Level 2-3 now complete. Note that I intentionally did the third bomb slightly slower. That way it didn't explode and I had enough health to beat the bosses in the fastest time possible. Note that the fastest boss fights rely on manipulating their behavior so that ideally you can kick as frequently as the game allows for the whole fight without ever missing.
Level 2-2 is now complete. So far it looks quite fast, under 10 minutes. If you guys have any suggestions for additional optimization so far, feel free to post them in the forums page created by goofydylan8 in 2012.
This completes all stages up to 2-1. Notice that there are a few moments where is looks like a character switch is needed to yield faster results. Caution must be careful as each character has an advantage over the other some skill. Specifically, Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson) can jump higher and reach more places from the ground, while Roger Murtaugh (Danny Glover) can pick up and toss boxes that will kill enemies instantly. Level 2-1 was the hardest level to run so far since I had find when the character switches are worth it.
Level 1-3 is now completed.
goofydylan8 told me that he is not interested in continuing this TAS from the small fragment of input he once put but looks forward to me finishing the game.
The first two stages of level 1 are now beat. For now I am still including goofydylan8 in the file name in case he chooses to contribute additional parts of the TAS or to optimize my work where possible. That would then imply a coauthored submission.
Based on the results so far, I am even more convinced that a well made TAS for this game should easily land in the Moons tier.
Improved parts of levels 1 and 2.
Completed levels 3 and 4.
The new file manipulates luck for mana pellets and maxes out at the end of level 2. Also manipulates enemy and projectile spawns to avoid taking damage in later parts of the run so far.
This file ends when I gain control of Kuros at the beginning of level 5.
TODO: Level 5 to complete the game in record time. Will take more mana from enemies to prepare for the final boss battle.
#17721185764427460 - Ironsword - Wizards and Warriors 2
Optimized the mountain stage of level 1, and finished everything in levels 1 and 2. Found a faster way to kill the water boss. Unassisted runners should avoid that method as it would be suicidal (all attacks boss attacks are instant kill due to not having the Water Blight spell). I survived only because of heavy luck manipulation.
Up to this point, this run now outpaces the best WIP by Aglar from about 2 years ago by 10 frames despite the fact that I had to be behind him by almost 60 frames when picking up the Wind Bane due to me doing a no-damage run.
#17632228355214748 - Ironsword - Wizards and Warriors 2
This is a WIP to improve on the run by Scubed. I chose not to manipulate for gold nuggets in the first level. However, like Scubed, I am aiming for fastest completion without taking any damage. So far, I improved the Mountain part of the first level by 63 frames. After the eagle releases me, I am ahead by 192 frames. The Sky part of the level will be harder to optimize because it depends heavily on being able to make Kuros have enough (but not too much) downward momentum each time before a jump in order to get the best possible completion time.
#17583277889243121 - Quattro Adventure - Boomerang Kid
This movie completes Quattro Adventure's Boomerang Kid in just under 5 minutes. Any comments and suggestions are appreciated. If you think this movie is worth submitting for publication, I will promptly submit.
Note that the ROM used is "Quattro Adventure (Unl) (U).NES". In it, selecting Boomerang Kid will start Super Robin Hood and vice versa.