Super Metroid: Pit of 100 Trials
Release date: Jun 17, 2020
Download: Version 1.1 [UH] (663 downloads)
Download: Version 1.1 (Hard) [UH] (297 downloads)
Genre: Challenge [?]
Game: SM
Difficulty: Veteran [?]
Average runtime: 1:42
Average collection: 76%
Read Me: [None]
Forum Thread: Release Thread
Rating: Star Star Star Star Star
Awards:
  • Top Hacks 2020: Best Challenge
Description
Inspired by the dungeons of the same name from the Paper Mario series, I present Super Metroid: Pit of 100 Trials! Challenge yourself to a test of endurance and skill. Venture through 100 rooms of Zebes, defeating enemies and slowly gaining powerups along the way to aid in your quest. Careful though! You can only move through each room once, and they get more challenging as you go along. Can you beat Ridley at the end of room 100 and claim victory?

For those who want a little extra challenge, (or a lot) try your hand at Hard Mode! Hard mode is the ultimate Super Metroid challenge experience, including:
Buffed enemies
Harder level design
More enemies
Harder enemy layouts
Altered item progression
And some surprises!

ASM Credits (Both versions):
Scyzer
Amoeba
Nodever2
Benox50
Moehr
Caauyjdp
Dewhi100
Personitis
Adamf
Kejardon
Jathys
Mon732
PJBoy
SMILEuser96
Jordan5
Screenshots
Screenshot Screenshot Screenshot Screenshot
Ratings and Reviews
By Syphon on Jun 18, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
82% in 1:17
This is pretty much Bluestar but longer.

I like the concept but about halfway through the hack the linearity became a bit tedious and I didn't find the hack challenging either.

Regardless I still recommend checking this out if you don't mind linearity.
By RT-55J on Jun 21, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
74% in 1:39
Cool challenge hack. It has some teeth, though it's a bit easier than what the concept might imply. I beat it deathless on my first attempt, though I was generally quite cautious and meticulous in my approach.

Worth checking out imo.
By Metaquarius on Jun 27, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
No completion stats.
It's like Super Metroid with backtracking removed and nothing to make up for it. Kinda boring overall in my opinion but I appreciate the effort trying new concepts. Vanilla tiling is well done and everything works as intended.
By dcr on Jul 03, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
70% in 1:21
Really neat concept for a hack that I haven't really seen before. It reminds me of Super Metroid Arcade in many ways. Wasn't too difficult overall, though I did have some close calls a few times. I came across a few small bugs like missing tile collision and a broken scroll update, but overall it was smooth. This is definitely worth checking out!
By TheGreatPikminZX789 on Aug 17, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
54% in 1:25
Haven't gotten that many issues playing it, as I've only died once, but an otherwise neat concept. Would recommend if you want to waste some time playing a linear hack.
By MetroidMst on Sep 29, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
86% in 1:26
[Watch Video]  
This is a very linear hack, so exploration is really limited to finding hidden items, and that is a bit of a mixed bag. Not to say it's bad, but for the most part it's straightforward. The gimmick is of course, passing 100 trials, and the custom code to make the progression happen is a nice touch. The biggest issue I have is the lack of exploration. Doesn't feel like a normal Metroid game. It isn't designed to be of course, and for what it is designed for, it's a solid little hack.

Would recommend for a relatively quick playthrough that won't get you lost anywhere.
By benox50 on Oct 18, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
No completion stats.
Fun concept done well, the combat in SM aint is strong point. This hack got some nice encounters with various samus abilities put to good use, but I think it could have went another extra mile.
By Sapphron on Oct 18, 2020 (Star Star Star Star Star )
84% in 2:06
Very well done! Normal Mode was quite easy in most parts, but some parts it was definitely deserving of Veteran difficulty. Lots of shortcuts if you were to die and it's just fun to trek through all the rooms again, super OP.
Hard Mode was...very difficult, only died once due to a purposefully-caused scroll glitch. Difficulty was well-balanced, enemies have a lot of special vulnerabilities if you're willing to look for them. Almost none of the rooms felt super unfair, and the boss fights were rather easy to be honest.
Highly recommend if you're looking for a new, very different experience although rather short and 100% linear.
By Kremit44 on May 10, 2021 (Star Star Star Star Star )
88% in 2:11
It's alright. It's a fun playthrough and well executed but the gimmick isn't as good as a traditional Metroid experience. It's very well executed for what it is. Kudos to the author on a well designed and realized experience.
By UNHchabo on Dec 27, 2021 (Star Star Star Star Star )
62% in 1:46
[Watch Video]  
This hack has some interesting areas, but others are kind of annoying. I thought the tripper room was pretty clever.
By Exister on Dec 20, 2022 (Star Star Star Star Star )
No completion stats.
This is an incredibly fun hack. As benox mentioned, combat is not SM's strong suit, but every room is created in a precise manner to create a fair but interesting playing field in each room. Every enemy, every gimmick, and every idea is explored to the fullest in interesting ways that continued to impress me as I played. I consider this a masterclass in SM level design. There was one room in Ridley's lair that was unfair, and it's unfortunately right before ridley. I missed the pirate in the lower right because the swooping enemies made me want to jump up to the higher levels. When I got around to trying to kill that ninja pirate, it was only when I got back to the room after dying that I realized I had been fighting it from the wrong side, which was why it wouldn't jump. This was perhaps the only moment in the entire hack that I felt miffed by the room design, but a 99% incredible hack is still something to be treasured. Highly recommend!
By neen on Mar 23, 2023 (Star Star Star Star Star )
80% in 1:53
health and ammo management are the main challenge, since there are no farms or refill stations, and i assume no respawn points (i didn't die). because of that, i played very carefully. some cool optional puzzles (like that for obtaining springball).

overall very nice.
By OmegaDragnet9 on Jul 25, 2023 (Star Star Star Star Star )
80% in 2:02
Savestates used.

This hack answers the Bluestar question: is there life after Kraid? Yes indeed.

So far the hacks I have played of MetroidNerd#9001, I would rank Hotlands my favorite, Recovery, and then this one. It fleshes out some of the ideas presented in Bluestar (now with more colors) and takes things in a very interesting direction.

The gameplay is a bit of a mixed bag for me. Much like the CRE series stayed committed to a theme, I can praise this hack for staying true to its theme. It's a gauntlet. Arcade style gameplay.

Having played very little of the Paper Mario series, I really have just a surface-level grasp of the hack's premise. Regardless it was overall a really good experience.

--------Spoiler Warnings------------

Having played Bluestar, the earlier rooms were a bit of a slog as I felt like I had been there before. I was tired of just having the power beam and charge. However once I started picking up beam upgrades, the game really started to click for me.

I think the real high point of the hack was the Maridia area, because Samus was stronger compared to the challenges than in any of the other areas.

Draygon was really the first difficulty spike. And admittedly this is when I started loading from save states, as I didn't trust the only save I remembered from way back in the first area.

(Though in hindsight this was unnecessary as the way item acquisition was handled, the one reload point had a very balanced approach to starting you over while remembering your progress. Very ingenious ASM work. I regret it was near the end when I tested this out.)

The final area really was a great way of bringing you back to earth with the increased difficulty and cleverly designed fights. Prepare to be humbled.

While the physics stayed pretty much vanilla, I love the custom things like the counter on the HUD when the room is cleared. As mentioned, the save system was really great, though I might have preferred a loading point for each individual area.

I finished with 80%. I actually have more incentive to replay this game soon than a lot of hacks when I recently beat them.

------------Spoiler End------------

As with all MetroidNerd#9001's hacks, the room layout and GFX look exceptional.
By ironrusty on Mar 01, 2024 (Star Star Star Star Star )
No completion stats.
Good concept and some nice tweaks to keep this 'linear' hack from forcing the player to simply retread familiar ground.

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