Pacifist analysis

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Definition

Least number of killed enemies:

In order to obtain an as canonical and objective definition that fits to the game and its structure, the following analysis will refer to a definition of when an enemy is killed(*) and as how many kills an enemy kill counts by means of actions by Samus or the player that extends from the logic that the grey in-game enemy kill-count shells use via memory watching each of the in total 32 healthpoints tracking slots for enemies. The objective is to beat the game while minimizing the number of healthpoint slots (which will be corresponding to enemies and their parts) that are reduced by any means from a value above 0 to 0 during the playthrough.

The following analysis is meant to cover NTSC aswell as PAL, for the general surrounding ruleset given by

  • No Out of Bounds
  • No Spazer+Plasma
  • No GT Code
  • No Savestation G-Mode Memory Corruption

(*) Note that just hurting enemies will be ignored in this analysis as long as it doesn't lead to reducing the number of healthpoints of an enemy slot to 0.

As sidenote, freezing an enemy by a shot means that this shot did not reduce the amount of healthpoints that the enemy had before being frozen.


Information and clarification based on RAM Watch tests on the number of enemy slots that corresponds to enemies when they are killed:

  • If one watches Titel Screen Demos, then enemies die HP address-wise (but this is not the case for the Intro), so this needs to be avoided.
  • Dust Torizo, G4 room ghosts, MB turret shots, dust enemies and the hopper that the Big Metroid sucks dry all don't count as killed enemies.
  • Cacattack Spikes don't count as killed enemies.
  • Kagos each count as 1 killed enemy (their bugs don't count as killed enemies).
  • Green KiHunters show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Red KiHunters show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Wrecked Ship KiHunters show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Mini Kraid spikes don't count as killed enemies.
  • Evirs each count as 1 killed enemy [but consist of 3 parts each].
  • Gerutas show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Squeepts show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Seahorse show up as 2 parts with HP but one can kill them such that only one HP part vanishes with value 0.
  • Boulders don't count as killed if they break themselves.
  • Magdollite firespits don't count as killed enemies.
  • Skrees don't count as killed enemies when digging into ground (and their rocks don't count as killed enemies).
  • Metaskrees don't count as killed when digging into ground (and their rocks don't count as killed enemies).
  • Ninja Pirates count as 1 killed enemy each.
  • Rinkas count as 1 killed enemy each time {they don't count towards kill count shells like some mini-/bosses}.
  • Zebetites actually count as 2 killed enemies each.
  • 1st Tourian Escape room gates count as 1 killed enemy each.
  • Ceres Ridley apparently has no HP that can be reduced.
  • Bomb Torizo counts as 1 killed enemy (eggs don't count as killed enemies).
  • Spore Spawn counts as 1 killed enemy (spores don't count as killed enemies).
  • Kraid doesn't count as killed enemy [but 6 enemies die in total after the fight, even with KQK] (Kraid's hand counts as 1 killed enemy; the 3 spike-platforms count as 1 killed enemies each at the end; both rock types don't count as killed enemies; both fingernails * count as 1 killed enemy each at the end, and in the new room state they are in the bottom and can be killed).
  • Phantoon counts as 1 killed enemy [and has 4 parts of which only 1 goes to 0 HP] (flames don't count as killed enemies).
  • Botwoon counts as 1 killed enemy.
  • Crocomire actually doesn't count as killed enemy (spit doesn't count as killed enemy; tongue counts as 1 killed enemy if one uses many powerbombs).
  • Golden Torizo counts as 1 killed enemy (eggs don't count as killed enemies, birds don't count as killed enemies).
  • Draygon counts as 1 killed enemy (goo doesn't count as killed enemy).
  • Ridley counts as 1 killed enemy but spawns 12 further enemy parts with 0x80 HP that rapidly automatically die as Ridley explosions [which makes for 13 killed enemies here in total for the Ridley fight].
  • Mother Brain (phase 1 counts as 1 killed enemy but alongside it 3 Rinkas die, phase 2 counts as 1 killed enemy but the Big Metroid actually counts as 1 killed enemy, phase 3 counts as 1 killed enemy).


List of all generally unavoidable, forced enemy kills, together with the enemy counts (total count is 38 for TAS, and for players it is 43 for NTSC and 42 for PAL, and this is also the achievable limit in each case):

  • 5 pirates in Old MB Room: +5
  • Bomb Torizo (only for players in NTSC): +1
  • 3 green pirates and Mini Kraid (only once): +4
  • 4 Kraid parts and 2 fingernails: +6
  • 2 Ninja Pirates: +2
  • Ridley and his parts: +13
  • Draygon : +1
  • 4 Metroids in the first Tourian Metroid room (only for players): +4
  • Mother Brain phase 1: +4
  • Mother Brain phase 2: +2
  • Mother Brain phase 3: +1

Pacifist-Max%(92%)

Relevant, noteworthy aspects about the completion:

  • Especially early on, one likely can get into situations in which one should go back to the ship in order to refill health and ammunition, or go to a Missile- or Health-refill station, in order to not get into a stuck or even permastuck situation.
  • In PAL, Bomb Torizo skip is required.
  • Both shells in Mini Kraid's room need to be opened on the first visit in order to not have to kill all of the 4 enemies in this room again on the way back from Kraid (and if wanted, one can aswell open both doors on the first Old MB room visit).
  • Botwoon skip is required (without killing any of the involved Zebbos) since otherwise one cannot avoid reducing Botwoon's HP to 0 at least once, and hence also the collection of Ice, and for players Wave alongside Ice.
  • In pre-Pillars room, one needs to be careful about laying a powerbomb in there (provided one does so) not too low, or the 2 Violas will get killed, and for pre-Gravitron room, one is required to get the Violas out of the way for a powerbomb, by letting them fall and crawl away using Super Missile(s). And for powerbomb uses in general, one needs to be careful to get weak enemies out of the way.
  • All 4 Metroid rooms (except the first for players without tool-assistance) need to be skipped by step-wise pushing Samus further and further through the grey shells in those rooms (and for the last Metroid room possibly using a Moonfall in between 2 frozen Rinkas), without killing any Rinkas.
  • The Zebetites need to be skipped.
  • For the Tourian Escape in order to not have to kill any of the gate enemies in the first room behind Mother Brain, a spark is required, and hence either Speedbooster or a Crystal Flash (for a Flash Suit) is needed at some point.


List of all items that cannot be obtained:

  • Missile in Wrecked Ship next to Attic
  • Pink Brinstar E-Tank
  • upper Red Brinstar powerbomb
  • Kraid E-Tank
  • Highjump
  • Missile near Highjump
  • E-Tank near Highjump
  • Plasma

All other items can be obtained for a playthrough, so the maximum is 92%.

Sidenotes for specifics on the collection of some items: The items past Crocomire can be collected since Crocomire going by definition doesn't count towards killed enemies. And Golden Torizo's Super Missile can be collected after Spacejump using R-Mode and a Crystal Flash (or refilling health from GT's eggs) and clipping back up to the left door with a forced standing pose when Reserves trigger in R-Mode. The E-Tank in the fireflea room in Lower Norfair can be obtained by bombjumping and rolling over the Fune. For X-Ray one can get the Beetom in Red Tower attached to Samus and get rid of it further down to not have to kill it with a powerbomb for the yellow shell in the room, and on the way back one can X-Ray-Climb in Red Tower to avoid killing the Beetom. For Waterway E-Tank, one can get rid of the speed blocks in multiple steps with echoes and release the enemies or freeze them to avoid killing them. Gravity can be obtained by getting stuck deep in the Wrecked Ship entrance door in the ocean room and then X-Ray-Climb up to skip the Attic room.

Pacifist-Low%

List of generally required items:

Ball, 1.Missile, Bombs, Varia, Ice,...

Low% route & item-combination for TAS: (...)