A funny thing happened one day - and it took me someplace new!

(8:53) Level 5 ('Assault on the Control Room') on Heroic. A new find? My third movie on the entry chamber is all about getting through the ceiling into a rather interesting room! Haven't seen anyone get there in single-player before, although I do know of some co-op exploits which can get you above the dome in other ways (see the end of my article for a few links). But new or not, I sure had fun!

Released March 30th 2017, gameplay recorded March 16th-30th 2017.

00:02 (How it first happened) These opening clips show how I originally got through the ceiling by accident. After checkpointing high up, I was having fun suiciding, flying up at the ceiling and firing the fuel rod cannon just before impact. But one time I fired too late, and the next thing I knew, I was standing on the ceiling! At first I didn't move, just in case the floor was dodgy and I fell through it. But after seeing grenades land ok, I took a few steps and found that it was nice and solid. About ten minutes of exploration followed, which I've represented with a brief sequence of short clips (correctly ordered).

01:41 (Analysis) Looking at the footage later, I saw that I'd got jolted out after the Banshee scraped the big dark collar; and I reckon I then got bumped through by the Banshee. In subsequent play I found that although it was a bit random, it wasn't a huge fluke. I could get through without much trouble - though it often a bunch of tries - and I could also do it using the runners.

02:06 (Checkpointing up high) Here's an illustration of checkpointing up high for fast retries. This particular checkpoint would be suitable for trying out various way, using both the collar and the runners, which is what I was doing early on. But if you want to focus on a particular way - such as the one I highlight around 3:41 - you could (and should) checkpoint specifically for that.

02:06 (Varied examples) Now here's a bunch of examples of getting through the ceiling, sometimes hitting the collar, sometimes a runner. Many of these, especially the ones where I'm approaching at high speed and from distance, were from earlier on in my experimenting, when I was having fun trying all sorts of approaches. In some cases I hit with the nose, in others a wing tip. Sometimes I end up going above the shimmer layer. The first clip I show of that was actually the second time it happened (a nicer example to show than my first case). But after a while I realized that it wasn't all that freaky. It can happen quite a bit, though it doubtless depends on your exact technique.

03:41 (Best way?) Eventually I realized I didn't even need to be going at top speed when approaching the glass, and I focused on getting things more controlled, to try and maximize success rate. This way using the collar may be the best. At any rate it's by far the best for me at present. In a test using a handy checkpoint, I was able to get a whopping 70% success rate - radically better than my early experiences.

03:55 (A look around) Ok, that's enough of the tutorial business; now here's a bit of a look around, including the use of various weaponry - in fact all the weaponry I could manage. Quite a lot of clips here, and I'll pretty much let them speak for themselves. That strange patterning on the column's cross-sections though: why on earth is that there?

08:15 (Can't break out) I wanted a clip to bring my looking-around sequence to a close, and came up with the idea of suiciding. After all, that's how this whole thing got started! I tag myself with a plasma, then rocket the ground just before the plasma goes off. An airborne cyborg ensues. I actually did a whole bunch of takes at this (after getting a delayed checkpoint in the ceiling room), and chose what I thought was the best one. I wanted to hear a decent death cry, but often the cry was weak or barely audible, which was frustrating. In this take the chain-reaction is nicely seen, and also I like how the column and the room are well seen.

08:34 (Panels teaser) So hey, maybe I can get onto a dome panel too? Wait for the next movie! Or see the updated version of my article.

Closing remarks Hey, there seems to be something about the entry chamber that causes me to make movies which are almost nine minutes long. I wonder if that trend will continue into the next instalment. Hopefully you'll see pretty soon! I'll be getting to work on it forthwith.

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