The runner of that version isn't even on src. I can just move his run over to any% and eliminate the JP section if both versions are identical
Yes i think it will make more sense to merge it to the same leaderboard and have the choice of the platform. Also tried the PAL version which is a bit slower, but i guess people who want to run the game seriously will use USA/JAP version.
Actually i will reopen the subject because TheBelmontSteaks who is a runner of the game figured out that they were some big differences with the US version in the JP release, especially with the hitbox of the character and of some bosses. So finally should we split again the US / JP version ? And also the EU version because this one run very slow ?
There is a great resource from The Cutting Room Floor that talks about all the differences between the different versions, including things that pertain to the run.
Here is a link to the page: https://tcrf.net/Castlevania_Chronicles
While I did discover many of these things on my own, this stuff has been known about for awhile, I believe. It certainly helps me to describe things way better than I was before! Others can still provide even greater insight than what I will attempt to do now. (Watch Strizer86's recently completed TAS of JP Original Mode. It's fantastic!)
EDIT: Link to Strizer86's JP Original TAS:
As you can read from the page, there are many different ways to play this game. The fastest way to play it is on an original Japanese release of the game (i.e. a physical JP copy or an ISO file of a physical JP release, which is what I currently use in my submissions for this game with Bizhawk. I do hope to get a physical JP copy one day!).
THE 2 BIGGEST REASONS WHY ORGINAL JP RELEASE IS FASTEST In Physical and Digital JP (i.e. PSN versions) releases of the game, the hitbox of the cross and dagger are larger than in International releases, which allows you to begin damaging and juggling the Stage 3 boss immediately when it appears. In International versions, however, you have to wait until the Ice Mage does its first attack and teleports, since the subweapons don't reach his first spawn point.
Also, in Stage 4 for Orginal JP releases, Medusa does not have proper I-Frames, which allows you to spam triple crosses and whips for a quick kill. In International releases AS WELL AS, unfortunately, JP Digital releases of the game, Medusa gets I-Frames after 2 hits, so you cannot perform the quick kill on those versions. This makes the optimal approach for stages 3 and 4 to have triple cross for the Ice Mage in Stage 3, and take it into Medusa for Stage 4, IF you are playing the Orginal JP release of the game.
Also, load times are slightly faster on Original JP releases compared to International and JP Digital releases.
It makes sense to split US and JP because we now know that JP is faster. Also, original JP releases, outside of using emulator, are not as accessible as some other versions of the game. However, we may also have to make considerations for the other dynamics at play here. If we did split it up, the categories that I would suggest are as follows:
US / EU Version (Physical/Digital Copies or Emulation) (Reason: Can't do certain strats that you can do in JP) JP Digital (PSN Releases, etc.) (Reason: Bigger subweapon hitboxes used for Stage 3 Boss) JP Physical (Physical Copies/Emulation of Phys. Copies) (Reason: Bigger subweapon Hitboxes & Medusa QK) (I would call it JP Original Release, but wouldn't want to get that confused with Original Mode.)
Does anyone know of any other differences that would make the EU version distinguishable enough for its own category? I'd love to hear from others who run the game too. Maybe I missed something in the page I provided above? Thanks for broaching the subject Lunatix. Although the community for this game is fairly small, I believe the topic is worth discussing.
“Does anyone know of any other differences that would make the EU version distinguishable enough for its own category?”
Outside of generic NTSC vs. PAL frame rate quirk there's no ultra important difference gameplay-wise that EU version has while the US version did not feature.
A side note, buut there's also an "Early International release" present in some form, but I don't think the "Early International release" is a formal commercial release. I had two physical discs of US version and they are the same content as retail NTSC US PSN release, just like any other would get. I'm curious about the origin of that "Early International release"...
I finally created the categories for original mode, i will add them too for arranged mode. For now i thought that it was better to keep JP physical and digital release together to not confuse too much new runners.
This is another subject but ideally it will be a good thing if we were able to not count loading time as they are different between all platforms, with an autosplitter for future runs one day maybe and will have to retime actual runs.
