The Quest of Ki/Floors 91 - 100

Floor 91
Time: 90, Treasure: Wing

There is a wind blowing to the right, which you will soon discover when you try to hop on top of the block to the left of the entrance. Account for the wind and hop on over the columns to the left until you reach the opening above you. Now comes the hard part.

You must watch the timing of the fireballs coming from flame cannon on the right. The only way through the floor is to run through the hallway guarded by the flame cannon. Since Ki cannot squat, the only way to get through it is to intentionally bump Ki's head at just the right moment so that she lands hunched over while the fireball passes above her head. The timing for this is critical. To start, you should jump up to the platform right when the latest fireball hits the left column. This should see you bump Ki's head against the ceiling and drop down to the platform below right when the next fireball is due to fly over. When Ki stands back up, you need to wait for the briefest moment before jumping up to hit the ceiling again. If you jump immediately, Ki is likely to stand up before the fireball clears her head. Assuming you make it safely to the right side, drop down to the platform below for a rest before continuing on.

At this point, obtaining a Wing may seem like a great idea, but it's a little tricky to collect, sends Ki out of her way, and is not entirely necessary to clear the floor. If you insist on collecting it, you should jump up to the left and run down the hallway above the one you bumped Ki's head on. You must hop over several sections of jagged floor as you wind your way back and forth along the platforms until you reach the chest with the Wing. Then you must backtrack and return to the orange flame cannon in order to continue.

Whether you collected the Wing or not, prepare to jump up between the columns on the right above the orange flame cannon. As you rise, a blue flame cannon will come into view. Time your approach so that you rise between flames, and then fall down to the left in order to collect the key. Stay between fireballs as you run and hop up to the exit.

Floor 92
Time: 60, Treasure: Warp

Ishtar's preamble: The next floor is full of spikes. I hope that you don't get skewered.

Ishtar is not kidding. The tempting treasure chest that you see lying on the column to the left is actually a warp which zaps you all the way back to. Avoid it at all costs.

There are two paths through this floor, an upper path and a lower path. However, the upper path provides no safe places to land, so you're essentially forced to take the lower path. The lower path is composed entirely of single columns spaced throughout a long stretch of jagged floor. You must time your leaps from one column to the next, stopping in the middle to rise up and collect the key from between two eagles. Once you reach the far right side, you can simply rise up to the platform containing the exit and advance.

Silver Dragon's warp: You can't just waltz in here with me around.

Floor 93
Time: 60, Treasure: empty, Time Stop

There is a very doable shortcut that you can take to clear this floor. From the entrance, you must first hop over the treasure chest on the left. Approach it from the left side, and hold to run to the right, collecting the Time Stop spell from the chest as you run. Jump quickly up to the platform above, and then up once more, ignoring the chest on top of the jagged floor, as it contains nothing. You should be able to run below, or jump over, the Will o'Wisp who should still be frozen in time when you get here. Then simply collect the key and head to the exit.

If you decide not to use this shortcut, you've got a challenge ahead of you. Collecting the Time Stop spell will freeze the urchins on the bottom in place, making it only slightly less challenging to leap from one safe patch of floor to the next as you avoid the jagged floors. Then you must jump between two Ropers to the right. Then you have a choice to make.

You can attempt to take the high path by jumping up a set of stairs that contain anemones at two of the edges, or you can try to land between two blue flame cannons and jump up between the columns on the far right. Either choice presents its own challenge. It can be a bit more difficult to control the height of Ki's jumps as she attempts to squeeze over the anemones than it is to time the landing between the two blue fire cannons. For the cannons, you want to jump a bit after the two cannons fire so that you can land in front of the right cannon just after it fires again. Then jump immediately up between the two columns before the left cannon's fireball catches up to you.

Once you reach the top, the final threats come in the form of two urchins that crawl along the last two platforms before a stretch of jagged floor. Jump off the second urchin's platform to reach the exit door, and then head to the left to collect the key.

Floor 94
Time: 120, Treasure: Wing

When you start this floor, heading to the right is not an option. There's a wind that blows Ki to the right. You'll have to leap up to the platforms above you. These platforms contain slugs and there's not a lot of headroom, so you should approach the first platform when the slug is to the far right. Then hop over it as it moves back to the left, before making your move to the next platform. The final platform above contains a small Rock Man who will roll back and forth and occasionally leap into the air. Hop over it and approach the right edge.

You will see a chest on a small platform that is mostly, but not entirely composed of jagged floor. You are safe to land on either edge of the platform. Once you've landed, you should leap in the direction of the chest, and you should be able to collect the Wing with your feet. Alternatively, it's also possible to collect the chest on your way down, but this requires very crucial timing so that you are moving fast enough to the right to land on the safe portion of the platform.

Once you have the Wing, return to the entrance. Now you can cross over the long jagged floor to the right. When you reach the far right side, you must float up to a platform occupied by a fast moving Axe-Beak. Don't even bother landing on the platform, continue to hover over it, until you are able to collect the key, and land on the platform above with the exit door.

Floor 95
Time: 60, Treasure: Timer, Ring

Once again, this floor starts off with a very difficult beginning. You must time your leap to the first platform above you, such that you avoid the fireballs of the blue flame cannon. The best approach is to time your jump so that you rise right after one passes, and allow a second one to pass below you just before you land. Then immediately jump up to the top of the column on the right.

Once there, drop down to the small platform below on the right and watch the timing of the blue flame cannon below you. When you're ready, drop down to the bottom, and begin to run between fireballs to the right. As you run, you will encounter patches of jagged floor along the way. The first two patches are close enough together that you should try to leap over both of them while holding down. The next patch is a single patch, but the next two should be jumped over together as well. Then leap up to the platform above occupied by the large Rock Man before you reach the last patch of jagged floor.

Jump over the Rock Man and leap up to the top of the column to the left in order to collect the key. Then land on the platform below, between the two slugs. Jump up to the next platform on the left and run to the left to collect the Timer from the chest. Now you must collect the chest on the small platform with the jagged floor in order to obtain a Ring. You can do this by just barely leaping over the platform and collecting the chest with your feet. Watch out for the slugs below as you land, and then hop back up to the left, running through the Will o'Wisp along the top on your way to the exit.

Floor 96
Time: 60, Treasure: none

Ishtar's preamble: The World! I wanted to see it too!

Don't hesitate when you begin this floor, you will have more of an advantage if you move quickly. Below your starting point is a blue flame cannon. On the opposite side of the floor, beyond where you can see, is a Salamander shooting fireballs back in the opposite direction. Start running behind the first fireball that the blue flame cannon shoots out. The first Salamander flame should cross paths with the fireball that you're chasing when they pass below the exit door, so be prepared to jump at that point. You want your jump to not only clear that Salamander fireball, but the next one as well. Then when you land, jump up to the platform above to collect the key.

Now time your descent back down to the floor below. You must land between the flame cannon's fireballs so that you can jump back up and continue moving to the right, preferably right after the Salamander has fired another fireball back to the left. Time your passage over the flame cannon's fireballs carefully as you make your way back to the left, and ultimately up to the exit door above. Jump over the jagged floor before you reach the door.

Floor 97
Time: 60, Treasure: Wing

From the entrance, jump up to the platform directly above the door. Watch the movement of the bee above, and collect the key when the bee is moving to the right. Then drop back down and time your passage through the first Inky's path. Now you are required to do what is possibly the most difficult jump in the entire game. Below you lies a chest. This chest contains the Wing which you will need in order to reach the exit. However, the platform below is so indented to the right below your currently platform, that it requires you to go some distance out to the left before turning around and flying back to the right while holding. To make matters more difficult, two Inky ghosts are flying back and forth, so you must time your approach around them. The only way to properly access the chest is to have Ki's head nearly brush up against the lower corner of the platform that you are leaping from, while moving nearly full speed to the right. Anything less than that, and Ki will stun herself against the ledge and fall down to the jagged floor below. Once you collect the Wing, you should have no problem rising back up to the platform above with the exit.

Floor 98


Time: 80, Treasure: none

This floor is somewhat infamous to fans of this game, so much so that it has been recreated by fans in other games like Super Smash Bros. Brawl. As you can see when you arrive, the key is placed at the end of the middle hallway. To get there, you must jump over several patches of jagged floor. On top of that, there is an orange flame cannon on the left side that shoots fireballs down the hallway. Getting to the key is only half the battle. Once you collect it, you then need to turn around and get out of the hallway.

Collecting the key is certainly easier. You wait for the flame cannon to fire, and then jump up to the ledge. If you hold down, it's possible to leap over two of the jagged patches, as long as you press to slow yourself down so that you don't run into the third patch. Then lightly jump over the third patch to collect the key. Now the hard part begins. You must time it so that you bump Ki's head and she falls to the ground below so that the fireball passes over her while she is crouched down. If you manage to do this so that she stands up just after the fireball passes, hold, run to the left, and jump at the last possible moment over the patch. If you time it right, you should clear the patch and bump Ki's head on the ceiling so that she falls and another fireball clears her head. You must do this three times in order to get out from the middle hallway.

If you manage to do that, don't pat yourself on the back just yet. There's still one more challenge to go. When it's safe, jump up to the top hallway. You may think you have little to worry about, since all you can see are a few more patches of jagged floor. However, there is a Mad Element just waiting to rise out of the platform and attack you if you're not aware of its location. It's sitting right in the middle. It's recommended that you get some speed, and jump a good height off the ground as you clear the two patches, and make your way to the exit.

Floor 99
Time: 80, Treasure: Wing, Timer, Lucky Flag

There's the "right" way to complete this floor, and the "wrong" way. The "right" way involves trekking to the far right side of the stage in order to collect the key, and then doubling back to cross along the bottom and up the left side to reach the exit. In this manner, you will never have to cross paths with any of the Will o'Wisps, as there is no Ring to be found on this floor. However, you are given so little time to do this, and the one item that can help you, the Timer, is positioned in such an out-of-the-way location, that it may scarcely help you even if you do collect it.

The "wrong" way involves throwing caution to the wind, and testing your luck by attempting to run beneath the Will o'Wisps that guard the key and the exit. It is possible to do, but it takes incredibly good timing to survive the attempt. Naturally, you will bypass the huge undertaking of the "right" path, but you may actually have a better chance of success.

One tip for timing your approach below the wisps: Stand close to the edge of each platform that you must run along. While you stand there, audibly mark the time when the wisps bounce off the bottom of the floor and rise back to the top. Once you have the rhythm, you should hold down and start running toward them on that very beat.

Floor 100
Time: 100, Treasure: empty, Warp, Ring, Gift, Orb, Lucky Flag, Silence, Barrier, Sleep, Cross, Candle

Ishtar's preamble: It's time to leave the Special Stages. I hope you had fun. This is your goddess of love, Ishtar. Farewell!

This stage is designed to be reminiscent of the Top of the Tower room, the room in which you begin in The Return of Ishtar. You will enter in the lower right-hand corner. Before you approach the left side of this room, note the three treasure chests near the ceiling on the right side. The right chest is empty. The middle chest contains a warp that sends you all the way back to. While warps from the special stages are generally discouraged, it should be noted that it is only through this warp that a player can achieve the highest possible score by playing all the way through the special stages, warping back to floor 19, and completing the regular tower.

The chest you want, and indeed need, is the third chest from the right, which contains a Ring. Many of the chests on the left are guarded by Will o'Wisps, so this item will allow you to collect the remainder. Hop over to the left side of the floor. You will find a series of hallways. Two are guarded by an Ogre and a Vampire, so you'll need to find your way around them. At the end of each hallway is a treasure chest, with the exception of the Ogre's hallway which contains the exit.

From top to bottom, the chests are as follows: Gift, Orb (behind the Vampire), Lucky Flag, Silence, Barrier, Sleep, Cross, and Candle. A few of these chests won't really help you at all (like the Silence, Sleep, and Candle) and will just eat up time on the clock collecting them. Your goal should be to obtain the Cross from the second hallway from the bottom, then rise up to the second hallway from the top to collect the Orb, and then finally down the center hallway to find the exit and the key just beyond it. Once you exit this door, you will have completed the special stages, and be treated to a second ending. Congratulations.

Black Dragon's warp: Wow, I can't believe you made it this far. I'll have to send you back.