Journey of the Prairie King and Junimo Cart

[Giant Octopodes]

So my late game farm is approaching perfection, but my farmhouse won't be perfect without finishing something I haven't even attempted in all my hours of gameplay - Junimo Cart and Journey of the Prairie King.

I've just never done them. I tried them both years ago, said 'eh seems cool' and called it good. Legitimately trying them now, I'm finding completion of them much more difficult than expected. To a large extent that's just a matter of practice / getting good.

Journey of the Prairie King I've been increasing my consistency and average progress on each run, and now can consistently get to the Mummy area, where I then promptly get absolutely wrecked. However the first few attempts I didn't even clear the first area, so I have faith that with more practice I'll get to the end.

Junimo Cart on the other hand? Even after a few dozen attempts, I can't consistently clear the first level. It's SO random, and wildly disparate in jump difficulty from attempt to attempt, that I don't see how I can possibly go from where I am now to beating the whole thing.

So, have you played? Are you good at them? Have you beaten them / can you consistently beat them / do you find them too easy? If you can beat them, especially consistently, got any tips? Share your stories, both heroic and horrific, and if nothing else those riding the struggle bus with me let's commiserate about those snipers dropping rocks on the track at the perfect time to make a jump outright impossible.

 

[450735]

I made a lenghty rant about Junimo Kart a while ago, so I'm just going to share it here. I did make it a few times to the second area, but I haven't played in forever as it was just too frustrating.

For JotPK, I found that standing in a corner and constantly shooting diagonally is a completely death-proof way of going past the beginning (I once cleared the first two levels without looking at the screen by applying this strategy). Downside: you cannot collect bonuses since you're not moving at all, and it doesn't work for the third level, as the layout is different. But if you get really good, it's a cool way to go through the beginning without breaking a sweat or losing a life

 

[Hill Myna]

Great thread!

I can consistently beat JotPK, but Junimo Kart is beyond me.

To practice, I just swung by the Saloon every day that I didn't go to Skull Cavern, gave JotPK a go and saw how far I got. Each time I was better and got further, until I reached the Mummy levels. Oh, they're tricky. But just like pretty much everything else in the game, the Mummies and the Imps are predictable once you've learnt their patterns. It took me a while, but now I can beat it I want to say about 30% of the time, and I feel like that's pretty decent when a good portion of it comes down to luck.

I have a few tips:

• Chose your upgrades carefully – The amount of coins you'll gain is fairly inconsistent. So, you've got to be wise with how you spend them, sometimes it's best to save them. Ammo is pretty much always going to be the best option, and I strongly recommend doing everything you can to get one Ammo upgrade by the Forest levels and two by the time you reach the Mummy levels. I've only managed to get the third Ammo upgrade once, and that was a crazy run. If you can get that done, then spend what you have on faster Guns. I also find the first Boots upgrade really helps for Fector, but YMMV.
• Play it safe on the bosses – If you look at any video I've seen about JotPK, they'll be risking everything to get the bosses done as quickly as possible. Personally, I'll be annoyed if I lose a life on them, since there isn't really any pressure to get them done quickly. So hide behind that fence and only come out when it's safe. (Also, it's possible to move them into a spot where they can't hit you but you can hit them.
• ...except for Fector – I've found that the best strategy is to dodge his bullets until he stops firing them, then rush in and continuously spam shots at him. Even if you die, the cool down before you can die again is so long that, chances are, you can get it done before losing all your lives (if you have enough and aren't going for Fector's Challenge, of course).

Other than that, it's just practice practice practice until you get a feel for the different enemies.

Spoiler: As for a story...

My younger brother was ecstatic, he'd finally made it to Fector, with 3 lives and a Sheriff Badge in hand. He proceeded to wallop Fector, but lost all three lives in doing so. Fector dies, my brother smiles...

...and then loses his final life to an Orc that Fector had summoned right at the end! The Pure Heart flashed in front of him, but it was all lost to that fatal Orc!

30 minutes later, he came back and took vengeance, and all was right once more.

But although I can beat JotPK, I'm absolutely rubbish at Junimo Kart. Never made it past the second level. I don't have any tips, in fact I hope some else has some! I really want the complete set on my Perfect farm...

For JotPK, I found that standing in a corner and constantly shooting diagonally is a completely death-proof way of going past the beginning

You can also use this method on the fourth level, the one with the box in the middle. Just stand in the top-right corner of the box and you'll be just fine. Keep in mind that this method is extremely risky in the later levels, because Imps can spawn along the edges and insta-kill you.

Edit to add: No JotPK thread is complete without this most important of questions: How often have you seen Gopher? Personally, only two or three times, but I'd be interested to see others' counts. :D

 

[BlaDe]

If you want to practice specific levels of Junimo Kart, have a play around with my practice mod

 

[Giant Octopodes]

I beat Journey of the Prairie King! I don't know if it was the daily luck (it was a very lucky day) or the universe rewarding me for finally not getting the firing rate upgrade in the first shop when I couldn't afford the ammo upgrade, but extra lives and coins were dropping right and left. Going into Fector I had 8 lives, 2 ammo upgrades and 3 firing rate upgrades, he didn't stand a chance. I don't think I played *that* much better than my previous efforts, in fact I likely died as often as I normally do in the levels before the mummies, the rate of extra life drop and money was just insane, and by the time I got to the mummies it was like my gun had a powerup on at all times. I'll echo though getting ammo upgrade 2 at all costs so you can one shot imps is VITAL, and the first time I refused to buy anything other than ammo until that was obtained is also the first time I successfully cleared it, though YMMV of course.

One down, one to go.

 

[Hill Myna]

Hey, congrats! Some times you just get lucky, but it still takes the skill to turn that luck into success.

FYI, daily luck/luck buffs DO NOT affect anything about the arcade games. Also, any Gopher?

Good luck with Junimo Kart (I think you'll need it...), looking forward to any tips that you might share!

 

[Giant Octopodes]

Hey, congrats! Some times you just get lucky, but it still takes the skill to turn that luck into success.

FYI, daily luck/luck buffs DO NOT affect anything about the arcade games. Also, any Gopher?

Good luck with Junimo Kart (I think you'll need it...), looking forward to any tips that you might share!

In fact I did see the Gopher! The first time I've seen it, but it came up during the first few screens of the new game +. Also, thank you!

 

[hexnessie]

Kudos to you!

The mere thought of the games makes me panic!

 

[WhiteEagle12]

I have to agree with you, GiantOctopodes. JOTPK just feels easier than Junimo Kart. The farthest I've gotten on Junimo Kart is the ghostly galleon, and man, it is hard. I honestly don't know if I'll beat either, but JOTPK definitely seems the more likely of the two.

P.S Glad you beat JOTPK! Good job!

 

[Elenna101]

I can beat Junimo Kart occasionally, and I can beat JotPK consistently and usually only take 1-2 deaths max on worlds 1 and 2. Practice is the biggest thing - this took me many months of practice, but I only did a little at a time. Every time I opened Stardew I'd make sure to try a few rounds, and then stop before I got too frustrated.

For Junimo Kart I don't have a ton of tips, it's really just practice. On the whale level, realizing that I could jump off the bubbles helped quite a bit. I also recommend Blade's mod above, once you get to the point where you can consistently beat earlier levels and you just want to work on later ones.
Also, watching good Junimo Kart players can help to see how they move through levels. Lichatton, on Twitch, plays it fairly often and is quite good at it. There's a Junimo Kart leaderboard here so you can see who the good players are, although I'm not sure which ones stream it.

For JotPK
- The ammo upgrades are the most important so that you can kill the imps and mushroom guys in one hit. I usually get the first shot speed and ammo upgrades after levels 1-2 and 1-4 (doesn't really matter what order but prioritize the ammo upgrade if you're low on money), then I skip the 2-1 shop so I can save up 30 coins for the second ammo upgrade after 2-3.
- Try to stay diagonal from the enemies, as opposed to straight below/above to the side of them, this messes up their movement and they're more likely to get stuck on each other.
- I also like going in the corner for 1-4 (the one with the box in the middle). You can also stand just off the middle of the box (to mess up enemy movement), and shoot up/down/left/right as needed, but whenever I try that I get too focused on one side and miss enemies coming in the other.
- Don't use the powerup that kills all the enemies if you can help it, because they won't drop any powerups or money.
- The first two bosses are pretty simple. They only shoot straight in front of them, so when they're moving around, stand diagonally from them and shoot. Also, sometimes they'll just barely peek out the left side of the wall, and then you can shoot them without them shooting you, since you fire from the right hand.
- The last boss, on the other hand, can shoot in any direction and is a pain. Good news though - if you manage to take one of the powerups that makes you shoot really fast going into that fight, you can take him out super easily. Go all the way to the top of the area and move just a smidge to the left, then shoot down at him and activate the powerup. You'll kill him before he manages to move into the right position to shoot you.

 

[nicodeux]

I have to admit that after more than two years playing Stardew Valley, I beat the first level of JotPK only a few days ago during the Abigail cutscene. And I'm not better at Junimo's Kart, though I've noticed that playing on PC is significantly easier than on mobile, so I will switch to it for these two mini games.

So, thank you very much for all the nice advices on this thread, I will definitely read them and learn from them in order to improve my aweful skills.

 

[Lew Zealand]

I am completely and utterly useless at Junimo Kart. If JK is necessary somehow for 100% Perfection, I will never achieve it.

However I'm OK at JotPK and if I ever decide to put some time into it, I should be able to finish it. It's Robotron 2084 with some additions, so something I have experience with.

 

[Giant Octopodes]

Some progress has been made! I've now made it to Ghostly Galleon multiple times, the furthest I've reached in there being the grape, but I've never yet cleared it. Still, I have learned a few things along the way.

- The first and most important thing is that I greatly prefer playing with the game on MUTE. My progress was because I was playing and not getting tilted. In most attempts before I would regress rather than improve as the time playing went on and I got more frustrated, it wasn't happening this time. At first I attributed it to the progress I was making rather than the other way around, but then we finished watching the movie which was on and I turned on the game sounds, and immediately and for the first time noticed that while there are no meaningful audio cues and nothing GOOD the audio does for you, the sounds of my frequent deaths were incredibly tilting. From now on, while playing Junimo Cart, it'll be on mute with a distraction on in the background.

- Second was that it really is just a matter of learning all the jumps. With more practice, the pool of what I consider a "bad series of jumps" likely to result in multiple deaths continues to diminish. The consistency I gained in clearing the first level Immediately and Fully translated into success on the next two levels following it. While mechanically there are still level quirks to learn, BY FAR the hardest level to "get good at" is the first one as via rote memorization you just learn what jumps are needed for what arrangements of tracks. If you stick with it and get that level down, the rest are way easier to knock out.

- Specific to the first level, I learned you can jump off of the falling boulders as well! Though I still get KO'd by sniper rocks from time to time, sometimes I can jump on it and jump off to where I need to go. Similarly, a poorly placed roadblock can be jumped on and IMMEDIATELY you can jump off the track. It's hard, but I suspect there's no cases where them being present makes a jump *actually* impossible, even if it feels that way.

Some lessons learned from levels further on:
- In the Slippery Slopes, don't actually go down the icy slopes, basically ever. Just imagine a platform exists halfway down, jump down to it, then jump off to where you need to go, and limit the momentum you gain that way. Practicing those "jump downs" is useful anyway as it translates to other levels when you want to jump down to a lower platform for any reason.

- Similarly, in the Slime level, don't actually go up the slime. Jump up to near the top then jump off. Also don't get fooled, the "reduced momentum" from the slime doesn't actually translate to smaller jumps, it just lets the slime boss catch up. A lot of the "impossible" looking upper tracks you can actually reach with a max jump too, so far fewer fruit are actually unreachable than may initially appear to be the case.

- For the Whale boss, jumping Off Of and not just on the bubbles can basically create a whole new vertical route through most of the level. It's somewhat unreliable, and the boss and level in general feels far more random than the slime boss, but also the checkpoints are incredibly forgiving and the level as a whole seems significantly easier so it somewhat balances out.

- Finally, Ghostly Galleon the minecart travels much faster than in previous levels. This means you need smaller jumps than you think basically across the board. I'm finding I basically need to relearn all jumps for that level specifically, which is why I've stalled out for now. Probably going to practice it with BlaDe's mod, and then once I have it mastered start trekking through again.

Anyway thanks all for the tips and stories, and don't be discouraged with Junimo Cart! (which again mute helps a lot with XD) Even if it seems impossible it won't forever, you really do just need to die a few hundred times to learn all the jumps and then it starts getting easier XD

 

[Elenna101]

Oh, yeah, I forgot to say - for the roadblocks in Junimo Kart, as long as you're in the process of jumping you can hit it and you'll destroy it instead of dying. So you can jump onto a roadblock to destroy it (you don't have to immediately jump off), and if you do a tiny jump right before it you may also destroy it even if you're still moving upwards when you hit it (although I recommend only doing this if necessary as it takes a bit of time to learn the timing).

And I agree, whale level is definitely worse than slime level.

For Slippery Slopes, I agree that jumping as soon as you hit the slope is the easiest way to beat the level. That being said, if you complete the level fast enough, you can skip the next level (whale or slime) and go straight to Ghostly Galleon, i.e. one less level to lose lives on. This requires keeping momentum from going down the slopes and not dying, so it's definitely an advanced technique (I can only get it occasionally, but top level players can do it almost every time).

 

[Giant Octopodes]

Progress update, I beat the Lava level in progress mode for the first time today! I got to the final level, got to and ate the grape, but died before the end. Still, SO CLOSE! I can't even be mad or frustrated about dying that close to the goal because if I can make it there, with a bit more practice, I can definitely do this! Blade's mod is invaluable. Without the ability to practice the mushroom or lava level, dedicated and with as many lives as it takes to get to the end, I would have never made it. I've thrown away Hundreds of lives on those red mushrooms, learning how to get past them with Any degree of reliability. Now I'm off to run through a dozen versions of the final level and practice there, and then back to progress mode. Before the end of March that arcade cart will be mine!

Edit: Welp, I beat it - kinda. Was playing with mods on as I had just been practicing using Blade's. So I beat it, but didn't pop the steam achievement. Ah well, if I can do it once, I can do it again!

 

[Elenna101]

Progress update, I beat the Lava level in progress mode for the first time today! I got to the final level, got to and ate the grape, but died before the end. Still, SO CLOSE! I can't even be mad or frustrated about dying that close to the goal because if I can make it there, with a bit more practice, I can definitely do this! Blade's mod is invaluable. Without the ability to practice the mushroom or lava level, dedicated and with as many lives as it takes to get to the end, I would have never made it. I've thrown away Hundreds of lives on those red mushrooms, learning how to get past them with Any degree of reliability. Now I'm off to run through a dozen versions of the final level and practice there, and then back to progress mode. Before the end of March that arcade cart will be mine!

Edit: Welp, I beat it - kinda. Was playing with mods on as I had just been practicing using Blade's. So I beat it, but didn't pop the steam achievement. Ah well, if I can do it once, I can do it again!

Congrats! (Although there isn't actually a steam achievement for Junimo Kart, only for Prairie King. Probably because the achievements were made pre-version 1.4, when Junimo Kart was completely different and practically impossible to beat due to impossible levels appearing all the time.)

 

[Giant Octopodes]

Congrats! (Although there isn't actually a steam achievement for Junimo Kart, only for Prairie King. Probably because the achievements were made pre-version 1.4, when Junimo Kart was completely different and practically impossible to beat due to impossible levels appearing all the time.)

Thank you very much! I'll be honest, when I thought I had just messed up by having it running with mods and I was like 'oh shoot guess I have to do it again' it didn't bother me at all, but when I saw that and realized I had thrown away the win for literally no reason, that one hurt. Thankfully though I was right, if you can beat it once you can beat it again! Even if it takes another few hours of attempts!

Feels good to have it done. Thank you very much again to everyone for the tips and insights and especially @BlaDe for the mod, without which I really don't think I could have done it. Best of luck to anyone who wants to beat them but hasn't yet, you can do it!

 

[MissDandy]

I can't imagine beating the Prairie King. (Cheers!). The furthest I've ever got on Junimo Kart is the second level. I have put way too much time into it and it's yielded no positive results... Floppy Bird? (Never was good at that either)

 

[Boo1972]

Congrats! I played junimo kart for the first time on PC just a couple days ago. My 7 year old laughed hysterically every time I died, so a lot, and I decided to use my left hand for some unknown reason. I’m right- handed. I gave up after an hour or so. Never made it out of the icy level.

Maybe my 16 year old can do it for me.

 

[Cuusardo]

I am terrible at both of those games, but I do enjoy playing Journey of the Prairie King for fun once in a while.