Mr. Incredible

Power Punch: Mr. Incredible’s punches pack a wicked one-two wallop that puts the bad guys on the ropes.

Incredi-Slam: The big guy can also jump in the air and then punch the ground, producing a shockwave that knocks enemies off their feet. His super move enables him to pull off a series of even more powerful ground pounds.

Pick Up and Throw: Grab boxes, boulders or even stunned robots and throw them at enemies. or simply toss them against a wall. With upgrades, he can throw things farther and produce bigger explosions upon impact.

Frozone

Ice Punch: He’s not as strong as Mr. Incredible, but he can still dole out a good amount of damage during close-quarters combat.

Ice Glide: Frozone can jump in the air and then glide on a sheet of ice. It’s useful for not only quickly escaping danger but also sliding right into enemies and knocking them over. With upgrades, Frozone can ricochet off bad guys and into other ones, setting off a chain reaction.

Freeze Ray: His most powerful ability lets him immobilize robots, enabling Mr. Incredible to shatter or pick up and throw them. He can also freeze machinery and destroy it. With upgrades, Frozone can not only freeze objects faster but also produce a wider, farther-reaching cone of cold.

Ice Storm: Frozone’s super move summons an ice storm that rains down on the bad guys, smashing them to smithereens.

Pixar Animation Studios began life in the early 1980s as George Lucas’ computer special effects group, although it wasn’t known as Pixar then. John Lasseter, who is now Pixar’s executive vice-president of creative, left Disney and joined the company in 1984. His first 3D short, “Andre and Wally B.,” premiered that year.

In 1986, current Apple CEO Steve Jobs purchased Lucas’ computer effects unit for $10 million and named it Pixar. The same year, the short “Luxo Jr.” premiered — it’s well-known for its star, a plucky little desk lamp who now hops across the screen at the start of every Pixar movie, as well as during the opening of every game based on the studio’s films. “Luxo Jr.” was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film.

The following year, the short film “Red’s Dream” premiered. 1988 saw the release of “Tin Toy,” which was an important milestone in the company’s history. Pixar approaches its short films as R&D experiments into various animation techniques, and “Tin Toy” was the effort that demonstrated the viability of a full-length movie starring toys.

“Tin Toy” won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1989, the same year Pixar branched out into the world of TV commercials and released a new short, “Knick Knack”. As the company continued to expand its TV commercial work, in 1991 it signed a three-film deal with Walt Disney Studios. The next three years were uneventful, except for the Scientific and Engineering Academy Awards Pixar won in 1992 and 1993 for its technology.

Pixar Breaks Out

1995, however, was the company’s breakthrough year. Not only did it go public, beating out Netscape for largest IPO of the year, but it also released “Toy Story,” the highest grossing film of 1995 at $192 million. Another Scientific and Engineering Academy Award cemented Pixar’s status as not only a top-notch group of storytellers but also as a company capable of incredible technical achievements.

Pixar ended its TV commercial work in 1996. The same year, John Lasseter won a Special Achievement Award at the Oscars for his leadership of the team that created the first-ever full-length computer-animated movie. The company also won another Scientific and Engineering Academy Award, with two more coming in 1997.

The Pixar-Disney deal was expanded to five movies in 1997, the same year the Oscar-winning short film “Geri’s Game” premiered. The amusing story demonstrated the company’s breakthroughs in skin and cloth animation. Sharp-eyed viewers noticed Geri’s cameo in 1999’s “Toy Story 2,” when he played the role of the old man who made Woody look as good as new.

The year before that, however, saw the release of “A Bug’s Life”, which was the highest-grossing animated film of 1998. Pixar also won two more Scientific and Engineering Academy Awards that year.

Adding to the Legacy

“Toy Story 2” also grossed more theatrical dollars than any other animated film the year of its theatrical debut. In addition, it earned the distinction of being the first movie that was created, mastered and exhibited digitally, as well as the first animated sequel to make more money than the original. Pixar picked up a Technical Achievement Academy Award during the 1999 ceremony.

While 2000 did not see a theatrical film from Pixar, the company did debut the Oscar-winning short “For the Birds” that year. In 2001, the company made up for its absence from the silver screen by releasing “Monsters Inc.”, which went on to become the third highest grossing animated film ever. Three employees earned an Academy Award of Merit that year for RenderMan, one of Pixar’s animation tools.

Pixar also skipped a theatrical release in 2002 but came roaring back with “Finding Nemo” in 2003, which wound up the eighth highest-grossing movie of all time. The following year’s DVD release was the biggest ever, with 24 million copies sold, and the movie won the Academy Award for Best Animated Film at the 2004 ceremony.

2004 also saw the release of “The Incredibles”, the first Pixar film from acclaimed director Brad Bird (“The Iron Giant”). In 2005, it too won the Academy Award for Best Animated Film. The company’s next movie, “Cars,” will bow in June 2006. Building on director John Lasseter’s love of cars, it tells the story of Lightning McQueen, a high-octane racing car who finds himself waylaid in Radiator Springs while en route to a big race.

We can only assume we’ll see more games based on Pixar’s stable of beloved characters.

Stumped? Then you may need some help, thanks to the cheat codes that are commonly placed in most video games. They allow you to, well, cheat and change the rules. This sometimes includes activating bonuses, unlocking secrets and new levels of gameplay.

To enable the cheats in The Incredibles: Rise of the Underminer, press the Escape key while playing. Then press the Delete (Backspace) key to access the game menu. Click on “Secrets” and enter a code.