Pseudo Wave

Pseudo Wave is a trick that allows Samus to shoot any beam, missile, or grapple through a wall or ceiling.

Here are all of the currently known Pseudo Wave methods:

• Slide-turnaround wall Pseudo
• Crouch-turnaround wall Pseudo
• Morph wall Pseudo
• Flash-Slide Pseudo
• Underwater 1 tile tunnel Pseudo
• 1 tile wide tunnel Pseudo
• Reverse Magnet Pseudo
• Slide jump ceiling Pseudo
• Seam Pseudo

Wall Pseudo Wave methods

These are methods of Pseudo Waving that involve clipping a beam, missile or grapple through a wall.

Slide-turnaround

This method of Pseudo Wave is done by sliding towards a wall, turning away from that wall briefly, and then turning back towards the wall and shooting a beam, missile or grapple. The width of angles that can be held to shoot a beam through the wall is quite large. If the control stick is thought of as a clock, the width of angles allowed are: between 1:30 and 4:30, or between 7:30 and 10:30. The width of angles that can be held to shoot a missile through a wall is much smaller: between 1:30 and 2:30, or between 9:30 and 10:30.

Here are some images to help visualize the angles you must hold on the control stick (left is for beams and right is for missiles):

Grapple Beam is a somewhat different matter as the only relevant angles you will ever need for a pseudo wave with grapple are either 3:00 or 9:00. This is because of how grapple blocks/boxes work. The grapple block/box you are shooting at must have it's target 1 tile above ground level in relation to what Samus is currently standing on. Otherwise, she will not latch onto it. It is possible to grapple through a wall with the same angles you can with standard beam shots but there are no practical uses for this.

It's also worth noting that this can be done on walls with a 1 tile high tunnel under them but, the leniency allowed for the inputs is tighter.

Here is a video of a slide turnaround pseudo with a missile in action:

Crouch-turnaround

This Pseudo can be done with either uncharged or charged beam shots. This Pseudo requires a wall with no openings in the bottom 2 tiles of it.

The inputs for this Pseudo are as follows:

• Shoot and hold a Charge Beam
• Run up against a wall until you are flush with it and go neutral on the stick
• Crouch, then turn around

Ensure you have not fired the Charge Beam at all during this process; then:

• Pause with + or -. Pausing with + can give you a better idea of the angle you are holding in the next step though
• While paused, hold aim, hold the angle required for the pseudo, and release the shot button. This can be done in any order while on the pause screen
• Un-pause with +/- or B(jump) while still holding aim and the angle required for the pseudo

Acceptable angles for this pseudo when facing to the left are: between 1:00 and 2:00 or between 4:00 and 5:00. When facing to the right: between 7:00 and 8:00 or between 10:00 and 11:00

Here is an image to help visualize the angles you must hold on the control stick:

This Pseudo is possible without any pausing but, that means that the inputs normally pressed/released during the pause must be done on the exact same frame.

The only useful application for this type of Pseudo is in Burenia near the lowest tram transport. It is used to hit the blob on the right side of the room releasing water into the alcove.

Here is a video example of the Pseudo in action:

Morph Wall

This Pseudo can only be done with Charged Beams. There are two setups that can be used for this pseudo. The first, is doing a dash melee into a free aim stance against the wall. The second, is to hug the wall, press aim, crouch, then press aim again.

To activate the pseudo all you must do is press morph with a viable angle while aiming AWAY from the wall you are against.

Acceptable angles for the dash melee variant are: between 12:00 and 5:45 or between 6:15 and 12:00. Acceptable angles for the crouch-aim variant are: between 4:00 and 5:30 or between 6:30 and 8:00.

Here are some images to help visualize the angles you must hold on the control stick(left are the angles for the dash melee variant and the right are the angles for the crouch-aim variant):

The benefits of the crouch-aim variant are: it is slightly quicker to set up and can be used underwater without gravity suit

The benefits of the dash melee variant are: widest range of possible angles

There are a few useful applications of this form of Pseudo Wave, but the most used, by far, is the Early Space Pseudo

Here is a video example of this Pseudo Wave:

(TBA)

Flash Slide

This pseudo can be done with uncharged beams, charged beams, missiles, and grapple beam. This Pseudo is performed by doing a flash slide turnaround then shooting. Unlike the other Pseudo Wave methods listed on this page this method spawns the shot inside of the wall shooting outwards

The inputs for the flash slide turnaround are as follows:

• Flash shift forward while 2-4 tiles away from a wall
• Directly after the flash shift goes off, press slide
• Once slide has been pressed hold the direction away from the wall
• Shoot

The only viable angles for this pseudo are: between 12:00 and 1:30 or between 10:30 and 12:00

Here is an image to help visualize the angles you must hold on the control stick:

Video example of the pseudo:

(TBA)

Underwater 1 tile tunnel

This pseudo can be done with uncharged or charge beams. This type of pseudo is ONLY possible with a 1 tile tall space directly under the wall you need pseudo. You must also be underwater without Gravity Suit. Here is an image for reference:

This type of pseudo can either be done using a running turnaround or an "angle-snap".

The running turnaround requires you to: hold against the wall, then turn around, and turn around back towards the wall then, shoot. The second turnaround must be a running turnaround rather than a stationary turnaround.

The "angle-snap" requires you to: press aim, quickly hold the angle you need, then shoot. This only works because the shot snaps samus' canon position to that of where the angle is held before her overall position is shifted away from the wall. The Aim and angle can be buffered by using a melee prior to the whole process which makes it much easier to pull off.

The angles that have been mapped out to work for this type of Pseudo Wave are: between 1:00 and 2:00 or between 10:00 and 11:00.

Here is an image to help visualize the angles you must hold on the control stick:

The only useful application of this Pseudo Wave in current routing is used in Minimum Items Unrestricted in order to skip a use of Morph bombs after obtaining flash shift.

Here is a video example of both methods:

1 tile wide tunnel

This form of pseudo can be done with uncharged beams, charged beams, missiles and grapple beam if done against a completely closed wall. If a 1 tile high tunnel is present in the wall then only uncharged and charged beams can go through the wall.

This Pseudo is done by entering a 1 tile wide tunnel, doing a dash melee into free aim stance, then shooting at the angle required for what you need. This pseudo is unique because you only have to set it up once and you can keep doing pseudo wave shots.

The angles on this pseudo are incredibly lenient, the only angles that are not possible are those that aim inside of the tunnel you are currently in... unless you are using missiles or grapple. In the case of using either missiles or grapple while facing AWAY from a wall that has a 1 tile high tunnel inside of it will not work with any angle whatsoever.

Video Example:

Reverse Magnet

This Pseudo Wave requires doing some form of Reverse Magnet on a wall magnet. In Samus' idle state on the magnet she can fire beams at any angle so long as she has Wide Beam. With missiles she can fire in the range of either: 12:00 to 1:30 or 4:00 to 6:00 if on a left facing magnet. On a right facing magnet the angles would be 6:00 to 8:00 or 10:30 to 12:00.

You can only a pseudo a grapple beam shot between 12:00 and 00:30 or 4:30 and 6:00 if on a left facing magnet. On a right facing magnet the angles would be 6:00 to 7:30 or 11:30 to 12:00.

This form of pseudo has no useful applications in any speedrun category yet.

Video:

(TBA)

Ceiling Pseudo Wave Methods

These are methods of Pseudo Waving that involve clipping a beam or missile through a ceiling.

Slide Jump

This Pseudo Wave can only be done with uncharged or charged beam shots. This pseudo requires a ceiling at least 3.5 tiles above the ground and at maximum can only be 4 tiles off the ground.

To perform this pseudo, all you must do is slide, jump, then shoot with the desired angle held.

Acceptable angles for this pseudo range between: 1:30 and 6:00 if facing right or 6:00 and 10:30 if facing left.

Here is an image to help visualize the angles you must hold:

The two most commonly used ceiling pseudos are Early Cloak Pseudo and Hot Room Pseudo

Video Examples:

(TBA)

Seam

This pseudo can ONLY be done with missiles. This pseudo works by taking advantage of a gap between soft collision and hard collision.

Soft collision can be defined as anything destructible. Hard collision is everything else

This pseudo is done by jumping, aiming backwards and shooting a missile between soft collision and hard collision.

The angles required for this pseudo depend on where you are doing it as not all gaps are the same size. However, most gaps are extremely thin and usually require calculated setups in order to reliably shoot between them.

The most common use of this is in Cataris in Unrestricted categories.

Video Example: