United StatesI actually forgot how fun this game was and am pretty excited to get back into it.
I'm the current top time for the NG+ Shizuku True Ending route in all difficulty levels. A new runner reached out to me on Discord to discuss this game. They noticed they had nearly identical combat times as me (in Easy difficulty) but their run time was 12 minutes slower. I investigated by comparing our run videos and I found my cut scenes were progressing significantly faster than his.
I reinstalled the game on my new laptop to investigate further and I found I couldn't replicate how fast my cut scenes were progressing. I pulled out my old laptop that still had the game installed and discovered that before I started speedrunning the game, I had installed a mod called "Akiba Interceptor" that allows you to increase the game's frame rate. The mod author did make sure combat speed stays the same when you increase the FPS, but cut scenes and menus do run much faster. I confirmed my FPS was set to 60 instead of 30 on my old laptop, thus invalidating all my current record runs.
On that note, I examined the current top 3 runs in the Easy difficulty of the NG+ Shizuku True Ending route. I found myself and the current #2 runner (DaRabidDuckie) were both playing at 60 FPS instead of 30. The current #1 runner should be darksoda based on what I've found. I'm sure DaRabidDuckie didn't intentionally boost his FPS to gain an unfair advantage, he probably made the same mistake I did and just didn't realize he was playing with an advantage.
I've gathered some information I'd like to share to prove how FPS impacts game speed and how to definitively tell who is playing at a higher frame rate.
I played the opening sequence of the game optimally at both 30 and 60 FPS up to when Nanashi opens the cell phone after the first battle. I was able to confirm combat speed is unaffected by the FPS change, but cut scenes definitely are.
Since combat sequences are unaffected, I removed them from each run at the same point so the cut scene difference can be observed clearly.
This video shows the fastest these opening cut scene sequences can be done at 30 and 60 FPS:
As you can see, at 30 FPS these cut scenes took 1:29 whereas at 60 FPS they took only 0:51. This explains why my run was 12 minutes faster than the person who contacted me on Discord, even though our combat performances were nearly identical.
This video compares these same cut scene sequences from the current top 3 runs (myself, DaRabidDuckie, and darksoda):|
As you can see, myself and DaRabidDuckie have cut scene times indicating we are both playing at 60 FPS. You can't progress these cut scenes this fast at 30 FPS through any manner of button mashing. The run by darksoda, however, is clearly occurring at the expected time for 30 FPS.
This video compares the current top 3 runs fighting the opening battle:
As you can see, FPS doesn't impact combat time in any noticeable manner, as darksoda was able to beat the same battle only 1 second slower than me but 8 seconds faster than DaRabidDuckie (who was playing at a higher FPS).
Based on this information, it's clear that both mine and DaRabidDuckie's runs are invalid. I've already deleted my runs for the other difficulties in the NG+ Shizuku True Ending route but I've left my Easy difficulty run in place for the time being so the mods can confirm my proof videos above are using that same playthrough.
MODS: please delete my Easy difficulty run when you are done confirming which runs are valid and which ones aren't. From what I've gathered, the current #1 time should belong to darksoda, as I've confirmed his is the fastest at 30 FPS. Both my run and DaRabidDuckie's runs should be removed.
Moving forward, I have some rule suggestions that would improve speedrunning this game: -For future PC runs, either on-screen FPS should be displayed, or mods should pay attention to how fast players are reaching the opening battle. At 30 FPS, it is not possible to start attacking enemies during the first battle before the 40 to 45 second mark. Any run where people are attacking enemies in the first battle before the 40 second mark is playing at a higher frame rate. -For future PS4 runs, the cooperative Twitch commands should be banned. These are cooperative in nature and not part of the expected solo playthrough. Banning these Twitch commands will put PS4 and PC runs on even ground and could encourage more people to run this game.
I apologize for submitting invalid runs and can assure everyone it was an accident. I'd like to thank Heartlessedly on Discord for reaching out to me, as his questions about how to play faster got me digging deeper into all of this.
I fully intend to pick this game back up and submit legitimate 30 FPS runs. Regardless of what the mods decide for future rules, I will make sure that any PC runs I submit use an on-screen FPS counter, so it's clear there's no funny business.
Can I get mod on Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus? Mods haven't logged on in months.
yeah OBS is free and everyone uses it so there's plenty of How To videos on youtube
If you're new to speedrunning, check out LiveSplit. It's easy to set up. You can bind a hotkey to starting / stopping the timer.
I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other on this. I vote for whatever makes people want to play lol.
Are there any rules about what version (i.e. 1.06, 1.09, etc) can be ran?
Also I thought D2 just counted the number of acts you previously completed when you convert from classic to expansion (iirc you have to beat Act 2 in classic to get your expansion character into Hell at all).
And there's no runes in classic, so I'm not entirely sure it would be faster.
Thanks! This makes me want to start running D2 again.
As far as using macros for /players, it seems like it would be unnecessarily difficult to actually enforce a ban. It would level the playing field (and simplify moderation) if some folks just made a macro publicly available then everyone who wants to use it could. It isn't something that actually changes the mechanics of gameplay.
As for re-rolling maps with TCP/IP games, I'd be fine if the rules went either way. I think there's a pretty solid argument to allow it, but it's not a hill I'd die on if other people were wildly against it.
To be completely honest, px feels like the true any% and p1 feels like a miscellaneous challenge category. px isn't a hack or a mod, it's a feature built into the single player game.
By not using px, you are artificially limiting the speed of the single player run which is why it feels like p1 is a challenge category and not the true any%.
Not to mention it should be a lot easier to moderate a px leaderboard over a p1 or p8 since usage of the players command isn't something a mod needs to worry about looking for.
PC and PS4 categories make a lot more sense than glitchless and any% categories
I've been practicing PC Any% and step count recently. I'm learning it by doing a bit more of it properly each run. I started trying just to get the encounters right in the first reactor. Now I'm at the point where I've got step count memorized almost up to the end of Midgar. Just keep practicing, you'll get it.
/p8 runs seem like they would be a real pain to validate
I've upped all my vids to YT but there's a ton of folks that upped theirs to pornhub (lol)
The pip boy is actually a feature of the game and not a glitch.
Anyone ever consider glitchless survival?
