Hidden Objects & Triggers

This is a sub-page of The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie (GameCube, PlayStation 2, Xbox).

Out of Bounds Objects#

No Cheese!#

There are unused cactus, seaweed, and flower decorations beside the start of the level.

There is a brown rectangular prism collision mesh below the second jellyfish area.

I'm Ready... Depression#

A staircase of wooden crates is behind the shelf at the start of the level.

Sandwich Driving 101#

A few Chum Bucket crates can be found near the beginning of the level.

At coordinates (0,0,0), there is a SIMP building asset below the level.

At coordinates (0,0,0), there is a SIMP flower asset. It is obscured by the building asset sharing the same spot below the level.

At coordinates (0,0,0), there is an invisible collision mesh for an orange tube-top tree.

SpongeBall Challenges#

At the bottom of each SpongeBall Challenge is a monochrome cube. This cube is JSP terrain, and it originally served to circumvent the JSP requirement to load a level successfully. The final game doesn't require levels to contain a JSP, so this cube can be removed without issue.

Bubble Blowing Baby Hunt#

An ice block can be found next to the first keg pit.

Another ice block can be found next to the second keg pit.

I'll Let You Pet Mr. Whiskers#

There's a purple cactus clipping inside the geometry of the level.

Now That We're Men...#

Below the first Popper encounter is an invisible paddlewheel duplicate. Unlike the in-game Mechanism PLAT, that can be hit from any angle, the unused one is a "true" Paddle PLAT that requires a direct hit from the sides. The use of a Mechanism PLAT in the final game is likely a temporary workaround that slipped through, due to the level designers still working with the old paddlewheel physics from Battle for Bikini Bottom that did not allow a hit from above.

Just after the first horizontal wall jumping section, there is a bamboo pole hidden inside the rock formation. It was likely part of an early version of the wall jumping panels seen in prerelease footage.

A SpongeBall block located just under the section before the Bungee Challenge. It is used to rise the tentacle monster out of the goo. A cube is used for each tentacle monster encounter.

A crater with smoke emitter entity under the first segment of the Bungee Challenge.

Two yellow manliness points can be found above the first sea monster ride (TR02). They are part of the Frozen Lava Desert challenge that is only present in the last half of the level (TR03).

A SpongeBall block can be found to the left of the lobster mini boss. This block serves as a buffer for the lobster's health counter. Every time the lobster is attacked, this block moves down for 2 seconds and then updates the health counter. This is done to prevent attack spamming, as the health counter will not process another attack until the block stops moving.

A wooden gate can be found below the side path to the "Swinging Starfish" and "Frozen Lava Desert" challenges, requiring a throw fruit button press. It can be assumed that these challenges originally required Patrick's Throw ability in order to access them.

There are five cubed PLAT drivers stacked on top of each other below the Eye Stalk mini-boss. Each driver is responsible for moving one of the eyes. Normally, these drivers are invisible in-game, but a level editor reveals that they are not only visible, but also solid.

A rock cylinder that is baked into the geometry of the level. It is beside the final "lighthouse" ambush.

A lava rock that is baked into the geometry of the level. It is close to and below the "Frozen Lava Desert" task.

Asset called small_stones_07 is made invisible to hide that it was misplaced.

Asset called small_stones_09 is made invisible to hide that it was misplaced.

Asset called trench_lava_ripple_16 is made invisible as it would overlap with the sea monster's path. As a consequence, it does not launch a lava bomb, despite being part of LAVABOMB_GRP_01.

Shell City, Dead Ahead#

The destructibles can be found bunched up together at the very beginning of the level behind Patrick.

Additionally, a balloon box can also be seen high in the sky above the destructibles along with a weird plain with a square hole in the middle behind all of it.

Crates from the second half of the level are present in the first half, just behind the door that leads there. They are roughly in the same position, but the accompanying thunder barrel is missing.

Sundae Driving#

A duplicate of the lightbulbs used for the Goober World sign can be found below the level.

Welcome to Planktopolis... Minions#

There is a blue manliness point just beyond the Goofy Goober Token for the "Ice Skating Idiot" task.

There is a set of six column platforms just below Plankton's Riddle, and each complement a specific button pillar. It is likely that the platforms just below the buttons themselves would have been able to sink.

A duplicate of the final destructible wall is found just below the level. Unlike the wall used in the game, this duplicate is part of the level's BSP terrain, and would not have been able to disappear independently from its BSP chunk during the ending cutscene.

The bottom of this lava pool is textured and fully modeled, despite being impossible to see under normal circumstances.

Behind the jump-wall elevator, there is wall jump sign hidden inside the wall.

Drive of the Knucklehead-McSpazitron#

There is an invisible SpongeBob NPC at the end of Drive of the Knucklehead-McSpazitron used exclusively for the main challenge. Since the main challenge does not warp back to Mindy for the reward, this NPC is here to complete the Token animation autosave. The game would not continue without it.

Floating Block Challenge#

In Now That We're Men's Floating Block Challenge, there is a crudely named Move Point called "DONKEY_BALLS_MP" placed in between the spike blocks during the skydive. Judging from the presence of other target-less Move Points in other levels, this Move Point was likely used to measure the distance that blocks travel.

Unused Triggers#

Triggers are a type of asset that can run in-game events, such as unlocking tasks and setting checkpoints. They are typically activated when entered by the player. Unused triggers are typically disabled or have their events removed, so they are not able to run any events assigned to them if entered, despite not being out of bounds.

No Cheese!#

SLIDE_TELEPORT_CAM_TRIG_01 is a disabled trigger that originally set the camera's orientation when the player was ejected from the Teleport Box. In the final game, the Teleport Box itself runs the camera orientation Event instead of the trigger.

I'm Ready... Depression#

LIGHTKIT_DARK_TRIG_01 and LIGHTKIT_DARK_TRIG_02 are a set of triggers in the first area of the level meant to change the Player and Environment lighting to use the dark tunnel lighting. Leaving the triggers' active area returns the lighting back to normal. Perhaps this first area was originally in the dark.

Entering RING_TASK_TRIG_01 originally unlocked the Sonic Wave task, rather than by unlocking the Sonic Wave ability. It is placed after the final ambush section.

Entering SIDE2_TASK_TRIG_01 that is surrounding Mindy's location originally unlocked the An Ounce of Bounce task, rather than by destroying the barrier to the task.

Entering TUTORIAL_SONICWAVE_CHALLENGE_TRIG_01 originally displayed an unused Sonic Wave tutorial.

Entering TUTORIAL_TELEPORTBOX_TRIG_01 originally displayed a Teleport Box tutorial. It also suggests that Teleport Boxes were initially planned for this area in some way.

Entering CHECKPOINT_TRIG_09 sets the checkpoint just before the An Ounce of Bounce task room. Nothing in this room can respawn Patrick, and leaving the room activates a new checkpoint, so this makes the trigger unused of its function despite it not being disabled.

Sandwich Driving 101#

A box trigger surrounds the first motorist obstacle in the level that simply disables itself when entered. It likely served as a temporary hitbox, before its model was finalized. Similar triggers are used for the spike trap hitboxes in No Weenie Parking Anytime, so this trigger likely inflicted damage, as the Patty Wagon is otherwise incapable of physically bumping into triggers.

Wrong Way Failure Triggers
There also exists six failure triggers (LAPCOUNTER_TRIG01F-06F) that have no Links associated with them. Similar triggers in other driving levels suggest that they would have worked together to fail the Patty Wagon if it went backwards in the level, forcing a restart.

Three... Thousand Miles to Shell City#

Entering CHECKPOINT_INVIS_TRIG_10 originally set a checkpoint above the Floating Block Warp Pad.

Entering GGTOKEN_TRIG_02 originally unlocked the "Bouncy, Bouncy, Bouncy" task, rather than being unlocked by pressing the button for the springboards.

Entering GGTOKEN_TRIG_06 originally unlocked the SpongeBall task. In the final game, the task is unlocked after reaching the little island with the Warp Pad to it.

Entering SB_COMMENT_TRIG_02 originally played an unused SpongeBob line about boulders.

Entering TUTORIAL_FLINGER_TRIG_01 originally displayed an unused tutorial for Flinger.

Entering YOKEL_VO_TRIG_01 originally played a Yokel dialogue line, but the line is instead played shortly after the Bash Platform tutorial prompt appears.

Rub a Dub Dub, Slip Slide in the Tub#

Entering UPHILL_CAMTWEAK_TRIG is supposed to run a camera tweak, but the dispatcher that enables it accidentally tells it to EnterPlayer instead telling it to Enable. This results in the trigger remaining disabled.

Entering MINDY_INVIS_TRIG does nothing in the final game, as it has no associated links. Its name suggests that it originally made Mindy invisible while entering the tunnel. Mindy is directly above this tunnel, so this trigger may have been added to prevent the player from interacting or hearing Mindy while going through it.

Entering MAIN_CHALLENGE_END_TRIG originally warped the player directly to Bubble Blowing Baby Hunt, skipping the talk with Mindy. It was likely a temporary trigger used before Mindy's challenges were fully implemented.

Bubble Blowing Baby Hunt#

Entering SPINNER_INTRO_TRIG originally started the Spinner enemy cutscene. In the final game, this cutscene is played automatically after unlocking the Smash ability and ending the conversation with Mindy.

Entering CP_TRIG_13 originally set a checkpoint just before the collapsing platforming section in the hot coal brewery. It was likely disabled and replaced by the checkpoint in front of the Slammer enemies.

Entering GGTOKEN_SONICGTR_TRIG originally unlocked the Sonic Wave task, rather than by unlocking the Sonic Wave ability. It would have activated after the key cutscene ended.

No Weenie Parking Anytime#

ECHO_TRIG_05 contains no Event Links associated with it, but its positioning suggests that it supposed to run an echo effect when going back inside the tunnel. Since a ramp blocks reentry, it's unknown if the lack of Event Links is an oversight or intentional.

Rock Slide#

Entering MAIN_CHALLENGE_END_TRIG originally warped the player directly to Now That We're Men, skipping the talk with Mindy. A trigger with the same filename and purpose can be found in Rub a Dub Dub, Slip Slide in the Tub.

Now That We're Men#

BRIDGE_02_PADDLE_TRIG_01 originally activated the paddlewheel sequence, rather than the paddlewheel itself. It was likely intended as an extended hitbox.

LIGHTKIT_PL_CAVE_01 is meant to set the player's lightkit to tr02_cave_lightkit upon entering the cave entrance, but it doesn't occur due to a specific TriggerFlag changing which side the trigger must be entered from. The trigger is facing the opposite direction that it should.

ENCOUNTER03_TRIG_01 disables itself when entered. It only exists in the second part of the level, and it is clipped inside the giant door (made invisible for clarity). Based on the name, it would have ran one of the scripts involving tentacle monster encounter, with Patrick riding it. It is a remnant from before the level was split in half for technical reasons.

Shell City, Dead Ahead#

Entering GGTOKEN_SONICGTR_TRIG originally unlocked the Sonic Wave task, rather than by being granted the Sonic Wave ability.

OUTOFBOUNDS_TRIG_01 is placed just above the goo in the first oil area. It is enabled, but it lacks the Event Links needed to make it work. Likely served as a temporary death plane before goo was added.

OUTOFBOUNDS_TRIG_02 is placed just below the goo in the second oil area (goo surface is hidden for clarity). It is enabled, but it lacks the Event Links needed to make it work. Likely served as a temporary death plane before goo was added.

OUTOFBOUNDS_TRIG_03 is placed just below the goo in the third oil area (goo surface is hidden for clarity). It is enabled, but it lacks the Event Links needed to make it work. Likely served as a temporary death plane before goo was added.

OUTOFBOUNDS_TRIG_04 is placed just above the goo in the fourth oil area. It is enabled, but it lacks the Event Links needed to make it work. Likely served as a temporary death plane before goo was added.

SIDEPATH2_TRIG_01 is found just below the entrance slide to the Three Meter Island task. Its original use is unknown, since it has no Event links.

AAA_MEASURE_TRIG is found below the goo in Three Meter Island. Its name suggests that it was used to measure something. It has no Event links.

Sundae Driving#

Multiple ice cream cones and triggers are found below the start of the level. They would make the exit barrier disappear and allow the Patty Wagon to cross the finish line without doing 3 laps. They were used by the developers to quickly test each of the different challenges. They are not disabled, but they are impossible to reach without cheats or glitches.

Welcome to Planktopolis... Minions#

A disabled trigger for unlocking the Bungee Challenge. In the final game, a small barrier must be destroyed to unlock the challenge in the menu.

Statue 1	Statue 2	Statue 3	Statue 4

A set of disabled triggers are placed over the Plankton statue eyes. They are temporary hitboxes that run the usual "destroy" scripts when entered with a Sonic Wave attack. In the final game, the eyeballs themselves must be hit. Interestingly, Statue 4's early trigger doesn't launch a "frag_statue_plankton_eye" shrapnel when entered, but it will still lower the statue's health like normal.

A set of four disabled triggers mount the rising spikes at the start of the second half of the level. Serving as hitboxes for the spikes, entering these triggers would have dealt damage to SpongeBob, but would not prevent him from falling through the spikes. In the final game, invisible cube collision objects are used to fix this issue.

Unused Enemy Placements#

I'm Ready... Depression#

At the start of the level, there is a Fogger (left) that is encountered only once per save game, but this behavior was not intended by the developers. This Fogger has an unused copy of itself (centered) that roams offstage when the level resets, but an oversight prevents it from spawning. The Event for loading the enemy is mistakenly overwritten by the initial Event used to unload it during the ambush sequence.

During Up Chocolate Creek, several Foggers were going to ambush the player along the smaller platforms. Their triggers are disabled in the final game.

Combat Arena Challenge (Now That We're Men...)#

Three spawners for Slammer enemies are present within the level, but they never activate. Considering that this level shares many assets with the Combat Arena Challenge from I'm Ready... Depression, it's likely that this level was initially a harder version of it.

Welcome to Planktopolis... Minions#

A set of three jellyfish enemies are right beside the final temple's entrance.

Three deactivated MERV enemies are present in this lava room. Only the fourth MERV is spawned by the Bucket-O-Tron in the final game. Each one likely ambushed SpongeBob individually, similar to the final lava room.

Turn the Tables on Plankton#

The boss fight originally featured 3 Flingers and 3 Foggers rather than just the 2 Flingers in the final game.