode
C1. Start Race
C2. Modify Truck
C3. Save Truck
C4. Exit CBM
D. Time Attack Mode
D1. Start Race
D2. Modify Truck
D3. Save Truck
D4. Exit TAM
E. Men's Flower Arrangement Mode (Story Mode)
E1. Dream Chasing Highway Of The Northern Provinces
E2. Fire Dance
E3. Tale Of Traveling Down Through Japan
F. Brain Competition (Vs. Mode)
G. Load Truck From Card
V. Game Play & Strategy
VI. Codes & Secrets
VII. Index Of Abbreviations
VIII.Credits
IX. Version History
X. Where can updates be found?

I. What Is Art Truck Battle?
"Bakusou Dekotora Densetsu- The Art Truck Battle" (also known on the
web as
Decotra, Dekotra, and/or Bakusou Decotora) is a Top Ten selling Japanese

import game for the Playstation. The object of game is to race two Semi

Trucks down the highways of Japan, and the first driver to deliver their
cargo
wins the prize money. The "Battle" part comes into play because it is a
very
brutal race, with both trucks cutting each other off, rear ending one
another,
smashing into each other, and running into helpless passing motorists in
order
to slow down the other opponent.

II. What about the "Art?"
What separates this game from other racing games is the high degree
of
customization available. As you win money in the races, you can use it
to add
dozens of fancy flashing lights, neon effects, and beautiful paintings
to your
truck. There is even a simple painting program included that lets you
make
your own artwork for the sides of your truck.

III. Why make a FAQ?
Like many English speaking Playstation gamers, I have a fascination
with
Japanese import games, but do to my inability to speak Japanese it can
be
difficult to navigate the many menus of Japanese text found within these

games. After searching all of the major gaming sites and search engines
I
found there was little to no information about this game on the web, so
I
decided to try putting together a FAQ. Since I don't speak or read
Japanese,
most of the information herein is simply taken from my painstaking
guesswork,
trying one option to see what it does, then trying another, etc. Of
course
this leaves a huge margin for error, so I welcome any additions or
corrections. In fact, if there is someone who has a better knowledge of
the
game than I do and wants to take over this FAQ, then I would be glad to
pass
the torch on to you.

IV. Game Menus
Nearly all of the menus in this game are in Japanese, and can at
times be
difficult to navigate. Here is what I have been able to figure out so
far.

A. Main Menu.
This screen has a vertical box on either side, and four horizontal
boxes
down the middle. They are:
Left Box: Miscellaneous Options & Features
Top Box: Country Battle Mode
2nd Box: Time Attack
3rd Box: Men's Flower Arrangement Mode (Story Mode)
Bottom Box: Brain Competition (Vs. Mode)
Right Box: Load Truck From Card

B. Miscellaneous Options & Features
This screen has five lines of text options you can choose from:
Drawing Mode
Option Mode
Controller Setup
Background Music Player
Exit

B1. Drawing Mode
This mode is a simple paint program that lets you create your own
drawings
to put on the side of your truck. The basic controls for this section
are: (S) Switch Pencil Width (1-2-3 pixels)
(T) Switch Drawing Tool
(O) Color #1
(X) Color #2
(L2)Undo
There are two two large rectangular windows, the "Texture Window" on
top
and the "Making Window" on bottom. Underneath the Making Window are 7
buttons:
Zoom (1x, 2x, 4x), Line Width (1-2-3 pixels), Pencil Tool, Line Tool,
Rectangle Tool, Paint Bucket, and Undo. You do all of your drawing in
the
Making Window and can see your finished results in the Texture Window
above.
On the bottom right side is the "color select" window with RGB sliders
and
preset colors to choose from. You can select two colors and toggle
between
them using the (O) and (X) buttons. Drawing is done with the
directional pad,
but unfortunately analog support isn't included, so you're limited to
the
standard 8 directions and one speed. I'm not sure if it supports the PSX
Mouse
or not... I really hope it does though. You might be able to really
design
some nice paintings then, otherwise the drawing tools are almost useless

except for simple geometric patterns. (A side note... now that the Dex
Drive
has arrived, I wonder if there is a way to open the saved files in
Photoshop
or some other image editor, and save it back to the memory card? If
possible,
you could really make some great designs for your trucks. At least, it
would
be a great marketing tool for Human to put up a web page somewhere with
some
new designs that could be saved with the Dex Drive)
In the top right corner is the "Menu" window with four options:
Background Editor (yellow text)
Save (green text)
Load (blue text)
Exit (pink text)
Any time you choose one of these, it brings up a warning window with
something to the effect of "do you really want to choose this option"
with a
button to confirm on the left or cancel on the right.

B1a. Background Editor
The background editor has a number of preset items you can assemble
to come
up with a picture you can bring back into the Drawing Mode to doodle on
top
of. Again, there is a "texture window" on top that shows your finished
project and a "shitae window" below where you can go through the
patterns and
stamps. In the top right corner is the "menu" window. There are four
buttons:
Background (yellow text)
Object (yellow text)
Stamp (yellow text)
Exit (pink text)
In the bottom right corner is the "texture select" window. There are
two
large arrows to scroll back and forth through the pages of backgrounds,
objects, and stamps. Below the arrows are a blue Select button to choose
the
item in the bottom window and put it in the Texture Window. It should be
noted
that regardless of the order you select them, the background always goes
to
the back, the objects in the middle, and the stamps in the foreground.
The
only problem with these preset items is that there aren't nearly enough
of
them. There are only five backgrounds, ten objects, and 36 stamps.
With the
remaining space available on the disc, they could have included hundreds
more.
B1b. Drawing Mode Save
First you have to choose from one of two boxes with a number 1 or 2
on it,
for card slot 1 or 2. It will check for previous saved drawings on the
card
and give you two options. The first will overwrite the previous drawing,
the
second will cancel the save. Unfortunately, as far as I can tell, there
is no
way to save more than one drawing per memory card despite the fact that
the
drawing only takes up three blocks (another reason a Dex Drive would be
handy
with this game). So make sure you don't overwrite your favorite picture!

B1c. Drawing Mode Load
This screen looks just like the Save screen. First you choose from
card one
or two, then your first choice in the text will load the picture from
the
card, the second choice will cancel the loading.

B1d. Exit Drawing Mode
This will bring you back to the Miscellaneous Options & Features
screen.

B2. Option Mode
There are seven lines of text here, but some I haven't figured out yet.
I
would assume some would be standard game options such as difficulty,
stereo/mono, bgm on/off, sound fx on/off, etc., but I haven't been able
to
figure out which are which for sure yet.
??? ?/?/?/?
??? ?/?/?
??? ?/?/?
??? on/off
Map on/off (turns game map on/off)
Reset Options

Exit

B3. Controller Setup
This screen has two columns of text. On the left are three lines:
Change Controls
Reset Controls
Exit
When you select Change Controls, it lets you edit the button
configuration.
The standard setup is:
(X) Accellerator
(S) Brake
(R2) Insult
(R1) Horn
(L2) Pan Camera
(L1) Switch Camera Perspective
(O) Rear View Mirror
(T) Dual Shock on/off
Most of these are self-explanatory. "Insult" will yell an
obscenity (in
Japanese) at the other driver or motorists. See below at the Truck
Customization section to find out how to change your insults (there are
at
least a couple dozen of them). If you honk your Horn at a slow moving
motorist in front of you, they often will speed up and get the hell out
of
your way (if it only were that easy in real life!). Pan Camera does a
cinematic rotation of the camera around your truck so you can see how
cool it
looks from all angles... the only problem is that you tend to run into
other
cars while you're admiring your handiwork.
Also to be noted, in most menu screens, the button setup is as
follows:
(X) Cancel
(S) Freeze Rotation
(R2) \
(R1) \ Trigger buttons change light colors
(L2) / and flashing speeds
(L1) /
(O) Choose highlighted selections
(T) Toggle night/day

B4. Background Music Player
There are only two lines of text on this screen.
Track (displays track name)
??? ?/?
You can select different tracks by using the d-pad and play them. The
four
trigger buttons each play different sound effects, but the effects
appear to
be the same with each track. The second line I'm not sure about yet. It
would
appear to toggle something audio-related but I don't think it's
stereo/mono
from what I can tell in my headphones.

B5. Exit (Misc. Options & Features)
This brings up the standard Exit screen. You will be given a choice
of two
text selections, when you hit (O) the top one will confirm that yes, you
do
indeed want to exit. The bottom one will cancel. Hit (X) to exit the
exit
screen and bring you back to the Main Menu Screen.

C. Country Battle Mode (title translation from Magic Box)
Country Battle Mode (CBM) is the meat & potatoes of the game-
comparable to
the championship modes in many racing games where you start out with a
baseline vehicle and have to win races to earn money to fix up your
vehicle.
Likewise, you start out with a basic truck and have to earn "BP" which
you can
then spend to cusomize your vehicle in any number of endless variations.

Unlike most racing games, though, you don't spend money to buy new
engines or
tires or suspensions or anything practical. You buy new bigger gaudier
sets of
flashing lights and Ground FX and custom paint jobs when you win races.
Your
vehicle's racing performance simply goes up by a few percentage points
each
time you win.
If you want to load a previous game, you have to do it from the Right

Vertical Box on the Main Menu Screen. Otherwise, when you start Country
Battle
Mode you have to create a new truck. First you have to choose a three
letter
abbreviation for you name. Then you choose another three letter
abbreviation.
Then you choose a six letter name. I don't have any idea why you need
three
names (maybe one for you, one for your truck, and one for..?). The first
three
letter abbreviation sometimes comes up in the text when the characters
are
talking to each other, usually indicating that this is your player
speaking.
Both three letter abbreviations are seen when saving and loading games,
and
the six letter name is seen when selecting your character in Time Attack
Mode.
After choosing your name(s), you have to select a vehicle. A black
screen
appears with the truck rotating in the middle and you use the d-pad to
scroll
left or right to see the other trucks. There are five trucks you can
choose
from, but they all pretty much look the same to start with, aside from
some
minor differences in the cabs. At the top left corner of the screen is
a box
with the name of the truck in it. Below the trucks are three large
mysterious
hexagons with Japanese text in them. One is yellow, one green, and one
blue.
When you select the different trucks, some will light up and others will
grey
out. Could this possibly be showing the different strengths and
weaknesses of
each truck? Maybe the hexagons are for Speed, Handling, and
Accelleration or
something of that nature.
After you select a truck it will bring up the Main Country Battle
Mode
Screen. On the top left corner are four boxes with Japanese text. These
are:
Start Race
Modify Truck
Save Truck
Exit
On the right of the menu is a rotating picture of your truck. Below
it is a
box that shows what your cargo is (fish, tomatoes, furniture, seashells,
wood,
etc.). Next to that is a box that shows what your current amount of BP
(money)
is. Below that is a box that displays text messages.

C1. Start Race (CBM)
When you're ready to start, a large map of Japan will appear. There
are
several different stretches of highway across Japan that you will race
on. You
can select different tracks (for lack of a better term) and for each one
there
will be an illustration of the driver you'll have to race against. These

pictures are actually quite well done- each character is drawn
realisticly (no
super-deformations or anime style here), is very Japanese appearing, and
has a
different scowl or mean look on their face to show you how tough they
are. For
all the different tracks you can select, you can still only actually
choose
one or two to actually race on until you complete them. As you beat
each
track, new drivers will appear on the stretch of road and you'll have to
face
them, too eventually. (Also, many of the drivers have uniqe trucks and
customizations that can't be found anywhere else. When you beat them,
they
become playable in Time Attack Mode.) When you find a driver that you're
ready
to race, press the (O) and the race will begin.

C2. Modify Truck (CBM)
This is where you finally get to make the truck uniquely your own. In
the
top right corner is a picture of your truck as it is currently decked
out.
Below that on the left is a small box with two numbers. The top is your
current total of BP. Below that is the price of the item you currently
have
selected. In the box to the right of that are two percentages. The top
one is
your Decoration Percentage, which keeps going up as you buy cool gear
for your
rig. Below that is your truck's Performance Percentage, which goes up a
few
points each time you win a race.
Also on this screen is a list of 22 different options you can modify
on
your truck. When you go to buy one of these items, the store owner gives
you
one last chance to change your mind. The top line of text will confirm
that
you want to buy the item, the lower line will cancel.
On most of the item screens that display a rotating truck, press the
(S)
button to make it stop rotating. Press the (T) to toggle night/day modes
to
see what your truck looks like in the dark with all its fancy lights lit
up.
On some screens you can use the four trigger buttons to switch colors of

lights and the patterns that they flash in.
The items you can select are:
Cab Topper
Roof Brim
Front Bumper
Rear Bumper
Side Ground FX
Passenger Side Panel Art
Driver Side Panel Art
Roof Art
Rear Art
Cab Deco
Roof FX
Wheel Covers
Passenger Side Panel Lights
Driver Side Panel Lights
Roof Lights
Mirrors
Side Exhaust Pipes
Muffler
Air Horn
Steering Wheel
Insult
Exit
Most of the items are self explanatory. But I should note that any of
the
Art selections brings up a sub menu where you can select from any one of
a
number of beautifully airbrushed paintings of traditional Japanese
demons,
warriors, wildlife, dragons, and such. For the side panels, if you go up
one
selection from the one that you start with, you should be able to bring
up the
artwork you made in the Drawing Mode. You'll have to talk to the owner
by
hitting the (O) button several times before it will come up. For some
reason,
though, when I've tried this for the first few times with each new truck
it
only comes up as a blank white panel. I came back later after winning a
few
more races and tried again and this time the picture came up fine. (It
wasn't
a money issue either, I had plenty of BP).
The steering wheel is one item that will make a big difference in the
way
your rig handles. There are two different varieties: the Purple Wheel
and the
Chrome Wheel.
The Purple Wheel (the default) will stay in your own lane at all
times,
even if you take your hands off the controller as it goes around a
curve. The
only trick is that like a good little trucker, you have to put on your
turn
signal before you can change lanes. In essence, you have to tap the
d-pad
twice every time you change lanes. This may not sound hard, but when
you're
trying to rapidly cut back and forth to cut off your opponent and keep
him
behind you, the short delay is sometimes all he needs to get past you.
The Chrome Wheel handles like more traditionaly racers. You can
ride
down the middle of lanes, you have to steer into every curve, and you
can
sharply cut back and forth across the highway. The only problem with
this is
it's a little too easy to cut across lanes and wind up hitting the wall
or
another car you didn't intend to. Also, sharper curves are a real pain
in the
ass and you'll hit the wall often. You'll probably want to leave this
one
alone unless you're really good with the analog stick.
The insults are another useless but enjoyable addition to the game.
You can
choose from dozens of Japanese insults and obscenities to yell at the
other
drivers. When a phrase is selected, push any of the trigger buttons to
hear
how it sounds. There are several male phrases in blue, and so the ladies
don't
feel left out there are several female phrases in red. I'd love to get a

translation of what each of these actually means. According to PSM, one
is
"Get off the road, IDIOT!"

C3. Save Truck (CBM)
This option will save your game data. Like the Drawing mode save,
when you
select it, it will bring up two boxes with a large 1 & 2, for memory
card one
and two. Select the desired memory card, and it will bring up four boxes
this
time numbered 1-4, with a box on the right that shows the game stats
that are
currently saved in this space. Scroll up or down to select the spot you
want
to save your data to. When you select the box you want, push (O) to
save it
and it will bring up an "overwrite/cancel" option in the text window at
the
bottom. Overwrite is the top (default) choice, and cancel is below. When
you
push (O) again and save, you will see your now see your new stats in the
box
on the right. If you push the d-pad left or right, it will show a list
of
times for different tracks. I'm guessing that these are the best times
in time
attack mode, but I haven't confirmed this for sure yet.
As far as I can tell, each game save takes up three memory blocks but
has
room for one Drawing Mode pictu

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Page Updated Mon May 22, 2000 5:17pm EDT