I have 39 shines... haven't played the game in 6 days...

Gekko, I think you are right about the Blue coins, they suck, I got 27 for the first level, and have no CLUE where the last three are.

Collecting Gold coins isn't bad, you just have to know the right level, and how to kill enymys to get the most coins out of them. Also, from what I've seen, the hidden missions arent that bad... well, not as bad as blue coins anyway :p

I haven't touched level 2, 3, 5, 6, or 7 even though I got them all unlocked.I like to go one level at a time, but in this game I may make an exception.

there are 8 story shines, 1 secret shine, and 1 100 gold coin shine in each level. the secret shine is basically (from wut i've seen so far) going back to one of the bonus levels in the real levels and beating that over again by collecting 10 red coins in i think 3 minutes.

btw, has anyone beat that bonus pinball sorta level in the hub that u reach by using the boost nozzle to enter under the water bridge? holy **** that is a hard one!!

Yea, I beat that one. It was pretty tough, took me prolly 30 minutes or so. TIP: Wall climb up the launch area if your going for the coins on the left. And use your hover nozzle.

dont you need the boost nozzle to get into the level?

There's 2 hidden shines per level. And most end up being red coins, but a few are literally hidden. And no, you don't need the boost nozzle to get in there, or even the hover nozzle. You ride the boat and jump. And yes, I've beat it.

how exactly are they hidden? do you just find them somewhere in the level? dont spoil any locations though

one question...how do you have any clue which story to pick to look for the hidden shine's in a level? I mean, we have to have some clue as to what to do for the hidden shine...dont we?

its a secretley hidden shine, i dont think there is a clue

They're referred to as hidden shines because they're not story shines, so you can't just select a story and accomplish the objective like most, you gotta find them. And yes, they're in the level. It's not like they're hidden behind a tree and you gotta find it though.

And generally. Wait, in every level where you enter the old school stage and lose your pack, go back in. If there's 2 levels, that will get you both. If there's only 1, then no, you won't get a clue where to get it. I'm guessing the villagers tell you or something like that, where it's hinted at. But remember, I'm playing the Japanese version, so I don't know how that all works out. But I do know where they are.

Over the weekend, I had a resurgance in playing SMS. I went from 69 to 94! The main thing left is the Blue Coins. Damn blue coins. meh, I will find them eventually. But ummm....yeah. 94:unsure:

Um, I guess I might as well reply. I beat the game like last week, felt the final boss was a joke, got AC and lived happily ever after.. so far...

Still waiting to get AC. Need Monies.
*Edit* Oh yeah, got another Shine. Up to 95.

i just got 120 shines, nothing happened so i got pissed off and bought Kingdom hearts