Wonder Momo

The curtain rises and the audience cheers. It is time to put on a good show. You are Momo-chan, and you are the star of a superheroine stage show. Nasty aliens have invaded the city, and it's up to you to fight back the invasion using your skill, agility, and of course your fabulous Wonder powers. Transform into Wonder Momo and vanquish the alien leaders.

As Momo, you can defeat the various enemies by kicking them. As you defeat them, you gain Wonder Power (shown by the Wonder Gauge). After a certain length of time, a boss monster will appear, which you must beat to clear the stage. This is the best time to transform into Wonder Momo, either by stepping into the magic swirl that appears or by sending yourself into a Wonder Spin (by tapping in the opposite direction, you face the audience and can then go into the Wonder Spin). You can stay Wonder Momo until you run out of Wonder Power or until you defeat the boss, at which point you will revert.

While playing as Wonder Momo, the Wonder Hoop allows distance attacks, but you must pick it up to use it again. There are also two power capsules Wonder Momo can take: the Shot capsule lets you shoot at will, while the Spin capsule makes you spin and shoot in both directions (it also makes you invinsible for a short period of time).

Also, while facing the audience, crouch or jump and attack to do a split kick. Be warned though, it is quite slow and hard to use. Levels end when you destroy the boss. There are numerous stories, each featuring multiple parts.

You can jump higher if you hold up while jumping. This can help you take out flying enemies. When transformed, it appears that you are immune to projectiles. They do not stun you either. The crouching kick is longer than the standing kick and easier to hit with.PTo transform into Wonder Momo without waiting for the magic swirl, face the audience and press Attack repeatedly to go into a Wonder Spin.

Namcos web page for the game says that it was the beginning of Beauty girl games.

There is a version for the PC Engine, but it is not a great conversion since several things have been changed. Momos split kick is the same speed as her others, the story scenes have been changed to pictures of Momo with Japanese text beneath and a reasonable selection of levels have been changed.

The boardset is Namco System 86.