Well, once it hits May 1st I'll have a framework in place, and we'll see how people like it.

Hi, all. Sorry for my reticence, it's the busiest time of the year at work, non-stop stress for a month and then it dies off completely.

I'm working on an idea to build a community and get more players to buy-in to speedrunning Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. One idea is to establish a points league, where you can earn points for submitting runs (even if they aren't records) and completing challenges (which would consist of completing runs with certain teams, beating Scorpion in the fastest time, etc.). I don't mind keeping a leaderboard because I keep those all the time in other fantasy leagues, but I also don't mind distributing monthly prizes if that would incentivize people to submit and engage.

Let me know your thoughts, and feel free to join the Discord!!

@kirkq Thanks. Situation resolved, and hopefully we can start to build a following for a very fun and competitive game.

Yes, I tried to update the rules to reflect that. NG just means Default Stats- please try to show that in your submissions. If something needs to be clarified, just let me know.

New Discord- https://discord.gg/8PmNs

Hi, all. I'm moderating Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, and will adjust games and pages as quickly as possible. Please send in any suggestions and edit for clarity in this thread.

Categories will be Single NG (E/M/H), Single NG+ (E/M/H), Co-op NG (E/M/H), Co-op NG+ (E/M/H).

NG means Default Statistics. All characters and outfits can be unlocked, but the game should start with all upgradeables set to 0/1.

NG+ means Saved Game Statistics. All characters and outfits can be unlocked, and the game can start with upgradeables levelled up.

I'll try to get that set up before I have to travel for the weekend, so you'll be able to submit runs. I will review them as I can.

As some background info I'm an older speedrunner based in NY. I play tons of fantasy sports, and my brother and I speedrun on the side.

Normal isn't a category now?

Hello again.

I'm reporting on the sorry state of Marvel: Ultimate Alliance moderating.

I submitted a run last week that was first upheld by Weebmeister, but was then rejected by ZEN_Ivan on the grounds that it wasn't New Game (NG), it was New Game Plus (NG+). The reason he specifically stated was that our characters had outfits unlocked at the beginning of the game. Another run, solo NG submitted by WoweetheDoggo, had a character outfit unlocked but was upheld, apparently because ZEN_Ivan hadn't noticed the outfit selection 12 minutes into the run. After querying the threads nothing had been settled, other than some confusion about what was and wasn't a NG run.

Invited to a discord chat last night, some things became clear. Mostly everyone was on board with unlocked outfits being allowed for NG runs. This added to depth and breadth of strategy, as outfits provide a variety of bonuses that are useful in the touch-and-go nature of NG runs. The lone dissenter, ZEN_Ivan, repeatedly claimed that he did not have access to unlocked outfits for NG, only unlocked characters. It was discovered that the non-Steam PC, OXbox, and PS2 versions of the game also did not allow saved outfits to carry into new NG runs (only NG+). Regardless of consensus (including the other moderator Weebmeister's), ZEN_Ivan repeatedly stated that the argument was finished and that a NG run meant absolutely no unlocks. No unlocks included outfits, but also in-game characters such as Silver Surfer, Blade, and Daredevil. However, a NG run did mean that DLC content was available, which includes characters like Nightcrawler and the Hulk on some platforms. This muddled what a 'brand new save file' meant. In order to ensure NG runs were NG, some runners will be forced to play through the game without saving and/or wipe their save files at the end of every playthrough. The reason for this was it would be "easier" for reviewing run submissions, as you can check in the first five minutes if a runner has any unlocks (meaning you don't have to watch the rest of the run). There was also chatter of creating platform-groups of run categories, amounting to no fewer than 72 different categories, when it could easily be 24 or fewer.

ZEN_Ivan was adamant that having unlocked outfits constituted some unfair advantage, despite the fact that everyone else was on board with permitting them. He also insisted on increasing the disparity for consoles (for NG) by restricting the characters available at the start of the game.If he was against unfair advantages between consoles, he shot himself in the foot by restricting characters to base and DLC, where the version differences are far more game-breaking than having outfits available. He used foul language and insulted other players while providing no arguments himself. He harassed a brand-new runner, Escade, for not having any runs (something along the lines of, "why should I listen to you, you who haven't submitted any runs yet") but proceeded to invite a toadie, Shadow_Dog to the conversation- who also does not have any runs submitted and is (edit: was, briefly) now a moderator. (I was informed in this SR.com thread that I could not be a moderator without having submitted a run). (I'll also admit that I grew more antagonistic as the conversation wore on... internet fights)

In trying to rectify the disparity between outfits, ZEN_Ivan played a pivotal role in not only taking the meta for New Game runs a step backwards, to a more restrictive and less creative game type, but also removed several excellent runs from contention for records, including the previously mentioned run by WoweetheDoggo. The game is now even less accessible to new runners or runners unwilling to erase their save files in order to compete in the NG category, or runners without access to DLC.

In this thread (where this is being posted) I was repeatedly referred to the moderators of the game. The moderator in charge has proven to be selfish and shortsighted, and if other people involved in the Discord conversation are honest, they will back me up on that. We had a group consensus that made the rules clear and simple and would increase competitiveness and creativity, and group consensus was strongarmed by a person who- to serve his own vague interests- reduced both. This is the person admins in this thread told me to turn to.

Sadly, I'm fairly certain that the administrators of SR.com are neutered in their ability to take any action, and are instead content to let the fox run the henhouse. I get the feeling this happens all over the site, which is unfortunate when you consider the following speedrunning has and the outside interest that might be turned off by poor interactions. I implore you to speak with Weebmeister and Escade- at least- to try and understand/change the situation, but unfortunately I believe the MUA community and rules will remain exclusive, unfriendly, and unhelpful to any runner outside of a select cadre.

As an aside, I have runs to submit and will do so after writing this post. I confident that they will either be delayed in their review or will be rejected outright for something bogus like sound/picture quality. (Edit: they have been approved, but aren't in the right run cats).

Sorry for the length of this post.

Edit 3/29: A run was refused because "Normal is not a category now". Unilaterally decided, to my knowledge.

@WoweeTheDoggo exactly my point. If you want to beat the game with a team of your choosing from level 1, outfits shouldn't be omitted. Dr. Strange has a similar boost of Increase Stats, and although he never really stops being made of glass it's helpful to have extra HP. Selecting outfits adds another level of strategy to a NG run, which is pretty clearly the more difficult of the two to complete.

Even if you Didn't use the bonuses on each outfit, from a level 1 start you'd probably need to invest in Defense... so why not allow unlocked outfits for cosmetic purposes?

Another question is, what if you just have outfits for cosmetic purposes? It seems unfair to not be able to play from level 1 as the character you want wearing the outfit you want. Ghost Rider's initial outfit is terrible, but his 2nd- and 3rd-level outfits are much better.

OK, so every NG run requires that you start the game with players available without unlocking them. This includes Blade, Silver Surfer, Daredevil, Dr. Strange, etc etc.. Outfits are easier to gain than many characters. If we can use the characters available from a previous ave, why not outfits?

OK, so every team in NG has to start with the default of Captain America, Spider-Man, Thor, and Wolverine. Then at the first Shield Icon, you can switch teams... but only to characters who wouldn't otherwise be unlocked. Does this include DLC? This should be specified. This also eliminates other NG runs from contention.

I'm pretty sure being able to select a team from the start is beating the game on normal mode, which I'm seeing few, if any, runs on here have done.

Sorry to pop in again. One moderator for Marvel: Ultimate Alliance has been helpful. The other, Zen_IVAN, has been reticent on all platforms and rejected a run without clarifying the rules FOR that run, despite being asked.

I have a run submitted now. Can I PLEASE be made a moderator for this game, so I can clean up the rules for all types of run and moderate the forums (Because nobody else is doing it).

Our 2:57:21 run is NOT NG+. All characters are using default statistics.

Is there some way to appeal the rejection of the run?

We have runs waiting to be submitted for Co-OP NG and Co-Op NG+ for Marvel: Ultimate Alliance. We aren't going to submit before the current times remain unsorted. Right now the current Co-Op NG run is very obviously NG+.

Can the runs please be sorted out so that our times are compared accurately against the current records? Can anyone just move the Co-Op run to Co-Op NG+?

There seems to be a small community for https://www.speedrun.com/Marvel_Ultimate_Alliance/

The mods have NG+ runs in the NG Co-Op slot and no clarification of rules when myself and others are asking. Can I please be a moderator JUST to clean this up?

Is there any chance that the Co-Op NG+ run from ZEN_Ivan can be moved to Co-Op NG+?

Edit: And if it's actually NG done on easy, that should be specified, too...

Edit 2: Also, is NG+ loading saved statistics, as in, level 20+ characters? Or is it with any character starting at 0? Does a NG run have to start with Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man, and Wolverine?

Yeah, but the leaderboards aren't sorted out... the Co-op run is pretty clearly NG+.

When we run, we start timer at the end of character selection

@ShikenNuggets So what can we do? I'd really like the categories and rules to be sorted about before anything is submitted, and I don't mind doing so, but you never know who's toes you might be stepping on in forum communities.

That's what we've been doing. All characters are fair game for NG as long as they are on default stats.

@ShikenNuggets I've reached out to ZEN_Ivan on Twitch, two weekends ago (3/3). He has been streaming since, so he could be ignoring me.I just realized there was an in-game forum yesterday after posting this, so that's my bad. Without being too snippy, the quality of moderation is terrible, with NG+ runs in the NG slot and scattered rules between runs. My brother and I have recorded NG and NG+ runs on Co-op, and are running NG+ single player as well, but I'm not too keen on submitting something when the moderation is so lax.

Also, it says that runs were submitted and then verified by the same person. Is that something that is common across the site?

I know I sound like I'm complaining... sorry.