Submission #1074: theenglishman's Genesis Astérix and the Great Rescue in 33:26.90

• Played on Normal difficulty (I don’t play it on Hard because it takes more time to set the options to Hard mode and not only nullifies but exceeds the extra time saved by less bonuses).
• Recorded with GENS Movie 9F
• ROM used: Asterix and the Great Rescue (U) [!].bin
• Takes damage to save time
• Uses death to replenish health
• Tries to complete the game as fast as possible

Acknowledgements

About the game

About the run

• 120,414 frames long (33 minutes 26.9 seconds long)
• 3,058 rerecords
• Average rerecords per second: ~ 0.7
• Finishes on the frame where I command Asterix to kill the second tiger

Run analysis

Gaulish Village

• I spent at least 30 rerecords on that last Village Idiot but found that it was impossible for me to pass him without taking damage. CURSE YOU, VILLAGE IDIOTS!

• Only hard part was jumping from the high platform onto the switch. The first of many “kamikaze jumps” in this run.
• "Just" under 57.

• The collision detection glitch at 1:42 is damn hilarious. Astérix goes RIGHT THROUGH the platform and runs into a merman. Lovely ;). Doesn’t affect the time at all so I left it in for the hell of it.
• I had to take the health potion after the switch. It helps assist the damage timesavers in the next room.
• The merman hit at 1:01 is probably one of the best pieces of precision work you will see in this run. Frame-perfect all the way baby! :o
• "Just" avoided getting 0:57

• The rocks are very hard to jump over (in any room not just this one), since often the game will detect a collision even if you’re 10 pixels off of hitting a rock. Damn square sprites. :( The rock jump at the beginning is probably the closest (to collision) rock jump in my run, and it adds SUSPENSE o_0.
• I couldn’t avoid damage with the two fat Romans near the beginning; Obélix is on a slope and I can’t jump over them x_x
• Another unavoidable hit: the merman after jumping from the high platform into the water.
• The hurricane on the bottom can spin you up into the boar’s head. Used it to save some time instead of getting into the boat.

• The death right at the beginning was intentional. There was absolutely NO WAY I would be able to get through the level with only half a bar of health x_x
• BAD DOGGIE guarding the first key got in the way and I couldn’t jump over him after a new frame-saving strat I discovered. Ah well.
• I spent a lot of time near the fire pits trying to see if I only could take a half-bar of damage instead of a whole. Gave it up as a pointless attempt.
• After the first fire pit, jumping up the two steps was HARD, dammit! :O
• Found a new glitch where I can grab the potion and jump onto the upper level in one jump, saving about 30 frames.
• I nearly lost my hair over the next two fire pits...I was SO CLOSE to taking only one hit.
• Another shortcut: I killed the centurion next to the second key with a fireball while I was on the first platform, saving about half a second.
• Kamikaze jump #2: right after the second key. That was hard x_x
• A double kill with the regular Roman and the Centurion. Shweet.
• Yay for rapid fireballs...TAS style >_<

• The route with the heart and turkey is in fact the fastest route. And I needed those powerups too :(

• Another insane frame-perfect kill at 2:33 :o
• I don’t bother taking damage when getting the first set of fireballs; I’d need every bar of health I can muster later in the level.
• More rapid fireballing at 2:18
• Tapping left while in an elevator will start it up again. I use this after the first elevator smashes down again.
• The MEGA bombs are awesome ;)
• I deliberately timed Astérix jumping the frame after the fire extinguished for maxx entertainment pleasure O.O
• That flying segment from 1:14 to 1:08 saw the utilization of 50 rerecords :o

• I don’t bother with the fat Roman at the beginning. In fact, you will notice for the rest of the run that I jump over fat Romans, Centurions and any other multi-hit enemies whenever possible.
• At 2:04, I have no other choice but to wait for the spikes.
• 1:38-1:37 contains the only open small jump in the run. I think I will never be able to replicate it :(
• I found crawling under the pink doors while they lifted saved a couple of frames.
• I needed that turkey. Badly. COLD TURKEY RULEZ! :o
• No idea how I got hit at 1:27. Try as I may, I couldn’t avoid it.
• I don’t bother with the stack of potions after the goal; I’m going for time, not score.

• I grab the heart at the bottom to compensate for Intentional Death #2.
• The spikes at the bottom bounce you up if you get hit, so I use those as a faster route rather than jumping onto the first gear and from there to the second.
• I think I have a vague idea what’s coming out of that statue’s nose x_x
• The MEGA bomb created a problem for me during the next set of platforms, but was helpful everywhere else.
• I played around with the guillotines at the end hoping to only get one hit from there. I failed obviously :(

• Most of the fire in this level cannot be dodged, and often I will pass right through until I go down to my final hit.
• The fireball sequence from 1:32-1:30 took a surprisingly long time to get right without any damage.
• Killing the guard at 1:27 took some time to get right.
• From 1:17 onward, no playing with fire for you, Astérix!
• The flying sequence from 1:11 to the end (1:05) took a lot of luck as well as skill.

Roman Encampment

• I’ve jumped over many enemies before, but jumping over the three fat Romans at the beginning of this level is impossible. So I fight them.
• Did you notice that the archers’ shots at 1:47 sync up perfectly with the music? That’s awesome.
• At 1:24, I thought of bombing the four fat Romans after the centurion, which is why I cycled to the fireballs. However, I soon discovered that throwing the fireball would actually cause it to go up on a higher level. So I went through them instead.
• That little rabbit at 1:17 gave me so much trouble; I couldn’t pass him until 1:14. Maybe the next author of this run will figure out how to pass him quickly with only one hit left ;)
• A fireball can only take out four enemies at a time, which is why I had to bomb the two fat Romans separately at 1:09

• The blue jay at 1:47 ticked me off quite a bit while trying to aim my ice block at the spikes. I finally get to kill him at 1:42 :)
• I just pass through the centurion at the end. The counter was ticking down and I needed a good time.

• There’s a chalice at 1:30, which restores Astérix to full health. I grab it greedily :D
• I’m getting better at jumping over dogs (like at 1:25 and 1:23)
• Another archer-music synch-up at 1:12. It’s too funny =D
• Killing the Roman after the catapult at 1:03 was "very" difficult.
• I saved one fireball so I could utilize a little shortcut at 0:59...
• TADA! I jump right to the last platform and destroy the L block with only one fireball.

• What happened as I lost my MEGA bomb power at 1:47 is something I’ll never understand and will probably never replicate.
• If you look closely at 1:41, you can see that Astérix’s foot actually touches the first centurion and there’s no collision detected! Abused this to the max.
• I didn’t bother with the centurion who was guarding the end potion; plus, it looks cooler if I make an impossible jump XD

• I only pick up necessary potions here, such as the ice blocks and flying potion.
• This is the level with the infamous “Kicking Horses from Hell” that I make mincemeat of – by jumping over them flawlessly. =D
• Can you believe the water dripping from the fish starting at 1:13 can actually hurt you? Wow...
• The things at 1:05 and 0:57 are supposed to be fish with rotating spiked ribs. Really.

• That damn rabbit at the beginning reduced me to pounding the keyboard in frustration trying to avoid him x_x
• The bubbles did not favour me well here. Only ONE was perfectly timed for me to cross; the others I had to wait for God-knows-how-many frames for the next one.
• The fat Roman at 1:18 took ten minutes of real-time and 20 rerecords to finish off without damage.
• The wild hog was damn difficult...
• ...as was the 1:09-1:04 sequence.

• As demonstrated from 1:29 to 1:25, it is not necessary to cross the spikes with ice blocks.
• If you look closely at 1:22, I actually beat the block to the ground. Weird.

• Taking damage near the end after grabbing the chalice was unavoidable. Sorry :(

• Missing enemies with punches, on some places several in a row
• Flubbed jumps
• Unoptimized movements around corners
• Handling of first and last boss seemed inconsistent (different number of hits every round)