Hello! I am enderpal7, and this is my first TAS and the result of over a month of on-and-off work! This is a TAS of the aptly named WonderSwan game, Makaimura for WonderSwan! In this TAS, I complete both loops of the game and beat the final boss, Azazel, in a record-breaking 22 minutes and 10 seconds (or at least, that's how I timed it), which is seven minutes faster than the RTA non-TAS WR. I hope you guys find this TAS enjoyable and interesting!
Game objectives
- Emulator used: Bizhawk 2.8
- Get the true ending of the game (after both loops)
Comments
Makaimura for WonderSwan is not a port of the arcade game, but actually an original Japan-only entry in the Ghosts n' Goblins series. It was developed by Capcom and published by Bandai in 1999 (It was the first game in the mainline series created without the help of series creator Tokuro Fujiwara)
Ever since I stumbled upon it, I have loved this game and always wondered why it didn't receive as much love as some of the other titles in the series. This is probably due to the terrible soundchip, monochrome graphics and relative easiness when compared to other games in the series. I still love the game, despite it's flaws, so I decided to create a TAS of the game to increase it's exposure to the gaming world and maybe create some new fans for the game.
The game plays identically to the first GnG game; Get to the end of each stage and beat the boss, and kill enemies by throwing your lance on the way. (There is no double-jump like in SGnG). Once you jump, you are locked into the arc, so in casual play you have to commit to a jump. There are multiple weapons to equip, but I stick with the lance (the default weapon) because it is the best all-rounder (all the other weapons have downsides compared to the lance) The only other weapon I equip in the run is the special weapon, which deals the most damage in the game and is required to beat the game. The range of this weapon is lower compared to the lance, however, so you have to be much closer to effectively use it. You can only have two lances on the screen at the same time (the same is true with the special weapon, so only two fireballs)
This TAS does not contain any glitches (as far as I am aware). It does make use of janky hitboxes and does contain a damage boost.
I understand that there is a concern that the TAS may not be entertaining due to the whole two-loop nature of the game. However:
- There is a split pathway halfway through the loops, and I have to visit both stages, so there is added entertainment value there
- There is another GnG TAS on this website that contains both loops and the true ending.
Stage by stage comments
Stage 1
Ah, the graveyard. What would a GnG game be without a graveyard first stage? This stage eases you into the game, as it's quite short and contains easily killable enemies like the zombie, plant and crow. Arthur can jump through the coffins due to janky misplaced hitboxes on the coffins. You can get to the boss before the music is even close to looping! The boss can be annoying with his projectiles but my TAS weaves through them effectively. You have to jump for your weapons to hit the boss. I stand to the very right of the key so Arthur reaches the door faster after collecting the key. The key only becomes interactable once it touches the ground.
Stage 2
Filled to the grim with brim reapers.. wait no.
This stage features slippery hills that Arthur moves slowly on or slip down unless you are jumping up them CONSTANTLY. First appearance of the GnG staple enemy, the Red Arremer. Renowned as being the hardest enemy in the entire franchise. I usually end up walking under them. How polite of them :)
At the end of the castle stage (after I take a shortcut revealed to me by Twitch streamer and Makaimura for WonderSwan RTA speedrunner QC100, go check them out, their speedrun was a great baseline for this TAS to follow), I jump through the cutscene trigger to land closer to the door to get there sooner. The section that follows is the first place in the run that I have time to kill, and I kill it by moving erratically. I have to jump to hit the castle with the lance, and it is BARELY possibel to jump over the boulder the castle spits at you.
Stage 3a
The water level. The first water level in GnG. Very slow level, but necessary to beat the game. This level is encountered in the second loop. I kill enemies in the water immediately in order to decrease lag. The boss of this stage is the Dagon Brothers, three huge fish. They go down with almost no trouble
Stage 3b
The fire stage, the opposite of the water stage. Very clever, guys. The stage features a cool gimmick, where (since the WonderSwan was a handheld) you rotate the screen to play a vertical level. Luckily, Bizhawk supports this gimmick and features a screen-rotation button. The ropes Arthur uses can be moved down by holding down, or much faster by jumping down. The boss is this huge flame cloud guy called Efreet. His projectiles are annoying and he has a crazy amount of health, but he's not too bad
Stage 4
The execution grounds. This stage features a damage-boost off a crow to reach a faster platform cycle. I'll be honest, there is a lot of waiting around in this level, due to an abundance of moving platforms but I try to make it as entertaining as I can. The fourth boss is a flame horse and although it is hard to beat casually, it is incredibly quick to die in a TAS, due to a low amount of health.
Stage 5
Brief water section, followed by draining room, where you can jump and shoot first frame for no real reason. First appearance of Shadow Arthurs. You can usually avoid them but they also don't usually get in the way. I could not find a fast way past the guillotine. If I damage-boost through, the recoil animation is longer than just waiting for it to lift, so I waited. If anyone knows of anything faster, let me know. The magician boss is fine, as long as he doesn't disappear, in which case he is stupid and dumb and a big ol loser.
Stage 6
The penultimate/ultimate stage, depending on what loop you go for. On the first loop, you just gotta book it to the end of the stage. Once there, you fight the Stage 1 boss, the Stage 5 boss and finally, Tiamat. Tiamat b00bs breastily towards and away from you and occasionally slashes you. Tiamat does not take damage when not slashing, resulting in a slow fight. After the first phase, Tiamat turns into a hydra, which is much easier to kill. In the second loop, you gotta reveal the first two chests, break the gargoyle statue and open the third chest to receive the Special weapon, as revealed to you by the dialogue at the end of the first loop (which I skipped, of course). This allows you to, upon defeating Tiamat, move on toooooooo...
Stage 7
TIME TO KICK AZAZEL IN THE TEETH BABY!!! Multiple phases but all pretty easy to avoid. Time ends on my last jump input, as I jump onto the spot where the key wil land, triggering the ending
Other comments
I hope you guys enjoy this run and I hope it is entertaining enough, as that is what I struggled with the most
slamo: Added a temp encode, and judging!
slamo: Cutting off one frame of blank input.
This is quite a good effort! I was suspicious because this is your first submission and the rerecord count is low, but that must be a mistake because this is a technically sound run. You maintain speed as much as possible, hit bosses as much as possible, and even play around a bit. Good work!
The goal is good for fastest completion, since the only way to trigger the credits is to complete the second quest.
Accepting!
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