I'm way late but thank you for this. I've finally uploaded his runs to the board.

Hey all. I'm going to switch the primary timing method to IGT. I've discussed this with Zoast a while back in relation to how turning music/SFX off to save time RTA is kind of lame, but it also helps even out differences between console and emulated versions which is the main thing. I won't change it for about a day in case anyone has any concerns about it.

I'm also going to upload the ol' SDA times (finally) as they're good runs and... MrMonkeyMan's SuperEasy time is still WR if we time by IGT! Thanks NeGAtiv4k for posting it a while back. I deeply apologize for any confusion this has caused/will cause ( orz )

Finally, I'll add a note in the rules to clarify that loading replays on the PS2 Sega Ages version is fine.

Yes, thanks a bunch! So it is based on shotdown percent. That explains why I kept having trouble with the bosses for Areas 1 and 2, I was trying to destroy everything which would otherwise be faster.

I've been looking but I can't find a lot of info on how to do a Hard mode playthrough? Based off one thread you need 98% shotdown? Can someone clarify please?

Hi all, I'd like your opinions on this. I'm wondering if turning the in-game music off with the BGM Switch in Options should be allowed in the rules or not. It speeds up the entire game and reduces lag. For example, the brain-worm before Bugmax becomes significantly faster, as well as any screen-wide boss explosion like Joker or Sunset Sting. Currently, I don't know how much time it saves RTA exactly, nor do I know if it affects IGT at all. But my guess is it saves over 5 seconds overall, and it causes IGT to be slower.

• Should BGM Switch be acceptable? Sacrifice music for speed? It is an option in the game, and is neither a cheat nor a glitch. It doesn't change boss strategies or stage routes either. This is what I'm leaning towards.
• Should it be separated as a sub-category? This keeps things neat but I doubt it will be popular enough to warrant breaking the board up.
• Should it be banned? This prevents the fastest RTA from being reached, but it preserves the integrity of the game experience.

This all applies to SFX Switch too, but I'm ignoring that to keep things simple.

Hi there. I took the liberty of making some tutorials for the Genesis port. It's not super professional but it covers the main route, good setups for bosses and movement, and possible alternatives and mistakes.

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

I ran into this on a casual playthrough and it seems pretty easy to do, so I'm making a thread to warn any future runners of this game. When you get to the exit of Sandcastle Desert 3, do NOT jump off Squeak right next to it. He'll just walk into the wall forever lol

Warning: Vulgar language

Hey all. I've turned on verification for runs now as I have a run I believe beats the Supereasy WR. I don't want to self-verify it. If ZZZ or Zoast could take a look-see I'd appreciate it a lot.

I also figured non-verification would help fill the boards at first, but we have a decent amount of runs now. I'm active to verify anyone else's so I think it's a good time to activate it.

I've added the timing rules now and decided on last hit over fadeout. I edited all of the final times to fit that timing rule.

I personally prefer splitting on last hit as that's pretty consistent with SDA timing in many other games. Run timing should measure all the playtime within player control. It's a timing new runners would be used to and find intuitive. In addition, after the last hit, there is that control lock and also that the in-game timer stops. There's nothing useful that's being timed after that. Lastly, it is easier to split later, especially on keyboard, but that's all. I'm willing to make the adjustments to timings.

Please let me know if you disagree and would prefer fadeout! I did overlook the informal consensus Mannix mentioned for what I think is sound reasoning, but maybe I'm wrong.

Alright, I'll open it up. Give it a shot!

Nope, either region is fine!

Just want to weigh in on the New Save/No Save rule. It should at least include Angel Island saves as valid.

For one, with the current route, nobody is going to do No Save anymore. Even beginners can easily soft reset for cutscene skips.

Second, I've done hundreds of runs off of Angel Island files and noticed absolutely no difference whatsoever from hundreds of runs of New Save files. There is no easily discernible difference between Angel Island and New Save. The Angel Island cutscene plays the same on either type, the game doesn't save acquiring new lives until you beat AIZ2, and everything else is the same too. The CN2 mystery block also works the same on either file type. I'm aware it's different for starting from any other stage, but I'm focusing on the merits of Angel Island resets.

Third, if the original intent was so no parts of the game are skipped by means of file select, by which I mean that players start on Angel Island and play through each stage to the fadeout after Death Egg 2 (obviously with the exception of skipping zones by glitches in-game), then that should be made clear. If the intent was to prevent runners starting with Chaos Emeralds already collected for an All Emeralds run, then that too should be made clear. New Save covers all this, sure, but the rule doesn't say you can't switch to a different save file after starting, does it?

Fourth, why is the burden of proof not on the rule itself? I'm sorry that I missed it, Timpz, but if you could please put in this forum any evidence of influence from an Angel Island reset, it would at least be some justification for holding onto it. Otherwise, disproving influence seems like a gargantuan and unpleasant task for the handful of S3K ASM experts we have. As is, despite having no visible nor clear justification and such a high standard to remove it, this rule remains as an inconvenience for every runner. Just to reset the first stage, you waste at least 5 seconds each reset all to avoid a 'what-if' scenario.

It's silly :P

I'll put my vote in to include competition mode as I play it a decent amount. I'm on the side of a new leaderboard with respect to TSC due to defunct TSC videos, the advantage of redundancy, and that S3K comp levels aren't accounted for on TSC.

I'm going to go ahead and make a 100% category but call it All SBPs, Best Ending. I won't call it 100% because It's impossible as far as I can tell to get absolutely all the items like 500 pts, health, and extra lives (the path choice on 8-3 comes to mind). I'd love to be proven wrong though.

Best Ending on its own is pretty hollow and I don't think it'd be interesting without SBPs. All SBPs alone is good and I can make a category for that too if you guys want. I know Mecharichter used to do runs of that. For now, I'll just start the wider category.

Can the mod add a category for the GBA version please? Some friends and I did a race of all the Easy stages and we'd like to submit our times.

First, I'll add:

• [slower] Scene 3-1, the Japanese version has a Headcase with Hammer Head at the Flying Soldiers battle.
• [faster] Scene 3-3, Japanese version has a slight delay before the arrow appears. (Edit)
• [faster] Scene 6-1, there's a second wave of Hovers and a longer pause before and after they appear.

Now let me break down those differences in terms of times based off of my splits, favoring the international version. Scene 3-1: [+7s] Scene 3-3: [-3.5s] (Edit) Scene 5-2: Japanese version will always be 110 seconds. International version is, of course, all over the place. My average time is 150 seconds; my best time is 70 seconds and I think mecharichter got 60 seconds once. But basically, [+40s]. Scene 6-1: [-30s] always Scene 6-4: [-20s] or less (don't have the intro in isolation atm). Scene 7-1: At minimum, [+10s] with a perfect bomb strat. Scene 8-5: [-30s] or less, never optimized this fight. Scene 9-3: [+45] or more Dialogue boxes: [0s] with frame-perfect clears, realistically more like [-5s]?

If we don't count a good 5-2 as likely, then with optimal gameplay, comparing the two versions, the international comes out about [13.5 seconds behind] (Edit). And yet a good 5-2 can set it [23 to 33 seconds ahead].

That's not a negligible difference either way. With that variability on top of its significant difficulty increase over the Japanese version, there's certainly enough reason to separate any%. Separate categories might even encourage more people to do speedruns! Maybe?

¤ clears throat ¤

Henceforth any% shall be separated between international and Japanese versions.