My feelings on The Demon Rush
Game Page: Doesn't exist yet.
Isaac 'error1' Wehmanen's PC run
Verifier Responses
Runner's response:
Verifier's verdict:
Runner response:
Runner verdict:
Decision: Accept
Reason: This is one of those long, epic 40-hour long games reduced to about 35 minutes.
Isaac 'error1' Wehmanen's PC run
Verifier Responses
Quote:
Odd discontinuity two and a half minutes in and I'm not sure why he does it. (Note that there's no audio commentary on this version, and it may cover this and other issues.) He walks forward a few steps, then loads an autosave which sends him backward those same few steps. There appears to be no purpose to this, and I'm not even entirely sure it's legal under site rules (I've never seen anyone use an autosave to make a segment before.)
Does the same thing five minutes in, although here I suspect it's to avoid a normally unskippable conversation. Still using the autosave.
Again at eight minutes.
Again at nine. I'm going to stop noting these until you can get an explanation.
Other than this odd method of segmenting, no discrepancies, no audio or video errors. The glitches used to skip 75% of the game are actually rather amusing to watch, as long as you're already familiar with the game. Rather low entertainment value otherwise; lots of walking, the remaining unskippable dialog, no combat at all.
As long as an explanation is forthcoming of the segmenting method, accept.
Does the same thing five minutes in, although here I suspect it's to avoid a normally unskippable conversation. Still using the autosave.
Again at eight minutes.
Again at nine. I'm going to stop noting these until you can get an explanation.
Other than this odd method of segmenting, no discrepancies, no audio or video errors. The glitches used to skip 75% of the game are actually rather amusing to watch, as long as you're already familiar with the game. Rather low entertainment value otherwise; lots of walking, the remaining unskippable dialog, no combat at all.
As long as an explanation is forthcoming of the segmenting method, accept.
Runner's response:
Quote:
I want to do a commentary and I sent one with the rest of my files but I don't know how the final video is edited so I'll redo it if it doesn't sync.
The reason I keep playing for a few seconds after the autosave is because it's not clear exactly when the autosave happens, it doesn't do it as soon as it loads, that's why when it autosaves after a enter a room I am not by the door when I load.
I read the rules a few times before doing the run and it's my understanding autosaves are better, the reason you probably have never seen them in a run is because a lot of games with autosaves can record demo files and saving and loading doesn't happen when you replay them.
The reason I keep playing for a few seconds after the autosave is because it's not clear exactly when the autosave happens, it doesn't do it as soon as it loads, that's why when it autosaves after a enter a room I am not by the door when I load.
I read the rules a few times before doing the run and it's my understanding autosaves are better, the reason you probably have never seen them in a run is because a lot of games with autosaves can record demo files and saving and loading doesn't happen when you replay them.
Verifier's verdict:
Quote:
That all makes sense! Consider my few reservations withdrawn.
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The audio and video quality are good, and there were no syncing problems.
There was no cheating, and saves appear consistent.
This run deserves to be the first Fallout 3 run on SDA. There were no major problems. All or most of the significant tricks that have been mentioned in discussions were used effectively to cut as much time as possible. Routes appear to be as efficient as could be expected.
Recommendation: ACCEPT
There was no cheating, and saves appear consistent.
This run deserves to be the first Fallout 3 run on SDA. There were no major problems. All or most of the significant tricks that have been mentioned in discussions were used effectively to cut as much time as possible. Routes appear to be as efficient as could be expected.
Recommendation: ACCEPT
Quote:
Hi,
Having watched the run in it's entirity several times, I've noticed a few 'eyebrow raising' sections which I've detailed below (which I made in notepad as I watched it):
11:11 - New manual save file on screen (#0044), wasn't there previously, but auto save used.
- The game indicates when you've saved the game or auto-saved (certainly in the Xbox 360 version that I play), but I never seen a manual save take place. He used the Auto-Save file anyways and that matches up time-wise. It just stuck out as not being there before.
11:41 - 3 Frag Grenades from bin
- Nice trick with hoping for random grenades in the bin in Springvale.
15:16 - At the citadel there's now a Quick Save on screen which is used, but no Quick Save appears on screen to indicate one was ever made.
- Now here, there's an auto-save when he reaches the Citadel and the Auto-Save would warp him to the same spot as where he is in the run, but there's now a new Quick-Save showing on the screen (and there's no on-screen indication that he ever made a quick save) and he doesn't use the Auto-Save file, so there's no way of - really - knowing if any items were collected in the interm of the Auto-Save and the Quick Save being made.
27:00 - Quick Save for test Labs now on screen (over-writing citadel one), but no idea what time was on Auto-Save as quick save file was used).
- Again same issue as above, the Citadel Quick-Save has been over-written by a Quick-Save for the pre-G.E.C.K.S. collection in the labs, you never see him make the actual Qick-Save file and he chooses this instead of the Auto-Save. So you can't guarantee that Rad-X or Rad-Away wasn't used to get rid of any Radiation poisoning in the interm.
27:12 - Nice spot found when waiting for GECKS that doesn't cause Radiation.
Improvements: It'd be tight, but he could probably have made up the 5 seconds needed to make it sub-39mins by not missing his shots with the BB gun on the Target and the Radroach and been a little faster with the SB leading into the Citadel (i.e. using the jacket jump a bit quicker). But otehr than that, it certainly appears to be a highly-optimised run.
Overall it's not an action-heavy run (which the runner admits to in his run), but the SB's are certainly very good and the overall play style isn't bad either (seeing as most of it is dodging).
If the runner can account for the 2 main areas of concern I - personally - have (the use of the two Quick-Saves that you never see being made), then it's certainly a run that'd look good on SDA.
Verdict: ACCEPT (if the save files can be explained sufficiently).
Having watched the run in it's entirity several times, I've noticed a few 'eyebrow raising' sections which I've detailed below (which I made in notepad as I watched it):
11:11 - New manual save file on screen (#0044), wasn't there previously, but auto save used.
- The game indicates when you've saved the game or auto-saved (certainly in the Xbox 360 version that I play), but I never seen a manual save take place. He used the Auto-Save file anyways and that matches up time-wise. It just stuck out as not being there before.
11:41 - 3 Frag Grenades from bin
- Nice trick with hoping for random grenades in the bin in Springvale.
15:16 - At the citadel there's now a Quick Save on screen which is used, but no Quick Save appears on screen to indicate one was ever made.
- Now here, there's an auto-save when he reaches the Citadel and the Auto-Save would warp him to the same spot as where he is in the run, but there's now a new Quick-Save showing on the screen (and there's no on-screen indication that he ever made a quick save) and he doesn't use the Auto-Save file, so there's no way of - really - knowing if any items were collected in the interm of the Auto-Save and the Quick Save being made.
27:00 - Quick Save for test Labs now on screen (over-writing citadel one), but no idea what time was on Auto-Save as quick save file was used).
- Again same issue as above, the Citadel Quick-Save has been over-written by a Quick-Save for the pre-G.E.C.K.S. collection in the labs, you never see him make the actual Qick-Save file and he chooses this instead of the Auto-Save. So you can't guarantee that Rad-X or Rad-Away wasn't used to get rid of any Radiation poisoning in the interm.
27:12 - Nice spot found when waiting for GECKS that doesn't cause Radiation.
Improvements: It'd be tight, but he could probably have made up the 5 seconds needed to make it sub-39mins by not missing his shots with the BB gun on the Target and the Radroach and been a little faster with the SB leading into the Citadel (i.e. using the jacket jump a bit quicker). But otehr than that, it certainly appears to be a highly-optimised run.
Overall it's not an action-heavy run (which the runner admits to in his run), but the SB's are certainly very good and the overall play style isn't bad either (seeing as most of it is dodging).
If the runner can account for the 2 main areas of concern I - personally - have (the use of the two Quick-Saves that you never see being made), then it's certainly a run that'd look good on SDA.
Verdict: ACCEPT (if the save files can be explained sufficiently).
Runner response:
Quote:
This was actually an issue that I anticipated. It's why I show my save files at the end of every segment. The game can only display one message at a time in the top left side of the screen so it wont display quicksave if it says autosave or press V for VATs up there.
Whenever you fast travel the game autosaves, but the place it saves is the place you are leaving and not the destination so any autosave from a fast travel is pointless to use in a speedrun.
I guess what your saying I could have done is use a cheat to put some items in my inventory, then go to my quicksave spot. Then record a run up to that point in the same time but without the doing a quicksave and just displaying my older save. The only way to prove I didn't do this is because the only items I use in the run are 2 grenades, the lab coat, the vault jumpsuit, and I think 6 sitmpacks.
So for the test labs you can actually see that I make a quicksave and am not just showing you one I made earlier. There is no autosave here, the last one was upon entering the test labs. You see I make a quicksave, then I display the file with picture + gametime so I don't see anyway I could have done anything offscreen.
If me showing the save file at the end of every segment has been edited out you can look at them on youtube
Also if it helps here is a backup of all my saves, It should be obvious if I have any Items I shouldn't.
http://files.filefront.com/13248518
Whenever you fast travel the game autosaves, but the place it saves is the place you are leaving and not the destination so any autosave from a fast travel is pointless to use in a speedrun.
I guess what your saying I could have done is use a cheat to put some items in my inventory, then go to my quicksave spot. Then record a run up to that point in the same time but without the doing a quicksave and just displaying my older save. The only way to prove I didn't do this is because the only items I use in the run are 2 grenades, the lab coat, the vault jumpsuit, and I think 6 sitmpacks.
So for the test labs you can actually see that I make a quicksave and am not just showing you one I made earlier. There is no autosave here, the last one was upon entering the test labs. You see I make a quicksave, then I display the file with picture + gametime so I don't see anyway I could have done anything offscreen.
If me showing the save file at the end of every segment has been edited out you can look at them on youtube
Also if it helps here is a backup of all my saves, It should be obvious if I have any Items I shouldn't.
http://files.filefront.com/13248518
Runner verdict:
Quote:
Hi Mike,
That response sounds fair enough to me. Seeing as you can't quick-save on the 360 version, as long as no other verifier that has played the PC version has any issues with what I've raised, then I'd say it should be accepted onto SDA.
That response sounds fair enough to me. Seeing as you can't quick-save on the 360 version, as long as no other verifier that has played the PC version has any issues with what I've raised, then I'd say it should be accepted onto SDA.
Quote:
Both the video and audio appear to be fine, though the video does seem blocky for a short bit while he's outside in the dark (it's for a very short duration so it isn't much of a problem). Outside of that there really isn't much to say about the run, as said in the comments it's pretty straight forward. Most of the run is taken up by either cutscenes or running to the next destination, there's almost no fighting what-so-ever (which of course, isn't a bad thing in this case). The run is impressive in the 5 or so minutes when he actually has to do something :P, he did a very good job avoiding unnecessary combat and executed the glitches near flawlessly. The only thing is I'm not sure which difficulty he was playing on since I never got to see the options screen. Either way this run passes my verification and is a good addition to the site.
Decision: Accept
Reason: This is one of those long, epic 40-hour long games reduced to about 35 minutes.
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