So I dug out my SNES and ran through Super Metroid again...

[Nova]

I ended up getting 100% item collection rate first run, in 6 hours 23 minutes. I know that is probably a horrid time too but I was really happy with myself for still remembering where EVERY item was. Please take note though while I AM happy that I did this I'm not trying to come off as a bragger or e-peen flexing rude-ass. I'm truly happy.

So let me ask you: What is the fastest time you've gotten for a 100% run of Super Metroid?

[Tianna]

I did the same thing a week ago. :3 That one's my favorite of the series. When I played through, I think I got a 90%+ at 3:06 or some such. It's a personal best.

As far as my fastest time for 100%? I have no idea. hahaha. It's been too long since I tried. My worst time ever (no idea on the item collection at this point... it's been over 10 years. ) was 23:00+.

I'm not very good at speed runs since I tend to be anal about having full energy and weapons and I'm methodical about killing things (well, at least compared to how I've seen the LPs played), but I can take a stab at finding out how fast I can beat the game with 100%.

[gigatravis]

Beating the game in under 3 hours is hard enough for me. The best time I've gotten in getting all the items is between 3 and 4 hours, I can't remember the exact time.

[Schrau]

About 2.5 hours is a good SM run for me, or at least was (My Virtual Console run ain't doing too well, but that's typically because of how abysmal the Classic Controller is, especially on wall jumps which is about the only special technique I can do well).

I can remember the location of every single item in Super. Everything. It's probably telling that I've memorised my personal sequence in all of the SNES-generation games that I played to multiple completions, yet still struggle to recall everything on their later-generation sequels. I still use a printed map for Fusion and Zero mission; and still have to use a guide for, say, Zelda: Minish Cap when I can sit down with a fresh savefile for Link to the Past or Link's Awakening and thrash it to the credits sequence without once stopping to think "hey, what am I supposed to do next?"

Before the rants about older games being easier start, in my case, it's because I grew up at a time when you couldn't pop t'internet and get a walkthrough from GameFAQs. If you needed help for a game, you had to hope that your preferred magazine chose to do a walkthrough for it, and they were never complete or perfect. Sure, Total! and Super Play (The vastly superior UK SPlay, not the Swedish one that most folk are familiar with) did their best, but the player still had to do a lot of legwork themselves.

I say we raze GameFAQs and let things return to how they were.

[JazzJack]

my best item count is 98% (I think that was in around 5 hours)
my best time was 3.5 hours (I think it was with 63 % of the items)

now don't judge me, I didn't have any money back when SM came out and no friends that had it (I didn't have any friends in general), I played it for the first time last year on an emulator on my uncle's laptop and then on the VC (though I have seen many playthroughs, walkthroughs, and speedruns of the game ever since I got onto the internet (I really wanted that game since at that time I only had the first Metroid and I used to watch my uncle beat the game over and over since I found it kinda boring to play but awesome to watch))

[ph00tbag]

It's cool that you were able to get 100% cold. I don't think I could get very far in that game without checking the internet again.

[Infinity's End]

As much as I love Super Metroid, and playing it through a real SNES is wonderful, the game is not without its faults.

One of my biggest annoyances is the stupid "you got an item" jingle. It lasts WAY too long and after you hear it about 5 million times, it gets old. Waiting for that damn jingle to end just so I can keep playing the game... gah, I'm just not patient enough for it anymore. I noticed this was something they actually fixed in Shadow Complex; the "you got an item" screen lasted no more than a second or two, if that.

It's much more preferable for me nowadays playing it on an emulator with a fast forward function. Any other way else is just too...

And the same goes for the unskippable intro...

[Emperor Ing]

For Super and Fusion, I saved as soon as the intro was over, and made a copy of the file, so I never had to go through it as long as that copy was there.

Very effective.

But yeah, that item jingle got to be pretty annoying. Zero Mission and Fusion are much better with this in that respect. In a sense, Metroid 1 is as well.

[Tianna]

Man, I must be the most patient fan of SM ever. I love hearing it every time. I get a feeling of accomplishment out of it. I don't use ROMs or anything like that. I'm a console gamer all the way. ROMs are too awkward, and I hate using a keyboard to play games more than anything.

But then again, after watching the LPs of SM and the fanhacks on YouTube, I play through the game at a snail's pace compared to the rest of you. I like to take my time and do things accurately. My fastest time is still in the 2:30 range.

[Infinity's End]

Man, I must be the most patient fan of SM ever. I love hearing it every time. I get a feeling of accomplishment out of it. I don't use ROMs or anything like that. I'm a console gamer all the way. ROMs are too awkward, and I hate using a keyboard to play games more than anything.

But then again, after watching the LPs of SM and the fanhacks on YouTube, I play through the game at a snail's pace compared to the rest of you. I like to take my time and do things accurately. My fastest time is still in the 2:30 range.

I don't use the keyboard either. I have a USB adapter that connects directly to a PS1(non dual-shock) controller. Best overall time for me I think is around 1'45-55.

[sharonlover]

my non 100% game playing on the SNES was 1 hour 12 minutes. And I feel I can still shave a few more items off to lower it still.

One of the things that slows my time is being able to continuously wall jump up the same wall. It's a nice trick I'd like to learn just haven't sat down and done it.

[Schrau]

my non 100% game playing on the SNES was 1 hour 12 minutes. And I feel I can still shave a few more items off to lower it still.

One of the things that slows my time is being able to continuously wall jump up the same wall. It's a nice trick I'd like to learn just haven't sat down and done it.

I find single-wall jumping pretty easy. In fact, I rarely do the Etecoon pit by bouncing between walls. Single-walling on the right is a lot more fun.

Your controller really helps here. It's generally a snap on a standard SNES controller (Then again, I'm not sure if the slight difference between the US and the EU/JP controller buttons has any bearing on this). I play Super Metroid with three different controllers: The standard SNES controller on my, uh, SNES; the Classic Controller on my Wii, and an XBox 360 controller on my PC. The SNES controller is perfect, the 360 one struggles somewhat, and the Classic Controller is just awful.

Now I just wish that I could Speedball/Mockball. I've practised as best as I could in Crocomire's room, but I've never been able to do it once successfully, never mind on demand. Feh.

[Tianna]

Yeah, doing complicated maneuvers is beyond my capabilities despite playing this game religiously for 10 years. I can't single-wall jump or machball or midair morph + get into tight spaces at the peak of the jump. I have some difficulty with bomb-jumping, only that it takes me forever to find the rhythm and stick to it (I still can't find the rhythm at all in Fusion or ZM), and I definitely can't do the recharge trick for the shinespark.

But since most of those moves aren't required in Super Metroid to get a 100% or beat the game (actually, that's one of the things I absolutely hate about playing Fusion, that to get 100% you have to be able to do those moves), it's never bothered me that much. I'm not really that competitive with other people. Once I'm done playing through Lufia 2, I think I'm going to see how fast I can get a 100% since I haven't attempted a 100% run in a while in SM. After that, I think I'm going to attempt the 'Fastest Route to Mother Brain' that was on the last page of the NP Player's Guide, but that requires me finding my book and hoping that it hasn't fallen apart since my cross-country move.

[Lazarius]

I never found Super Metroid's wall jumping difficult, am i weird? I can manage bomb jumping all right, (as opposed to Zero Mission where I can bomb jump myself god damn anywhere,) but I can't mochball.

[Infinity's End]

I was able to master bomb-jumping and even IBJ'ing by working on and testing MSR388.

There are two ways to bomb jump. The easy way, or the harder (but gain more ground faster) way.
Easy way:
What you do is lay down a bomb, and then right before it goes off, lay down another one. When you begin to fall, on the way back down, about halfway between the max height of your jump and the ground, lay another bomb and when you reach the bottom, the 2nd bomb you laid should blow you back up. Then each consecutive time, you lay another bomb, about halfway on the way back down.

Hard way:
Lay a bomb. right before it goes off, lay another one. At the top of the jump, lay another bomb. Then when the 2nd bomb goes off, you have to time it so you are laying a bomb at the exact height of each bomb jump every time. It's more difficult, but it gets you very high in a very quick amount of time.... kinda like heroin?