# Is Atari Making a Comeback

# Short Answer: Yes! 

Atari has been a cornerstone of SRC for many years. The Atari speedrunning scene has been growing exponentially over the recent months after user @VyPr announced the community-based speedrunning tournament Project Retro Season #1 in the Farmington Discord server. Project Retro Season #1 was announced to be 4 weeks long consisting of multiple games being speedrun on the Atari 2600. Dozens of speedrunners flocked to Speedrun.com to solidify their places on the Project Retro Leaderboards. Runners like @Captninja6, @DoritoBreath, and @Zir0nic crushed the competition.

# Community

Atari speedrunning history on SRC begins in 2015 with the game, E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial.

# [E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial](https://www.speedrun.com/et)

![](/static/blob/7n6652nq.jpg)

After Atari made its SRC debut many other Atari games began to appear all over Speedrun.com, some games like [Dragster](https://www.speedrun.com/dragster) and [Adventure](https://www.speedrun.com/advt) blew up with hundreds of runs in those 2 games alone. Some Atari runs can be dated back to 2006 even predating Speedrun.com itself.

Example: Adventure Difficulty 1 in 33.60 by @SadisticMystic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE6MSXqouSk

More games continued to appear on SRC over the course of the following years and the community came to life.

In 2017 the SRC Atari community was left abandoned and deemed obsolete compared to the newer games like [Super Mario Odyssey](https://www.speedrun.com/smo) at the time.

# Project Retro 

Project Retro was announced in August of 2023 by user @VyPr. Project Retro consisted of 4 weeks of gameplay, containing the following titles.

## Project Retro Game List & Highlights

### Week 1

- [Dragster](https://www.speedrun.com/dragster)
- [Tron: Deadly Discs](https://www.speedrun.com/trondeadlydiscs)
- [Enduro](https://www.speedrun.com/enduro)
- [Halo 2600](https://www.speedrun.com/halo_2600)
- [Tennis (Atari 2600)](https://www.speedrun.com/tennis_atari2600)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6t9M9OXaxew

### Week 2

- [Grand Prix](https://www.speedrun.com/grand_prix)
- [Juno First](https://www.speedrun.com/juno_first)
- [Sky Jinks](https://www.speedrun.com/sky_jinks)
- [Q*bert](https://www.speedrun.com/qbert_atari_2600)
- [Commando](https://www.speedrun.com/commando_)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_upNRtIvH8?t=3

### Week 3

- [Defender II](https://www.speedrun.com/Defender_II_Atari_2600)
- [Centipede](https://www.speedrun.com/ctp)
- [Donkey Kong](https://www.speedrun.com/donkey_kong_atari)
- [RealSports Boxing](https://www.speedrun.com/RealSports_Boxing)
- [Midnight Magic](https://www.speedrun.com/midnight_magic)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bG_rQL2W9Qs?t=1

### Week 4 (Final Week)

- [Mario Bros. Arcade](https://www.speedrun.com/mario_bros_arcade)
- [Joust (Atari)](https://www.speedrun.com/Joust_Atari_2600)
- [Pressure Cooker](https://www.speedrun.com/Pressure_Cooker)
- [Pole Position](https://www.speedrun.com/pole_position)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULnVLC7ywd8

# What's next?

After the end of Project Retro Season #1, the SRC Atari community has continued to regrow - a new chapter of Atari speedrunning has begun and the Atari community is asking for you to help us grow and thrive. Help us rewrite the history of Atari speedrunning and become a part of something bigger than we had ever thought possible.

Special Thanks To @VyPr,  @Captninja6, @DoritoBreath, @Act_, @Akuretaki and so many more for reviving this AWESOME community!

Congratulations to @Zir0nic the champion of Project Retro Season #1

[Atari Speedrunners Discord](https://discord.gg/3NJAx2yyjK)

[Official Project Retro Leaderboard](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1AMp8UcrIEn84kSPVJsenT31HBaZUyZB05sgZovGZ-Dg/edit#gid=0)

After years of dormancy, the Atari community Is back and all is looking good!

Atari Community Celebrates Successful Event - Project Retro Season 1

In the world of speedrunning, it's common for dedicated runners to remain loyal to a single game or series, with the occasional dabble into fresh games as they are announced at game conferences. Some are dedicated to a genre, such as racing or first-person shooters, but rarely do we see runners that have the broad skill set to conquer a variety of genres, game engines, and platforms. There is a small subset of speedrunners whose goal is to obtain world records from the widest variety of games (world record grinders), and [Akuretaki](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Akuretaki) is one of them.

This community focuses on high profile games within different game groups and attempts to battle out full game and individual level records. These games range from old Atari hits, such as [Sky Jinks](https://www.speedrun.com/sky_jinks), to IL intensive web games, such as [Seterra](https://www.speedrun.com/seterra).

![](/static/blob/1n87dxeq.png)

*Seterra Individual Levels are largely dominated by World Record Grinders and Run Farmers*

# Notable World Records:

To commemorate the achievement, let's take a look at some of the most notable world records out of the 10K achieved:

### 1. [Nox - Wizard Any% in 34:32](https://www.speedrun.com/nox_pc/runs/mrl0vp8m)

Akuretaki's main speedgame, he continues to dominate the leaderboard with his large skill gap over the competition. He is currently working on a route for the hardcore difficulty.

![](/static/blob/wzxvqrer.png)

*Wizard% is his most optimized category*

### 2. [Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Rogue Spear - Pandora Trigger (Recruit) in 0:14.567](https://www.speedrun.com/tom_clancys_rainbow_six_rogue_spear/runs/z0nd6nom)

Many fans of the Tom Clancy series will quickly recognize rogue spear for its gameplay being very similar to other first-person shooters released in 1998. Akuretaki beat this world record by a single frame.

![](/static/blob/rz2mp8n0.png)

### 3. [Phasmophobia - 200% (Launch Maps) in 1:53:45](https://www.speedrun.com/phasmophobia/runs/z1rrx1rm)

Akuretaki was the first person to pull off a full 200% run in the game, and the only person to complete the category successfully. Why? An extreme level of luck required to complete a run, and Akuretaki spent hours in this category for a completed run.

![](/static/blob/pzmqgoek.png)

*Phasmophobia is a popular horror game released in 2020*

# Interview:

**1. What was your first speedrun, and what made you choose that game?**

> I used to record Mario Kart Double Dash attempts back in 2005; however, my first speedrun with the intent of submitting to a site was World of Tanks. I played this game since 2012 and had hundreds of hours in the game, so it seemed like an easy choice. I ran the Soviet Union Boot Camp category, where I was minutes behind first place. The heavy RNG component made me take a break from the game, and I never submit to the site for this category. My first submission to SRC was Phasmophobia.

**2. What made you decide to start your world record journey?**

> After running Phasmophobia for quite some time, I ran a game called [Carmageddon II](https://www.speedrun.com/carmageddon_two/levels). I didn't like the RNG part of the full game run, so I decided to run only Individual Levels (IL's) for the game, taking almost all of the world records. Once I completed this game, I started to search the **Newest Added** tab on the games page for the site, where I found a game with a lot of IL's. A moderator of one of the games, [Darrel69](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Darrel69), invited me to a Discord server with statistics about anything you could think about on the site. One of these stats was **Most World Records by a User**, and I wanted to be on the top of that list.

**3. What have you learned from your world record journey, and have you been exposed to other genres you otherwise would have not played?**

> The overall take-away from my journey is that there is no such thing as a best speedrunner in any sense. Each game has its top player that creates a gap between themselves and the rest of the play field. It's impossible for one runner to master every genre, platform, and game engine, so make the most of your skills and play the games that are most fun to you. 

> I would say having a variety of games really reduces burnout and I always feel motivated to grind a game. Changing games creates a fresh start, and there is no better way to reduce burnout than to start from the bottom of a leaderboard and work your way up the rankings. Also, after playing hundreds of games, it's much more relaxing to run glitchless than to constantly learn new out-of-bounds and weird mechanic glitches.

**4. What tips would you give to new runners wanting to go down your path?**

> The biggest barrier of entry for any game is the resources provided by the community. When you are searching for games to run, try and find a commentary run to follow along with, it makes the learning process much more seamless. **ALWAYS CHECK THE NEWEST ADDED GAMES!** There is no better way to find a hidden gem of the game than this page, so check it frequently to make sure you don't miss anything that may interest you.

> For following world records that you may want to take, follow games in a genre you like and make a list of what world records interest you. Follow users from genres you are interested in as well, as they usually spot high quality games quickly and go for early world records.

Thanks to Akuretaki for the interview, and congratulations on world record milestone! For those interested in keeping up-to-date with your own standings on many site leaderboards (World Records, Verifications, Total Runs, Etc.), make sure to join [Farmington](https://discord.gg/BYrpjwkteA) on Discord.

Akuretaki becomes the first runner to obtain 10k world records across 761 games, including 1,110 Full Game records and 9,279 IL records.

Akuretaki Becomes First Runner to Obtain 10,000 World Records

# What is it?

*Nintendo Blast: Metroid Blast* is a shooter based on Nintendo's popular *Metroid* series. In *Nintendo Land*, 12 Nintendo Games are showcased as "attractions"; mini-games based on their Nintendo series that range from 5 minutes of content to months of jam-packed action. Represented series include *Legend of Zelda, Pikmin, Metroid, Mario, Luigi's Haunted Mansion, Animal Crossing, Donkey Kong, Game & Watch, Balloon Fight, F-Zero, Yoshi, and The Mysterious Murasame Castle*. *Metroid Blast* is the representative of *Metroid*. This Sci-Fi adventure has 30 levels, progressively getting more difficult. Player 1 will always play as Samus' gunship on the gamepad, and up to 4 others will play as regular Samus using the remotes. The game is quite simple, with each player having 3 lives before the mission fails. 

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaK7q8xVLA4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaK7q8xVLA4)is

Metroid Blast has many different types of levels. The most common is "Defeat All Enemies" where the goal is to kill all Cyclons, Geemers, Zebesians, and Metroids (and their variants) in a given level. "Boss Fights" are battles fought against large bosses where the smaller enemies can be ignored. Bosses include Ridley, Ice Ridley, and Kraid. The final type of level are token levels. These levels require all players to get each of their tokens in a (usually 5 minute) time limit. These levels require less skill and more strategy and memorization to speedrun. From now on these levels will be known as "Kill", "Boss", and "Token". (The game also includes two other game modes - however they are Co-op only and are not runnable anyway.)

Speedrunners require different methods for each of the level variants. One thing that stays the same, however, is dashing. Pressing down the left joystick allows the runner to get a small boost. However, if used at the wrong time, it can cause the runner to hit a wall, considerably slowing down their time. For "Kill" runs, runners focus on hitting the "I-Frames" of every enemy as quickly and carefully as possible. Boss Runners must manage attacking, dodging, and dashing effectively to get a fast time *and* survive. Token runners must use memorization and dashing effectively to score a low time.

One of the most risk/reward traits of "Kill" runs is Cyclons. Cyclons take a long time to open there I-Frame. Before a Cyclon begins its attack phase, (where it's very easy to kill due to its spinning nature) the Cyclon does expose a small portion of their I-Frame. However, if the player's shot hits the side shells of the Cyclon, it will close again before attacking. Taking the shot can save or lose precious seconds.

![](https://www.speedrun.com/static/blob/kzwvk8nq.jpg)

"Token" runners are mainly focused on memorization, speed, and precision. Most "Token" runners memorize and plan their routes for each level. To have a good time on a token level, runners also need to use their boosts precisely at the correct places to ensure a top speed. "Token" Runners must communicate the most to share new routes and boost spots.

"Boss" Runners have the most difficult levels to run, balancing speed with survival. These runs are ones with many deaths and resets. The three bosses are Kraid, Ridley, and Ice Ridley. These beasts are usually quite easy to take down, but when working together can be quite difficult. Kraid requires the use of the bomb; a more powerful attack that can take out multiple enemies. To defeat Kraid, runners must destroy I-Frames all over his body before he opens his mouth. A small crevice in his mouth allows the player to shoot bombs inside, which explodes after entering his throat. Meanwhile Kraid shoots lava, bombs, and fire beams at you. Ridley and Ice Ridley are quite similar to each other. For both flying dragons, you must hit I-Frames on their Hands, Tails, Chest's, and Mouth's thrice. They will shoot lasers, try to grab you with their hands, and will drop bombs.![](/static/blob/7n617mzq.jpg)

Mastery runs are a different kind of run. Mastery runs often have weird differences with obscure solutions. Some levels require the player to only use bombs or to not dash. This will often drastically slow down runs and require players to invent new, out-of-the-box strategies.

Thank you so much for reading! If this does become a series I will continue to find new, medium-sized, forgotten communities to revive with new energy! I will link the main category, 10 Missions, best time below. 

Happy Running!

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp35YCLPpFg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rp35YCLPpFg)

A new idea where we dissect a medium sized speedrunning community from the bottom up, increasing excitement and injecting a new passion for a game otherwise unexplored.

Wolfhowl's Game of the Week: Metroid Blast

Ghostrunner speedrunners came together to form the community now known as GRSR (simply just Ghostrunner Speedrunning). Since 2020 GRSR has submitted a whopping 4500+ runs between the demo and the full game. Even today, Ghostrunner has around 45 active runners - a respectable number for a game coming up on 4 years old.

![](/static/blob/5ngx24eq.jpg)

So when One More Level released a demo on September 14th for the upcoming sequel Ghostrunner 2 (GR2), dozens of hungry runners hopped in to start running and hunting for strats and new tech (including myself.)

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/3uYctGx6rigQQzmn1NEgfXHssGTzWcKuUzIgYU2CsAJvjEuq6ptFvgaxmzKF-Q3yiTEjQs8idkj-LBsCZW3QMb095TDWPqFD51BKKuOid9g_XqGnFX9V8Kled7cjdmh_MQBS-sNPAyCEZMB7BSkni58)

GR1 had a decent range of movement tech to choose from, including Slidehops, Dash Slide Jumps (DSJ’s), Ledgeboosts, Super DSJ’s, Wavedashes, Updog (yes, it's actually called that), and more. Thankfully, GR2 managed to keep all of the mentioned techniques intact, if with some small changes in timing in particular with the DSJ. Since the movement felt quite similar, demo speedrun times were able to drop *fast*.

# Day 1

After the demo was released around 6pm EDT, most people did a casual playthrough and then immediately hopped into testing all known techniques from GR1, and searching for optimal routes and new strats. The first attempted speedrun was completed and posted by [Ekorn](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Ekorn), around 7 pm - coming in with a time of 8:05.370. This was already a decent bit shorter than the average 20-minute completion time for the demo, but with lots of room for optimization - especially with strats left to be discovered.

![](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/nGBrJ9P8iGUuNLAR56fP5UoyKU3jO5adlQ0HvQgb6l9FHbmKEAVjHpooUj38rOL1mCvA_RR0vOVJ2tgjaS6ns-i9EIT9jpO2Yxkjy37pPNV9_hl1jAYBk9A3H2zVUW-SWP9vSK6bZYKS6zDDDvDtJZ8)

Around the same time as Ekorn posted his run, runner [EzBaek](https://www.speedrun.com/users/EzBaek) found new tech specific to GR2 which has since been dubbed Wall Launching/Wallboosting/WEC (pronounced “weak”, standing for Wall E. Coyote) At the end of a wallrun, the game will force you off. After the game forces you off, you have a little less than half a second to stack jump inputs which will send you away from the wall at an angle with increased speed based on the number of jump inputs you were able to get off. So far, wallboosting has no *concrete* uses in the route, but it does provide an opportunity for some alternate strategies in certain places.

Sometime within the next hour, three new skips would be discovered.It was discovered by multiple people that you could skip the introduction to the Slammer enemy type by simply [going around the arena](https://youtu.be/57FKD2W7Vew?si=k1aZG9HHQO2-Q3U7&t=28) with a couple simple DSJ’s. Conveniently, this same skip also skips a decent amount of platforming - overall saving about 10-15s.

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/UInadOv2qpFhaqKBox-FAHDtSzTN8onGozfQcCnKynlLJPhh345GEV0VpkcoHrJuuKXpru9-fRV-lFgIgK5xAfleHEci-fybp3Ommc5H3ZUwDDvDY0hAQFK16jJDIB2DLU4e4MUSakXz6BmJg_hKyx4)

Ekorn also found two new [puzzle skips](https://youtu.be/C-zQWSnbcUs?si=njUgQKiMHTYsufPV&t=155), which added up to an additional ~20s timesave

By 10 pm, top GR1 runner (and well-versed movement speedrunner) [Blaidan](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Blaidan) had lowered the record down to 5:50.110, and then even further down to [5:27.930](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/y9k767kz) by 10:30 pm. This would stand as the final WR at the end of Day 1.

![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/1JWrIY69nY1cPXkuFqQEbq86WcPLXebsvti8Ac8dzhrT69n-k0EbiMlwkPuuovAWxtw4b6V1H9Bc9TBk7jw4l9COEV_XFI6wrxb47smbeSXlZEouO68c6ACtTyD1IsIoKYdrX8iz7klZzI623Phtj1A)

# Day 2

While Day 1 had technically ended, there was absolutely no slowdown of activity in the GRSR Discord server. There was still constant iteration on optimal routes through every area, as well as working on faster and more efficient combat routes for the arenas.

Around 1 am EDT, runner [BladeLMAO](https://www.speedrun.com/users/BladeLMAO) managed to squeak in the first sub 5 minute run with a [4:58.970](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/y9k769ez). Runners [Taartin](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Taartin) and [Pasiflora](https://www.speedrun.com/users/pasiflora) would both follow up with their own sub 5 minute runs just a few hours later.

![](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/oBdTMzifb1thF57m0y8cuwHeGlDVPTEUEyxwPn0VctGLihXEGg1Sp7d4UITMNXyn1QPkA57HrKc_Zjc2HzjxnIpaCyZc23TY-ZROOmx5jyZZ9kuXPcxxZ8I0wF-NCKdDLnr-e2iZrLuiyq8uvWRAps8)

Around lunchtime, runner [Leoninrus](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Leoninrus_Emligan) discovered [the first shortcut](https://clips.twitch.tv/BitterTentativeEagleSSSsss-wWbcf6xoElzOn1ng) in the motorbike section (IWBBT) of the demo. There are a few possible shortcuts in IWBBT, but even [the current WR](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/mr28402y) at the time of writing only uses one, presumably due to difficulty/inconsistency.

![](https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/W_JtwvmUQ2BQIVUse5NqCpVWuD_Vyso4jG8Ss3CY3QB0ZOqz7TyCsjBLLovIR6IHMHev95g6vEzBGSDyo9vcha87hFGRTD_NJjgTbSJPMQpLBPfIBxLNT3tZgE9Vsf9JiwANezsR8E9TVrj6oGX3ML8)

By the time dinnertime hit the East Coast, runner [JanisSG](https://www.speedrun.com/users/JanisSG) had discovered that spacing out boosts increases your average speed by around 20 kph, shaving off some additional seconds in IWBBT.At this point, the run was getting quite optimized for the known route - so much so that by the end of September 15th (Day 2) the WR still stood at [4:57.590](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/zqd6e28m) by [Taartin](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/zqd6e28m)

# Catching Up To Today

Between Days 3 - 6, just about **20 seconds** was taken off the world record. This is in part due to multiple factors, including [faster arena strats,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pWMlFyHT1PA) the discovery that the motorbike goes faster at 60FPS compared to higher framerates, as well as general movement optimizations. At the moment, the world record sits at a shocking [4:37.440](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo/runs/mr28402y) by runner [E1uM4y](https://www.speedrun.com/users/E1uM4y).

Theoretically, a very low 4:3X should be possible within the next few days - or perhaps even a sub 4:30 with a new strat or two. Here are the current known fastest times for each level

**Licking The Wounds** [2:02.XXX](https://youtu.be/hnJhX2ELzcc?si=uULTpEsG6AV-iQSf) by [Blaidan](https://www.speedrun.com/users/Blaidan)

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/lx48htdfXTLqnxY60UMgmRw4MTef5a9sjZYIlPnL1ctUilCVSOmHo-k0v367SU7yBkrAvQtsUEVKuLr7lZKppmycGL5qNnaQMX1HwKdnyWJwoWiGG_H9t5QYFGmy3-pM72z2mVLVMLmfs-8MLwc_LzA)

**I Won’t Be Back Today** [2:29.670](https://youtu.be/LGQt1lfGsoc?si=zgg24ohXWufBFvkJ) by [probablyToph](https://www.speedrun.com/users/probablyToph)

![](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/TmNM6XTA9zZIwwovpfQ2Ioc7n5pOYCMZ78vl9ux0p4t6sxWQUe_S_UQWC2GX15Lw8GvcdZL0Ue_mSNasGFj6o89zd245vAvT9zQYXHRm4sCTWktDDWIQyEUW3I4sSDi4jNQ432OOeiVsS3A1zIuqGv4)

# Conclusion

GRSR is by far one of the most passionate speedrunning communities out there, and I certainly am not biased as a member of it ;) I would like to thank Ekorn, Blaidan, Taartin, EzBaek, probablyToph, and the rest of the GRSR community for helping me out with this article - you guys are the best!

![](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/JWjboeHllo8y_bdVaCJY0ejgDPQWsUPsuR0FRvd2UjtcO1exORjZvFdTG7USNKP2EMY8ToGL-Sf5Zzt4uzQhD6islSdUXLuqzUXDuWHkFDtt6Sdc15bTZC4YFDD_d71v2PR-LO9MS9FjoCz0vfHvlxo)

With the amount of activity, we’ve seen in just the first week of the GR2 demo, between just *two levels* - I can’t understate my excitement for the full release of Ghostrunner 2. The dopamine I get from the early routing days of a fresh speedgame is nearly unmatched.

![](https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/4_yFcmdWpezxnKK_eILApAQbEOHphIDLRKZBpwa4G7zVnRqHCMzlJ6f7jNYZ1J0gVZ0yHK20WxK8flRPICfN-ices7NkQ0YPW-EHJaxAroXNQXmbuftZTX_c0EcPa0n-CypIAJyPN5jSHyNkv9tN6YE)

If you’re interested in trying out the speedrun for the Ghostrunner 2 demo, you can learn the majority of what you need from the world record video - but I also recommend you check out [Blaidan’s Ghostrunner Basic Movement Tutorial](https://youtu.be/1vfsX8hg4ig?si=7L-GUtK2rINkvp99). This tutorial was made for GR1, but all of the advice applies to GR2 as well :) Just keep in mind that some of the timings may be slightly different, and for that, you can reference the [GR2 demo world record run](https://www.speedrun.com/Ghostrunner_2_Demo?h=leaderboards-will-open-soon-restricted&x=z27eemgk-dlo9jvrl.le233z6l).

The first Ghostrunner game (GR1) was a big hit with the speedrunning community when it launched in 2020, especially with movement enthusiasts.