Golden Strawberries become available to collect in each chapter after completing Chapter 8: Core B-Side. Each Golden Berry requires the player to finish a chapter without dying in order to be collected. If the player dies, they will be sent back to the room with the Golden Strawberry. This room is usually the first in the chapter, with the exception of Chapter 6: Reflection A-Side, all sides of Chapter 8: Core, and Chapter 9: Farewell. In these levels, as well as the A and B-sides of Chapter 7: The Summit, starting from these Golden Strawberries will not give the player a clear time, although earning the Strawberry will set the player's lowest-death record to 0.
Golden Strawberries tend to require a lot of practice. The main difference between regular play and attempting to obtain Golden Strawberries is that in regular play, many players will take a trial and error approach. This means that these players may clear harder rooms by luck or by methods that are easily forgettable.
Relying on luck, however, can only take the player so far. This guide aims to provide strategies which help individual screens to be completed faster and, above all, more consistently. Some of these may use advanced movement. General knowledge of the game mechanics and being able to consistently pull off wavedashes and hyperdashes, among other tricks, certainly helps. If you are unfamiliar with advanced movement techniques, it is advised to check out the Moves page.
It's good to know the route ahead of time, so a player does not unnecessarily risk going into rooms outside the main path; therefore, a practice run of the longer chapters can help prepare for the task at hand.
Chapter 1: Forsaken City[]
A-Side (1A)[]
1A's very low difficulty makes it very easy to obtain the Golden Strawberry for the level as long as the player is not reckless, as the level is short and without many difficult sections.
Completing 1A without dashing will allow the player to collect the Winged Golden Strawberry. The Winged Golden Strawberry is unique because unlike other golden berries, the player does not have to worry about dying and it can be obtained before beating 8B.
B-Side (1B)[]
1B is a much harder level than 1A. To obtain the Golden Berry, the player must have a decent understanding of how momentum works in this game, often requiring them to grab the traffic light blocks in a specific way to pass an obstacle. In addition, many rooms require the player to manage their stamina properly.
In the stamina management rooms, it is recommended to learn how to neutral jump, performed by tapping the jump button on a wall with no directional input, as this does not consume stamina. Knowing this trick will help reduce the risk of running out of stamina.
C-Side (1C)[]
1C is usually considered the easiest or second easiest C-Side to beat with a Golden Strawberry, as the level's gameplay is relatively straightforward.
In the first room, dashing upwards into the crystals is the easiest and least risky way to get through the traffic light blocks.
In the second room, it is recommended to grab the first vertical traffic light block in the middle and the second one in the top or bottom. If the player is comfortable with advanced movement, they can wavedash or extended hyper to the first falling block, grab the second one, and do another wavedash on the final falling block, which allows the vertical traffic light blocks in the middle of the room to be skipped.
Chapter 2: Old Site[]
A-Side (2A)[]
2A is a slightly harder level than 1A, though one minor skip to note does exist and cuts off some of the challenges. The final vertical room of the Badeline chase sequence has multiple quicker strategies. The most notable skip in the final room is a noticeable platform at the beginning that hangs from a wall near some spikes, which leads to a narrow passage that must be dashed through to reach.
Madeline standing at the location which the skip can be done
B-Side (2B)[]
2B's Golden Strawberry is generally considered to be either easier or about as difficult as the one in 1B (especially easier if the player is comfortable with space block jumps).
The majority of difficult rooms involve Badeline chase segments, so it is recommended to find a safe strategy for these rooms. In addition, some rooms can be made easier with space block re-grabs (done by holding grab and the opposite direction in which the player initially dashed).
In the first room of the final subchapter, there's no need to jump off of the space block as the player can grab the side of it to make moving around easier. It will still be required later in this section though. Once the player goes to the cassette room, they can take their time as it is impossible to die.
C-Side (2C)[]
2C's Golden Strawberry is generally tied with 1C's Golden Strawberry in terms of difficulty. The main challenge is mostly about learning the final room, as it is the only one that will likely be challenging for a player. In the last room, there are a few spots in which the player can grab the side of a space block to align themself for a dash. However, most of the space blocks near the end of the room will require space block jumps, so patience is not a possibility. The player should dash directly into the heart immediately after leaving the last space block so that they are not pushed into the spikes by the heart.
Chapter 3: Celestial Resort[]
A-Side (3A)[]
3A's most difficult subchapters are the second, Huge Mess and the fourth, Presidential Suite.
In Huge Mess, try to find a room order that suits you the most (example: middle - bottom - top). The less clutter there is in a section, the harder is it to pass them. Try to start with the section you find the most troublesome, and then go with the easier ones. It may be easiest to do the section with the room you find hardest first.
In Elevator Shaft, the player may attempt to skip the subchapter's key by performing a demodash. However, this is a risky strategy. In the room with the key, the player will want to dash to the sinking platforms when the moving sludges move to the left.
In Presidential Suite, it's better to take it slow. Rushing and being impatient often results with the player dying in this level. In the part with a row of dash crystals over the dust bunnies, the best strategy is to wait until Oshiro is about to charge at you, and then jump over him and keep dashing. Doing this section like that gives you enough time to take it slow.
B-Side (3B)[]
While it may look scary at first, 3B is surprisingly very well designed around the cycles. 3B's difficulty mainly derives from its first two subchapters. Many of 3B's screens can be completed in different ways, depending on your timing. It's recommended to keep that in mind to find alternative strategies for certain rooms. Learning how to neutral jump or bounce off of walls without grabbing them helps a lot with managing stamina in many rooms.
Apart from the room with key tokens, the Start (Celestial Resort B-Side) is rather straightforward. The best way is to keep it slow and pay attention to the cycles. You can hang on the top corners of the bottom platforms without getting hit by the moving sludge. That way you can wait until the spring is close to you, allowing you to regain your dash and stamina.
The second subchapter may be the hardest one to learn. In the second room, prepare to jump off of the left walls when the moving sludges are about to move to the right. You can grab the top block as a safe spot. Do the same with the rest of the walls to proceed. The laundry room can be tricky to learn, but it gets very consistent if you get the muscle memory down. In the first laundry room (the one with blue walls), you can wall bounce off of the top right wall to grab the crystal and grab the overhang. It's a good safe spot to land on the purple platform below you. The third laundry section can also be started with a wall bounce to save some stamina. Moving sludges have a longer delay before they move, which is something you have to get used to when practicing.
The third room is mostly about muscle memory due to awkward timings in some spots. In the second room, you can keep jumping off of the left wall to time your dash between the moving sludges. If done properly, they will move in the middle of your jump, allowing you to dash between them and jumping off of the right wall. This strategy may be a bit risky at first, but it saves a lot of stamina. The second to last section of this subchapter looks very stressful, however it's actually really simple. Jump in between them when they move up, then perform a diagonal downwards dash when they're about to move down. If you understand the timing, this part becomes very simple. The last section can be done by just dashing from spring to spring. Depending on your timing, the cycles may be different, so try to find an alternative strategy just in case if the cycle won't be in your favor.
In the first Oshiro room, it's recommended to jump on him or climb up when he's about to charge, allowing you to regain your dash and stamina by bouncing off of his head, which can be very helpful at the end of the room. The fourth room can be tricky, however if you perform an extended super at the beginning, you will keep an extra dash while you'll still be collecting the dash crystals, giving you a secondary boost if Oshiro is about to attack you. This allows you to dodge him or the dust bunnies in a very consistent pattern. In the last room, don't waste your dashes, as using them in a wrong spot will most likely end up with dying to the sludge-spawning tiles. The cassette room is pretty straightforward, however try to take it slow to avoid dying on it. The wall on the bottom can be grabbed from different sides and the springs can help you grabbing many Shields at once.
C-Side (3C)[]
3C is often considered one of the harder C-Sides for many players. However, most of this level is muscle memory. In the first section, the player needs to jump when the moving sludges are about to move, and then keep dashing diagonally upwards as soon as they grab the dash crystals. It often takes a while to get the rhythm, but once learned, it becomes consistent.
The third room requires at least one Oshiro bounce at the very end. Use the lightning effect as a visual cue to understand when it's best to jump. He attacks right after the animation ends, so try to jump when it's about to end and you should be able to land on his head easily. Once you get to the gate at the end, you can grab on its side and start moving up when Oshiro is about to charge. It should end with him landing right under Madeline, causing you to bounce off of him. This can be used to regain your dash in an easier way at the very end.
Chapter 4: Golden Ridge[]
A-Side (4A)[]
A good portion of this chapter is just getting used to the wind physics. You can use tricks such as hyperdashes to speed it up, however try to use them only when you're feeling comfortable with it. Triggered platform and guided platform rooms are also worth practicing.
The snowball section may be tricky for players, as they can easily get hit if careless. Try to take it slow and dash only when you have enough time to move away from the obstacle. If you are close to the right side of the screen, try to wait until the snowball appears and then quickly dash to the right to avoid getting hit by it instantly.
B-Side (4B)[]
The B-Side requires the player to fight with the wind, while performing some tricky jumps, and memorizing patterns for several triggered platform and guided platform rooms that may be difficult. In guided platform rooms, keep in mind that the blocks don't have to fit perfectly into the gaps. If they're less than a block off, they should still fit into the tunnel. Because the rest is rather straightforward to learn, this one mostly relies on getting consistently good at these rooms.
The first difficult triggered platform room can be found in the middle of the second subchapter, Stepping Stones. It's recommended to use as little stamina here as possible. After using the spring, try to jump on the platform so you grab the top of it, then try jumping on the other side without the need to climb back up. There's a significant bit of room for error in this one, but it's recommended to find a strategy without using much stamina. If you happen to start losing stamina while you're about to go to the end, you can quickly climb up and use the platform's momentum when jumping to get enough distance for the last dash crystal.
The second one can be found in the middle of Gusty Canyon, with three small triggered platforms moving to the right. Activate the first two so that they're very close in line, and then grab the last one as soon as possible and drop on the bottom one when there's enough space. Stay on it and wait until you get to the pillar of crystals. Jump, dash over the crystals and if done properly, you should be able to land on the middle triggered platform. Remember to crouch in order to not hit the ceiling made out of crystals.
After that, a guided platform room can be reached, which is not too difficult as long as you remember to keep going quickly. As said before, the platform doesn't need to fit perfectly into the gaps, so try to not spend too much time aligning it and instead hop on the clouds as soon as possible and grab the triggered platform at the very top to get it out of the way. If you don't reach it in time and the guided platform disintegrates, you can also make it back down to the start with some simple maneuvering, which can be very helpful during a Golden Strawberry attempt.
The ending is a place where people may often die if they mess up the last jump. Wait until the blocks turn to pink, then slowly walk off the very edge of the platform as the blocks change to blue and dash right into the Crystal Heart.
C-Side (4C)[]
The main problem with this section is the second room. The player must be fast, and it's best to save your stamina when needed by not using the grab button while wall jumping. The last room is mostly straightforward but it's recommended to practice the cloud jumps. Try to dash a bit away from the cloud as the wind is pretty strong and you might miss it easily.
Chapter 5: Mirror Temple[]
A-Side (5A)[]
This chapter is fairly long in a casual run but there are several skips that can make it a lot quicker when doing a Golden Strawberry run. The first one can be found in one of the rooms in the Start subchapter. When the player stays on the right side of the swap block while it's at the very bottom, they can perform a reversed hyperdash followed by a regular straight dash to skip straight past the corridor of crystals and reach the key room which saves a little bit of time. If you're not comfortable with this technique, it is certainly not a necessity to learn as the time save is not too major.
The next skip can be found close to the end of the second subchapter, Depths. The player can use the key door skip that's normally required to get the Crystal Heart. Because of that, there's no need to look out for the key which saves some time.
The last skip, called Search Skip, can be found at the beginning of Search. When the player gets to the platforms with keys under them, they can skip most of this subchapter with a specific technique. In order to do it, stay on the left side of the platform to the left and perform a reverse super extended diagonally upwards. It's recommended to practice the timing in order to be capable of performing this trick with replenishing your dash as well. If you don't regain your dash, it means you're doing it too early.
The rest of the level is pretty much the same, but it's recommended to play through Rescue a few times to avoid getting killed by Seekers. If you throw the crystal against a wall and dash upwards into it, you can reach some higher ground if timed properly. If you dash horizontally into the crystal, you gain more momentum for a short amount of time, allowing yourself to escape situations such as being chased by a Seeker. Try to not rely 100% on one strategy and always have a plan B just in case, as Seekers may be a bit unpredictable at times. If you go to a certain spot slightly too quick or too slow, they may move in a completely different place. Keep that in mind to avoid surprise deaths.
B-Side (5B)[]
In the second subchapter, the player can save time by only grabbing one of the keys (the right one is easier but slower, the left one is more difficult but quicker), which allows the player to save time by performing a spike jump (avoiding the key needed for the intended strategy). Although this saves a fair amount of time, it is risky and should be avoided for less experienced players.
In the final room of the third subchapter, Through the Mirror, a reliable route is to immediately do three supers in a row from the right-hand edge of the initial platform, followed by a brief hesitation before an ordinary jump into the gap. The Seeker will reliably stop within reach. Alternatively, the player can avoid the Seeker entirely by performing an ultra with the final two platforms on the left side, giving enough distance to make it to the rightmost platform. An extended hyperdash from the last platform on the lower right, followed by a dash to grab the side of the platform, also clears the gap. Refer to the subchapter's main page for more specific details on timings.
C-Side (5C)[]
5C's Golden Strawberry requires the use of many wall bounces, so it may be in the player's best interest to become comfortable with the mechanic. There's not much to this level except just learning how to time specific dashes or bounces.
In the first room, the player may opt to perform a wavedash (or extended hyper) on the starting platform to skip the first wall bounce of the room.
In the second room, a consistent strategy is for the player to align themselves with the center of the swap block's path, which will prevent them from missing the correct timing for the wall bounce.
At the beginning of the third room, you can use the bottom route to get to the bubbles without much trouble.
Chapter 6: Reflection[]
A-Side (6A)[]
6A's Golden Strawberry is located in the second subchapter, Lake. This means that the player can skip the first subchapter, Start, and go straight to the second subchapter using the menu.
The beginning of Chapter 6 is rather straightforward and doesn't require much practice because the player has a lot of room for error to deal with. In the beginning of Hollows, there's an alternate way to get to the top by doing neutral jumps off of the left wall and then jumping and dashing to the right when at the top of the wall. It's not necessarily faster nor practical, but if a player is comfortable with neutral jumping and afraid of getting crushed by the angry platform, they can use this alternative way.
The main difficulty of this chapter is the boss fight. Some of the first rooms can be done easily by trying to hit Badeline as soon as possible. In some of the later screens, it's better to take it slow as she can easily catch you off guard. In the feather rooms, try to wait until she shoots the laser and jump and start flying right away. That way you will have enough time to run away from the attack, and if needed, you can dash away from the feather to a safe spot to avoid getting hit. In the long vertical rooms, you can hit Badeline several times by dashing into her from mid-air. It's recommended to hit her as soon as possible in these sections.
The second phase is generally easier due to it being shorter and giving the player enough time to react. In two sections you have to use a block to momentum jump into her. To perform that, start moving and jump when the block is about to stop, to gain maximum distance. The final room can be easy to mess up, so be sure to learn the timings in it. Similar to the previous rooms, jump into the feather as soon as the laser is gone and fly towards the next safe spot. When you get to the split paths, take the bottom route. It's less risky and it gives you enough time to move away from the beam with this strategy. After that, take your time to perform the next few jumps and pay attention to the laser. Once you get to the cutscene, the berry will be yours.
As a general tip, don't rush in the laser sections if you aren't confident enough. The indicator moves for a few seconds and then stops for a second, allowing you to jump or grab a block out of its way. Use this to dodge the attacks.
B-Side (6B)[]
Though mostly considered fun to complete conventionally, most players quickly realize that this level can be rather frustrating to get the golden strawberry for. It is very difficult to be consistent with quick and precise movements from the feathers, many bumpers which call for specific angling, and a Badeline AI that can change with any slight variations in the player's strategy. It is important to just get a feel for it through practice to minimize the inconsistencies.
In the sixth room of the |Reflection subchapter, the need for the angry platform can be removed entirely with an extended hyperdash, saving the dash that needed to be regained using the aforementioned block. However, this does not save much time.
The ninth room of the same subchapter requires a lot of precision near the end, it is one of the levels where the strategy is clear but it just requires a lot of practice, though it is important to pay attention to those last two holes. If to the left of the second to last hole, just do a dash; if to the right, then positioning must be corrected towards the left after the dash. That difference makes the last segment feel very inconsistent.
The second room of the Rock Bottom subchapter can be made easier by remembering to dash upwards to reach the first falling block and right to reach the second, grabbing onto the left side and jumping over the top at the appropriate time is easier than trying to avoid them entirely.
In the third room of the subchapter, after the first time Badeline has been touched, the following laser can be dodged by jumping off the falling platform early so she aims it high giving enough time to clear the gauntlet and touch her again before the next laser.
In the fourth room, it can be tricky near the end of the second use of the second feather, though cutting as much corners in the path as possible can buy time to navigate over the crystals, to the switch and to the third Badeline touch.
In the fifth room, extended hyperdashing off of the disappearing platform at the end can saving having to use the final bumper which can be tricky with Badeline firing away.
In the second room of Reprieve, after touching Badeline for a second time, the moving wall can be ignored by bouncing on top of the bumper, then dashing into the bumper from the right and dashing up-right over it to Badeline.
In the fourth room of this subchapter, it is useful to try and bait out Badeline's laser at a safe space before running through each gauntlet whenever possible when entering the room or when grabbing on the side of a wall.
The last room before the rhythm block room that contains the heart is very hard to complete consistently, fortunately it is the room with the least need for consistency as the relatively easy rhythm block room is the only challenge that lies after it. Retry this room many times until you get comfortable with all of the timing necessary, but remember that the timings on respawns will not be the same as the ones on first entrance which will be what you must follow in your actual Golden Strawberry attempt.
C-Side (6C)[]
The C-Side is rather straightforward, however it's recommended to practice the ending and try to beat it a few times. Some of the bumpers are easy to miss, especially the very last one that can easily lead to a devastating death next to the heart. In some situations it's more safe to dash into a bumper, as hitting it will replenish your dash anyway, and that way you will be more sure that you will not miss it.
Chapter 7: The Summit[]
A-Side (7A)[]
This is the longest level in the game aside from Chapter 9: Farewell, meaning that deaths will be very costly especially later on. Knowledge on all of the subchapters will be crucial to ensure that the least time possible is wasted.
Start[]
This has rather straightforward platforming and is the easiest part of the level. In the room with a few vertical thin walls, you can skip some of them by dashing under them, making this section a little faster. Apart from that there isn't much difference than the casual run.
500 M[]
This one is also pretty straightforward. As long as you're comfortable with momentum, it shouldn't be too bad. In the section with key tokens, you can grab on the walls and feel free to use springs to replenish your dashes.
1000 M[]
One of the easiest sections if the player is taking it slowly. If you are rushing it too much, you may risk wasting your dash by accident, not getting enough distance to dash through a space block. Although it's not needed in the game, jumping out of them may make certain actions easier and it can save up a dash for later. In the section with key tokens, a good order is: left, bottom, top, right. After getting the last one to the right, you can use the spring to get your dashes back.
1500 M[]
This is generally considered to be the second hardest subchapter. Due to the cycles, this one requires some patience to avoid falling into a dust bunny or other obstacle.
In the section with the four moving sludges and one key token in the middle, use the bottom moving sludge as a visual cue. Stay on the line between the bottom blocks, wait until the moving sludge at the bottom goes to the up-left and then goes back to the bottom-right. Be prepared so right after it goes to the bottom-right, do a diagonal dash to the key token and after a somewhat short delay, perform another diagonal dash. It may be tricky to do at first, but with enough practice it becomes very simple.
The next section with key tokens is more open. However, if you're careless, you might dash right into a moving sludge. A good strategy is to do a well-spaced diagonal dash followed by a straight dash to the right. If by any means the moving sludge gets in your way, you can dash diagonally, wait for a split second and perform another diagonal dash to the right.
The last tricky section is at the end. There's some leeway with blocks on which you can stand on if you get a bad pattern or don't want to risk dying. Keep in mind that you can stand on them only once, so either don't walk on the entire platform or dash above/below the moving sludge from the air when going from one direction.
2000 M[]
This is another straightforward checkpoint, however there are two spots that may kill a player. In the first room with wind, there's a spring on the wall that bounces you towards a small floating platform with a spike on top. You have to dash once after getting bounced by the spring and then let yourself get pushed to the left by the wind, however don't do it immediately or you might fly right into the spike. The second tricky section has snowballs that can kill you if you’re careless. Don't mess around too much with tricks and take your time. After it the rest should be rather simple to do.
2500 M[]
This is one of the easiest checkpoints if the player knows how swap blocks and their momentum work. Keep in mind that momentum can be cruel and if you are dashing from a swap block, always jump off of it or you might risk getting pushed off of your destination due to momentum. In the section with the key, you can slide on the left wall and wait until the obstacles move away. It's recommended to keep a dash for the last row of moving blades, as it will save you some struggle.
3000 M[]
The hardest part of the entire level lies towards the end. Most of it is rather easy to understand and straightforward, however it's recommended to do a few deathless runs of this checkpoints to gain consistency. Pay extra attention to difficult checkpoints such as 16, 14, 13, 11, 10, 9, and 3. They have some timings that are fairly tight for an A-Side and they may easily kill your run if you’re careless. Pay attention to the wind as it also affects your jumps. If the wind blows down, you jump slightly lower, fall faster, and can’t climb as high. If it's blowing up, Madeline is more floaty and jumps slightly higher.
B-Side (7B)[]
7B is an extremely long chapter and is considered to be one of the most challenging Golden Strawberries as a result. However, most strategies are straightforward and much of the chapter's difficulty lies in precision. Unfortunately, there is not much to be said other than just practice to help with parts like 3000 M's dreaded checkpoint 13 or while timing bubble exits at 2500 M. Due to its sheer length it is heavily advised to do a lot of practice before ever picking up the golden strawberry, even then it is good to take breaks and go to individual rooms that have caused significant trouble.
The third room of the 500 M segment is one of the easiest rooms in the game when done correctly, extended hyperdashing off of the first platform will allow the player to just simply dash under then up the block with the first spring on it. Bear in mind the last three blocks with the spikes on top do not need to be grabbed as they too can just be dashed under then up.
In the third room of 1500 M the cycle can be navigated by leaving as the first moving sludge starts to move from its low position to its high position, from there immediately go to the bottom left switch and onto the spring board right next to it which should launch Madeline to meet the moving platform with a spring in the middle of its path, from there dash up onto the wall to the right of the circling sludge and jump for the top right switch when that moving sludge is just past its closest point to said switch. Go for the spring at the bottom left again which should send Madeline towards the bottom switch, follow that with two dashes upwards in order to land on the spring and head to the bottom right switch. Grab onto the wall and wait to bounce on the spring when it is moving towards Madeline AND the moving sludge is moving away. From there, dash upwards and grab onto the wall next to the final switch, waiting for the nearby moving sludge to move to its low point to jump for the switch and to the end.
The final room of 1500 M seems very difficult to do consistently. One strategy is to dash into the lower spring as the nearby moving sludge starts moving downwards, dash past the first two moving moving sludges at a steady pace, wait for the third moving sludge to move towards its high position before dashing past and dash past the fourth as it is sitting at its low position. Dash past the fifth moving sludge before it moves downwards in order to hit the spring and pass over it as it is moving down. At the last moving sludge, dash upwards before reaching it and follow with an up-left dash, grabbing onto the wall above the last spring, from there just wait until any appropriate time to drop onto the spring to avoid the moving sludge and dash up towards the end of the segment.
For the third room of 2000 M it is important to note that Madeline can go up to the respawn point without the snowballs appearing. From that point, hyperdash and follow that with a right dash into the left side of the first pillar, climb up it and the first snowball should go under Madeline. Once the pillar has been climbed repeat the process, hyperdash off, dashing into the side and climbing up.
The strategy for the last room at 2500 M is straightforward, however it can be easier to time the exit of the first red bubble by looking at the squid-like eldritch statue in the background and dashing out as the bubble covers its eye.
Checkpoint 17 of 3000 M can be skipped by jumping to the left followed by a up-left dash and an upwards dash in order to super wall jump off of the wall, this will send Madeline high enough and far enough left to be able to grab onto the edge at the base of checkpoint 16.
Checkpoint 4 can be made easier by wavedashing off the edge followed by two upwards dashes. Same can be said for the checkpoint 3, wavedashing left and dashing straight up can skip a dangerous wall bounce. This technique also helps skip to the first cloud of checkpoint 2.
C-Side (7C)[]
The first section of the level is more forgiving that it looks. If you memorize how it looks and if you mess up a wall bounce, you can fall down and grab one of the ledges at the bottom and wait for the dash crystal to reappear. That way you can save yourself from death.
The last room is muscle memory. The beginning is the hardest part as it requires precise timings. Some springs require to be hit as high as possible to pass through tall walls of crystals. After playing through the room a couple of times and having it fresh in your memory, it should naturally be simpler to complete the room in a Golden Strawberry attempt.
Chapter 8: Core[]
A-Side (8A)[]
8A's Golden Strawberry is located in the second subchapter, Into the Core. This means that the player can skip the first subchapter, Start, and go straight to the second subchapter using the menu.
A good portion of this chapter is memorizing how patterns work. Close to the beginning, there's a major skip known as Ice Skip. In order to perform it, go to the berry room to the left, come back to the room with fire balls on top and keep running, jump into the crystal, dash upwards and then do two diagonal dashes to the top. Keep in mind that the dashes need to be spaced out a bit in order to fit between the flames. Once learned, the strategy becomes very consistent.
Another room the player may struggle with is the room in Hot and Cold which has columns of ice balls and bumpers around. Try to find a pattern there and don't rush it. Keep it slow and remember that you can bounce around from one row to another. There's a fair amount of dash crystals that will replenish your dash when needed. At the end of the section, it's best to jump from one row to another and flip the hot/cold switch to progress.
The last section is not particularly difficult, but it's best to memorize how everything works in them. Because of time pressure, a player may do a lot of mistakes. Despite the time limit, the player still has a decent amount of time to plan their jumps or other actions. In the cassette room, it's best to jump slowly from platform to platform. Keep your dashes for the fire parts and if you don't rush too much, you should be able to complete it fairly easily.
B-Side (8B)[]
8B's Golden Strawberry is located in the second subchapter, Into the Core. This means that the player can skip the first subchapter, Start, and go straight to the second subchapter using the menu.
8B's Golden Strawberry is regarded as the second- or third-most difficult golden in the game. It is very important to develop consistent strategies. Rooms with no or little cycles often show clear strategies and are often down to just skill. This chapter contains many cycles which can be more consistently bypassed with some of the techniques stated below.
The first room is very chaotic and initially looks daunting to learn. The following pattern will allow all fireballs to be dodged with proper fine tuning of jump height. Wait at the edge and do a short jump as soon as a fireball goes just high enough to jump under, this is to be shortly followed by a up-right dash, jumping immediately as Madeline lands on the next platform and dashing upwards when below the dash crystal, stay still and fall a dash's distance and follow that with a very quick up-right then right dash on to the next platform, follow that with a quick jump off to the right, collecting the dash crystal, dashing up right twice and quickly jumping over the last two platforms.
The fourth room can be very easily cleared with the correct timing, if the player starts moving as soon as they enter the room (alternatively they can jump off the solid ground the moment they see an ice ball rise from the spikes at the first column), after jumping off the solid ground and dashing up-right they can just jump across the ice balls, just holding left for the first crystal wall, halting at the second and fourth crystal walls in order to fall around half a dash's distance to keep holding right again and halting at the 3rd crystal wall to dash though it.
The room that marks the start of the Burning or Freezing subchapter can be the most difficult to learn due to challenges in grip management. It is advised to touch the launching block when the first fireball touches the bottom wall of crystals (the full cycle involves a full rotation of either of the first two fireballs). Using correct timing to navigate the first two fireballs will allow the final fireball to be accessed by waiting slightly before shooting up the conveyor wall and wall jumping off the protrusion below the fireballs path to the right then off of the left wall.
The third room of the subchapter can be fairly difficult to learn, though it can be cleared as quickly if the player immediately starts going through it right after entering at walking pace, take as few jumps as possible in order to avoid running out of ice balls to jump on.
The fifth room of this subchapter has a fairly simple solution to learn, jump onto the first conveyor as a fire ball brushes on top of it, drop just left of the middle of the second ring of fire balls and right dash out of it onto the next conveyor wall and simply jump from the top of it to the next with no delay after jumping off the third conveyor wall up-right dash in the middle of the fifth ring of fire balls to collect the dash crystal, heading right until level with the bottom of the final double-sided conveyor wall, after a very short wait shoot up the conveyor wall onto the other side and then immediately shoot up the right side, making the jump with the last dash.
The last room of the subchapter is rather difficult. Jump off when a fire ball of the first ring is pointing left and quickly double up-right dash and drop to the first dash crystal, repeat that to get the second dash crystal and then immediately up-right then right dash and drop in to get the third, from there up-right then upwards dash to hit the switch, bounce off of the two ice balls to the left and right of the first ice ring followed by all three from the current left to right of the next. On the next ice ring, jump off of the left ice ball and into the switch followed immediately by and upwards then up-right dash to drop into the next dash crystal with an up-right then right dash, dropping into the second last ring of fire balls, upon hitting the switch there should be an ice ball right under Madeline to bounce off and from there the player can make their way to the end by jumping off the ice balls.
If you are comfortable with neutral jumping, skipping the fire switch can make the first two rooms of Heartbeat easier. Ignore the switch and start climbing on the left wall, getting to the frozen platforms. Quickly jump off of them and dash towards the crystal, and after that you should be able to dash to the end of the room. The second room is also more straightforward as there's no need to use the switch on the left side, allowing the player to climb the right wall and start bouncing off of the ice balls.
The second room of the sub-chapter is mostly straight forward, though one thing of note is that it can be easier to reliably get inside the first ring of fire/ice balls by climbing and jumping off of the right wall.
The third room of the sub-chapter can seem impossible to learn at first due to its second half, though there is a strategy that one can use to make it easier. wait at the top of the last conveyor wall until a fire ball of the first ring of fire balls points down-right, follow this with two up-right dashes to the dash crystal followed by nothing but upwards dashes, though some minor delays and horizontal adjustments should be made after some of the upwards dashes.
The last room before the cassette block room can be difficult for people who aren't familiar with launching block momentum. It has a specific pattern that needs to be followed: stay slightly to the right from the middle of the first launching block, then grab the very top of the second block and at the end stay low on the second one, allowing you to use both dashes to get to the edge of the platform. If you miss the timing on the middle block, you can save yourself by either climbing or neutral jumping (the latter is safer though) to the top. It's recommended to practice this room a lot as launching block momentum can be pretty unforgiving.
C-Side (8C)[]
This C-Side is mostly a matter of getting used to the third section. Try to get used to the momentum-based platforms and whenever you have time to wait, use it to max out the time that you will have to go through a part of the section. Hitting switches too early can sometimes end up with certain sections being very hard or impossible to clear. When dashing through the space blocks, if you do a horizontal dash through the second one followed by a space block jump, you can clear the third space block while keeping your dash, which can help make the next bumpers section much more consistent.
Chapter 9: Farewell[]
Farewell's Golden Strawberry is located in the second subchapter, Singular. This means that the player can skip the first subchapter Start and go straight to the second subchapter using the menu.
The golden strawberry in Farewell is by far the most difficult one to obtain. Not only are there many extremely difficult rooms that can impede a player's progress, the chapter is also significantly longer than every other chapter in the game. Due to its absurd difficulty, Reddit user DJTom3 is attempting to keep track of everyone who has collected the Farewell Golden Strawberry with verified video proof. As of November 27, 2020, the list currently has 121 verified entries.
Farewell has a variety of skips that can be used to make the level take less time, however some of them aren't very viable due to the high risk required to pass them.
One of the major skips is the Power Source skip. In order to do it, the player needs to have a double dash, a jellyfish and they have to destroy the utility vault. Once it's done, they need to grab the jellyfish with the double dash and go into the hidden top room with the red bubble that leads to a key. The player can skip it by throwing a jellyfish into the tunnel, quickly entering the bubble and updashing into the jellyfish in the right moment to gain enough height to get to the next room. After that they have to perform a rather precise diagonal dash which leads to a hidden room which has fairly simple jumps. This skip can be difficult for some people, but once mastered, it may cut a lot of time for a golden run, especially considering it's fairly early in the level.
In Remembered, it is possible to take a jellyfish to the room with tall falling blocks. It can be used to your advantage by updashing and collecting the refills to gain enough height.
It should be noted that the player sometimes has the option to do extended hyperdashes instead of wavedashes, a tougher technique although it can make some sections easier as they won't be as pressured to jump quickly from one platform to another. This may be especially useful for sections such as the "comb room", one of the rooms near the end of Event Horizon with triggered platforms. Using an extended hyperdash here usually makes it easier for the player to align themselves to the wall bounce. Generally, watch for the triggered platform to pass the second pillar of crystals to do the wavedash/hyperdash, then for the second triggered platform, watch for it to just reach the first of the pillars of crystals to the right.
In the tutorial room with two wavedashes followed by a wall bounce, players can stay on the middle block and perform an extended hyperdash instead of a wavedash. If done right, they will grab the very right side of the wall, allowing them to jump to the left and use a wall bounce to get to the top of the platform. This strategy is less risky, because the player doesn't have to deal with momentum from speed tech.
The tenth room of Event Horizon can sort of skipped by grabbing the very bottom of the triggered platform, allowing you to pass under the crystals above and make the remainder of the room much easier. This strategy allows you to skip the key token in this room.
Determination is often considered the hardest checkpoint due to a rather tricky rooms the player has to pass through. The first problematic room is the third room, containing a triggered platform with springs on both sides. Make sure to wait for a second when activating the platform, then jumping back right and quickly dashing up towards the crystal and keeping up with the platform. In the area with the double dash crystals, try to slow yourself down and not dash too immediately if needed to not be faster than the triggered platform.
In the first room with starblades, do a wavedash to the right when the starblades are at the bottom to ensure you can dodge them. In the large vertical room where you must fall past many starblades, do your wavedash or extended hyperdash when they are at the right side and don't be too averse to holding down to accelerate your descent if it would be safer.
The next hard room is the wind room with springs. With enough practice, it should be rather consistent, however this room needs to be taken very seriously as it's a common choke point. The following room with conveyors can be saved by neutral jumping off of the icy wall in case if you mess up or want to align yourself properly. The last room of Determination is mostly just memorizing how the starblades move, so they don't get in your way when the wind changes. Remember to not play around too much at the end, as being too slow often can result in Madeline being thrown into the starblades at the end of this section. Memorize how the starblades move on the first cycle of the room (aka the one when entering the room as opposed to after a respawn) as this will be what will most consistently occur in a Golden Strawberry run and is thus the most important muscle memory to gather.
The fourth room of Stubbornness has some rather tricky timing towards the end. Instead of trying to grab the pink wall, try to dash towards the blue block at the right timing, then jump back to the pink block and again jump towards the blue block to the very right. You have to time it properly so the previous blue block doesn't appear right in front of you.
Reconciliation is pretty straightforward for most of the time and there aren't many strategies to go speedily that a person can do. However, as this is very near the end of the chapter, it should be taken carefully and slowly whenever possible. In some of the last rooms, there are parts with moving blocks that have different strategies, so try to develop a consistent pattern that suits yourself. In the feather section with a lot of pufferfish scattered around, players can technically skip the feather by either using the fish or wavedashing off of the block at the bottom. Farewell is pretty much the same as in casual runs and it's recommended to take it slowly as being too hasty may end up with doing mistakes far in the level.
Farewell, unlike other chapters, has a secret room that can only be accessed when the player carries a Golden Berry. It's quite straightforward and it has very few difficult parts, but the player has no opportunity to practice it (unless they're using Debug Mode). There are binoculars that allow the player to check the layout of it, so be sure to look around to see what dangers are around and plan your strategies carefully. You have to be very careful, as failing in this room will take you to the very beginning of the level. If you don't care much about the surprise factor and you want to practice the room, you can use Debug Mode to teleport yourself to the room and mess around with it.
Due to the fact Farewell is very long, it's recommended to do individual runs of each checkpoint to be sure if you're able to complete it without dying. First, try to complete one of each checkpoint without dying, and then try to do two or more of them with as much fails as possible. Consistency is very important for this chapter, and it requires an insane amount of practice and good muscle memory to deal with the length of difficulty of this chapter. Watching someone go for the Golden Strawberry on this level in videos such as this is recommended, as you then see the skips they make, and hopefully, that will help you.