Metroid Other ZM - A Metroid Zero Mission Hack

[DarkOmega6666]

The 101% is very difficult to get and i somehow did it. Though for the hack and the rooms is a 9.8/10. The main difficult part is the Ridley missile tank in the room before the map room.

[Xoneris]

What do you mean with 101%? Getting the Full Suit early or is there a Secret im Missing?

[DarkOmega6666]

While the end screen can only show up to 100% there is a secret missile tank in Kraid's lair. That missile tank can be used to skip the shinespark missile tank in Ridley's lair ( the missile tank in the room before the map room )

[Luce Seyfarth]

While the existence of an extra missile tank is true, the next update will no longer have it.

Also, UPDATE for development:

- Planned out all the new areas on paper
- also designed a new twist for the pair of main bosses before Tourian (Kraid and Ridley)
- implementation is slow but at least steady, due to overall less free time:
  - Beam Combiner and Spring Ball as separate abilities implemented in backend; still need to make new item sprites
  - currently working on adding those new areas, almost finished with Ridley


As I see it, the completed version is still miles away, but we're getting there, as I've said, slow and steady...

[Cpt.Glitch]

- Beam Combiner and Spring Ball as separate abilities implemented in backend; still need to make new item sprites

I'm eager to see how you do this. Are you replacing some existing sprites? If you made new sprite ID's entirely you wouldn't be able to edit/place them in MAGE.

[Luce Seyfarth]

- Beam Combiner and Spring Ball as separate abilities implemented in backend; still need to make new item sprites

I'm eager to see how you do this. Are you replacing some existing sprites? If you made new sprite ID's entirely you wouldn't be able to edit/place them in MAGE.

I will replace existing ones, as there are already doubles for some enemies, used in different difficulty modes. First the Grafics, then the AI needs to be replaced, I think. After getting the clone to work as whatever item it originally is, replacing Text and toggled item bit is next; I already have the procedures that bind Beam combinations and jumping in Morph Ball mode to unused bits in the Beams & Bombs RAM address working.
What I don't know, however, is how to change Menu behavior, as I don't think adding new Tags to the item menu in game is an easy task... MAGE certainly won't help, but it's not meant to do such things anyway :D
I also think there just isn't any room to add two new item Tags. I currently think of replacing Morph Ball with Spring Ball (label and description) when you get it and don't show Combo Beam at all, or something similiar.

Otherwise I might just ask others for help on this - but it's still a long way anyway.

[kiwillius]

One question: Can the game be completed in the actual version? Thanks :3

[00kraken00]

You know, I should do another play though, it's 1 of the extremely few zm hacks and it's amazing. And I still have the YouTube tutorial if I get stuck.

[OneOf99]

You know, I should do another play though, it's 1 of the extremely few zm hacks and it's amazing. And I still have the YouTube tutorial if I get stuck.

Which hacks have you played? I would recommend checking out Deep Freeze and Spooky Mission.

[Nicholas Steel]

I'm interested in this hack (harder secrets to figure out is neat!), but the reduced health/ammo pickups dissuades me from trying it (unless there's ammo recharge stations like in Fusion). The original game's Hard Mode is okay, but I can't see lowering ammo & health drops serving any purpose other than to make the player waste even more time scrambling for ammo/increasing time procrastinating between fights.

I can understand wanting to make Missiles and Super Missiles a more sparse resource during engagements (vanilla Hard mode achieves this by halving ammo capacity upgrades), but I don't understand making it harder to regain the resources after a fight.

The only thing I didn't like about the vanilla games Hard mode is that it effectively quartered your health by doubling enemy damage output and halving your e-Tank capacity upgrades (why do all the Metroid games have to pull a double-whammy on your health in Hard mode? Metroid Prime 3 is afaik the only one that does something pretty neat in Hard Mode to shake up the combat).

[Xoryd]

I think I broke trying to get the Special Varia suit. Am I not supposed to have the Unknown items for this? @Luce Seyfarth

[spoiler]https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdpgmom4uokyu9w/Other%20ZM-24.png?dl=0[/spoiler]

Edit: Unless I need to shinespark all the way across as the ball which is something I don't think I can do

[caauyjdp]

[spoiler=Boring rant]
This is the first hack for ZM that I played, and maybe solely because of that I liked it a lot. But the more I play it the less I like it. I play without savestates. I beat it once, on normal any%, after having to restart once because I had saved in chozodia with low health, and there is one room that I still don't know how to get through without taking at least one hit(room with crawling wall eyes after fake wall). I don't remember if I figured a way out of kraid/ridley on my own. I did look up what I needed to do in chozodia with suit. I probably also looked up parts of suitless.
I loved accidentally noticing start of hi-jump shinespark, realizing what game was asking of me, and doing it. I remember three sparkchains in chozodia, where I understood what probably needed to be done, but I couldn't execute it, and I gave up, sometimes thinking: this is probably a fake item, and the real item is just a missile inside a wall nearby and I don't need it if it'll take me hours of practice to maybe get it. I remember wondering about speedbooster blocks near vanilla acid worm, finding where I needed to build the spark charge much, much later, understanding what needed to be done, failing to execute but still feeling happy that I(probably) figured out the puzzle. I remember finding early items videos on youtube and going... ok, I think I could accidentally find plasma, and it's kind of fun to get once you know it. I probably would have never found early gravity, but I can get it now that I know it. Too bad it makes hi-jump shinespark optional. I still have no idea about early space jump, I'm not sure if it's different version, or I'm just not executing it properly. There no real in-game clues for it and I wouldn't have found the start of it on my own anyway. I give up. I lookup early powerbombs...      m'kay, maybe I would have found it if I kept playing for a month. Some hours later I manage to get the missiles on the way there, and just give up. I am not doing that a second time! But what you're required to do is pretty cool. I stop playing, couple of months pass.

And then Xoryd posted that last message...
I never saw that room, so I was obviously curious. Minimap and background pretty much told its location, but after I couldn't figure out a way in, I started checking other areas. Some hours later I start searching this thread for clues with ctrl+f. Got a vague idea about requirements, but still no idea about location. Kind of randomly stored a shine charge, and started carrying it, thinking too bad there's nothing to use it on in that direction. Then I remember where Xoryd's screenshot suggested there was a secret room, and I start trying to carry charge there, still not sure what do with it. after two midair sparks into a wall(and countless failures to carry the charge), I manage to find next thing that needs to be done. A bit of blind bomb jumping(apparently I do need visual cue for it, doing it just by timing was much more difficult than usual) I find the room. Half an hour later I manage to bring shine charge into the room, I knew how, but kept loosing the charge on the way. I start searching this thread again, realized spoiler tag prevents searching and started actually reading glancing through. Found a clue about where to start and vague directions where to go, which would have been useful some hours ago. Oh well, exploring is fun.

I carry the charge there again, do the spark to the left, space jump in that corner for a while, thinking of my options. Land, go back and shoot up the unknown block, bomb jump up. Find out that crumbles seems to alternate between fast and slow. I probably need to
[spoiler]do the spark chain, store the charge on slow crumble block, jump, spark right to destroy booster block, which might/probably reforms, hope that slow crumble block reformed or wall jump until it does, bomb jump from it(which for some reason is difficult for me), or jump bomb jump(which I've not ever done yet although I'd love to be able to execute it) if the speedbooster block reforms, then I can finally pause for a minute, before I have to bomb jump from slow crumble blocks over fast crumble blocks, and then do.. Something? I probably need to power bomb before shinesparking to the left, and without unknown items. I have endgame save atm with unknown items, and early one without power grip(which I still don't know why I can't get, and can't just disable it from the menu) and without early power bombs because f that trick. I like the idea of it, but doing it...[/spoiler]
Soo, I have a vague idea what might be required of me next. It could be wrong, but to be sure, I need to try and fail. Except that if I fail before the end part where I'm still figuring out what to do, I get to run back, and start from the begining. And all this time there are two thoughts in the back of my head.
1) This is optional
2) Savestates would have made this so much easier to test
There's also a third, using an editor, it's basically not any different than looking up solution on youtube(when there is one).
Oh well, I choose to give up, at least for now.
[/spoiler]
TL;DR When you need to do a couple of minutes of exact(but not perfect) inputs, to get to learn next set of exact inputs you need to do, to find the next set of inputs, until you git gud at doing those inputs. Then people who suck will complain anonymously on the internet :p

edit: P.S. Unrelated: Are additional pirates after triggering an alarm supposed to fail to leave after alarm calms down, or is my emulator bugging?

[Luce Seyfarth]

I'm interested in this hack (harder secrets to figure out is neat!), but the reduced health/ammo pickups dissuades me from trying it (unless there's ammo recharge stations like in Fusion). The original game's Hard Mode is okay, but I can't see lowering ammo & health drops serving any purpose other than to make the player waste even more time scrambling for ammo/increasing time procrastinating between fights.

I can understand wanting to make Missiles and Super Missiles a more sparse resource during engagements (vanilla Hard mode achieves this by halving ammo capacity upgrades), but I don't understand making it harder to regain the resources after a fight.

The only thing I didn't like about the vanilla games Hard mode is that it effectively quartered your health by doubling enemy damage output and halving your e-Tank capacity upgrades (why do all the Metroid games have to pull a double-whammy on your health in Hard mode? Metroid Prime 3 is afaik the only one that does something pretty neat in Hard Mode to shake up the combat).

ammo and health-pickup reduction is there so that the player will have be be more careful. You can still refill your reserves at those Chozo statues. Also, the swarm enemies have unaltered droprates.
I planned to give each beam a distinct power level in a future update (as it is, each beam you stack just adds 1 to beam damage).
Also I never quite came around to test each area separately, regarding the effect of reduced pickups, myself.

I think I broke trying to get the Special Varia suit. Am I not supposed to have the Unknown items for this? @Luce Seyfarth

[spoiler]https://www.dropbox.com/s/zdpgmom4uokyu9w/Other%20ZM-24.png?dl=0[/spoiler]

Edit: Unless I need to shinespark all the way across as the ball which is something I don't think I can do

No Ballspark needed, you are right about the Unknown Items.
You also need to hit another trigger behind the normal Varia Suits location before the special one appear - just a warning. I've never undone that because the next version will actually change that whole early full suit part entirely.

[spoiler=Boring rant]
This is the first hack for ZM that I played, and maybe solely because of that I liked it a lot. But the more I play it the less I like it. I play without savestates. I beat it once, on normal any%, after having to restart once because I had saved in chozodia with low health, and there is one room that I still don't know how to get through without taking at least one hit(room with crawling wall eyes after fake wall). I don't remember if I figured a way out of kraid/ridley on my own. I did look up what I needed to do in chozodia with suit. I probably also looked up parts of suitless.
I loved accidentally noticing start of hi-jump shinespark, realizing what game was asking of me, and doing it. I remember three sparkchains in chozodia, where I understood what probably needed to be done, but I couldn't execute it, and I gave up, sometimes thinking: this is probably a fake item, and the real item is just a missile inside a wall nearby and I don't need it if it'll take me hours of practice to maybe get it. I remember wondering about speedbooster blocks near vanilla acid worm, finding where I needed to build the spark charge much, much later, understanding what needed to be done, failing to execute but still feeling happy that I(probably) figured out the puzzle. I remember finding early items videos on youtube and going... ok, I think I could accidentally find plasma, and it's kind of fun to get once you know it. I probably would have never found early gravity, but I can get it now that I know it. Too bad it makes hi-jump shinespark optional. I still have no idea about early space jump, I'm not sure if it's different version, or I'm just not executing it properly. There no real in-game clues for it and I wouldn't have found the start of it on my own anyway. I give up. I lookup early powerbombs...      m'kay, maybe I would have found it if I kept playing for a month. Some hours later I manage to get the missiles on the way there, and just give up. I am not doing that a second time! But what you're required to do is pretty cool. I stop playing, couple of months pass.

And then Xoryd posted that last message...
I never saw that room, so I was obviously curious. Minimap and background pretty much told its location, but after I couldn't figure out a way in, I started checking other areas. Some hours later I start searching this thread for clues with ctrl+f. Got a vague idea about requirements, but still no idea about location. Kind of randomly stored a shine charge, and started carrying it, thinking too bad there's nothing to use it on in that direction. Then I remember where Xoryd's screenshot suggested there was a secret room, and I start trying to carry charge there, still not sure what do with it. after two midair sparks into a wall(and countless failures to carry the charge), I manage to find next thing that needs to be done. A bit of blind bomb jumping(apparently I do need visual cue for it, doing it just by timing was much more difficult than usual) I find the room. Half an hour later I manage to bring shine charge into the room, I knew how, but kept loosing the charge on the way. I start searching this thread again, realized spoiler tag prevents searching and started actually reading glancing through. Found a clue about where to start and vague directions where to go, which would have been useful some hours ago. Oh well, exploring is fun.

I carry the charge there again, do the spark to the left, space jump in that corner for a while, thinking of my options. Land, go back and shoot up the unknown block, bomb jump up. Find out that crumbles seems to alternate between fast and slow. I probably need to
[spoiler]do the spark chain, store the charge on slow crumble block, jump, spark right to destroy booster block, which might/probably reforms, hope that slow crumble block reformed or wall jump until it does, bomb jump from it(which for some reason is difficult for me), or jump bomb jump(which I've not ever done yet although I'd love to be able to execute it) if the speedbooster block reforms, then I can finally pause for a minute, before I have to bomb jump from slow crumble blocks over fast crumble blocks, and then do.. Something? I probably need to power bomb before shinesparking to the left, and without unknown items. I have endgame save atm with unknown items, and early one without power grip(which I still don't know why I can't get, and can't just disable it from the menu) and without early power bombs because f that trick. I like the idea of it, but doing it...[/spoiler]
Soo, I have a vague idea what might be required of me next. It could be wrong, but to be sure, I need to try and fail. Except that if I fail before the end part where I'm still figuring out what to do, I get to run back, and start from the begining. And all this time there are two thoughts in the back of my head.
1) This is optional
2) Savestates would have made this so much easier to test
There's also a third, using an editor, it's basically not any different than looking up solution on youtube(when there is one).
Oh well, I choose to give up, at least for now.
[/spoiler]
TL;DR When you need to do a couple of minutes of exact(but not perfect) inputs, to get to learn next set of exact inputs you need to do, to find the next set of inputs, until you git gud at doing those inputs. Then people who suck will complain anonymously on the internet :p

edit: P.S. Unrelated: Are additional pirates after triggering an alarm supposed to fail to leave after alarm calms down, or is my emulator bugging?

Wow - I have to say, you've got guts trying without using savestates - especially that spark chain leading up to early Full Suit!
I have a video of me doing that chain without savestates on an older version (no Power Bomb block at the end), you can check if you like:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/j2q20gi4poqmxul/Other%20ZM%20Brinstar%20Puzzle.zip?dl=0

Just to save you additional frustration (though i kind of wish I could see your face after finally breaking through this section, only to finde... an empty room :P), you need to activate a switch to make the statue with the upgrade appear. That switch can be found in a secret room behind the normal Varia Suits location (that room also has a regular container to collect). That's also where you need NOT to have Power Grip in the current version...

What you say is right, though. Doing those inputs again and again can be very frustrating. If only hacking in all that stuff that I want wouldn't take this much time... There is one idea in particular, regarding early Full Suit, that I'd be really curious to see people like you trying to execute :)

I apologize for giving no hints at all on some of those optional tricks (early Power Bombs/ Full Suit). I have some ideas how to hint at them in a future update, without making those paths too easy to find, I hope.

[caauyjdp]

So, that's about 4-6 hours. Granted, I was doing top part wrong, and had to rewatch youtube after getting there 4 times(and iirc youtube doesn't show the other way of getting an item, which kind of makes it a tiny bit easier).
Thankfully managed to get to save without dying, so I'll probably never do it again(and when I do, I'll have forgotten everything again).
Tempted to say it's much easier/forgiving that I originally thought.
Also found the zipline activator based on your literal words, never even occurred to me to look there. I trust power bombs too much, plus when I even read about it I just assumed it was couple rooms up right from where it was.

Kind of feel tempted to do the other thing now, after seeing in the video that speed block doesn't reform(hopefully that hasn't changed :p).

Question, can I get power grip after activating ziplines(assuming that is the "switch"). I think I can do the spark chain somewhat reliably now, but bomb jumping up from slow crumbling block is not something I can usually do first try. nvm, found the answer while rescanning the thread

edit: ...I wasn't supposed to get varia, wasn't I? Guess I get to redo it while it's still fresh in memory...

post2:

Only took about 45 minutes this time, 4 sparks, was too surprised that I got one of those to actually do the thing :p

post3:
Spark part is kind of easy by now, and by easy I mean I get about 1 out of 10 up to the point where I need to do last store before the room. Mostly just doing inputs in wrong order.  I can probably improve that a lot if I rest a bit. After that I loose charge about 2/3 of the time before entering the room, before last jumping bit. Being vague on purpose.

Room sparks are mostly easy, so I only failed those a couple of times(well, I only got that far a couple of times more :p). Got past last speed block three times. Two times I didn't stop, hand was just too used to holding down a direction. One time I actually stopped, I figured I'd try unmorph ledge grab chaining aaand.. proceeded to, what I can best guess afterwards, mash all keys randomly :p

I'm guessing unmorph ledge grab is more forgiving on the timing, and bombing is much easier inputs. There's a similar place in vanilla to practice these, although timing would be different...
But then my wrists reminded me that they're hurting :p

That video made the last bit look easy, and inputs looks simple in my mind too. That got me motivated enough to try and get early pb, and I'm glad I did.
But with this thing, I'm now thinking of excuses to stop myself from practicing it :p
I'll probably give it more attempts much, much later, especially if I notice something in this thread, but for now...
You've made a good challenge. And I'm refusing to get better to beat it :p

Sorry for rant/rambling/walls of text

Good luck to anyone attempting these

ninja post4:
Managed to get 99%. Still missing energy tank in kraid(still think I can't chain that), and missiles somewhere in ridley.

[AlienMan33]

What Emulator should i use for this Rom Hack?

[Cpt.Glitch]

What Emulator should i use for this Rom Hack?

Any GBA emulator works. VBA, mGBA, Bizhawk, etc.

[makazuwr32]

the next version will actually change that whole early full suit part entirely.

How much do you have to do left for that?
Can't wait to try new one.
I already beat your game on hard diffculty.

[caauyjdp]

I just found a way to get to mecha ridley early, and wondering if it's intended?
I got into his room, but didn't really try to kill him with my low item count.
Requires clipping through a thing, which is pretty standard for super metroid runs, but doesn't have a similar setup in vanilla zm(at least I haven't seen runs that clip through that in zm). Also need power bombs to open doors(and for some reason can't seem to collect the "vanilla's first power bomb" location bombs in this state nvm, didn't know there was a block in the way).
In theory allows finishing the game with only killing imago cocoon and mecha.

edit: just managed to do same clip in different place, allows getting chozodia screw attack earlier
edit: Ok, just managed to do same clip in vanilla in the only place where it seems applicable. I'm guessing it doesn't save time in vanilla, and that's why I haven't seen people do it. Going to try on a different emulator to rule out emulation bugs
edit: Replicated on a different emulator in vanilla, guessing it's just a less known clip

post 2:
After beating mecha ridley using the clip, timer started at 99:99:99, and disappeared in the next room, so now I think it was not intended. Originally thought it was, because boxes that contain two worker robots you've added are perfect for doing the clip. Clip itself basically involves stopping robot a certain distance away from morph tunnel, and then holding direction and spamming bombs.

There are two cases when I consider distance to be correct for trying. One is, when samus is next to the robot, and presses up, she visibly begins unmorph animation, but it gets stopped. If you jump in ball form it'll work(and not just hit the roof of morph tunnel), and will visibly clip samus into robot, but will put her back on the same side she started. In the other case, you can't start unmorphing, but holding direction towards robot and holding jump(with hi-jump) will make samus jump rapidly.

Recorded three movies with bizhawk if someone wants to take a look(if those things actually work, never used em before).

[Grondoval]

Hi, im stuck in this part

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyMCFfLntdg

01:16

Why in 3.8 that door is Green!?

I have Speed Booster but i don`t know how to get out of Kraid, the escape is in bucle... :pale:

[caauyjdp]

Why in 3.8 that door is Green!?

I have Speed Booster but i don`t know how to get out of Kraid, the escape is in bucle... :pale:

Green door is probably there to prevent people from getting out that way before getting supers.
There's another way out[spoiler=escalating spoiler]few rooms to the right from that green door[spoiler]in the room with the zipline leading to the missile[spoiler]try looking at the pattern of missile and speed blocks[spoiler]if all else fails, bomb the ceiling[/spoiler][/spoiler][/spoiler][/spoiler]

[00kraken00]

Hi, im stuck in this part

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyMCFfLntdg

01:16

Why in 3.8 that door is Green!?

I have Speed Booster but i don`t know how to get out of Kraid, the escape is in bucle... :pale:

I went thought my videos to find it (hard because really bad internet connection) but the kraid escape is here in the video,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KMPYQF5rwE&index=3&list=PL25R1o-Nb7-9ryr8YQDRmYZn6vdJH0DTI
Pretty sure the kraid escape is in there (The first 4 ep are weird because I lost footage and use some cheats to recreate it).
(I check back every few months and wow not dead anymore yay)

[Grondoval]

Thanks for the answers, that make me to continue and another time i`m stuck, im trying to get the unknown items, but i don´t know how to begin, i try with states go to chozodia but always in bucle/stuck. So finally get some power up`s like: varia suit, hi-jump, super missile, power grip and wave, but no unknown items or power bombs.

i`m now stuck in ridley in a room right to elevator to norfair-boss-worm, where have to do morph ball to get in wall and appear in superior room part and reach something, but samus goes down one and another time doesn´t seem that can stay there to make another morph ball and explore with bombs. ¿bug? :pale:

i`m using Other ZM 3.8

[Paulinho]

wow last time i came here was a year and 3 months ago... there was any major update these months luce?

[00kraken00]

Oh hey paul, long time no see, sadly no updates yet, but I do check back every month or 2 looking for 1 because still fun hard hack. One day, one day we will get an update I feel it.

[Paulinho]

this hack is a masterpiece

when i want to replay zero mission, i play this instead of the normal game  :lol: