4 June 2002

Big thanks to Greg Davidson who pointed out a bit of information overlooked in the original version of this solution. It has also been brought to my attention that the Epyx Shrine also has a solution to Grand Puzzle III that had been there for some time when ours was published. I'm not surprised - it's a great site and must be visited if you're a Jumpman fan - Matty.

21 February 2002

This solution has kindly been supplied by Keir of the Ultimate Wizard Website. I am especially grateful as Grand Puzzle III had remained a mystery to me up until now. Hopefully it will help out a few of you as well.

This had been bothering me for a while - back in January 2000 I actually asked Jumpman creator Randy Glover if he could help out a bit. He was kind enough to respond:

"My recollection is that you must touch the moving object. When you do you will be transported to a second level. The trick is knowing when/where, since you may find yourself in open space."

Needless to say I was none the wiser (no offence to Randy). At least now I can sleep at night knowing that I am the master of all 30 Jumpman levels (but only "Going Down?" on a good day). - Matty

The common theme in all three Grand Puzzle levels is that there are four special bombs (or items, in the case of Grand Puzzle II) which are worth 500 points instead of the standard 100 points. However, there is always some puzzle which must first be solved before Jumpman can get the bonus bombs.

At first, there seems to be no challenge to Grand Puzzle III. The bombs are all easy to get and it seems like nothing changes when you get them. The only hazards are the smart darts and an enigmatic red square. The square will kill Jumpman if it touches him, but it is easy to avoid since it follows a simple predetermined path.

The first step is to get all but 4 of the bombs. At that time the red square will turn yellow. If it touches Jumpman now, the level will rearrange and there will be 8 new bombs to get. Unfortunately, if Jumpman was standing in the wrong place when the square touched him, he may fall to his death if there is no floor beneath him after the level rearranges. Compare the two screenshots to see where the safe places are. For example, the ladder in the middle is a good place for Jumpman to be (indicated by the arrow) because he will end up on the vine in the second part (also indicated by the arrow).

Part 1 - The arrow indicates where to stand & wait for the square.

Part 2 - Note the positions of the bonus bombs.

The 4 bonus bombs are circled. All Jumpman needs to do is get them while avoiding the 4 smart darts. The bonus bomb in the bottom right can be reached by jumping through the wall just to its left - just stand close to it and jump towards the bomb and you will go through. Of course, you can always leave it until last and reach it by dropping off the bottom of the rope. All the other bombs are trapped to remove the floor underneath, so avoid them. That's it!

Note: Once you reach the second part of Grand Puzzle III, you have already won. Even if you die before getting any bombs, you will see the final screen (Jumpman blasting off into space). You also only have one life, no matter how many it shows in the bottom left corner of the screen.

Note 2: Grand Puzzle III does not appear when you play 'Randomizer'.