Speedrunning takes various forms, especially in the retro scene. Some seek to make 'pure' runs as quickly as possible, while others exploit loopholes in game code to find shortcuts and warps that drastically cut a run's time. A recent discovered for The Legend of Zelda on the Famicom Disk System is in the latter category, and in theory allows the game to be cleared in under three minutes.
The workaround was discovered by speedrunner and programmer Sockfolder, who has identified a warp that can only be achieved in version 1.1 of the Famicom Disk version; it won't work on a NES copy. In setting up specific file names, including the famous 'Zelda' entry to skip to the second dungeon, it's possible to manipulate the game's code and cause it to lose its way and warp the player right to Zelda's room at the end of the game.
Doing this requires careful play, triggering an excess of sprites in a specific area before using the whistle at a key point. It's rather tricky and precise, meaning that it'll be limited to the most skilled speedrunners,
The video below by MagicScrumpy breaks it all down in detail, explaining what's happening to the game's code as the trick is executed.
It's another intriguing discovery - it's amazing what enthusiasts find and achieve when working with retro hardware and its limitations.
[source digitaltrends.com]
Comments 19
Sweet, I can cross another game I beat off my list this year! Be back in 5 minutes! 😉
It's a secret to everybody.
Well, it was!
Only works on a 1.1 of famicom release, so I don't think I'll be trying this one out, heh.
I have to wonder what poor Link and Zelda do when they realize Ganon is still in the room behind them and Link is still too puny to beat him, hahah.
Cool but that takes all the enjoyment out of the game.
Not as cool as the LttP glitch. You can even do that on VC, so I hear!
This isn't a glitch. This is revenge of the nerds.
inb4 "Speedrunning ruins a game."
@SLIGEACH_EIRE If you want you can play through the game normally too y'know
@ReshiramZekrom Well obviously. It was more in response to the first comment.
@KnockKnock Oooh, 3 posts too late
Honestly, I find it more amusing than anything else that people spend that much time trying to break the game. In a weird way it shows the devotion to it...or the devotion to speedrunning, depending how you look at it.
..well, if you can't get the best time in Zelda normally..Tri - force!..ha..
EDIT: oops..sorry about that..I thought it said " Zelda speed puns"...
@SLIGEACH_EIRE - I really don't think we could be more opposite of people, and I feel like we'd try to kill each other IRL if we ever met. I really like this site, but I wish there was a block feature. You comment on everything, and I'm always angered in some way no matter what you say. IDEK...like, maybe you're my evil twin. The point is, I wish there was a block feature on this site, honestly.
Welp, that just confirmed it - I could never be a game coder. He may as well just been speaking in gibberish because I didn't understand a thing he was explaining. My head hurts after watching that. Anyway, the actual glitch is interesting, but I could have done without the in-depth explanation of how it was accomplished.
@EmmatheBest i agree that a block feature would be helpful. Here's your evil twin sister:
@Spoony_Tech Good friggin' luck figuring all of this out in 5 minutes!
@KnockKnock In this instance it quite literally ruins the game. The guy said "or it'll crash," like, eight different times XD
So it's basically the non TAS version of what these guys did a year ago?
@BeardedSquash
I had the same exact reaction, and I actually took several programming classes in college (admittedly about 14 years ago). It wasn't only the ridiculous amount of technical jargon, but also the incredibly fast pace at which he insisted on saying it. Maybe pause a little bit, for the sake of the 1% who might actually have a shot at understanding at least a fraction of all that. Yikes, talk about overkill. I was attempting to follow what was being explained for about 5 minutes, but then caught myself daydreaming many times.
Very low volume.
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