Hey EpicNess! To try to resemble your grace in your (really interesting!) post, I feel the first thing I should say is: welcome! It's exceedingly rare nowadays to see someone working on a speedgame for such a long time without reaching out to people; not that there are many to reach out to, heh.
I've asked the board mods to move this post into a new thread, since this isn't all too relevant to the rule clarifications. We can't "move" the post to a new thread, so you'll see your post as saying it's by AlexDest. Apologies.
I'm sure Alex and KJ would be more than happy to get Any% NG+ on the boards. The one thing we will ask, however, is video evidence. For the fastest time in any category, it's preferable to have proof. Not only for our own safeguarding, but also for the perspectives of people straying to the boards. I'm sure you understand.
By way of contact, the easiest (and largely only way) to really get hold of myself is through a program called Discord. It's like Skype but designed for gamers, and a large chunk of the runners for Spyro/Crash games, and the board mods, can be contacted. If you have a Twitch account, send me a PM and I can hit you up with an invite link that you can use to gain access to the server. You'll also be able to talk one-on-one with myself and the mods.
So, I guess I need to give a little confession:
Back in the summer, as an act against the fact that no Spyro games got into the speedrunning marathon Summer Games Done Quick, which you may be familiar of, the Spyro community set up a "showcase" - our own little marathon involving all the categories we could get runners for. I simply picked up Eternal Night to fill a gap in the series for what became known as the "Spyrothon". I got a 2:57 and the run was filled with mistakes and restream issues. My knowledge and skill in Eternal Night is minimal. I've played the game like 5 times. If you've seen my run, you'll know - it's pretty bad. I picked up on semi-optimal things to be doing here and there, but I feel it's a bit empty, as far as runs go. It was more "playing the game fast" than "speedrunning". I definitely didn't get as far as OoB tricks. Does that make sense?
Referring to the "new run" reference: the latest time on the boards isn't actually new. The mod team had only just got around to sorting out the console subcategories (differentiation between versions), so it's actually the same run, just resubmitted. For the love of God, don't watch it.
When I first saw your post come in, I was a little scared, if I'm honest. I felt as though by being "the" image of the game, I'd set up expectations. I feel like I've let you down.
But I must say - I dropped the post in the Spyro Discord, and loads of guys were really, really impressed. You've done an excellent job in developing legitimate speedtech in this game. It might make a dull game a lot more fun, both to watch and play. Your work is highly commendable, and we applaud you for it. I'll throw eloquence to the side for a sec while I say: "That's fucking sick."
You've probably guessed by now, but I don't actively run this game. I don't actually run - or even play - anything. Unfortunately, it is real life circumstances that lead to that being the case, so I can't promise I'll be active with the game soon, if ever. I may even be taking my final bow in the community soon.
I hope all of this doesn't come as too much of a letdown. But I must reiterate: you've done a sterling job, and i imagine that this cool speedtech could bring in more interest and competition to the game (I'm looking at you, Dustiel). I'm afraid I don't have much to give you, but I will be more than happy to speak with you about the game, bounce off ideas, and help you if I can in any way.
Thanks for all your effort. Keep it up.
~Xen0va
Well, since this was my first attempt reaching out to people about this, I wasn't sure where to put it. I'm amazed to even get a response, especially this quickly! I must admit, when I first started this, I never imagined I'd get this far, that all of my experimentation and such would only remain within the domain of my house and to a select group of friends who I've shown the game. The fact that I'm this close to some form of professionalism with gaming despite being merely 16 years of age and my long hard work towards my dream is being recognized by you and other members of the speedrun community, it made me cry. I'm so touched and thank every one of you.
Don't be worried about letting me down, I realized at the time that there was really no need to perform very well with many of the games you've run, but what I took from it was that I could bring out a new, unexplored side of a game that few even know and potentially bring to it more recognition, at least in a speedrun sense. I was just unsure of when to bring everything to the table. Once a verified run was available with full video evidence, I figured I'd make my move, regardless of how "good" it was or wasn't. (PS. I only watched sections of it, but for that limited amount of experience with the game, it's a damn good one).
I am completely understanding of requiring video evidence. Unfortunately, I don't have capture cards or anything of the sort at the moment, but I'm working on it so I can properly showcase all this work. It's just a tad disappointing that I didn't have any equipment available and no one really supported me on this or any of my attempts at high skill level gaming up until now.
Aside from that, I have an old twitch account, but I will probably be making a new one with a matching name so it's easier to find me on several different sites if people ever come to me for advice on the game or something. Regardless, I will contact you when I get the opportunity so we can further discuss the game and submitting a run.
Though I am sorry to hear you may be leaving soon and that you don't actually run anything, at least know just that you've attempted to work on some of the less praised or recognized titles of the series did play a small part in convincing me to do this work. You were the only one who I'd figure I'd be able to contact about this game or would show any interest in it if the opportunity ever arose. The fact that I might one day get to show my findings to someone who also shared curiosity gave me hope for my project.
It originally started off as a simple, "how much can I break this game?" thing merely for fun, but now it has flourished into a full fledged speedrun, almost ready to be brought to the world on this website. I'm enthusiastic to continue working with you and get this project out there for everyone's enjoyment.
Sincerely,
~EpicNess
The first run, while the recording is of low quality, is officially posted and has been accepted! Thanks again for the help :D
