2021-11-17 Disclaimer: This guide is a work in progress, but is to serve as an evolving base of information pertaining to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus Categories ran on the PC and Console releases of the game.
Index:
- Category rules
- Category differences & setup 3.Platform information & detailing emu use
Category Rules: The categories will be sorted in order of appearance on the speedrun.com page. Any categories missing from this list are to be added in time. If you notice a Category you would like to run has not yet been added, Feel free to message Porkinhiser through the Speedrun.com message system. The rules are the same for both solo & co-op categories respectively.
Any% NG+: Any%- Beat The Game The timer stops when Shredder is defeated (Last Hit) NG+ Is defined by a run started with previous save file influence (see category differences & setup) . Any run started without a previous save file is to be submitted as an Any% NG run under the Misc. extension. Check Resources for Save files meeting optimal standards. Submitted run vods are encouraged to include footage of the main menu to verify the continue button
All Missions NG+: Complete All Missions (Beat every mission in each hub) in any order. The timer stops when the final mission is completed (Mission complete stamp) NG+ Is defined by a run started with previous save file influence (see category differences & setup). Check Resources for Save files meeting optimal standards. Submitted run vods are encouraged to include footage of the main menu to verify the continue button
Misc. Any% NG: Any%- Beat The Game The timer stops when Shredder is defeated (Last Hit) NG (New Game) runs require the absence of a previous save file (See Category differences & setup) Submitted run vods are encouraged to include footage of the main menu to verify the lack of the continue button.
Category Differences & Setup: The differences between the New Game (NG) and New Game Plus (NG+) categories may be a vague area, and this sections goal is hopefully to provide some information towards what I mean. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Battle Nexus works on a single save file system. If you start a new game, you save over the previous. However, when you do that, whatever you have unlocked in that previous save file will transfer to the new. (Unlocked characters, Amounts of crystals collected resulting in amounts of combos moves unlocked etc) This vague definition of NG+ means that hypothetically, you could unlock one or two characters or combos in a previous save file and it would have influence over the next, making the run invalid in NG and inherently a NG+ run despite lacking most of the advantages of a fully set up save file. Runs submitted to the NG categories that appear to have the Continue button appearing on their main menu will likely see their run invalidated on account of the above. I (Porkinhiser) intend to upload save files for both PC and PS2 emu in the Resources tab, and add more as I can/they are requested. The final combo unlocked in the game is very powerful and (paired with instantly unlocked splinter) is ultimately the biggest timesaver differences between NG & NG+, So having the proper set up knowledge is very handy.
Both NG & NG+ start from the "New Game" button. Disabling autosave will ensure your NG+ file is not overwritten, as well as saving some extra time between each mission. It is recommended however to have a backup of your save file just in case. For PC, switching from NG+ to NG is as easy as making an "unplugged" folder in the game directory and moving the save file back and forth.
Platform information & Emu Usage: There shall be a playlist in the Guides tab with videos showcasing the load times between PC, pcsx2 and Dolphin with the Autosave feature both on and off (Off saving time of course) Overall, the most consistent and quick platform for running this game is PC, However it is acknowledged that It is currently hard to access Emulators are (At the time of writing 2021-11-17) Are accepted in the interest of accessibility, With a few conditions that will surely be modified in the future Universally there shall be no speed hacks or other settings that otherwise improve the performance of the game beyond their respective console counterparts. Be aware that Emu runs will be under more scrutiny than usual, and any signs of cheating will be dealt with on a case by case basis. (obv. cheating will not be tolerated) It is of my current understanding that the state of Emulators are currently not on par with their console versions, but mostly in load times and stutter spurts. This game generally runs well on Pcsx2 and Dolphin. Running in this environment will likely cost time rather than earn.
