Emulator details

  • Emulator used: Snes9x 1.43v12 (beta 10)
  • Sync settings:
    • Use WIP 1 timing
    • Fake Mute desync workaround

Details on the run

  • Aims for Fastest Time
  • Uses Death as a Shortcut
  • Abuses Programming Errors
  • Manipulates Luck
  • Played on Hardest Difficulty

About the run

This is an improvement over Dark Clouds previous submission, it is 532 frames or ~8.7 seconds faster, for information about the glitch look up the previous submission comments. I picked this up as a side project because of temporarily getting bored with Super Metroid and Sparkster, I thought this game seemed like fun to run and the overhead levels looked like a real challenge (which they definitely where...), so 2 days later here we are. Besides the improvement of time I also tried to make the run more entertaining than the last one, if I succeeded is for you all do decide :D

Improvement comments

2 frames saved on the intro, pressing both directions plus start at the same frame when choosing difficulty.
60 frames saved on the first level. Some from lag reduction (I think), some from not turning around unnecessarily to shoot some enemies and most from dying earlier the 3rd time when detonating the bomb (I tested a lot of different stuff here, and this turned out the fastest, detonating the bomb earlier was slower).
138 frames saved on the second level, almost everything from tighter movement and more diagonal walking, I had to stop for a bit before the last manhole (or whatever it is) to get a bomb to drop from it, but despite that the wait was 10 frames or so I only lost 4 due to some frame rulre or somethnig.
lost 1 frame in the transition between stage 2 and 3 for some reason, I had no power over it happening and could not change it.
No frames saved on the boss or the 3rd level, but I saved 2 frames between level 3 and 4 because I didn't have to manipulate luck for more than 1 frame to get a Crash-Bomb at the start of level 4.
6 frames saved on the fourth level, I experimented a lot here getting killed earlier and later, placing the bomb earlier and later, and this is what I got.
Saved 1 frame in the transition between stage 4 and 5, probably for the same reason I lost one between 2 and 3 (I don't know why).
68 frames saved in the fifth level, pretty much solely form more optimized movement and turning, I might have gained a frame or two from not having to wait to shoot the last bughole to get a Laser (it dropped on the earliest possible moment).
251 frames saved on the boss by using both Crash-Bombs and Laser in combination, which damages him a lot faster.
5 frames saved on the last level by shooting the "saucer" in a way that made me get the bomb earlier.

Thanks to

Dark Cloud and anyone else involved in previous TASes of the game and the discovery of the glitch.

NesVideoAgent: Hi! I am a robot. I took a few screenshots of this movie and placed them here. Oh! I also corrected the ROM name.
  • You indicated Contra III - The Alien Wars(U) [!].smc
  • I updated it to Contra III - The Alien Wars (U) [!].smc

mmbossman: Those overhead views sure made me dizzy, but everything looked clean and precise. Accepting as an improvement to the published movie.
ShinyDoofy: Processing...


TASVideoAgent
They/Them
Moderator
Joined: 8/3/2004
Posts: 15643
Location: 127.0.0.1
Post subject: Re: #2126: cpadolf's SNES Contra III - The Alien Wars (U) [!].smc in 03:23.27
Player (206)
Joined: 5/29/2004
Posts: 5712
cpadolf wrote:
Dark Clod
Hey!
put yourself in my rocketpack if that poochie is one outrageous dude
Skilled player (1445)
Joined: 7/15/2007
Posts: 1468
Location: Sweden
Oops, fixed.
Agare Bagare Kopparslagare
Joined: 7/1/2008
Posts: 272
awesome. very well done. and i think you did succeed in making a more entertaining video. 9/9
Skilled player (1445)
Joined: 7/15/2007
Posts: 1468
Location: Sweden
Agare Bagare Kopparslagare
Former player
Joined: 8/1/2004
Posts: 2687
Location: Seattle, WA
A++ would watch again
hi nitrodon streamline: cyn-chine
Joined: 5/2/2006
Posts: 1020
Location: Boulder, CO
well done. 9/9 seems about right, the overhead levels are really tight.
Has never colored a dinosaur.
adelikat
He/Him
Emulator Coder, Site Developer, Site Owner, Expert player (3577)
Joined: 11/3/2004
Posts: 4754
Location: Tennessee
Some very nice improvements here. Good job. High ratings from me.
It's hard to look this good. My TAS projects
Editor, Emulator Coder, Expert player (2161)
Joined: 5/22/2007
Posts: 1134
Location: Glitchvania
adelikat wrote:
Some very nice improvements here. Good job. High ratings from me.
I second this. 9.0/9.0!
<klmz> it reminds me of that people used to keep quoting adelikat's IRC statements in the old good days <adelikat> no doubt <adelikat> klmz, they still do
Tub
Joined: 6/25/2005
Posts: 1377
Dying has never been so much fun.
m00
Former player
Joined: 8/1/2004
Posts: 2687
Location: Seattle, WA
Tub wrote:
Dying has never been so much fun.
Go play Clock Tower.
hi nitrodon streamline: cyn-chine
Former player
Joined: 2/24/2007
Posts: 22
Wow! Nice improvements. 9/9 here too!
Cpadolf wrote:
6 frames saved on the fourth level, I experimented a lot here getting killed earlier and later, placing the bomb earlier and later, and this is what I got.
Hehe. This stage is veeery hard to optimize.
Sir_VG
He/Him
Player (40)
Joined: 10/9/2004
Posts: 1914
Location: Floating Tower
Zurreco wrote:
Tub wrote:
Dying has never been so much fun.
Go play Clock Tower.
Somebody needs to do a run of this on the SFC.
Taking over the world, one game at a time. Currently TASing: Nothing
Post subject: Movie published
TASVideoAgent
They/Them
Moderator
Joined: 8/3/2004
Posts: 15643
Location: 127.0.0.1
This movie has been published. The posts before this message apply to the submission, and posts after this message apply to the published movie. ---- [1217] SNES Contra III: The Alien Wars "game end glitch" by Cpadolf in 03:23.27
Sir_VG
He/Him
Player (40)
Joined: 10/9/2004
Posts: 1914
Location: Floating Tower
Just out of curiosity, why does this use 'contraiii' while all the other videos use 'contra3' in the naming scheme? Just curious.
Taking over the world, one game at a time. Currently TASing: Nothing
Former player
Joined: 12/5/2007
Posts: 716
I was going by the filename of the now-obsolete movie. Haven't actually checked on the other categories for runs of this game. But now that you've said it, they really do use 3 over iii. I'll try to keep an eye on other categories' names if such exist; thanks for the hint.
Sir_VG
He/Him
Player (40)
Joined: 10/9/2004
Posts: 1914
Location: Floating Tower
Yeah, I know the old one used contraiii too. Nothing against you, I just noticed the old one and this one used that method of naming. Yes, I know that came is called Contra III not Contra 3. I'm just saying...
Taking over the world, one game at a time. Currently TASing: Nothing
Brandon
He/Him
Editor, Player (191)
Joined: 11/21/2010
Posts: 914
Location: Tennessee