38 08
38 08, occasionally referred to as 3C 08, is a glitched Steel Box in Return to Wonderland. It is by far the most unusual of all Metatiles. Found just after the Link Spheres' Tile ID is 38 08 itself and many copies of it. 38 08 is used as a placeholder box for any future boxes to made in its place when the sequel to Return to Wonderland begins to get worked on. 38 08 is called 38 08 because that is its hexadecimal Tile ID. By messing around with 38 08 you can cause nearly every error in Wonderland.
Entering a Level that Contains 38 08
When entering a level with 38 08, the level immediately comes up with an error. To prevent this, enter a level that does not have any 38 08s then enter the level that does have a 38 08. You can now play the level with 38 08 inside. The more 38 08s a level contains, the more likely Return to Wonderland is to crash upon level entry.
What 38 08 Does
38 08 has the characteristics of a Steel Box - it can block fireballs and you can push it around like normal. However, if the level ends or restarts in any way, Return to Wonderland will crash. If a 38 08 gets destroyed the game will often crash. On rare occasions the game will crash if you even touch 38 08.
By default, 38 08 is completely invisible. 38 08 "steals" a graphics part of one random tile that has "snap-on" graphics such as Buttons, Laser Gates and Switching Conveyors. The "stolen" graphics will appear on 38 08 and disappear from the tile that got its graphics "stolen". The tile that lost its graphics will still act normally and 38 08 will still act like a Steel Box. 38 08 takes some graphics from one tile when the level starts. It does not take any more graphics once the level has begun. Sometimes 38 08 won't take graphics at all and will just be invisible.
Connected Graphics Interaction
The tile that 38 08 "stole" graphics from still interacts normally. For example, if 38 08 "stole" the graphics of a Button, the Button would appear on 38 08. Stinky can push 38 08 around. The "stolen" graphics would stay on where 38 08 is. Once Stinky steps on where the Button was, it will press. The Button graphics that 38 08 is holding will become the graphics for a pressed Button. Everything will still act normally, whether 38 08 has taken graphics or not. This is referred to as Connected Graphics Interaction.
How 38 08 Works
38 08's data and functions are mostly made up of garbage and RAM (Random Access Memory). What graphics 38 08 takes is determined by a block of RAM found somewhere in the Return to Wonderland Hex Coding. Once a level is chosen, this RAM alternates to different values. This will let you enter levels with 38 08 without getting any errors. The reason that levels with 38 08 crash upon entry is that the initial values are bad and causes 38 08 to attempt to steal a graphics number that doesn't exist. What graphics 38 08 takes is determined by that block of RAM.
When the level restarts or ends the game switches the RAM values again. Unfortunately, these values cause 38 08 to crash Return to Wonderland.
When 38 08 is destroyed, the game usually comes up with an error message. This is because when boxes break they emit a certain particle. The particle ID that 38 08 emits when destroyed is determined, again, by RAM. Sometimes the particle ID doesn't exist and causes Return to Wonderland to create an error message.
Uses for 38 08
Using 38 08 in normal levels is NOT recommended because it makes the game unstable. Here is a list of what you can do with 38 08. Most of these things would not be possible otherwise.
- Create the illusion of pushing a Laser Gate, Button, Switching Conveyor etc like a box.
- Walk on walls. No one has been able to recreate this yet.
- ...
False Stories
- 38 08 was previously believed to be a mutation that allows the floor to move.[1]
- 38 08 was initially thought to be a mutant Link Sphere.
- ...
Interaction With Water And Lava
When a 38 08 goes into Water it does not float. In the water it's like a normal steel box, except invisible; another steel box could be placed on top of it. However, when 38 08 goes into Lava, the game crashes. At first it was thought to crash because of the 38 08 breaking in the lava. This created the possibility of it being a Sticky Cube. However, when the 38 08 was pushed near a Sticky Cube it did not stick. This proved that 38 08 is a Steel Box. It is currently unknown why 38 08 crashes Wonderland when in contact with lava.
Properties
- Withstands Fireballs: Yes
- Floats: No
- Withstands Water: Yes
- Withstands Lava: No (game crashes upon contact with lava)
- Special Properties: See above