Note: If you're completely new to this game, it is recommended to try to the Amateur Circuit and Semi-Pro Circuit runs first, as they have easier tracks and are a good training to get familiar with the game's mechanics. This guide is specifically for any%, though some things apply to the other categories as well. The upgrade routes do not work identically in the other categories, though, as you earn less money from the races in the other circuits.
Note2: This route is actually slightly outdated, but anything else still applies
GOAL
Any% is beating the game as fast as possible by getting to the credits from a new savefile. To get to the credits, you need to finish The Boonta Classic in 3rd place or better. Boonta Classic is the last of 7 races in Galactic Circuit, one of 3 circuits in the game. All 3 circuits are accessible from the beginning, therefore the only requirement for beating the game is beating the 7 races in Galactic Circuit. To progress, you need to finish the races on 4th place or better.
CONTROLLER / KEYBOARD INPUT
PC has the advantage over console that you can change your button mapping to whatever you want. While on console you have to hold up on the same analog stick which you also use for turning to charge a boost, on PC you can change it to a different button. Like this you are able to charge boosts at any time and can use the boost much more efficiently than on console. A possible controller setup on a Xbox360 controller could be: A – thrust B – slide X – boost Y – tilt LB – repair RB – brake LT/RT – nose down/up
CHARACTER CHOICE
Ebe Endocott is used throughout most of the run because his stats are the most beneficial out of all the starting characters, especially the very good cooling stat, which allows you to boost a lot. Later when you have upgrades equipped, you can switch to Elan Mak. By this point he has a very good top speed and a very long boost, which makes him beneficial especially for Andobi Mountain Run, Dethro's Revenge and Boonta Classic. To counteract the bad handling and traction stats, you buy extra upgrades for those before the first race with Elan. Using Elan is riskier than using Ebe for the whole run, but saves a huge amount of time if played well.
UPGRADES
The fastest way to beat the game is to get the best upgrades as early as possible. You start with 400 Truguts, and you earn 4400 Truguts from each win (if you choose the setting "Winner takes it all"). In the Junkyard, you can get randomized upgrade parts which are damaged and therefore cheaper. If you enter the junkyard and it does not have any upgrade you want, you can leave the junkyard and reselect your character. This re-rolls the RNG and allows you to retry for the piece you want. You only have a few tries though until re-rolling takes too much time and results in a reset. Since the parts you buy from the junkyard are damaged, the stats as they show when you buy them vary for each type of upgrade, and will be better in the next race once they're repaired. Therefore, when buying upgrades, don't look at the stat bar, but look at the upgrade name to know which parts you'll want. The stat a part has when buying is not representative of how good that part really is for the rest of the run.
PIT DROIDS
Every pit droid that you have can repair one upgrade part that you have installed after a race to ensure it is at its full performance in the next race. Therefore, you ideally need as many pit droids as you have upgrades so that all your upgrades are always at maximum performance. You have one pit droid from the beginning. So starting at the 2nd stat after the first one that you buy an upgrade for, you need an extra pit droid. A pit droid costs 1000 Truguts. If you do not have enough pit droids, one or more of your upgrade parts will have significantly worse stats and you will lose significant amount of time throughout the race.
FASTEST UPGRADE ROUTE
Before Executioner: Plug 3 (speed) Before Sebulba's Legacy: Plug 5, Plug 8 [unlikely], or Block 5 [extremely unlikely] (speed) Before Grabvine Gateway: Block 5 or Block 6 (speed) and Dual Coolant Pump or Turbo Coolant Pump (cooling) Before Andobi Mountain Run (only if Elan Mak is used, get these from "Buy Parts" and NOT from the junkyard, we don't need even more RNG): Control Vectro-Jet (turning) and R-80 Repulsorgrip (traction) This upgrade route is very inconsistent, as it has several junkyard trips, the first of which only has a 5% chance of succeeding per visit. Furthermore, the money is very tight, so if one of the parts you buy ends up costing too much (remember, damage on the parts is random, so you may end up getting one that is almost new and therefore very expensive) you are at risk of running out of money and not being able to afford another part or pit droids. Therefore this route is not recommended for new runners.
BACKUPS
Should you run short on money, a possible backup can be that you do not switch to Elan Mak in order to avoid buying the extra pit droids for the handling and traction upgrade. You can also skip buying the cooling upgrade before Grabvine Gateway and move it until before Andobi Mountain. This does not lose time on Grabvine Gateway, but will lose time in Andobi Mountain, since when entering the race you just bought the part from the junkyard and is therefore not yet repaired by the pit droids.
SAFER UPGRADE ROUTES
These upgrade routes are recommended for new runners, or for no-reset settings, such as SRL races or marathon runs.
Minimum RNG: Before Grabvine Gateway: Block 5 or Block 6 (speed) Before Andobi Mountain: any cooling upgrade, or try to gamble for Dual Coolant Pump or Turbo Coolant Pump
Medium RNG: Before Sebulba's Legacy: Plug 3 or Plug 5 (speed) Before Grabvine Gateway: Block 5 or Block 6 (speed) and any cooling upgrade (if you can afford it + the pit droid) Before Andobi Mountain (if you don't already have it): Dual Coolant Pump or Turbo Coolant Pump (cooling)
STRATS AND SKIPS
This game's biggest emphasis is optimization of movement and avoiding crashes. For movement mechanics for beginners, please refer to this guide: https://www.speedrun.com/swe1r/guide/1ic60 However, there are some tricks that can help you save time or avoiding crashes:
Avoiding random deaths: Sometimes, you will just seemingly randomly die. However, the spots on which this happens are consistent. If something like this happens, remember the spot, so that you can avoid it next time. You can either dodge these spots by going around or jumping over them, or in most cases tilting your pod avoids the crash. For a detailed description of these spots, refer to this guide: https://www.speedrun.com/swe1r/guide/fsqjp
Executioner tube entry wallride: The entry for 2nd gravity tube is a hole in the floor. If you race along the track and just let yourself get dragged into the hole, you get a really awkward angle entering the tube and there is a chance that you will hit the wall of the tube immediately upon entering. To avoid this, you can do a little wallride on the slanted wall before the tube to get a bit of extra height, which will get you a better angle to consistently avoid crashing when entering the tube. To do this tilt your podracer and stir into the wall. You will quickly gain a little bit of height, then go off the wall, stop tilting, and push your nose up until you go into the tube.
Executioner gravity tube controls: Controls in the gravity tubes are very stiff, which makes it very hard to dodge the rocks. This is mostly a problem in the 2nd tube. If you hold the slide button while in the tube, you have much more freedom to move, making it possible to dodge the rocks if you learn where they are.
Sebulba's Lagacy wallride: You can skip the large turn at the end of Sebulba's Legacy by bumping over the the hill on the inside of the turn. To do this, go off the track and hold Nose Up, curve to the right and hit the hill at an angle that will allow you to use it as a ramp. Keep holding nose up. Once you hit the hill, curve back left towards the track on the other side and curve to right to line yourself up with it. When bumping on the hill, make sure to not have a too flat angle, otherwise you will not gain any height as you you're not able to use the slope of the hill to your advantage.
NOT A FAN OF RNG AT ALL?
Check out the no-upgrades category! Not as fast, but 100% RNG-free. Note though, that for beginner runners, No upgrades runs are slightly harder to finish, as the upgrades give you an advantage over the AI. If you are familiar with the tracks and the mechanics of the game, though, it should not be much of an issue.
