This document contains all useful game knowledge for speedrunning. This includes things like shop prices, hidden game mechanics, glitches and exploits with video examples attached.
Spin Charge: 250 Bits
Dual Air Kick: 200 Bits
Dual Air Slash: 200 Bits
Extra Finisher: 300 Bits
Skyward Slash: 200 Bits
Double Down Spin: 200 Bits
Abrupt Finisher: 100 Bits
Duplex Slash: 500 Bits
Speed Buff: 500 Bits
Hyper Surge: 1000 Bits
Energy Dash: 100 Bits
Overcharge: 1000 Bits
Snap Portal: 500 Bits
Radar Scout: 3500 Bits
Multishot Blast: 100 Bits
Heal: 500 Bits
Cloud Shot: 500 Bits
Temp Shield: 1000 Bits
Charged Shot: 150 Bits
Rail Boost: 500 Bits
Regen Breaking (sic): 200 Bits
Jester Swipe: 500 Bits
Reaper Jester: 2000 Bits
Float: 1 Bit
Fark: 1500 Bits
Sfarx: 5000 Bits
While there are 46 stages in the game (including challenges), only 34 Freedom Medals are required to open the final boss gate. This means you can “skip” six levels in an any% speedrun.
There are 5 difficulties in Spark the Electric Jester 3:
The two difficulties of note are Challenge Jester and Easy Jester. Both difficulties give a boost in damage and score with Easy Jester being the greater of the two. Energy Bubbles and capsules will give different amounts of energy on different difficulties. On Easy Jester, energy bubbles will give 72 energy and energy capsules will give 12 energy, every other difficulty will give 60 energy and 10 energy respectively.
Challenge Jester is useful during the two scripted encounters with The Guardian. It is faster to die in both encounters than it is to actually fight him so runners typically switch the difficulty in the world map from Easy Jester to Challenge Jester due to it giving you less health.
Float and Face Mark
Whenever Float is equipped to the d-pad, enemies will sometimes be marked with a face behind them. By hitting them 20 times, this face will detonate dealing extra damage.
Most speedrunners use LiveSplit to time runs. LiveSplit has an autosplitter that pauses the timer during load times, the final time on this timer is the IGT (In-Game Time). In Livesplit, right click -> ‘Compare Against’ -> ‘In Game Time’. This will ensure proper timing. The IGT timer begins when you first gain control of Spark’s car in Alpine Carrera and the run is finished after the fade to black in the Magna Claritas Centralis fight. Essentially, the timer adds all stage times automatically.
Spark: One air dash, charged shot is a small explosion. Default character.
Float: Different attack set, floats while holding jump, enables Face Mark.
Reaper Jester: Different attack set
Fark: Different attack set, 2 invincible air dashes. Static mode, giving increased attack, 1 HP heal, and speed boost. Must have full energy.
Sfarx: Faster base speed and higher jumps, moveset is a fusion of Spark and Fark (duh), charge shot is a beam-shot.
For more information on rules and categories, check the Speedrun.com page for Spark the Electric Jester 3.
From a new file, complete the game (Defeat Claritas). Subcategories for version.
From the New Game Plus menu in-game, complete the game (Defeat Claritas). Subcategories for version.
From either a new file (NG) or the New Game Plus menu in-game (NG+) complete all levels in the game. Essentially Any% without skipping any levels. Excludes Spark 2 stages.
From a new file or the New Game Plus menu in-game get 100% file completion. Essentially 100%. Subcategories for version.
From a completed file, complete all Spark 2 Stages in order (Apocalypse Thruster clear), all upgrades allowed. NG+ 1.1 is the only version where this category is possible to play.
Largely historical, beat the demo (Lost Riviera clear)
By performing a jester dash and dashing before you hit the targeted object, you will gain a large amount of speed in the direction you approach from. This is best performed on Bit Bubbles and Energy Bubbles, but works on enemies as well.
Similar to the magnet dash, but instead of normally dashing, press the d-pad input for the energy boost. This will send you at the angle you approach the target with a massive burst of speed. Also called an Energy Magnet Dash.
While falling as Sfarx, using the charged shot cancels all midair movement allowing one to fall without dying of fall damage. This was patched out in the 1.1 update.
Similar to Sfarx falling, but instead of using Sfarx’s charged shot, it uses the Hyper Surge. Use the Hyper Surge and parry before the blast is sent out so no energy is used. This requires the user to have a full bar of energy to use. This was patched out in the 1.2 update.
By taking the aircraft into the first tunnel on the right and pushing into the tunnel border on the floor, one can clip out of bounds.
By dashing at the same time as you enter a dash portal (the blue circles that can be jester-dashed into), you gain a massive amount of speed. Not very practical for the speedrun, and goes unused. Maybe one day?
When wall jumping, move the control stick away from the wall and then back towards the wall. This will allow you to infinitely wall jump. This trick is also not very practical for speedruns
In any stage that has a full pipe or a sloped ceiling, run up the side of the pipe until Spark is at 45°, then stop and jump once gravity swaps. This will cause Spark to go out of bounds. This is most applicable in Mayday Midday.
This document shall be edited and changed as new information is discovered.