Achievement Guide - DuckTales: Remastered

A guide detailing the Steam achievements available in DuckTales: Remastered, their completion requirements, as well as instructions on how to best obtain them.

Preface

DuckTales: Remastered is an enhanced edition of the classic NES (and Gameboy) platform game, first released by Capcom in 1989 (1990 for the GB version), featuring the titular Disney series' characters in an adventure spanning the globe - from the Amazon rainforest, all the way up to the lunar surface.

WayForward, of Shantae and Mighty Switch Force fame, have done a stellar job of recreating the game for a more modern audience; from the hand-drawn characters to the fully voiced dialogue (featuring the series' voice actors, including "old hands" Alan Young and June Foray, as Scrooge McDuck and Magica De Spell, respectively), this iteration of the game is the closest you can get to playing an actual Duck Tales episode.

Achievement-wise, this game is a mixed bag: Several of the achievements are easily earned, a few fall in the mid-range of the difficulty scale and a couple are legitimately difficult, at least for the average user.

This guide is organized by difficulty; achievements that can be earned in any difficulty setting are marked as "All Difficulties", while the individiual settings ("Easy", "Medium", "Hard", "Extreme") are contained in the "Dependent on Difficulty" section. An additional section, named "Optimum Path", will describe the best order of playthroughs to minimize the time needed to earn all achievements. The "Differences Between Modes" section details the changes between difficulty modes.

Finally, a brief warning - while DuckTale's story is very simple, readers that wish to experience it first-hand should avoid reading this guide until they complete the game. Certain achievements require descriptions that contain minor spoilers. For players of the NES version, a few of the new additions to the levels will also be discussed; therefore, read at your own discretion.

Optimum Path

DuckTales: Remastered requires a minimum of three playthroughs in order to earn all the achievements.

First Playthrough - Easy or Medium difficulty

Your first playthrough should focus on two things - learning the level layouts, including enemy positions, objective and treasure locations and the placement of environmental hazards (such as spikes and pits), as well as getting used to the "hard pogo" control scheme (see Extreme difficulty playthrough) and boss tactics.

Finally, make sure you familiarise yourself with the "short" pogo jump move, by releasing the pogo key before the jump's full height; this results in a shorter jump, which helps you clear narrow paths with more ease.

During this first run, you should earn (in approximate order of completion):

Story Progression

• Work Smarter, Not Harder
  
• Superstitious Hocus-Pocus
  
• Extravagant Housewares
  
• Where No Duck Has Gone Before
  
• Any Crash You Can Walk Away From
  
• Garbage Collector
  
• Pogo A-Go-Go
  
• Luck O' The Ducks

Difficulty Dependent

• Bless Me Bagpipes +
  
• It's A Duck Blur +

Miscellaneous

• Sink or Swim
  
• The Duck Who Would Be King*
  
• Score To Settle
  
• Art Aficionado
  
• Connoisseur of the Arts*
  
• Look Ma, No Spats!
  
• A Few Gears Loose*
  
• Healthy Appetite

* These can also be left for the second playthrough, where money is more abundant - thus making them easier to complete.
+ These can only be completed on either Easy or Medium difficulty - Magical Coins (for It's A Duck Blur) are replaced with diamonds in Hard and higher, while the Heart Containers (for Bless Me Bagpipes) are replaced with hidden treasures, worth $1,000,000 each.

Second Playthrough - Hard difficulty

Your goal for the second playthrough is to gain any achievements you skipped on your first playthrough (if any). The main aim is to earn the "Tougher Than The Toughies" achievement, as well as unlock the Extreme difficulty option (rewarded for completing Hard difficulty).

If you're still missing any of the "money" achievements - "The Duck Who Would Be King" and "Connoisseur of the Arts" - Hard difficulty is a great place to wrap them up. While on this difficulty, any level you complete will award an additional $350,000+ as difficulty modifier; furthermore, a lot of the Cake and Ice Cream items are replaced with diamonds in Hard and three of the five Heart Containers are replaced with hidden treasures worth $1,000,000 each - resulting in even more money per level.

Final Playthrough - Extreme difficulty

Only needed for the final achievement, "Smarter Than The Smarties", this can easily end up taking most of your play time, depending on how well you've prepared. The section "Differences Between Modes" explains what changes with each difficulty option but the main problem with Extreme is the lack of saving - you are required to complete the entire game in one go, with saves between levels being disabled.

On this playthrough, it is wiser to plan ahead (drawing on experience from the previous two playthroughs) and take the shortest path available; note Mrs. Beakly locations (which will restore your health and give extra lives), any trouble spots (such as the underground section of the Amazon level), hidden Plush Dolls (usually in the same locations as their Hard difficulty counterparts) and on most occasions, ignore any optional cash items, as they involve taking unnecessary risks.

While this varies from player to player, I've found it best to play the Himalayas and Transylvania levels first - the extra heart containers in those levels are a huge help. I also prefer to leave the more enemy-heavy levels for last (certain areas in the Amazon are long corridors filled with enemies, for example).

Differences Between Modes

Easy difficulty

• Damage taken is halved (each hit reduces Scrooge's life by half a Heart)
  
• Five available Heart Containers (bringing the maximum total to eight), one on each level
  
• Ice Cream and Cake items are abundant
  
• Magical Coins are available (giving Scrooge invulnerability for a short while)
  
• Infinite number of lives
  
• Map Screen available on pause menu
  
• More checkpoints, usually at the mid-point of each room
  
• Mrs. Beakly hands out two Ice Cream items and a Cake item when found

Medium difficulty

• Normal damage taken (each hit reduces Scrooge's life by one Heart)
  
• Five available Heart Containers (bringing the maximum total to eight), one on each level
  
• A few of the Ice Cream and Cake items (on Easy) are replaced with diamonds
  
• Magical Coins are available (giving Scrooge invulnerability for a short while)
  
• Map Screen available on pause menu
  
• Less checkpoints, usually at start of each room
  
• Mrs. Beakly hands out two Ice Cream items and a Plush Doll (extra life) when found

Hard difficulty

• Normal damage taken (each hit reduces Scrooge's life by one Heart)
  
• Two available Heart Containers (brining the maximum total to five), one in Transylvania and one in the Himalayas
  
• Heart Containers for the Amazon, Moon and African Mines levels are replaced with treasures, each worth $1,000,000
  
• Several of the Ice Cream and Cake items are replaced with diamonds
  
• Three lives, once lost the player must restart the level
  
• Magical Coins are not available
  
• No Map Screen available
  
• Less checkpoints, only at start of each room
  
• Mrs. Beakly hands out two Ice Cream items and a Plush Doll (extra life) when found
  
• Extra $350,000+ on level completion, Difficulty modifier

Extreme difficulty

• Unlocks when the game is completed on Hard difficulty
  
• Saving is disabled - the entire game needs to be completed in one go.
  
• Magical Coins are not available
  
• No Map Screen available
  
• Two available Heart Containers (brining the maximum total to five), one in Transylvania and one in the Himalayas
  
• Heart Containers for the Amazon, Moon and African Mines levels are replaced with treasures, each worth $1,000,000
  
• Minimal checkpoints, sometimes a couple rooms away or (in the case of Mt. Vesuvius) even all the way at the start of the level.
  
• Most of the Ice Cream items are replaced with diamonds
  
• All Cake items are replaced with diamonds
  
• Way fewer Plush Doll items available.
  
• Normal damage taken (each hit reduces Scrooge's life by one Heart)
  
• Extra $700,000+ on level completion, Difficulty modifier
  
• Three lives, once lost the player must restart the entire game
  
• Hard Pogo (Down + Pogo button) is forced on, cannot be changed
  
• Mrs. Beakly hands out two Ice Cream items and a Plush Doll (extra life) when found; additionally, Mrs. Beakly is only available in two out of her four usual locations.

All Difficulties

You can earn these achievements on any difficulty.

Sink or Swim
Dive into the Money Bin.


Location: Level Select screen
Acquired by visiting Scrooge's vault and diving into his gold stash. At any time after completing the tutorial level, you can visit his vault by standing on the middle circle in the level select room. Move forward into this new room and Scrooge will automatically dive into the gold.


Work Smarter, Not Harder
Defeat Big Time Beagle using your noggin, and his.


Location: Tutorial Level (The Money Bin)
Awarded for defeating the tutorial level boss, Big Time Beagle.


Superstitious Hocus-Pocus
Collect the Coin of the Lost Realm.


Location: Transylvania
Awarded for defeating the Transylvania level boss, Magica De Spell.


Extravagant Housewares
Collect the Sceptre of the Incan King.


Location: The Amazon
Awarded for defeating the Incan Statue, boss of the Amazon level.

Where No Duck Has Gone Before
Collect the Green Cheese of Longevity.


Location: The Moon
Awarded for defeating the Moon level boss, the Giant Mutated Rat.


Any Crash You Can Walk Away From
Collect the Lost Crown of Genghis Khan.


Location: Himalayas
Awarded for defeating the Himalayas level boss, the Giant Yeti.


Garbage Collector
Collect the Giant Diamond of Inner Earth.


Location: African Mines
Awarded for defeating the African Mines' boss, King of the Terra-Firmians.


Luck O' The Ducks
Get back what Magica stole.


Location: Mount Vesuvius
Awarded for retrieving Scrooge's Number One Dime from Magica De Spell, after the final boss fight. This is a "race" of sorts, in which Scrooge must climb upwards and outrun Magica to retrieve his Number One Dime.


The Duck Who Would Be King
Collect $10,000,000.


Location: Any
Reward for obtaining a current total of $10,000,000. There are a few ways to go about earning this achievement (since on completing the game you are allowed to revisit any level indefinately to earn more money) - however, the most efficient way is to play the game on Hard difficulty, as each completed level can award between 3 and 4 million dollars.

Also remember that this achievement tracks only your current balance, not the total amount collected - in other words, you should hold off buying art unlockables until you reach $10,000,000.

Finally, please note that this is doable on any difficulty, albeit longer to achieve in easier difficulty settings thanks to the lower value of treasure.

Score To Settle
Scrooge doesn't take kindly to being swindled by statues.


Location: The Amazon
Reward for finding the "secret" ruby stash hidden in the second part of the Amazon level. Find the statue (pictured below) a few rooms before the boss fight, then pogo-jump on its head a couple times; this should result in a few rubies popping out, as well as this achievement.



Art Aficionado
Buy art in the Gallery.


Location: Level Select screen
Any time after the tutorial level, head to the left door in the level select room; the Gallery lies beyond, where you can spend any cash you earn between levels to purchase various pieces of art - ranging from sketches to theme music. The minimum amount required to spend is $125,000 for the cheapest piece of art.


Look Ma, No Spats!
Enter either underground section of the Amazon and climb up to the other side using only the pogo jump.

Location: The Amazon
The second most difficult achievement to complete, this one requires the player to make his way across the underground section of the first Amazon area using only pogo jumping. Colliding with enemies or spiked ceilings, collecting the Coin (which plays a cutscene) or getting stuck on the edge of a platform will all cause you to land, thus failing the achievement.

Your best bet is to enter once and collect the Coin, then exit and choose which side you are most comfortable with (my personal preference is left-to-right, though right-to-left also works). For best results, try this during an Easy difficulty playthrough, as the infinite lives will afford you as many attempts as you need.

Props to Steam user ageres for noting that, if you die in order to retry, you'll need to exit the underground area before the achievement will properly reset.

Check out the section "Optimum Path" for more info on "short" pogo jumps. a very helpful trick for clearing this achievement.


A Few Gears Loose
Get to the secret Gyro area in the clouds.


Location: Level Select screen
At any time past the tutorial level, if your cash total has a seven in the tens of thousands digit (pictured below) when choosing a level will result in Launchpad dropping you into Gyro's secret cloud level during the loading cutscene.



There are two ways to get your cash to the x,x7x,xxx format - calculate in advance what you need to pick up during a level (remember, diamonds are worth either $2,000 - $10,000 - $50,000 depending on size and color), or use Gallery purchases to bring your total down to the proper amount.


Healthy Appetite
Eat some of Mrs. Beakleys delicious treats.


Location: Several, best at African Mines.
Given for finding Mrs. Beakly in certain levels - when found there'll be a cutscene and she'll drop some health restore items (and, above Easy, an extra life). The easiest by far to find is the one in the African Mines level - after your first elevator ride, enter the right-hand corridor; Mrs. Beakly should be at the end.


Pogo A-Go-Go
Defeat 5 enemies in a row with pogo jump without touching the ground.


Location: Mount Vesuvius
While it might seem like an optional achievement, this is a sequence that is actually required to reach the game's final boss fight. During the Mount Vesuvius level there'll be a long corridor with pools of lava; Scrooge is required to pogo-jump on enemies jumping out of the lava to traverse some of the bigger pools. The final pool has exactly five enemies - crossing the lake should award the achievement.


Connoisseur Of The Arts
Unlock all art in the Gallery.


Location: Level Select screen
Awarded for purchasing all unlockable art in the Gallery screen. This requires that the player has amassed (not confirmed) $67,186,000, which will require either several playthroughs or usage of the post-ending level select option. Best done on Hard difficulty (see Differences Between Modes section) as monetary gains are higher.

Dependent of Difficulty

Bless Me Bagpipes
Collect All the Heart Containers on Easy or Medium difficulty.


Location: All main levels
Awarded for collecting all five of the Heart Container upgrades (which extend Scrooge's heart counter by one each). There's one on each level, but only on Easy or Medium difficulty; on harder modes, three of them are replaced with treasures, thus making this achievement unobtainable.

The chests containing Heart Containers are usually hidden behind fake walls, which are easy enough to spot in the level geometry. See below for the exact locations of each Container.

Heart Locations

Amazon


Transylvania


Himalayas


African Mines


The Moon


Tougher Than The Toughies
Beat game on Hard.


Location: N/A
Awarded for completing the game on Hard difficulty. See "Differences Between Modes" section for more info on what you should watch out for.


It's A Duck Blur
Defeat 5 enemies under the effect of 1 magic coin.


Location: Various, best in African Mines
Magical Coins are coin power-ups that are branded with a purple "M". These will make Scrooge impervious to damage for a few seconds, allowing him to traverse spiked surfaces and kill enemies while remaining unharmed.

These will appear on Easy and Medium difficulties only, therefore it is advisable that the achievement is attempted on Easy (since, in case of failure, the player can die and try again). The best location to do this is the first corridor area of the African Mines level.

There is a Magical Coin half a screen after the broken elevator - grab it without killing the slug patroling next to it, then dash all the way to the end of the corridor. There are three slugs and two bats in your path, which should be sufficient for the achievement if you are fast enough.


Smarter Than The Smarties
Beat game on Extreme difficulty.


Location: N/A
Probably the hardest achievement in the game, this requires the player to memorize and plan ahead each level, while making sure to collect as many Plush Dolls (either via secrets or Mrs. Beakly encounters) as possible. See sections "Differences Between Modes" and "Optimal Path" for more info. Additionally, check the following awesome video by Steam and YouTube user MegaUltraJMan for a general idea on what to expect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmF9id754Mg

Thanks

WayForward[www.wayforward.com] - Both for their awesome games and the great work they did on remastering DuckTales.
YouTube/Steam User MegaUltraJMan - For his crazy-skilled run on Extreme, posted on YouTube; it was a great help in my own Extreme run(s).
Steam User ageres - For a very important reminder regarding the "Look Ma, No Spats!" achievement.
Steam User GalihRQ - For providing some clarification regarding extra lives and Mrs. Beakley appearances in Extreme difficulty.
Steam User shade00 - For insight on the The Duck Who Would Be King achievement.

[S3ZK]

Great guide. It made me realize trying to beat the game on Extreme is not worth even starting.
While the game itself after putting in a fair amount of hours is not overly hard, neither are the bosses. I'm now stuck on Hard on Mt Vesuvius and can't make my way up on time. After defeating the last boss, I have 1 to 2 lives left, and failing to go up eats up one entire life, which makes you replay the entire level. After beating the last boss the way up is a total frustration.

[Denys™]

𝓡𝓪𝓽𝓮 4 𝓡𝓪𝓽𝓮, 𝓕𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮 4 𝓕𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮

[blebsmc99]

needed this for the duck blur achievement in particular thanks for that

[Nicky Grimes]

Thank you for posting these! This was super helpful. :)

[lucarioaur]

does this game still not work with geforce graphic cards?

[DrunkenQueen]

Thanks for the guide. It helps me a lot.

[Mariocooper1996]

I'm annoyed as hell with the last level! ):(
The main part & final boss aren't the problem, its the escape part after the final boss. You have to be quick as you climb and I cant think that fast when the lava catches up to me. I don't have the patience to play the whole level again each time I get a game over either.

[foxz]

to help anyone who has trouble getting the "it's a duck blur", for me it only worked when i lured the that stands above the chest that has the magical coin to drop right beside the chest, then you get the power-up and kill the bat, slug and procced to kill the rest of the corridor.
when i tried without the bat droping down there it didnt pop for me

[loren-zo [FR]]

Thank you for this Guide, Very Usefull !

[kaos]

I bought everything in the art gallery but Connoisseur Of The Arts achievement didn't pop in... any clues???