Mighty Bomb Jack (NES)/normal ending
From SDA Knowledge Base
Contents
Category description
This category is the fastest way to beat the game. It uses the palace room warping to move through the pyramid as quickly as possible without taking any detours for items that are required to get the better endings. A shortcut that requires death abuse is also used after palace room 4, leading to palace room 11.
Level-by-level description
To shorten down the text I will use some references below. Numbers refer to the bomb numbers in the Palace room bomb sequences. The tases for the best ending and the normal ending are referred to as tasbe and tasne, respectively.
Corridor 1-1
https://vimeo.com/946751758
A straight-forward level. In theory, you don't need to collect any mighty coins (see the tasne), but it's difficult to save time in real-time and risky. The recommended route is instead spending time collecting two coins and then collect three more coins by upgrading to orange Jack. The coins will be used in level 5 and 17.
Note how the second mighty coin was collected in the linked video. If your double-tap of the A-button is not fast enough, it's faster to bump the head in the platform above than to abort the jump just before by pressing A.
Palace room 1
Palace room 2
Palace room 3
The following route is a few tenths faster, but considerably more difficult as it requires tight movement to be able to jump over the first mummy: https://youtu.be/PS-R9qCVly0?t=88
Palace room 4
The palace room warp is not used here, since there is a shortcut in corridor 5.
https://vimeo.com/946752056 - Most of the time, the mummy will drop down on the right side and can then be in the way when collecting the last three bombs, depending on how fast you clear the room. It's unknown if there is a way to manipulate the mummy in real-time.
https://vimeo.com/946752034 - Alternative method that is a little over a second slower, but avoids close enemy encounters since the P-ball is collected along the way.
Corridor 5
5-1
https://vimeo.com/946751774 - Upgrading to orange Jack and run through the last chest should save around half a second or so. There are alternative jump sequences near the end. One long jump is a fairly safe way, but a little time is lost near the end of the jump because of the low vertical speed. Jumping on more platforms can make this a little faster, but also risk losing time if the landings and following jumps are not well timed.
5-2
The method for opening up the shortcut in 5-5 is obscure to say the least. You need to first find the hidden sphinx in 5-2 (see the note under 1-1 regarding the first jump to break the "totem pole wing" above the chest) to open up the passage to 5-5. The passage to 5-7 then only opens on the third visit to 5-5. https://tasvideos.org/Forum/Posts/524874 contains an explanation based on code analysis on how the shortcut works.
1st passage: https://vimeo.com/946751804 - It's recommended to pick up as many bombs as possible along the way to set up for a P-ball on the second passage. Also note the jump sequence after upgrading to orange Jack to make him last until the end of the room.
2nd passage: https://vimeo.com/946751829 - By collecting enough bombs (bomb value = 20), the sphinx chest will produce a P-ball, which eliminates any enemies interfering when returning after collecting the sphinx. Since the bomb count is reset after the P-effect is over, it also makes it easier to manipulate the P-ball spawn in palace room 11.
3rd passage: https://vimeo.com/946751853 - It's important to use the same route so the same bombs are collected. Or else the P-ball spawn in palace room 11 will be impacted. There is some leeway on the bombs to collect, so it's worth remembering the most common scenarios and resulting actions.
Alt 5-2 end: https://vimeo.com/946751869 - Going the lower route at the end is a little over a tenth of a second faster, but also misses out on a mighty coin. Having 3 coins in corridor 17 is safer, but not necessary, so taking the lower route here is a minor time save.
There are typically two enemy spawns in 5-2 that can interfere and are therefore worth taking a closer look at.
The first enemy in 5-2 spawns typically in one of the following locations (and if it doesn't, it can generally be ignored):
- 1 - Hold down left when running on the chest and you should pass by under the mummy
- 2 - If the enemy spawns slightly to the left, it can be cleared by holding left and down when running on the chest. It's often blocking the passage though and you need for the mummy to drop down before jumping over it.
- 3 - Blocking the passage and you need to wait for the mummy to drop out of the way
- 4-6 - Easily avoided by jumping over
The game mechanics behind the mummy's spawn position is not known at the time of writing.
The other enemy that can create a problem is if a mummy spawns to the right of the sphinx around here:
- Bat or Jellyfish - Run between the two platforms (you can use two A-presses to easier float onto the right one) to pass below the enemy
- Bird - ignore
- Skull or Lobster - Can usually/sometimes be avoided by pressing A after collecting the sphinx to float over the enemy. Depending on the mummy's spawn position/timing, this seems to not always be possible?
- Fireball - Can usually be jumped over when passing from the left to the right platform. When jumping hold down-right to avoid getting too close to the next platform. Like the case with the skull and lobster, it seems like this method is not completely consistent?
There is an advanced enemy manipulation during the third time in 5-2. Without mistakes, this enemy manipulation can be held until the end of the game. It can positively impact PR12 for an overall time save of a bit over 0.5s. The key is to observe the enemy appearing around the sphinx:
Unless playing very quickly/slowly, there should be a transformed enemy either before (right image, skull) or after (left image, jellyfish) the sphinx. See PR13 for how to use this information to manipulate the enemies in that room.
5-5
https://vimeo.com/946751890 - The bombs collected are still part of the route to manipulate the P-ball in palace room 11.
5-7 (and 11-3)
https://vimeo.com/946751910 - Other jump sequences are possible and faster, depending on how tight the platforming can be executed. It's individual what will be fastest for each player.
Palace room 11
https://vimeo.com/946752072 - Upon entering, the bomb counter should be in the range 9-12 to spawn the P-ball in the center so it can be collected without detour. This can easily be set up by following the route shown in corridor 5 (or by tweaking it to hit the desired bomb counter value). If the bomb counter is 11 or 12 (as shown in the video), it will require a slightly higher jump to collect the P-ball than if it's 9 or 10. The time difference between these two options should be very close though, so it's more of a personal choice how one prefers to collect the P-ball.
Palace room 12
https://vimeo.com/946752093
This route contains intentional slowdown(s) to set up an enemy manipulation in palace room 13. There are four cases to consider:
- The first mummy transformed into an enemy just before Jack reached the exit (as in the linked video). The enemy counter is the SAME as the enemy type that just spawned.
- The first mummy transformed into an enemy before Jack collected the last bomb, the enemy counter is ONE MORE than the enemy type that spawned.
- The first mummy transformed into an enemy between case 1. and 2. The timing of mummy to enemy transformation is not fully understood and the enemy counter is therefore EITHER the same or one more than the enemy type that spawned. The probability of each case obviously increases the closer to the respective case the enemy transformed into an enemy.
- Jack exists before any mummy has transformed into an enemy. In this case, there is unfortunately not much else to do than guess and hope for the best in palace room 13...
The first case is the ideal one since it finishes the room as fast as possible, while still providing information about the enemy counter to set up an enemy manipulation in room 13. When playing conservatively, one might consider the second case as it's easy to set up by intentionally pausing before the last jump to ensure an enemy transformation takes place and thereby avoid the uncertainty of the third and fourth case.
https://vimeo.com/1038311933
Alternative room solution that is a bit over half a second faster than the solution above. The downside is that normally no mummy transforms before you exit, meaning going into PR13 without knowing the value of the enemy counter. This can be mitigated by starting an enemy manipulation from the third visit of 5-2. It's a more advanced strat since it requires following the route very strictly to avoid losing track of the enemy counter. See comments under 5-2 and PR13 for how the enemy manipulation works.
https://vimeo.com/946752082
This is another alternative solution. The last jump can be a bit tricky at first, but gets more manageable with practice. You need to wiggle back and forth mid-jump as Jack's hitbox stretches a bit outside the sprite, which allows collecting bombs #4 and #5. A pure diagonal jump won't work. This solution should be about equally fast as the previous one. Individual execution skill might determine which one is faster. The previous solution is easier to execute though.
Note - If you only hold right on the d-pad when the room starts, there is a roughly 50% chance to get stuck for 1 frame on the first platform. This is related to sub-values that are not known to be possible to manipulate in real-time. This is however easily avoided by holding up at the same time (or press A) when the room starts.
Palace room 13
The strategy in this room is to adjust the number of A-presses when traversing to the left side and then dropping down to the floor in order to manipulate the enemy counter. Clearing the room as quickly possible requires that the first enemy transforms into either a bird or a skull. If lobsters start appearing, it will be very tricky to clear the room efficiently (or at all!), while the other enemy types can be dealt with, but usually requiring additional dodging. However, only the skull and bird cases will be described here:
The following A-presses will set it up so the first mummy transforms into a bird or skull:
- Enemy counter = 0 - 3x A-presses to get to the left side + 1x A-press inside the first alcove on the left side + 1x A-press in the second alcove on the left side => Bird
- 1 - 5+1+1+1 (the last A-press done in the bottom left alcove) => Skull
- 2 - 5+1+1 => Skull
- 3 - 4+1+1 => Skull
- 4 - 5+1+1 => Bird
- 5 - 4+1+1 => Bird
It's of course possible to play around with the A-presses to manipulate more bird or skull cases, depending on personal preference.
https://vimeo.com/946752111 (bird) - The two "bats" on the right side can either start going left or right (each one random 50/50?). If one or both start going right, they will be in the way when collecting the four bombs in the bottom right. If they start going left (like in the linked video), they can however be ignored. The bird can also interfere. However, with practice, the room can be cleared fast enough so the bird doesn't interfere.
https://vimeo.com/946752131 (skull) - If not moving through the room quickly enough, the skull will be in the way when leaving the second alcove from the top of the right side. A safer, but slower, way is to let the skull pass by overhead (see solution below). The fireballs in the lower right alcove can be in the way, just like the "bats" in the "bird" case above. Their initial horizontal movement direction appears to be random (50/50?) and if one or both start moving right, they often end up blocking Jack.
https://vimeo.com/946752144 (skull, safer and slower method) - Usually 0.5-1s slower than the routes above.
Palace room 14
https://vimeo.com/946752175 - Dropping down between the bombs at the start has a 5-frame window (hold left when the level starts and then left-down).
https://vimeo.com/946752161 - A few tenths slower than the solution above, but avoids squeezing through the bombs at the start.
Palace room 15
https://vimeo.com/946752192 - While being a slight detour, it's often worth collecting the P-ball to avoid any of the enemies interfering during the last jump. The tasne solution (https://youtu.be/kKwcSm-AmAw?t=293) relies on a 1-frame jump at the start of the room, but is otherwise fairly straight-forward to execute and is worth considering as the speedrun gets increasingly optimized. It should save a few tenths in real-time over the solution presented here.
Palace room 16
There are several routes that are almost equally fast. Which one to choose will be a personal choice depending on the execution involved and the risk of enemy interference.
The third has the potential to result in the fastest solution, but you generally need to pause briefly inside the inner space to wait for a mummy to drop out of the way. With #1, one usually, but not always, avoids having to deal with any transformed enemies.
Note - If you only hold right on the d-pad when the room starts, there is a roughly 50% chance to get stuck for 1 frame on the first platform. This is related to sub-values that are not known to be possible to manipulate in real-time. This is however easily avoided by holding up at the same time (or press A) when the room starts.
Corridor 17
Note that the A-press counter most likely will loop around here in an any% speedrun, which impacts the enemy types spawning (in case an enemy manipulation is attempted in this section)!
17-1 and 17-2
If coming into round 17 with 2 mighty coins: https://vimeo.com/946752230. Clearing 17-1 without using any mighty coins fairly quick tapping on the A-button to destroy the blocks above the sphinx fast enough. Some enemies can follow Jack down in the created shaft, requiring even faster tapping to get out of the way fast enough.
If coming into round 17 with 3 mighty coins:https://vimeo.com/946751950. Essentially a safer way to deal with this section, at the expense of spending time earlier in the game to collect an additional mighty coin in 5-2 at the cost of a little over 0.1s.
Another possibility when coming into round 17 with 3 mighty coins: https://youtu.be/PS-R9qCVly0?t=380.
17-1 (second visit)
https://vimeo.com/946751963 - It's theoretically slightly faster to land on the platform halfway to the exit and jump again. However, if the landing/take-off are not executed well enough, it will end costing time.
King's room
https://vimeo.com/946751980 - It's possible to get through this room without turning into green Jack (see e.g. tasne), but it appears to be inconsistent. Enemy manipulation does not seem to be enough. It will also rely on the enemies' initial movements (random?).
