The SpongeBob Movie Encore - NO UPGRADES Manly Combat Arena Challenge (Now That We're Men)

This is the "Manly Combat Arena Challenge" from Koopa Eliminator's The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie Encore mod. It is a much, much harder version of the Combat Arena Challenge found in Now That We're Men from the original SpongeBob Movie game. Recently, I've been playing through Movie Encore with a (foolish) goal in mind: See how far I can get through the game until I have to upgrade something. So far, I have yet to upgrade anything (this version has all moves unlocked at the start), but once I reached this particular challenge and saw that terrifying message...I knew what I had to do. And at 1:06AM after 154 attempts across a total of 8 hours of gameplay, this was the run.
In this challenge, comboing is your BEST FRIEND. It is hands down the best way to get rid of a group of enemies quickly. The Spinners take a whopping 7 hits to defeat so they are particularly helpful in dealing with large groups, even if it is a bit tricky to line them up. Speaking of, did you know that if a spinning Spinner is right next to an enemy it makes that enemy impenetrable? Yep. It definitely led to a few problems.
Surprisingly, out of all the different enemy types, the enemies that gave me the most trouble weren't the Foggers, or the Spinners, or the Poppers, or the single MERV in Wave 3. It was the SLAMMERS. The Slammers are slightly faster than you and will attack based on predictive player movement. Combined with the extremely wacky hitboxes for the attacks and that they usually take ~3 hits to defeat like everyone else, they undoubtedly made this challenge 10x harder. I'm not kidding. Koopa, you're a cool guy. Your mods are really neat and I'm having a lot of fun with Encore so far, but I don't know if I can forgive you for the amount of Slammers in Wave 3. Seriously. They are EVERYWHERE.
If for some reason you decide to take on this monumental task, here's some things to keep in mind:
- COMBO like no tomorrow. It gets rid of enemies very quickly. Spinners are great to clear a lot out, but if things get really hectic, you might be better off leaving him be and moving on to someone else for a bit so you don't get swamped.
- Comboing is very important, but if things are getting hairy, don't try to line yourself up with a Spinner to clear it up. You may be better off just pushing it to the edge (works best in Wave 1, troublesome in later waves). MAKE SURE it is off too. You'd be surprised how far off the platform he can still climb back.
- If a Spinner spawns in when there is a large crowd, keep him in mind. Surrounding enemies will not be phased if they are next to him, so it is really problematic in groups. Work your way to him and deal with him when you think it is safe to do so.
- Stay near Krabby Patties as much as you can. When you pick one up, it will respawn in around 10 seconds. When you get hit by an enemy and everyone starts taunting, try to snag a Patty before attacking again. When you're down to 1-3 enemies on a wave, I recommend healing BEFORE moving on, so that the Patties will be available by the start of the next wave.
- Focus on clearing out Slammers, especially on the last wave. It gets REALLY nasty when there are a ton of them.
- The SpongeBowl can defeat Foggers and Slammers in 1 hit, but keep in mind how long it takes to wind up. It leaves you very vulnerable.
- It is best to leave the Poppers alone until they are the last ones because of the previous point, but keep in mind where their bullets are headed, especially in the last wave since there are 3 of them. You can combo enemies into them as well, if you're already pushing one around.
- Finally, most importantly, don't even attempt to attack MERV until he is the last one left.
I hope you enjoyed the video! Subscribe for more BFBB modding!

[@AmIntrigued]

I love it when there's like 20 of the foggers and hammer dudes taunting
*_UHUHUHUHUH_*
*_YAYAYAYAYAYA_*

[@dahlgaard2624]

Nice. Now do it damageless.

[@smackjack78]

This challenge is not for the faint hearted, it will kick your ass…a lot. I remember I gave up after a certain point, and when I tried again a few hours later, I did it first try

[@harrisderohn1587]

My god The spinners have so much health!

[@TheDMan2003]

5:08 Wait, how did the SpongeBowl not hit the Slammer here? The only thing I can think of is that the projectiles from the Popper behind the Merv somehow intercepted the SpongeBowl.
Also, who else was expecting the statues in the background to start giving SpongeBob hell at some point?

[@daedaebest]

Wow, amazing

[@michaeldobis651]

Interesting lol

[@mariofan0453]

It's been done :)

[@Willcon970]

dam