Mario Clash has two versions. Post differences between them on this thread.

Although they seem to be the exact same, they are actually different, and this difference is felt in the later levels. American is easier to complete because enemies move slower. This gives American version an advantage in survivability, and possibly also in runs as well. Be sure to get both, because you never know if the faster enemies in Japanese could actually provide the benefit in getting faster times. Even if Japanese has no advantages whatsoever, you might want to get it anyway for training weights.

Big News: the 3DS has a new emulator named Red Viper. Be sure to get Virtual Boy games on your 3DS and play them in 3D. Very exciting! Record them easier and practice anywhere. Enter a whole new Nintendo library never seen on Virtual Console and choose your preferred color.

Play cheaper, play anywhere, record cheaper. 3DS has Red Viper, the new emulator for Virtual Boy games. At long last the 3DS can live up to playing Virtual Boy games and properly emulate them using the 3D Slider on the Top Screen.

BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS BIG NEWS

Save loads of money, play anywhere, and record games easier by playing Virtual Boy games on your 3DS by using the Red Viper emulator. It's fantastic! Save hundreds of $ and use the Face Buttons on the 3DS as the Right D-Pad when you change the controls on the bottom screen!

The Virtual Boy is now able to be emulated on the 3DS at long last. Time to make use of your 3DS Footage Capture devices. And be able to bring your VB games wherever on your 3DS. Play Virtual Boy games in 3D with this new emulator... and speed-run them!

A million points is not the end. After you complete Level 99, you start again at Level 1 where the enemies are faster. After you complete Level 99 for the second time in the same playthrough, you've completed Second Quest and can stop the timer right there. It's the ultimate category.

I have discovered several things that help amazingly in Mario Clash. This thread is for anyone to post helpful tips to excel at this long and unforgiving game.

First off is a new scoring tactic- on any level with the Slugs that lay eggs, Clash all other enemies so there are only Slugs left, then stun them and line them up- but not all of them. You have just enough time to make the most of at least two combos of 4, 5, 6, or even 7 Slugs to Clash. Simply knock out the other enemies and some Slugs first (in a combo), then wait for them to lay eggs while Stunning one on the other side to block all the other ones, then start lining them up again. You'll get all the points they can give you, as well as the Technical Bonus of your best Clash Combo on top of that when you finish each level. You will sacrifice some Time, but it is without a doubt worth the tradeoff in a score-based category (particularly 999999) as you will gain thousands more points for each extra enemy you Clash in one throw, more than enough to make up for the extra time it will take. This also makes starting on or near Level 13, rather than Level 1, viable for shorter categories as well (unless it's not allowed and you must start on Level 1). In fact, if you're after 20K or even 50K points, you can get that on a single level with Slugs with a bit of practice. You can earn so many points by doing this on multiple levels, it will end the run several levels earlier than what you were previously capable of. As always, if any Koopas are caught in between a line of enemies, put them in their shell first, as any walking non-stunned enemy will block your Clash Combos.

Something you should already know is that you can throw shells at enemies to make them change direction when you're not throwing shells across the room. You can use this to get enemies to all march single file, quite easily, and herd them together before you line them up for a Clash Combo after stunning them. Simply follow one enemy around, and re-direct it away from you whenever it walks into another one and changes direction. After enough of these, they will all crowd around on the other side of the room, where they can all be stunned. When doing this (especially to the aforementioned Slugs), make sure the enemies are guarded by two stunned enemies on either side to prevent them from taking pipes to the top floor, while also making sure they're spread out enough so you don't Clash them individually while trying to stun the other ones, and while getting rid of a Koopa that gets in between them and ruins your combo. You will have enough throwing distance to reach them and throwing speed to hit them before they recover, but only if you've gained more than usual by keeping the same Koopa shell you've been using to hit all the enemies with, only throwing it across the room and never sideways prior to the Clash Combo (you can tell you're doing this correctly if you hear more high-pitched sound effects and see stars around the shell) while always catching it on the rebound. If you can throw a shell across the room to stun and Clash the other koopa to build up two levels of this, so much the better. Level 21, which has Spike Tops marching in between Spinies, is a great place to practice this, making sure the two Spinies at each end are stunned before stunning the other two, then Clashing all seven with one throw. A single one of these mistakes costs thousands of points and prolongs a run that much more. Slugs are slow and easy to herd, though this can be done with enemies on other levels as well. When herding enemies together, it's good for you to have the foreground and enemies to have the background, especially to see fireballs and icicles coming more easily.

Now for defensive maneuvers. There are two new ones, both of which are easy to do (one's a no-brainer in fact) and both of which are essential lifesavers in tight situations.

First off, we have Passages. A Passage is when you pass straight through a moving enemy by being mostly in the pipe and passing through while both Mario's sprite and the enemy's sprite are off-screen, passing through the pipe at the same time. While it is a short window, it's an intuitive trick that isn't difficult to do, and will prevent you from needing to sacrifice a life if both turtles are on the other side.

The second one is simply standing on a Pipe. Standing on Pipes both easy to do and essentially makes you immune to enemy attacks. In fact, you can still hit Boos and Paragoombas with Turtle Shells while standing on a pipe to manipulate their direction, while they can't get up to you.

If you have any other game-changing strategies, I'd love to see and hear them.

Not speedrun related, but to give Jack Bros., a game with relatively one-and-done levels, some replay value, here is a high score challenge.

There are eight categories: Two difficulties each for all four characters.

Select "Start" and complete the game with no continues. Whatever time is remaining at the end of the final boss, that's your high score.

There's also a less important IL variant: either Start (first level) or enter a Password (other levels). Reaching a level after doing another one and having an advantage is not allowed in ILs. 48 categories for this naturally.

This is the thread for discussing new strategies, either suggestions, or point-by-point operations.

I beat Map 16. In fact, I may have happened upon a strategy that beats the current World Record.

There is a Factory to the far left part of the Map. If you Capture it, you basically win, as it has a Giant, a Pelican (that you can put the Giant in as well as an on-foot unit to get to the S.A.M.) and three Hunters, and more after that. Usually, the Computer gets this. However, it is possible for you to get it.

Guide the two Rabbits as well as any other vehicle you can manage, across the rocks on the far left part of the Map. The more strength in numbers you have, the better. This leaves open the middle part of the Map, but you needn't be concerned about that. When guiding your Kilroy to the Factory, form a small defense perimeter with a few Units you have from the start and your first Factory, and use your Giant to guard your Prison Camp.

You have a Factory to the right of the Map as well, which has seven Units. Bring them all out and on the second turn, wheel your Mule to place an Atlas in between the two Factories on the track. Guide a Hawkeye near it so Hunters won't go near it while using your two Falcons to try and block/defeat it. Even though Falcons can't fight ground enemies, they can block them. You have access to both Factories, so drive Units with low counts back in to fully restore them while bringing out more Units from the bottom Factory. The Atlas should stop the enemy's Charlie from taking your Factory from you, as well as greatly benefit you for other enemies.

Have a few tanks, such as your Titan, at the ready for incoming enemies next to your Giant while close enough to the Factory in case their counts get low. Ride a Panther to the left of the screen with plenty of tanks to defend it. Your Eagle and Rabbits will be able to reach the Atlases and take them out, which is very useful, and once you have Captured the Factory, your Hunters will do the rest. You can Pelican an on-foot Unit (such as your Panther) to the SAM once the Atlases surrounding it have been destroyed. You don't even need to get the one(s) that aren't near it. Then you win.

The SG-1000 version is Japanese only. Can be played backwards-compatible on a Mark III.

You are able to constantly sprint if you stutter by tapping the sprint meter instead of holding it. You also move faster and have no delay.

This is a buying guide for if you want to run any game, but I'm putting it in a popular TG-16 game, where it's likely to get noticed.

If you are a flashcart user, this isn't for you.

Buying a TG can be confusing. There are so many different ones with different functions. Where do you begin?

I would recommend getting a Region-Free Duo. Failing that, a PCE Duo. The Duos have a protective covering for the Cards (reason enough to own a Duo, even if you are not interested in the CD games), as well as a fully-equipped, region-free CD unit (as opposed to the separate CD Units which require their own cards to activate). For some of the games that use the Save Module, the Duo also has a built-in one of those as well. It's only one purchase, and well worth the money. Buying anything else is short-term cheaper, but ultimately a waste of money. But what about when CD units stop working? Even then, buying another Duo is a better replacement option than buying separate CD units with their own cards. At times, the Duos may not even be the more expensive option! Even if they don't, if you have some money to spare, you can own multiple Duos anyway, as owning another functions as extra save memory.

In addition to that, get a Turbo Controller if you don't have one. They are common and completely legal in just about every TG game, unless stated otherwise. You can also get longer and more fortified Wires for your Duo.

You don't really need a TurboTap or more than one controller at a time. Also, you may not be interested in games sold with the console, as they are usually cheap games sellers are trying to get rid of and rarely anything good. You should only buy a bundle if it has games you know you are interested in running.

When you get the maximum score, 999999, there is a special cutscene that plays when you get it. 999999 is the highest score you can get, and I think it should be a category. In fact, it should possibly be the main category.

Since the game doesn't control with the stick, but rather the D-Pad, that makes the SNES controller a surprisingly solid controller for this game. Are there any other unconventional official controllers that are good on Switch?

Not only does the Switch make it easier to access any version, it also enables easier control and practice.

First off, the control. The Switch doesn't just limit you to Joy-Cons, you can also use the SNES or N64 controller if you need a D-Pad (and the controllers are region-free as always).

Second, rewinding. The Switch's new feature is the ability to rewind, which makes trick practice much easier.

It's recently been discovered that Spanish is the fastest language. The game came out on Switch recently, though you may not have the correct account for it. There is an easy and free way to legally access PAL versions of games though- you go to Nintendo.com and click on your account. If it's in North America or Asia, you can switch it to a European country, preferably with a language you're familiar with.

After doing this, change the language on your Switch to the corresponding language with that country (such as Deutsch if you selected Germany) and download it on the eShop (you can change both back when you're done if you want).

As long as you have a subscription, the EU version can be downloaded for no additional cost, putting every Switch player on an even playing field. Switch is faster than GBP, and has 4 save state slots for practice. The Switch version is the great equalizer for this game. Spanish, (or another language if that becomes faster) has never been easier to access. Muy bueno.

(You do the same thing but for Japan and Japanese if you need to run a category where Japanese is the fastest).

Spain- Espanol

France- Francias

Germany- Deutsch

Italy- Italiano

Holland- Nederlands

Portugal- Portugues

Remember, the eShop will only be accessible if you are using the same language to the corresponding country, so click on a country on the website, pick the language (having memorized the menu options before), get the VC module(s) you need, and get out of there before changing it back to your usual region. Feliz Juegos!

You can change Gimmicks between Levels 1 and 7 once you have it. The current route has them at Level 7 at all times. Thing is, it may be faster to have them at Level 1. It's not much less damaging, and the Gimmick Microgames are shorter, which adds up quite a bit each time you use them. Maybe have most Gimmicks at Level 1 most of the time and only put the easy ones (or shorter ones) at a higher level at crucial times such as bosses. If this isn't necessarily faster, it can be used as a safety strategy, particularly when it comes to Gimmicks doing WAY less damage when you get them wrong, maintaining AWE Meters, and having them not be impossible when your Gimmicks get Janked.

I have a few to start us off:

Get Cookies, Milk, and Pudding to heal both at the same time. It’s even worth selling off items that single heal for more HP to get these.

Alesa’s TomatoRobo Mk 2 is very useful because it heals both DeMille and Alesa and does damage based on how much HP it heals who uses it. Best of all, the enemy’s defense doesn’t matter. This is great for the robots in Gimmick Palace as well as preventing bosses from buffing (such as destroying Oops’s Magic Mirror before she gets the defense buff and making the battle a lot faster).

It’s not just about damage- certain Gimmicks also have bonuses. The MagMitt can slow enemies, while the Pop Horn can make them sleep. These even work on bosses, even on inanimate things that don’t “sleep” such as Ouch’s microphone. This gives you more opportunities for damage and less of a need to use up healing items.

The quiz in Tartar Valley is required. The first two rounds have fixed answers, while the third has random questions. Button mashing is a reliable strategy.

This currently only works on the Switch version of Star Fox 1, but you can re-map the buttons to give the game controls from Star Fox 2. And you can also swap the L and R buttons to be the cushy ZL and ZR ones while you're at it.

Go into the Switch's Options menu to change the controls. Rotate each face button once so Shoot is B, Boost is Y, Bomb is X, and Slow Down is A, then select Control Style A on the Main Menu. The game will now play like Star Fox 2's Control Style A. Remember, if you did it correctly, X should choose things in the Switch Main Menu. If B chooses things, you rotated them in the wrong direction, so Reset and try the other way. If you get it correct, Save the controls in 1 of 5 Save Slots. You will now have Star Fox 2 Controls, the best controls you can have in Star Fox 1- and it's currently only on the Switch version.

When you pause, you have the option to "return to map". When you return to map, you keep the special items you collected and hardly use any Time. You can re-enter and collect the same Special Item or two, then exit. The maximum is 9, and you have that number of whichever the last Special Item you collected was. In a casual playthrough, this gives you plenty of Hearts or Shields and is fantastic for struggling new players. In a speedrun, this may be useful for using an ample supply of Bombs on Flotillas or Base Cores or Star Wolf Members, or whatever else could be dealt with much quicker. This also helps greatly reduce the overall urgency of the game.

Also, you can press Select to swap between characters. Having Fox/Falco as your second character gives you 3 free Bombs for Flotillas.