I just beat Maruko-sama for one game and achieved all achievements, so I would like to share some tested and efficient speedrunning routines. Let me report the data first: I used this method to synthesize a 1024-level big meatball from scratch, and it only took 17 minutes. I didn't watch any ads in the middle, just pure operation. By the way, this game actually requires a lot of strategy, and it's just a waste of money if you mess around without thinking.
The core mechanism is simple: two balls of the same level bump together to upgrade to a higher level ball. But the key is that the ball will bounce on the screen (bengbengbeng) after it is generated, so position management is much more difficult than a grid game like 2048. I tested it repeatedly for 30 rounds and concluded three iron rules.
Rule 1: Don't rush to synthesize at the beginning. At the beginning of the game, level 1 balls will appear continuously and fill the screen within three or four seconds. The stupidest thing to do is to drag two level 1 balls together to make them level 2, and then immediately join the other level 1 balls. The correct operation is: first spread all the level 1 balls, and then combine them into two groups at the same time when there are at least 4 level 1 balls on the screen. This way, two level 2 balls can be produced at one go, and then the two level 2 balls can be immediately combined into level 3. This step can save one waiting time and speed up the process by about 20% in actual tests.
The second one is prioritization. The synthesis order always follows the "low to high" principle, but there is one exception: if there are three balls of different levels on the screen, such as one level 2 and two level 3, I will give priority to synthesizing two level 3 balls to become level 4, rather than combining level 2 balls to upgrade to level 3. Why? Because the score increase brought by each synthesis of high-level balls is exponential. Specific values: add 10 points from level 1 to level 2, add 50 points from level 2 to level 3, add 250 points from level 3 to level 4, and then the multiplier is roughly 5 times. So one more high-level ball is equivalent to five more low-level balls. Memorize this magnification and you will know which combination to focus on.
Article 3: Use bounce prediction. After the ball is synthesized, it will not merge in place, but will bounce in the direction of the synthesis point and bounce away. Many people overturned at this step - the two level 5 balls combined into a level 6 bounce and hit the level 3 formation next to them. My solution: Before merging, use another finger to hold down a low-level ball near the target area as a "blocker". After 20 tests, with a level 1 ball blocked in the bounce path, the higher level ball would hit it first and then slow down so it wouldn't disturb other formations. Although the operation is a bit awkward, the success rate is over 90% after mastering it.
One last detail to add: the developer Qingdao Feiming Interactive Entertainment has made the physical collision of this game very delicate. If a small ball hits a big ball, it will be bounced away, and conversely, if a big ball hits a small car, the ball will be crushed. Therefore, when speedrunning, try to keep the big ball in the center of the screen and the small ball on the edge, so that the chain reaction caused by the combination of the big ball is minimal. I am used to occupying the central area as a "synthetic workshop", storing small balls around it, and waiting until two balls of the same level in the workshop are ready before starting. This layout can reduce the error rate to almost zero.
If you want to challenge faster, you can try counting the remaining steps while swiping. There is no limit on the number of steps in the game, but the balls will appear faster and faster. After the 10th wave, there will be two more level 1 balls per second. At this time, if your hand speed cannot keep up, you will be overwhelmed. My countermeasure: put two balls above level 3 in the upper half of the screen, specifically used to "eat" the newly spawned balls, which is equivalent to automatic filtering. The energy saved is used to deal with the central high-level synthesis. It's proven effective in personal testing, you can try it.
I wish you all good luck in speedrunning, and remember to take a screenshot when the synthesis reaches level 1024. The special effect of the meatball will turn golden, which is very handsome. 😬