#2528: Atma & FractalFusion's PSX Mega Man X4 "Zero" in 36:42.63

Atma and FractalFusion's Mega Man X4 in 36:42. Time is for final input, before the last cutscene.

Aims

Aims for fastest time
Abuses programming errors in the game (but not heavy abuse)
Takes damage to save time
Manipulates luck (but not heavy luck manipulation)
Genre: Action

This run uses PCSX v0.1.2 .

Mediafire: http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?jk55xxn2yzk (150 MB)

Note: The encode misses the last cutscene. To see the cutscene (and credits), see the cutscene section below.

Cutscenes for your enjoyment

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bS46EDfbD3o Zero's opening cutscene
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOI09fbQ6Zs Cutscene after intro stage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Hu_TW2hoK4 Cutscene after 4 Mavericks defeated
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK1fQ-Eqwsk Cutscene after beating Iris
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpaKpfy5jbw Cutscene when meeting Sigma for the first time
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQNn7oXYFOM Last cutscene and credits

I left out the title opener, because it's not a cutscene.

***TAS SPOILERS AHEAD; READ AT YOUR OWN RISK***

Programming errors abused Exploits

SDC "slash dash cancel". You all know what this is because you watched the X5 and X6 runs. And if you didn't, you're not interested in this run.
Crushing some bosses while they are just off the top or side of the screen. They lose invincibility for some reasons.
Surprise Hyouretsuzan on Split Mushroom miniboss.
If forward is released when landing on a slippery surface, it gives Zero a large boost.

Tools used in this run

Here's your RAM Watch:

13C19C boss|hp|1
13BF2C boss|hp|2
13BFC8 boss|hp|3
13BF62 boss|inv|1
13BF64 boss|inv|2
13BF54 boss|inv|3
13BF5A boss|inv|4
| |
141924 player|HP
| |
| |
| |
!1419C6 screen|X
!1419CA screen|Y
!13E47A player|X
!13E47E player|Y
!13BEDA boss|X
!13BEDE boss|Y
| |
X13E2E8 rng
| |
| |
| |
| |

About the run

This TAS was the joint work of Atma and me over the course of about, say, 3 weeks. There were definitely some challenges, and we even restarted part of the run for one glitch. Granted, the glitch was cool, so we actually looked forward to it.

This game isn't super or anything, but it is most similar to the early X games in gameplay structure. No leveling, no skipping to the fortress, no item confusion, none of that.

This run basically explains the rise of Zero and why Zero is such a super ninja. Within seconds, Zero first learned one of the most powerful arts, SDC. He found the perfect opportunity to use it against Magma Dragoon, destroying him in 4 seconds. Thereafter, Zero had such an exaggerated sense of power that he proceeded to beat the stuffing out of everything he came across. Even enemies which resisted the SDC fell in more artful ways. Poor Storm Owl, who was playing with a warp charm, fell to the GOD HAND. Web Spider, who was playing with a similar charm, was slashed into oblivion. Don't try looking for him.

Of course, there's always the bad guys to mess things up. Colonel is first up but Zero crashes ice spikes all over him. Next up is Iris but Zero, being the ninja that he is, can use as many as 5 different techniques to take down the gem-possessed soul armor. Such defeat is so powerful that Zero suddenly suffers a Heroic BSOD.

Of course, Zero doesn't have much time to think as the two-storey-tall Reploid called General is upon him.

<Zero> GOD HAND
<General> Is that all you got? Take this *fires fists*
<Zero> Hey, thanks!
<General> Get off! *fires energy ball*
<Zero> GOD HAND
<General> Wait, how did you just go through
<Zero> Take this
<General> Wha- *dead*

Of course, all 8 Mavericks just had to be revived by the most evil mastermind. And Zero redoubled their humiliation. Guess what, it was none other than Sigma. Who knew? But Zero stayed the course and completely exposed Sigma for the fraud he is. The world is now safe until X5.

About the run (seriously)

I had already made a few older runs, but to me they were somewhat lacking. X5 and X6 runs were published on this site first. Eventually, Atma offered to work with me on the run, so I did. When we started out, Atma did the intro level, Split Mushroom, Magma Dragoon, and I added on Slash Beast and almost all of Jet Stingray. At this point, Rolanmen1, a regular speedrunner of this game, discovered the glitch (more like exploit) of using Hyouretsuzan on the Split Mushroom miniboss. So now we changed the order. The order is:

Magma Dragoon -> Jet Stingray -> Cyber Peacock -> Frost Walrus -> Split Mushroom -> Web Spider -> Slash Beast -> Storm Owl

Techniques obtained from Dragoon and Stingray help in the Frost Walrus stage. Peacock is done before Mushroom because defeating Mushroom saps Zero's ability to use plain air slash, which is the best weapon against Peacock. This is also why the refights take longer. Spider, Beast, and Owl can be done in any order. It just so happened that the Slash Beast hex edit worked there so that's why it is where it is.

Atma worked on everything up to and including Cyber Peacock, Slash Beast boss battle up to but not including the Iris fight in Fortress 2, and the Magma Dragoon, Storm Owl, Jet Stingray, and Cyber Peacock refights, and Grim Reaper. Everything else was done by me.

Weapons

All of Zero's weapons, except the first two ground slashes and Rakuhouha, cause a 5-frame delay.

Z-Saber Ground: The basis of SDC. SDC relies on the first two ground slashes not triggering any invincibility. So all Zero has to do is keep slashing, dashing to cancel the slash so he can slash again. The reason for not triggering invincibility is so that Zero can perform a triple slash on a boss.
Z-Saber Third: The third slash of a triple slash. Sometimes comes in handy against bosses that aren't susceptible to SDC but are weak to third slash.
Z-Saber Air: Zero uses saber in air. Once Split Mushroom is beaten, Zero can no longer use normal air slash but it is now replaced with Kuuenzan. This makes some refights longer because for a couple bosses, Kuuenzan does less damage than normal air slash.
Z-Saber Wall: A wall slash. Often not useful.
Kuuenzan: Zero spins in the air while using this.
Ryuenjin: Fire sword. Zero launches up-forward as if he is doing a shoryuken. Zero can reach dash speed after a Ryuenjin, if he dashes just before doing it.
Hyouretsuzan: Ice sword. Zero stabs downward with this.
Raijingeki: Lightning sword. Zero thrusts it forward while standing on the ground. Can be used in place of a second or third ground slash.
Shippuuga: Dash sword. Zero swipes as he dashes along the ground. It only seems useful for the ice blocks in the Frost Walrus stage, but this run does not have the opportunity to do that.
Rakuhouha: Zero pounds the ground with his GOD HAND and a whole bunch of energy balls come flying out. It makes Zero invincible during when he uses it, but it is time-consuming.

Other

Kuuenbu: Double-jump
Hienkyaku: Air-dash
Tenkuuha: No one really cares what this does. All it does is make Z-Saber function as a shot eraser.

Double-jump and air-dash can be used after being hit. This is useful in some places.

Damage chart

Go find it at Mega Man Damage Charts.

Thanks

Thanks to everyone who helped out in the Mega Man X4 thread.

Nach: Accepting as a good first submission for this game.

Submission #2528: Atma & FractalFusion's PSX Mega Man X4 "Zero" in 36:42.63

Submission Comments