Normally, the player is required to defeat the MERV enemies in "Welcome to Planktopolis... Minions" either with the Sonic Wave Guitar or by deflecting their missiles with the upgraded Karate Spin. However, they can also be attacked by walking directly underneath them, which deactivates their lasers and allows SpongeBob to hit them with the Bash. This typically goes unnoticed in normal gameplay, as MERVs' lasers try to repel the player if they get too close; additionally, the Mini-MERV enemies encountered earlier in "Shell City, Dead Ahead" instantly repel the player if they get even closer, meaning that there would be no opportunity to discover this alternate strategy in advance.