After doing some Battle Scenario runs I got curious about how exactly the IGT of those Arcade Mode levels was calculated since that's our main timing method for the category. Turns out, the answer is a little bit more complicated than I thought it would be. I tested a few different things out, mostly including when the IGT timer actually starts, and what counts and doesn't count towards the IGT timer. The video is mostly the tests themselves, how I conducted the tests, and the results of those tests made clear.

The summary of the results is that the timer actually works differently between Onslaught and Team Battle matches. The IGT starts when you get your first kill in Onslaught, and it starts as soon as you spawn in Team Battles; in neither game-mode does the Character Select Screen BEFORE YOU START THE MATCH count towards the IGT. The pause menu never counts towards the IGT in either game mode, the IGT timer pauses when you pause the game. If you die mid-match and go back to the Character Select Screen in Onslaught, the IGT timer pauses; but in Team Battles the IGT timer continues when you die and go to the Character Select Screen (in my opinion, this is a really important one to remember during a run).

I would say the three most significant things to note for the sake of Battle Scenario runs are that:

• The IGT timer does not start in Onslaught until you get your first kill, so it may be possible in these missions to allow enemies to spawn and gather to you before you are penalized for the time.
• The IGT timer starts as soon as you spawn in Team Battles, so you have to be on the ball and moving once you spawn the first time.
• The IGT timer pauses when you die mid-match and go to the Character Select Screen in Onslaught, but remains counting during Team Battles. So in Team Battles, you want to be especially careful to menu quickly if you die.