Overview
- Estimated achievement difficulty: 6/10 (3/10 excluding Fe Frog)
- Offline: 20/20 (400)
- Online: 0 (0)
- Approximate amount of time to 400: 8+ hours (& 5 weeks for Challenge Accepted)
- Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 1+
- Number of missable achievements: None
- Do cheat codes disable achievements?: No Cheats
- Does difficulty affect achievements?: No
- Glitchy achievements: None
- Unobtainable achievements: None
- Extra equipment needed?: None

Introduction
PopCap, makers of Peggle and Plants vs. Zombies, is back at last with Zuma's Revenge, the sequel to Zuma Deluxe (a launch XBLA title). Remember how impossible Zuma Deluxe's Achievements were? Well, the difficulty of Revenge's Adventure Mode has actually been rebalanced to accommodate for controllers being less precise than computer mice, making it a lot more fun on the 360. That rebalancing includes four Spirit Animals who can be leveled up to provide score and gameplay bonuses. Plus you don't need to beat more than one level in a row to save your progress in Revenge (except in Iron Frog Mode). Check out my full review for more details.

Now get ready for some Zuma!

Step 1: Adventure Mode
Play through all sixty stages of Adventure, battling bosses after every 10 levels. As you gain Spirit Animals and level them up with Spirit Badges earned from levels, go back and replay levels whose Badges you missed. Also, once you unlock Weekly Challenge Mode, play that week's challenge and get its Badges, then return to Adventure. This mode should take about six hours, depending on your skill level.

Step 2: Weekly Challenge Mode
You'll have to play five weekly challenges for Challenge Accepted, meaning it will take five weeks to get this one. The actual challenges don't take long and offer two Spirit Badges apiece for completion (if you haven't already beaten the same level - no getting extra badges from doing the same level twice), so they're definitely worthwhile. Will you have all the other Achievements before the five weeks are up?

Step 3: Boss Rush Mode
After beating Adventure Mode, Boss Rush unlocks. A simple string of boss battles, this will take less than ten minutes to beat, netting you Amphibian Assassin.

Step 4: Iron Frog Mode
And now for the last. Iron Frog Mode is the game's toughest challenge. 10 brutal levels on a single life - it's like playing Zuma Deluxe all over again! Make sure you've mastered the rest of the game, earned as many badges as possible, and keep trying until Fe Frog is yours.

Conclusion
Zuma's Revenge is a charming and addictive puzzle game. I fear many players will give up on Iron Frog Mode, but even 390 isn't bad!

[x360a would like to thank eastx for this roadmap]

Zuma's Revenge Achievement Guide

Printable Guide
Show completed achievements
Show secret achievements

There are 20 achievements with a total of 400 points

  • Complete Boss Rush Mode without losing

    Boss Rush unlocks after beating Adventure Mode. You'll face off against all seven bosses in order (no torch extinguishing, thankfully). After having faced the bosses individually in Adventure, you shouldn't have too much trouble facing them again.

  • Complete Iron Frog Mode

    The super-tough Iron Frog Mode unlocks after the fourth boss has been defeated. This is the hardest Achievement in the game and will likely be beyond some players' skill levels. You have to beat 10 super-tough levels in a row without dying. There is a serious element of luck, as power-up appearance and proximity can make all the difference between life and death - especially from level 6 and on.

    When you do get a nice destructive power-up, try to use it to acquire another one and keep your chain of mass destruction going. Shoot through gaps whenever possible, and intentionally close gaps to rewind the line a bit.

    I suggest doing this one after you've managed to get most or all Spirit Badges in Adventure mode, as you'll want your skills honed beforehand. Playing on a small screen to minimize the need for peripheral vision also helps.

  • Play five different weekly challenges

    Beat the second boss to unlock Weekly Challenge Mode. The goal of the weekly challenge is to earn the highest possible score on a specific level from Adventure Mode; I believe the level changes on Sundays, resetting the leaderboard. Weekly Challenges offer a potential two Spirit Badges each, but if you already have the Badges for the identical levels in Adventure Mode, earning them here won't increase your total. Simply play the challenge three, I mean, five weeks in a row to get the Achievement.

  • Beat a lily pad level without jumping lily pads

     

    Lily pad levels allow the player's frog to jump back and forth between lily pads by pressing . The first such level is 2-3. The first time you play 2-3 you'll have to jump, but you can press  to restart the level and still get it during your first visit. Alternately, you can wait until 3-3 and try for it then, but 3-3 is more difficult than 2-3, naturally.

  • Beat a regular rail level without moving the frog

    Rail levels allow the frog to slide left and right ir up and down instead of staying in place. The first rail level is 1-5. Just remember not to move, make your shots count, shoot through gaps when you can, and hope for some good power-ups. Make the most of power-ups like Bomb and Tri-Shot to keep the line as far away as possible. If you have trouble beating it without moving (it is pretty tough), come back later with more Spirit Animals and upgrades to make things easier. 

  • Earn all three Spirit Badges on at least 10 levels

    Each Adventure level has three badges you can earn: Level Complete, Spirit Score, and Spirit Time. You'll automatically get Level Complete, but the other two are mostly skill-based (with a side of luck). If you fail to get one or more badges, you can press B after the level to return to the Menu. From there, select the level and try again. You can also get better results by coming back to levels after you've unlocked more Spirit Animals and leveled them up with badges.

    The soonest you can get this Achievement is after completing 1-10, but you can also opt not to replay any levels you missed badges on and just get all three badges in a few later levels.

  • Build your score multiplier up to 5x

     

    One of the power-ups that appears as you play is a score multiplier. The first one you'll see in a level is 2x. Get that and the next one that appears will be 3x, and so on. You don't need to worry about the multiplier running out; they last until the level ends. The only challenge is getting at least five during a level. Early on, levels end too quickly, so you probably won't have an opportunity to reach 5x until 2-9 or so.

  • Shoot 15 balls and make 15 matches… in a row!

    Hit a group of two or more balls of the same color with a shot of that color and they disappear. Each subsequent shot that also makes a group of balls disappear makes a higher-pitched sound and receives an additional score multiplier. Just try to make 15 shots in a row. Hitting fruits or firing power-ups that successfully destroy balls will not break the chain. It takes a while before levels last long enough for this to be possible; I got it on level 1-8. 

  • Make a match by shooting a ball through a gap in the curve

     

    In levels with winding pathways in which lines of balls criss-cross each other, it's possible to create a gap by making a match or two. Once this happens, you have a window of opportunity (sometimes brief, sometimes longer) to fire a shot through the gap and make a match. Do so and you'll get not only a score bonus, but also the Achievement.

    I got this on level 1-5, but you can actually get it as early as 1-1. Just wait until the curve wraps around the lower section and has doubled back on itself. Then blast a hole in the closer part of the curve and fire through that hole to make a match, and achievement unlocked!

    eastx Credits: Ben Ahroni at PopCap for the tip!

  • Defeat Zhaka Mu and discover the secret of the island!

    There's a seventh boss. Dodge his fireballs and reflective eye beams, shoot the tiki dancers as necessary, and pound away until Zhaka Mu reveals his second form. This form works much the same way as the first. 

    Once you defeat version two, get ready for the third and final form! This part's quite easy because you can frequently hit your foe with two shots in a row, unlike most boss battles. Shoot quickly and save the day! You'll unlock the final avatar award, Boss Rush mode, and of course, a tasty Achievement. 

  • You didn't think it would be that easy would you?

    The sixth boss fight consists of two stages. First you'll need to extinguish all four torches - just concentrate on one at a time while also holding the balls back enough to stay alive. You'll then switch to the actual sixth boss, who gives up after only one hit.

  • Defeat Cephalo Ka and his Inky Ink Attack

    This squid-dude is the fifth boss. Use explosions to weaken his shield, which regenerates after a few seconds. While it's damaged, shoot him with balls. You'll also need to dodge his ink squirts, which simply obscure the screen. Beating Cephalo Ka unlocks the Spirit Hawk.

  • Defeat Kolo Kamari and his Swarm of Bugs

    Kolo Kamari is the fourth boss. He can only be damaged by Bomb power-ups. You can make this fight a little easier by taking some points out of other Spirit Animals and putting them all into the Spirit Rabbit to increase the power-up spawn rate. Defeating Kolo Kamari also unlocks Iron Frog mode.

  • Defeat Baron Digo and his Skeleton Crew

    Baron Digo is the third boss. Small skeletons scroll by in front of Digo, guarding him. But some of them have lightning balls inside; shooting these gives you a lightning blast which will hit the boss even if there are balls in the way. You can beat him without the lightning blasts, but they make it go along faster.After winning, you'll get the Spirit Rabbit.

  • Defeat Maga Maga and his Tiki Minions

    The second boss has a shield which can be temporarily deactivated by shooting the silver and gold idols below him. Just knock them out and wail on him, repeating until you've trampled the tiki. You'll unlock Weekly Challenge Mode.

  • Defeat the Gluttonous Kahtiki Khan

    You'll reach each boss after completing the 10th level of the corresponding area. Kahtiki Khan is the first boss, so you'll encounter him after finishing 1-10. Simply fire balls at him whenever you see an opening until his life runs out and you'll win. 

  • Unleash your full froggy potential by fully leveling up all four Spirit Animals!

    You get the fourth and final Animal, the Spirit Hawk, after beating the fifth area. It costs a total of 180 Badges to max out all four Animals. Just playing Adventure levels and earning all of their Badges, you would get this after beating 6-8. Realistically, you'll probably get it after you've aready beaten the game and come back to improve your level performances. The level completion time requirements for Spirit Badges get a bit unfair towards the end of the game. The sixth and seventh bosses provide two Badges apiece, so that helps too.

  • Fully level up two Spirit Animals

    Beating the first boss unlocks the second Animal, the Spirit Cheetah. Like the monkey, it costs 45 badges to max him out, meaning you'll need a total of 90 badges for this Achievement. You can get this right after beating 3-10 if you don't miss any Badges. 

  • Fully level up one Spirit Animal

    You can view and level your Spirit Animals by pressing  after beating a level or simply choosing the left-most option at the title screen. It costs one Spirit Badge to increase an Animal's level from 1 to 2, two badges for the next level, and so on. 10 is the maximum level, so you'll need a total of 45 Badges to max an Animal out.

    Standard Adventure levels offer three badges and Adventure bosses offer one. If you manage to earn every badge for every Adventure level you play, then you'll be able to max out your first Animal, the Spirit Monkey after beating 2-5. Don't worry if some levels' Badge requirements give you trouble at first. Come back later after you've built your Animal(s) up a little more and you'll have an easier time. 

  • Discover the Spirit Monkey

    After completing 1-1, the Spirit Monkey joins your entourage. He increases the rate of fruit appearances during levels as well as the amount of points you get for hitting those fruits. 

You might also like