This is my very first TAS. I hope it is up to the standards of the TAS community, as I had no idea how to TAS going into this, and learned along the way.
Cross Wiber is the sequel to Busou Keiji Cyber Cross (a game I've spedrun). A sidescrolling platformer inspired by tokusatsu shows like Super Sentai (aka Power Rangers), you go through a series of levels, defeating bosses to reach the last chapter and defeat the final boss, Doma.
This game is incredibly unforgiving as a real-time speedrun, due to enemies that are impossible to dodge and poorly programmed platforms, and is what inspired me to make a TAS for it instead. I'm interested to see if a damageless run of this game would ever be possible, RTA or TAS.
My main goal going into this TAS was to complete the game as fast as possible. My secondary goals were 1) to never transform, as it wastes around 7 seconds and doesn't pay it back in power, 2) to always damage boost forward and never back, and 3) to break every item pack that didn't require me to backtrack to get it, as playing this game casually, there are many item packs that lure you in only to throw an enemy in your face. The goal would have been "to pick up every item", but some are completely out of reach. This was an almost necessary goal going into the later half of the run, as my health reaches dangerously low levels a couple times.
As a speedrun, this game is all about damage boosts. Enemies and their attacks can either knock you back or forward a short distance, depending both on your position and even sometimes your pose, such as if you're in the middle of an attack animation. You can even get boosted forward for a few frames then sucked back a few frames into your original position! Very strange.
Unlike this game's predecessor Cyber Cross, your base form in Cross Wiber comes with a useful and powerful attack; the spin kick. Not only can it do 5 hits in all, it also gives you complete invulnerability during the entire animation, whereas trying to get 5 hits in with a punch or kick will usually result in getting hit once or twice, slowing you down. However if you're in the position to do so without taking damage, punches especially may be faster than the kick or spin kick. And the jump kick is useful for getting through levels when enemies are coming at you without slowing down. So we get to see a fairly even mix of all the attacks in this run. Well, minus the transformation ones anyway.
But that's the gist of the game. I hope you enjoy! Keep reading for my comments on specific chapters.
Chapter 1
This is a simple introductory level, of course. However the only useful glitch I've discovered in this game was in this level, but it unfortunately isn't in this TAS. Last year when I first tried out this game. I was somehow able to reach the boss at the end of this level in such a way that the boss failed to spawn and it immediately cued the fanfare and moved onto chapter 2, saving about 9 seconds. I stupidly did not record this at the time or write down how to recreate it. Despite hours of trying during the making of this TAS (as I assumed it was a simple matter of sprite overload), I was never able to make it happen again. If anyone ever recreates this glitch, please let me know! I'd love to hear how it's done.
Chapter 2
The enemies around the cannons in this level were tricky to boost off of, especially the last cannon. I actually have to jump and move back slightly so that I don't get knocked back even further.
Chapter 3
The first of two "autoscroller" levels. I say so in quotes because it seems you can save time on them, but only a small amount? My theory is that there's a set number of waves of enemies that must pass for the boss to spawn, and the only wave that matters for a time save is the final one. But that's just my best guess. I try to defeat all of the enemies quickly in these stages regardless.
Defeating this boss in once cycle wasn't as easy as it seemed. Thankfully I was able to do so by wedging into it's sprite to get the most amount of hits before it returns to it's invulnerable state.
Chapter 4
Our introduction to these hulking green enemies that feel impossible to react to when playing in real-time. Not much to say about this level otherwise, except that the frog boss is a reference to the first boss in the previous game, Cyber Cross! You can manipulate his movements with your own, and I think I managed to get the fastest movement.
Chapter 5
Tons of damage boosts in this level. You can manipulate the turrets, as they generally shoot toward your current position when they stop. Most of the rooms here just have an enemy and a health refill, but there is one room you can go through where the exit puts you further ahead in the level. However it's not faster than just damage boosting down this hall.
Chapter 6
Jumping on many of these platforms in such a way that I would fall in the pit if I jumped a frame earlier. The flying enemies constantly try to knock you into these pits when playing in real-time, it's very nerve-wracking. But we're introduced to the cobra enemies in this level, which provide multiple damage boosts.
Chapter 7
And here we encounter moving platforms that make no sense. You may jump right onto the visual center of the platform and still not land. You can also walk off of them and float for a bit before falling. You'll have to play the game to see for yourself, as this TAS doesn't particularly show how silly they are.
Chapter 8
Most boring level. No platforming, no rooms, just an onslaught of these unforgiving green enemies. The boss here is a throwback to another Cyber Cross boss.
Chapter 9
A maze of rooms and teleporters where your goal is to reach the mysterious 13th floor. There's numerous dead ends and just about every floor from floor 5 and up spawns infinite jumping enemies. A couple of the rooms on these floors has you re-encounter the frog boss from chapter 4.
The way to the 13th floor is by taking the elevator to floor 9 and taking specific teleporter rooms until you reach the 13th floor. A lot of time may be saved if there's a way to glitch or damage boost across certain gaps, however I found no way of doing so in testing.
The boss here has a set pattern of throw whip, spawn doppleganger, jump, throw whip, jump back, repeat. I have to stand in a specific spot to avoid damage so I can keep using spin kicks (which cost 1 health each.) I wanted to follow him to the left and get more hits in, but the player character isn't fast enough to do that and get back in position on the right side of the screen on time.
Chapter 10
The only noteworthy thing about this level (besides it having some decent platforming compared to other levels), is the two bone snakes in the middle of the level. It took many attempts to damage boost off of them, as their hitboxes are determined to knock you back.
Chapter 11
The more fun of the two autoscrollers, and with one of my favorite bosses in the game. It's just so bouncy! I stay within it's shield, which allows me to get a hit on every frame possible. It's shield is too much of a hassle to deal with if trying to defeat it while staying outside of it. Fun fact: The orbs can still hit you even after it's been defeated.
Chapter 12
The final level of the game. Similar to the maze earlier, you have to go in certain doors to find your way to the boss room, which you find has changed visuals since you passed by it in an earlier room. This is the most fun and visually cool boss, plagued by horrible platforms. In the room just before the boss, you'll see me cross some other moving platforms, and it looks like you can make them in the first cycle, right? Well you can't. It's not possible. Not from my testing anyway ...
Chapter 13
The final boss, Doma! His head is invulnerable until you destroy his arms. I wasn't able to do so in one cycle, so I have to wonder if that's possible with any of the 3 transformations.
And that's Cross Wiber! Thanks to the TAS community for always wowing and inspiring me over the many years watching so many tool-assisted speedruns. I hope this is the first of more TAS I may make in the future.
Samsara: I've already established myself as the kind of person who vibes with weird, vaguely cyberpunk aesthetic, so it makes sense for me to judge this.
Samsara: This might be one of the most damage-boosty TASes I've ever seen. It's honestly rare to see a run of a game that's so liberal with its health pickups and so forgiving with its contact damage that a TASer can literally just spend the entire game damage boosting... And to be honest, I kinda like it. I like it a lot, in fact. Damage lends itself extremely well to speedruns of this game, it seems, both in significantly speeding up the walkin' portions and allowing for fast and aggressive boss fights using invulnerability frames, and you definitely used it well throughout the run. Also, there was just so much charm in those little post-fight victory dances c: Great job making them all varied, and even finding ways to do it in the vehicle sections!
Overall, excellent work, and accepting! Congratulations on a stellar first TAS!
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