Emulator details
- Emulator used: Snes9x 1.43v12(beta 10)
- Sync settings: Use WIP1 timing
- Allow Left+Right Up+Down
- Uses Reset Rerecord
Run specifics
- Any% item collection
- Aims for lowest realtime
- Manipulates luck
- Takes damage to save time
- Abuses programming errors
- Uses death as a shortcut
About the run
This is an improvement of 1537 realtime frames, or 1379 ingame frames, over the last Glitched Any% run. The main reason for the redo is a big improvement in Tourian that was thought up by NameSpoofer shortly after the publication of the last run (Skipping the big metroid with X-ray), but more improvements where found along the way. Unless something extraordinary is found this is likely the last time I'll touch this run, as I just can't imagine that there would be enough improvements left to make a new run worthwhile otherwise, and the metroids makes me cry every time.
Breakdown of the improvements
Ceres - 12 frames saved
This is the first time that I have chosen to go for fastest realtime in Ceres instead of getting the best timer, so I lose a few frames ingame because of a worse steam pattern in the 2nd to last room, but gain 12 realtime frames in the end.
To Brinstar - 11 frames saved
Here there are basically just a bunch of tiny optimizations stringed together, nothing much worth noticing. But I skipped a health pickup in the pirate rooms which saves some frames in Brinstar because I don't have to do a damageboost in the super missile room in order to get low enough on health. This cost a few frames of realtime though, because I had to manipulate all the enemies in the diagonal room to drop missiles and not health.
To post reset - 12 frames saved
Half of the improvement came from before the savestation, most of it from not needing to take damage in the super missile room. Then I save 1 frame on the reset from a faster way to chose the gamefile, and 5 frames for no apparent reason (a frame rule?).
To Red Brinstar - 5 frame lost
I lose a few frames to luck manipulation in the first pink brinstar room on the first two enemies, and then some random lag frames gets added to the next door transition. I also lose 2 frames picking up another missile in the big green brinstar room, which saves time later. I do save a few frames from better optimization though
To the X-ray room - 28 frames saved
There are basically just two places from where this improvement comes from. Firstly from being able to use a missile in the flower/spike room to get the needed drops faster, and secondly from removing all the door scrolling when going back to that room after getting the PB's. I also make a slight change to the health/ammo management which saves time later.
To the X-ray and back again - 112 frames saved
To begin with I manage to take the last damage sooner while still making the CWJ which saves some time, and then there are a few frames from small optimizations in the X-ray room. The main bulk of the improvement here comes from the way back through the pre X-ray room though. I make the bombjumps a lot faster, each bomb is placed on the first frame possible and if I tried to change my position in any way the yapping maw would catch me. And the damageboost at the end saves a big bunch of time as well.
To Crateria - 46 frames saved
The 3 main points of this improvement are; not needing a super refill from the second cactus due to a improved ammo route, killing the second sidehopper in the big Green Brinstar room without a missile, and skipping a PB drop from the rio in the big Pink Brinstar room.
To Tourian 137 - frames saved
I Saved two frames from optimization on my way to the statue room, the rest is from getting to the platform below the elevator with 2 bombs instead of 6... don't ask me how that was missed in the last run.
To the sand rooms - 279 frames saved
I really made the metroid my bitches this time. A big part of the improvement comes from having them hugged up to the door in each room to minimize the running distance after they die, as well as having them as close as I could get them to the 3rd PB each time when it explodes, so they take the first damage as quickly as possible (which makes them die faster). The rest is lag reduction. As far as luck goes it was pretty good, even though it might look pretty slow sometimes. The thing is that the needed drops are ridiculously rare (A PB has a 12% drop rate per metroid). I tested to get just 3 PB's in the first room which was noticeably faster, but already in the second metroid room I would have had to sacrifice at least 20 more frames to get the needed drops, and then more in the 3rd one. Using X-ray, while slow, is still often faster just because it lets you manipulate each drop individually, and manipulating them all at the same time will generally take very long.
To post death in Green Brinstar - 844 frames saved
So the big kicker here is obviously the big metroid room skip. It was pretty tricky to optimize the off-screen movement, to start with I did it using a cam hack, but just copying the result gotten there would not work, because for some reason the game does not act the same then. But it gave me a decent indication of what position values I needed to reach anyway. I also found an X-ray climbing pattern that was 1 frame faster per turn compared to the old one, but it was only faster in this room, in both the other rooms the lag caused by it was different and it made the pattern equally fast to the old one. I also got some use of the 2 extra missiles I got from the metroids, without them I would not have been able to fall all the way down in the post big metroid room without stopping.
To great justice - 61 frames saved
Almost everything here are just a bunch of small optimizations. The two noticeable things are running slower in the room with the closing gates to destroy them all without stopping, and doing a low damageboost from the pirate before the big shaft, which made the screen scroll down less and reduce door lag.
Thanks to
Special thanks to NameSpoofer. He has been involved on some level with this run, and have helped me with a couple of rooms, as well as giving me some ideas. And he also thought up the big metroid room skip which saved plenty of time.
Thanks to Kejardon, obviously, for being a genius.
And thanks to the rest of the SM TASing community, everyone has done something :)
adelikat: Accepting as an improvement to the published glitched any% run.
ShinyDoofy: Will process...