Low Score Challenge: Difference between revisions

The normal goal of Chip's Challenge is to score as high a score as possible, however the '''Low Score Challenge''' considers the question of the lowest possible score one can attain while still completing every level.  Although no scoreboards track low score attempts, it is still a question of theoretical interest to some in the community.

=== Level Bonus ===

Most of a player's score comes from level bonuses, whether attempting high score or low score.  Each level bonus starts as 500 times the level number.  On each restart, it is reduced by 20% (rounding down) until it is below 500.  The minimum possible total level bonus for 149 levels is 66,344.  Note that [[Tile World]] does not deduct level bonuses on failed attempts, so this challenge must be completed in [[MSCC]].

=== Time Bonus ===

The remaining points come from the time bonus.  This is 10 times the number of seconds left at level completion.  Some levels are untimed, in which case the time bonus is always 0.  Otherwise, the minimum time one can finish a level with is 1 second, which for most levels can be achieved by simply solving the level normally but waiting by the exit for the timer to tick down.

Chip's Challenge 1 has 120 timed levels, and a minimum possible score of 67,544.  The first known reference to this calculation was by [[Alice Voith]] in the late 90s<ref>[[Alice Voith]]. [https://www.mywingsbooks.com/chips/cc-chips/misc-lows.shtml "Lowest Possible Score"] (Note: Alice appears to have made a typo in the final result.  The last column adds to 67544 but the total is shown as 67554)</ref>, however it wouldn't be shown to be actually possible until 2020.  As of this writing, no player has achieved said score.

Collecting the chips in [[Beware of Bug]] normally will result in the glider coming back along with one of the paramecium, which together will leave the exit as the only place to hide.  Completing the level with 1 second left involves collecting the first chip just as the first paramecium passes it, such that the paramecium spins in a circle instead of continuing toward the water to drown.  This paramecium can eventually keep the glider trapped in the first row.

Due to the randomness of the blobs, it was not known for certain whether a score of 1 second remaining could be achieved on [[Slo Mo]] until December of 2018, when [[Kacper Leszczyński]], using [[SuperCC]], showed that it could be done.  This score has not been achieved in actual play.

A score of 1 on [[Jumping Swarm]] was long considered to be impossible, due to the ever increasing number of walkers in the level as time goes on.  However, in June of 2020, [[David Stolp]], using [[SuperCC]], showed that with enough luck the walkers would get backed up on the force floors far enough that one would bounce back toward the clone machine and break the cloning mechanism, causing only a finite number of walkers to clone.  This score has not been achieved in actual play, and due to the extreme luck required is unlikely to ever be achieved.

==References==