This is my first submission for TasVideos!
- Game: Duck Tales (USA) for NES
- Aim: "bad ending" (3 possible endings : bad (exactly $0), good (less than $10,000,000), best (at least $10,000,000)
- Takes damage to save time
- Luck manipulation
- Hard mode
Scrooge gets treasures all around the world only to become the poorest duck in the world.
In Hard mode, we take twice as much damage as in Easy mode, all Magic coins are replaced with Ice Creams, all Cakes are replaced with Big Diamonds. Everything else is the same in the three modes Easy, Normal, Hard.
We tried to choose the best route to complete Duck Tales with zero dollar. To achieve this, we must gather an exact multiple of $3,000,000 and uses each bunch of $3,000,000 to refill his health (works only if Scrooge is on the ground and his life is depleted).
It's impossible to collect less than $5,000,000 (for the five Treasures), so the fastest way is to collect exactly $6,000,000 and we need to take damage to heal twice.
To achieve $6,000,000, we have to collect the correct amount of diamonds while caring for the timer. $1000 rewarded for each full ten seconds remaining after clearing a level and collecting the Treasure.
- One Red Diamond is worth $50,000.
- One Big Diamond is worth $10,000.
- One Small Diamond is worth $2,000.
- All Diamonds may be found in treasure chests (visible or hidden) or hidden in thin air. Only Big and Small Diamonds may be dropped by enemies.
- The Treasure obtained after defeating a boss is worth $1,000,000.
Boss strategy
Each boss has 5 HP. Once a boss has taken damage, it will be invulnerable for 120 frames and Scrooge will be able to move vertically across it without taking damage! This allows us to hit the boss from below or from the side. It doesn't save time but looks cool!
Depending on the speeds of Scrooge and the boss (works also with some enemies like the slugs in the Mines or the octopusses on the Moon), Scrooge is able to "walk" on it without taking damage, with the "Scrooge hits the ground" sound.
Overall summary
| Level | Small Diamonds | Big Diamonds | Red Diamonds | Time left | $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon | 6 | 13 | 2 | 428 | 1,284,000 |
| Transylvania | 5 | 8 | 1 | 454 | 1,185,000 |
| Mines | 5 | 12 | 2 | 543 | 1,284,000 |
| Himalayas | 3 | 4 | 2 | 452 | 1,191,000 |
| Moon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 562 | 1,056,000 |
| Total | 19 | 37 | 7 | - | 6,000,000 |
Level by level summary
Amazon
Some Small Diamonds are collected before appearing on screen (dropped by Bees and Gorillas).
The route is the same as for an any% run.
Transylvania
The route is exactly the same than for an any% run, apart from collecting some Diamonds on the way.
African Mines
The route to get the key in Transylvania is unchanged.
The rest of the route is standard, apart from a small incursion in the depths of the mines before the last corridor toward the boss, to get some conveniently placed and precious Diamonds (900 frames to get $110,000).
I tried to make the waiting between each strike on the slug boss as entertaining as possible, while experiencing bosswalking and corner stuttering (the sound made is hilarious). It's possible to defeat the boss while taking damage and being partway inside the floor, but it loses time and can only be seen in frame advance mode. So not worth it.
Himalayas
Same route as for any%. Making a small jump enables us to reach maximum vertical speed earlier while falling in the shaft. Getting the hidden Big Diamond (which is a Cake in Easy and Normal modes) doesn't lose time.
The Moon
We didn't take more time to enjoy the unforgettable "Moon theme" than in any% run. We didn't ever bother collect a single Diamond, as we already got the proper number. We manipulate the Lunar Rat into running towards us to land the first hit as soon as possible. Some stuttering while waiting for the 120-frame boss invincibilities to wear off, for cool sound effects again.
Transylvania (3rd visit)
We start this level with $6,000,000 in our pockets, no more, no less. Yay! Route unchanged toward Dracula Duck's room. The frame we enter the room and Scrooge's movements inside this room contribute to manipulate the place where Dracula next appears, and the trajectory of his bats.
During the battle, we take damage multiple times to use the $3,000,000 mysterious healing process twice. It works only if Scrooge is on the ground.
CoolHandMike: Claiming for judging.
CoolHandMike: Looking though this submission the main sticking point was exactly how legitimate this select button method to remove 3 million and get health. Specifically whether this was a leftover debug function or an intentional mechanic from the developers. Several points have pushed it to just being a part of the game. Particularly that it is not abusable in game to trivialize gameplay, and that the developers actually have an achievable bad ending with $0 seemingly designed for this. So with those points in mind going to accept this as part of intended gameplay.
With that sticky point out of the way, I can say that the tas is well done. The routing seems good and it is probably the trickiest part of this tas.
Happy to accept this to Alternative with the branch "bad ending".
Congratulations on a fun first tas!
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