RussiaCheat car that The420beni uses in this “record” (https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/znejev8z) is Upgraded Mercedes CLK-GTR. Visually it differs from a stock CLK-GTR - primarily by the presence of three stripes on the body. Also at 1:12-1:19 of the video of The420beni's "Durham Road lap record” you can see that the wheel rims are yellow (while rims of the stock CLK-GTR are silver)
And now about why Upgraded Mercedes CLK-GTR (The420beni's "1:10.03 Durham Road" car) is Cheat Car. Because it is IMPOSSIBLE to get this car in PS1 NFS High Stakes without Hard Cheating, since by default this car... is simply not present in this game
So how did The420beni get an Upgraded CLK-GTR? There are 2 relatively easy ways to do this, and I am 80-90% sure that The420beni in his "1:10.03 Durham Road" used option number 2 - he played NOT the Original PS1 High Stakes, but a special modification called "Complete Edition" [option number 1 is cheat code]
Here is a link to this modification: https://nfsmods.xyz/mod/2811 . "Complete Edition" mod introduces SIGNIFICANT changes to the game, and among other things, adds a Cheat Car, Upgraded Mercedes CLK-GTR. Why do I write that The420beni uses this particular mod with a probability of 80-90% - I have several direct evidence that I can provide if necessary
. . .
Another, perhaps the Main reason why this car is CHEAT Car. Upgraded CLK-GTR is CONSIDERABLY FASTER than the fastest car in Original PS1 NFS High Stakes, namely McLaren F1 GTR without upgrades. In fact, The420beni's previous best time on Durham Road - clearly demonstrates HOW much faster Upgraded CLK-GTR is than F1 GTR without Upgrades:
https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/mkqvk23m
1:10.03 (Upgraded CLK-GTR) versus 1:13.87 (F1 GTR no upgrades) !!
In adddition, some time ago I personally tested Upgraded CLK-GTR on Celtic Ruins using "option number 1" how to get this car (cheat code) :
...and even without significant training I did a lap time of 1:20.84 . To understand how Fast it is - my old Lap Record on this track is a full 4 SECONDS SLOWER (F1 GTR no upgrades, and I trained Very Hard for this result) :
. . .
Summing up what was written above, The420beni used CHEAT Car (Upgraded Mercedes CLK-GTR), which is NOT from the Original PS1 NFS High Stakes, and this Cheat Car is about 4-5 SECONDS FASTER than the fastest (!!!) car in the Original game (McLaren F1 GTR without upgrades) on each track
Thus, his "1:10.03 Durham Road lap record" should be removed from speedrun.com/nfs4psx/levels leaderboard, since he was playing a MODIFICATION of PS1 High Stakes, which gives a Big Cheating Advantage over normal players who use the Original game
Also The420beni's two other “lap records" (Celtic Ruins 1:24.65 and Dolphin Cove 1:32.43), which at the time of writing this post are awaiting approval from the moderators - should be Rejected. Because in these two “records" a Cheat Car, Upgraded CLK-GTR was also used
This is another thing that should have been done a long time ago - namely, changing the current rules of PSX NFS High Stakes "Best Lap" runs. Because at the moment there is an Absolutely Disgraceful and Unacceptable opportunity to CHEAT in ANY Lap Record in this category
And, as I wrote several times before, this opportunity to cheat - is that any player can load emulator save state RIGHT BEFORE the "Best Lap" (for example, just a few seconds before the start of the lap)
In fact, at the moment in ABSOLUTELY ALL Main Lap Records (direction forward) - only a small piece of the previous lap is shown. The Only Exception is my recent Lap Record, Kindiak Park 1:21.56. That is, apart from this record - in ANY OTHER Lap Record (direction forward) it is NOT possible to prove that the player did NOT load emulator save state right before "Best Lap" !!
Moreover, if we talk about the advantage that the opportunity to cheat in this way gives you, it is VERY SIGNIFICANT advantage. The thing is, that if you honestly start the race from the very beginning every time, then you are forced to additionally complete 1st lap, which cannot be "Lap Record". As a result, when you are doing “Lap Record" after 1st lap (or 2nd/3rd lap) - your "focus" is slightly/significantly worse and you are a little/significantly more tired, than if you cheated and loaded save state right before "Best Lap"
And of course, the more difficult and/or longer the track, the worse your “focus” will be, and the more tired you will be. For example, during PRACTICE of Kindiak Park I loaded save state right before "Best Lap" - and my lap time in The Best attempt was once 0.44 SECONDS faster than my Real Lap Record (when I honestly started from the beginning of the first lap)
Thus, I spoke about the Most Important part of the changes/additions to the current PSX NFS High Stakes "Best Lap" rules, which I want to suggest. Next will be the list of changes/additions itself, and explanations of all other points of the rules will be after the list
. . .
1.) The ENTIRE race must be recorded on video - from the very start of the first lap, until a few seconds after the finish of the Best Lap
2.) A replay of a race is NOT allowed to be submitted as evidence of a Best Lap, only the LIVE race must be recorded
3.) HUD must be turned ON during the ENTIRE race. Speedometer and current lap time must be displayed during the Entire race. Video quality must be good enough so that Speed, Current Lap Time, and Gear Number (gearbox) - are CLEARLY visible
4.) During the race it is prohibited to call the Pause Menu
5.) Effect sounds (sfx / effects) - must be ON, and GOOD audible. The sound of the car's engine should also be Clearly audible. It's better not to use music in the video at all, or not to make it too loud (so that, again, effects and the engine can be heard Good)
. . .
And one more recommendation (not a rule). After finishing the best lap, the player must make Save State, but NOT at the Race Replay - BEFORE the Replay, and without leaving the race
Since this is the Entire list of changes/additions to the rules for PSX NFS High Stakes "Best Lap" (5 rules + 1 recommendation), I will immediately explain why this recommendation is needed (save state after the finish of the Best Lap). This is necessary in order for the Pause Sound Menu to be available, where you can control sound parameters. In this sound menu you can additionally check whether sfx/effects are Actually turned ON. And if a car Acceleration Cheat was used in the "best lap", then during this "bEsT LaP” you will hear the car horn (at the moment the car horn sounds, car will accelerate TOO quickly)
It is worth adding explanations to the remaining points of the rules (from 2. to 5.), but right now I'm very tired, so I'll do it a little later
First, a small intro - this topic should have been created a year or two ago, but I didn’t think that I would return to speedruns in general, or specifically to speedruns of PlayStation version of NFS High Stakes. Why do I say that I am “returning” - from about mid-2020 to mid-2021, I had a Lap Record on Celtic Ruins. Proof:
1. http://web.archive.org/web/20200930215640/https://www.speedrun.com/user/Tier4Jean (September 30, 2020)
2. http://web.archive.org/web/20210219001810/https://www.speedrun.com/user/Tier4Jean (February 19, 2021)
Video of this ex-Lap Record is still available on my YouTube channel:
The reason why I deleted my run with this video from Speedrun.com - this run became non-competitive due to the fact that at first Shyanji was just a little ahead of me because of advantage that using a manual gearbox gives you. And then ThunderTHR made his Lap Record on Cetlic Ruins MUCH faster than me because of using gamepad stick (I play using a keyboard, and my 1:24.84 Celltic Ruins run was done with automatic transmission)
. . .
And here the transition to the Main Topic begins, Topic which I want to bring up for public discussion
The fact is that ThunderTHR’s last 2 runs (his Lap Records on Celtic Ruins - 1:23.81 , and Landstrasse 1:38.15) were made using PlayStation CPU Overclocking through his emulator settings (DuckStation)
And due to overclocking of PS1 hardware, the in-game stopwatch that measures the current lap time began to work with a TANGIBLE DIFFERENCE from how it works under normal conditions. This Tangible Difference - is difference between in-game lap time and Real Time
First look at the difference between in-game lap time (IGT) and Real Time (RTA) when the game is running under normal conditions (WITHOUT overclocking PS1 hardware)
And I would like to separately note that for an objective comparison I took the runs of several different players, made either on the same tracks as ThunderTHR's "overclocked records", or on tracks with approximately similar lap times. I also specifically chose runs with good lap times, since I don’t see the point in analyzing "slowruns"
1. Celtic Ruins - ThunderTHR 1:26.90 = IGT ( https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/z03nd8jz )
05.848 - start of best lap / start
01:32.835 - finish of best lap / finish
01:32.835 - 05.848 = 1:26.987 = RTA (+0.087)
Further I will not demonstrate calculations, so as not to overload you with information, of which there is already A LOT. However, I assure you that ALL the figures have been checked and double-checked. And if necessary, I can additionally confirm all the data that I provide here
2. Celtic Ruins - Shyanji 1:24.78 IGT , 1:24.867 RTA (+0.087) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/zp1qngxz
3. Celtic Ruins - Tier4Jean 1:24.84 IGT , 1:24.950 RTA (+0.110) - video of this run is shown at the beginning of this post
4. Dolphin Cove - ThunderTHR 1:36.93 IGT , 1:36.964 RTA (+0.034) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/y2qk5o5y
5. Dolphin Cove - Shyanji 1:32.87 IGT , 1:33.000 RTA (+0.130) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/z5ro54dy
6. Kindiak Park - SilkScarfed 1:23.53 IGT , 1:23.583 RTA (+0.053) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/yj2pleom
...and now let's look at the difference between in-game lap time and Real Time in ThunderTHR's "overclocked" records:
7. Celtic Ruins - ThunderTHR 1:23.81 IGT , 1:23.566 RTA (-0.244 !! ) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/yv1jj4ey
8. Landstrasse - ThunderTHR 1:38.15 IGT , 1:37.881 RTA (-0.269 !! ) - https://www.speedrun.com/nfs4psx/runs/yjg4x9gy
Apparently, either lxBlazarxl, or the moderator who checked his Raceway 1 - 1:03.870 run - mistakenly submitted/confirmed RTA instead of IGT (by the way since when does RTA even matter in NFS HS PC Levels section, lol)
And as a result of this mistake, lxBlazarxl's run ended up where he should not be (in 1st place), although he is 1.5 seconds (!) slower than Ewil's 1:02.340 run
This race is actually Into the Country, NOT "SF to LV". Real time of this run is 2:45.465 , and this run must be 6th place in THIS leaderboard: https://www.speedrun.com/gtasa/level/Into_the_Country ᠌ ᠌ 2. https://www.speedrun.com/gtasa/run/yj454jdy and https://www.speedrun.com/gtasa/run/z0373wez
These 2 other Blantas' runs are mixed up, and one of them has wrong time
https://www.speedrun.com/gtasa/run/z0373wez - Real time of this run is 2:30.818 , and THIS RUN should be Obsolete
https://www.speedrun.com/gtasa/run/yj454jdy - and this is REAL 2:29.482 , and THIS run should be in 5th place on the leaderboard of SF to LV ᠌ ᠌ P. S. If someone tries to calculate the timings of Blantas' runs mentioned above on their own, then please note that all these races are recorded in 29.970 fps
Yesterday or the day before yesterday, the last verified run was 4 March 2021
Now the last verified run is TopalMuharrem's 4+ hours run from March 10, which was checked the very next day
I submitted 2 short IL runs of 2.5 minutes each on March 6 (today is March 13), and they are still not verified
I understand that some moderators may be busy, but we have the whole 6 moderators, of which only 2 didn't appear on speedrun.com during the last week (DiskoSpider and 123robot). At the time of publication of this post:
speedrun.com/user/cazpersky/info Last online: 4 minutes ago
speedrun.com/user/Crucial1357/info Last online: 2 hours ago
speedrun.com/user/hoxi/info Last online: 10 hours ago
speedrun.com/user/Petrus/info Last online: 16 hours ago
P.S. No offence, sorry for this little reminder
"Timing starts upon skipping the initial mission cutscene, and ends when the mission has been passed."
IL rules
᠌ There is no problem with determining the timing start. If I understand the rules correctly, this is NEXT FRAME OR MILLISECOND either after the disappearance of mission name on the black screen, or after interrupting the initial cutscene (because speedrunners usually don't wait for the end of the initial cutscene)
BUT.
᠌ "Timing ... ends when the mission has been passed."
IL rules
᠌ The EXACT MOMENT, which is the end of the mission, IS NOT INDICATED HERE. Is this the frame or millisecond when the message "mission passed!" appears? Or is it a moment earlier when the HUD appears again after the final cutscene? Or some other option?
᠌ Earlier, before "The IL Situation", the end timing was the appearance of "mission passed!". Proof:
At 0:25 and after you can read:
"Timing ends when you see Mission passed"
᠌ In summary, a request to the moderators - accurately and clearly specify mission end timing in ILs
