Questions for Speed Run Feature Article

2004-08-16 10:23:43 pm

Hey forum-goers

I'm currently researching a freelance article about the phenomenon of playing through games quickly and the internet culture that has sprung up around it. I figure the members of this forum would make for great sources for this article. If you could take some time to answer any or all of these questions, it would help me out a lot.

You can post your answers on this thread or e-mail me at kyle.orland@gmail.com with your answers. One condition, though... if I'm to use your comments in my article, I need your full name, e-mail address and location (city and state is fine). If you don't want these to be public, you can of course e-mail them to me, even if you poist the answers here. If you are worried about my credibility, I can provide sources to verify my assignment.

Questions:
------------

First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?

When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?

What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?

Mainly for demo-makers: What drives people to go through a game as quickly as possible? Is there a certain personality type that is best suited to making speed demos? What kinds of specific skills do you need to make a truly great speed run?

For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?

Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?

Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?

Regarding the people you've met in these forums and in the course or making/watching speed demos: Do you find they share a lot in common with you, or is it a varied group? Is there friction between different personalities, or do you mostly get along?

What defines cheating in a speed demo? Is the use of unintended glitches in the game engine cheating? Does it go against the spirit of the game, or is anything legal in pursuit of speed? Where do you draw the line?

What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?

What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?

-Kyle Orland

Thread title:

Hey forum-goers

I'm currently researching a freelance article about the phenomenon of playing through games quickly and the internet culture that has sprung up around it. I figure the members of this forum would make for great sources for this article. If you could take some time to answer any or all of these questions, it would help me out a lot.

You can post your answers on this thread or e-mail me at kyle.orland@gmail.com with your answers. One condition, though... if I'm to use your comments in my article, I need your full name, e-mail address and location (city and state is fine). If you don't want these to be public, you can of course e-mail them to me, even if you poist the answers here. If you are worried about my credibility, I can provide sources to verify my assignment.

Questions:
------------

First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?

When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?

What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?

Mainly for demo-makers: What drives people to go through a game as quickly as possible? Is there a certain personality type that is best suited to making speed demos? What kinds of specific skills do you need to make a truly great speed run?

For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?

Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?

Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?

Regarding the people you've met in these forums and in the course or making/watching speed demos: Do you find they share a lot in common with you, or is it a varied group? Is there friction between different personalities, or do you mostly get along?

What defines cheating in a speed demo? Is the use of unintended glitches in the game engine cheating? Does it go against the spirit of the game, or is anything legal in pursuit of speed? Where do you draw the line?

What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?

What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?

-Kyle Orland

RandomEngy

2004-08-17 11:24:15 pm

A Crab

David Rickard
davidrickard@hotmail.com
Murfreesboro TN

First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?
I like making speed demos but I guess I'm mainly a viewer.

When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?
I heard about Quake Done Quick a few years ago but wasn't able to get the demos to play. A year ago I finally was able to watch Quake Done Quick with a Vengeance and it blew me away. A while after that Radix's 100% Metroid Prime run led me to this site.

What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?
I like to watch runs mainly because often they show amazing talent or exhibit strange and unexpected ways of finishing parts of the game. I enjoy making them because it's fun and challenging to do and you get a sense of satisfaction and acheivement when you're done.

Mainly for demo-makers: What drives people to go through a game as quickly as possible? Is there a certain personality type that is best suited to making speed demos? What kinds of specific skills do you need to make a truly great speed run?
I think a lot of the drive comes from the competition and the community around speed running and the audience. I don't think many people would sit around and make speedruns if they could never show them to anyone.

I think the main attribute that a speed runner needs is persistence. When you mess up you have to be willing to start over and try again (in some cases many times). Speed runners also have to be willing to experiment and plan.

As for required skills, you just need to be good at the basic skills of the game. For example before you try a Half-Life run you have to learn how to bunnyhop. But the most important thing is you have to enjoy playing it.

For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?
The time can vary greatly based on the game involved, whether it's a segmented or single-segment run, the route and the overall quality of the run. I worked on my Half-Life run off and on in my spare time over a period of a month and a half.

As for the process, it usually starts with monkeying around with the game, finding tricks, techniques and shortcuts and planning a general route. After this you might time alternate routes and strategies and see which ones are better. Once most of the route and tricks are laid out, you start on practice runs then concentrate on the hotspots where it's particularly tricky to get by (It's easier to do this with some games over others). Then you start recording attempts. Once you get one that you're happy with, you post it up for others to watch, give feedback on and improve upon.

Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?
The choice of game/level is probably the biggest factor in how enjoyable a run is to watch. Other than that, mostly the runs that are done faster are more entertaining. However I don't mind sacrificing a second or two to do something interesting or cooler to watch. I don't complain when someone else does it the faster way, though. It is called SPEED running after all. If you focus too much on artistic actions, you're probably better off just making a normal video of it rather than trying to fit it into a speedrunning category.

Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?
Oddly enough, in many cases it's both at once. When someone posts a faster time, even in a competetive spirit, it often helps the community by showing new shortcuts, tricks or other additions. Many speedruns are built upon the contributions of several runners, even though they didn't explicitly work together on the same run.

Regarding the people you've met in these forums and in the course or making/watching speed demos: Do you find they share a lot in common with you, or is it a varied group? Is there friction between different personalities, or do you mostly get along?
Friction? Nah, the community here has been entirely supportive and constructive.

What defines cheating in a speed demo? Is the use of unintended glitches in the game engine cheating? Does it go against the spirit of the game, or is anything legal in pursuit of speed? Where do you draw the line?
I personally find nothing wrong with using exploits or unintended glitches (see below). Radix has some lax rules about "no mysterious teleportation" but any means short of explicit cheating or slowing down the game are fine with me. However, I do see the merit in completing a game without using glitches or exploits, which is why I support separate categories (see the Mario 64 16 star/60 star runs).

What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?
Games that move fast, show varied environments and challenges and don't force the player to wait are generally more fun to watch. Also, it may seem weird, but I like to watch runs of games that have glitches or make it possible to skip parts of the game. When no shortcuts or time-saving measures are present, the run becomes predictable and far less interesting, not to mention longer. I just love it when someone finds a clever way to circumvent the game.

What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?
That's a tough call. Either Quake Done Quick with a Vengeance or Kip's 1:04 Metroid Prime run. Both are highly entertaining to watch and exhibit an extradinary amount of skill, ingenuity and effort.

David Rickard
davidrickard@hotmail.com
Murfreesboro TN

[i]First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?[/i] 
I like making speed demos but I guess I'm mainly a viewer.

[i]When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?[/i] 
I heard about Quake Done Quick a few years ago but wasn't able to get the demos to play.  A year ago I finally was able to watch Quake Done Quick with a Vengeance and it blew me away.  A while after that Radix's 100% Metroid Prime run led me to this site.

[i]What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?[/i]
I like to watch runs mainly because often they show amazing talent or exhibit strange and unexpected ways of finishing parts of the game.  I enjoy making them because it's fun and challenging to do and you get a sense of satisfaction and acheivement when you're done. 
 
[i]Mainly for demo-makers: What drives people to go through a game as quickly as possible? Is there a certain personality type that is best suited to making speed demos? What kinds of specific skills do you need to make a truly great speed run?[/i]
I think a lot of the drive comes from the competition and the community around speed running and the audience.  I don't think many people would sit around and make speedruns if they could never show them to anyone.

I think the main attribute that a speed runner needs is persistence.  When you mess up you have to be willing to start over and try again (in some cases many times).  Speed runners also have to be willing to experiment and plan.

As for required skills, you just need to be good at the basic skills of the game.  For example before you try a Half-Life run you have to learn how to bunnyhop.  But the most important thing is you have to enjoy playing it.
 
[i]For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?[/i]
The time can vary greatly based on the game involved, whether it's a segmented or single-segment run, the route and the overall quality of the run.  I worked on my Half-Life run off and on in my spare time over a period of a month and a half.

As for the process, it usually starts with monkeying around with the game, finding tricks, techniques and shortcuts and planning a general route.  After this you might time alternate routes and strategies and see which ones are better.  Once most of the route and tricks are laid out, you start on practice runs then concentrate on the hotspots where it's particularly tricky to get by (It's easier to do this with some games over others).  Then you start recording attempts.  Once you get one that you're happy with, you post it up for others to watch, give feedback on and improve upon.
 
[i]Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?[/i]
The choice of game/level is probably the biggest factor in how enjoyable a run is to watch.  Other than that, mostly the runs that are done faster are more entertaining.  However I don't mind sacrificing a second or two to do something interesting or cooler to watch.  I don't complain when someone else does it the faster way, though.  It is called SPEED running after all.  If you focus too much on artistic actions, you're probably better off just making a normal video of it rather than trying to fit it into a speedrunning category.
 
[i]Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?[/i]
Oddly enough, in many cases it's both at once.  When someone posts a faster time, even in a competetive spirit, it often helps the community by showing new shortcuts, tricks or other additions.  Many speedruns are built upon the contributions of several runners, even though they didn't explicitly work together on the same run.
 
[i]Regarding the people you've met in these forums and in the course or making/watching speed demos: Do you find they share a lot in common with you, or is it a varied group? Is there friction between different personalities, or do you mostly get along?[/i]
Friction?  Nah, the community here has been entirely supportive and constructive.
 
[i]What defines cheating in a speed demo? Is the use of unintended glitches in the game engine cheating? Does it go against the spirit of the game, or is anything legal in pursuit of speed? Where do you draw the line?[/i]
I personally find nothing wrong with using exploits or unintended glitches (see below).  Radix has some lax rules about "no mysterious teleportation" but any means short of explicit cheating or slowing down the game are fine with me.  However, I do see the merit in completing a game without using glitches or exploits, which is why I support separate categories (see the Mario 64 16 star/60 star runs).
 
[i]What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?[/i]
Games that move fast, show varied environments and challenges and don't force the player to wait are generally more fun to watch.  Also, it may seem weird, but I like to watch runs of games that have glitches or make it possible to skip parts of the game.  When no shortcuts or time-saving measures are present, the run becomes predictable and far less interesting, not to mention longer.  I just love it when someone finds a clever way to circumvent the game.
 
[i]What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?[/i]
That's a tough call.  Either Quake Done Quick with a Vengeance or Kip's 1:04 Metroid Prime run.  Both are highly entertaining to watch and exhibit an extradinary amount of skill, ingenuity and effort.

Timinator

2004-08-17 11:36:06 pm

18 to the diablo2 holy grail

didn't have time to read all your post .. very rushed .. but go to the players section on the main site .. the read ALL the player profiles, you'll get a bit of an idea of the quake people, and some of those that dont come here

BogoJoker

Edit history:

BogoJoker: 2004-08-24 07:14:26 pm

2004-08-24 07:11:41 pm

Intrested Quake Player Striving to be Recognized

Hey Kyle: Here goes!

name: Joe Pecoraro
quake nick: BogoJoker
e-mail: joepeck02@yahoo.com
location: New York

Questions:
------------

First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?

At first i just watched the demo... Now after about 1 week I hold 14 records including 1 id record!!! So i'm more equal now

When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?

The idea comes naturally. My experiences with speed demos came from quakeworld (a much faster modification of the original quake). There were a few trick maps that were very popular that were at one time so difficult it for newer/less expereinced players it would be nearly a miracle if they could finsh each trick once on the maps. So some players decided to step it up a notch (me included) and run through them all the fastest time emerging victorious. Clearly if you didnt fail you got better times. Than as you got good enough you could add tricks to allow you to run through even faster. Thus in the 2 popular trick maps of quakeworld I got the world record for map trick1 and i'm up there on map ztricks.

Quake single player speed runs i knew had been done fast. The skills needed in these runs were different but I felt I had what i needed. I came in recentely and followed their leads. The players here have already done the mapping out of all the routes needed for optimised times on the quake maps. All that is left is runners willing to take the tricks to the next level. I am willing to give it a try.

I only recently came across this site. probably earlier this year. I can check in my forum account (what i'm useing RIGHT NOW) because that would give me an accurate time. I like the fact that this site is updated frequently (normally with fun humor). Another thing is this is more of an individual game. But at the same time your getting full support by all the other runners. I used to play quakeworld for the challenge of games but less and less people play that and I find that i'm alone more and more often.

What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?

I dont really have a preference. Hell, making a speed demo could not give you a more satisfiying feeling. Working on 1 demo for up to 5 hours (as i did with single tricks NEVER BEFORE ACCOMPLISHED in quakeworld). makes you feel on top of the world. But as your study should show there is so much support between runners that when I watch a CLEAN, INCREDIABLE demo by another player I get almost the same feeling. Its gratifying to see the game near completion with every improvement. The game isnt complete till its done correctly... FAST!!!!

Mainly for demo-makers: What drives people to go through a game as quickly as possible? Is there a certain personality type that is best suited to making speed demos? What kinds of specific skills do you need to make a truly great speed run?

I could write for hours... When you first beat a game you feel satisfied. You did it... Others have done it... If your competative naturally you want to do it better. That is one reason players will strive to speed run. To be the best. Another: to be distinguished. To do what no other player has doen before (and countless players have tried). 2 examples of this are: Peter Horvath's e1m1 ER time and Kay B's 100m time... Both unparalleled.

Recap: Competition. Achievement/Honor/Glory

So for a person to want to speed run they should be competative. Oh ya... and so many quake players i know have spent hours and maybe weeks working on one demo. Patience helps!

To make a good run you have to have so many skills. let me see what I can list. You have to know what your doing. Map it out. Run through a map a couple - many times. See how every move you do affects every object in the game. Physics applies in quake as much as real life physics. A perfect example of this is Stubbgard's Nightmare 100% on THE WIND TUNNELS. He shoots a scrag, jumps in the water and grabs some rockets.... The result of his actions is that he stocks his ammo and attracts the scrag to an easier position to kill.
Movement is the key to speed runs. In quake moveing can be as simple as holding down a key (+forward) or rapidly alternating keys to run faster, move quicker, and outperform the simple basics.
As always. Luck is a factor. An example: In quake there is a rocket launcher. A direct hit to a monster or person causes 100 dmg and 1-20 dmg calculated randomly. So if you hit a monster 3 times direcetly you do 303 dmg or 360 dmg... Maybe kill it... Maybe not... That is only tenths of a second but that could be too much in this now nearly optimized quake.

Recap:
1) Know what your doing and how that Affects everything.
2) Excel at the basics, always do your best
3) Get some Luck.

For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?

Some maps require more skills than others. e2m1 can be performed in 7 seconds... It has not been done faster and it might be impossible to be performed faster. But my point is to do that demo you need only know how to perfrom a few skills (bunny hopping) and you can get the fastest possible time. You dont have to know how to aim or shoot or manipulate monsters. Each map has different lamounts of skill required.

A good speed run requires knowledge of th emap, mosnsters, and your abilities. If you cant aim dont choose to do a 100% run that requires just that. Knowing what you can do allows you to focus on maps that you have a chance of improving. But as each demo comes in and an improvement is made, Quake gets more impossible to imrprove. Probably to improve an ID record right now you would ahve to spend 1 hour minimum learning everything you can about the map and monsters before you can truely make a run that you know how every monster is acting while your going through it. If you know so much about a map you can do much better.

Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?

Good point. The best speed demos are imaginative, perform tricks that the average player wouldnt notice or be able to do. Eye candy always makes it enjoyable. The fastests demos are normally straightforward but when they have tricks that are the ones that people like to watch.
Examples:
e3m6_028 nightmare run
e1m4_019 and 018 i think
e1m3 nightmare 100% at the end....
So many i cant name them!

Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?

Competition brings out the best int he players but the most wonderful part is that everyone is cheering you on and congragulating you for every thing you do. Great fun!

Regarding the people you've met in these forums and in the course or making/watching speed demos: Do you find they share a lot in common with you, or is it a varied group? Is there friction between different personalities, or do you mostly get along?

I cant answer this one to well. I always have funw ith them and they have good humor. They are so supportive! Its enjoyable.

What defines cheating in a speed demo? Is the use of unintended glitches in the game engine cheating? Does it go against the spirit of the game, or is anything legal in pursuit of speed? Where do you draw the line?

Cheating is detectable when you play a game so long that you ahve almost unrestricted understanding of it. There are ways to cheat and in some cases competitions useing improper settings to maximize fun and add another challenge to the game. But in the original records cheating is unsportsmanlike.

What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?

Any game. In my case its the games I'm good at. Phil told me the other day I have a knack for fps games. I have accomplished so much in my quake career that so few others have done. I would be catagorized in a different catagory than individual players who have won cahmpionships (Duel-Mania/NetQuakeRank) but I have reached a point in quakeworld that I am content. Including doing some things no other player has done and I have demos of these moments. But almost everyone has their favorite moments. The thing is I caught mine on tape and can show others. That gives me my extra boost. name any game and you can have some speed thing. I'll list some examples:
Diablo II (RPG): Fastest win time. Fastest lvl 99.
Starcraft (Strategy): Fastest win vs 7 random computers all vs you. For all 3 races. Non-expansion and with expansion
Super Smash Brothers Melee (Game-Cube): SO SO MANY: tiem trials, home run distance, fastest times, most knock outs.
Everygame you can finsh an=d say to yourself. How can i do this better. And how can this be done best...

What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?

Ah shoot... Let me name a couple because everything is so good. Aw shoot let me just say these projects are incrediable.

There have been numerous projects. Quake don Quick, faster, wwith a vengence, lite, 100%.... The wonderful part is its a team of people working together to perform a marathon of quake the best that it can be performed. I think that is worthy of fame. I guess it was advertised in a magazine a while ago and that is cool!

Hope that helps.
Joe Pecoraro

Hey Kyle: Here goes!

name: Joe Pecoraro
quake nick: BogoJoker
e-mail: joepeck02@yahoo.com
location: New York

Questions:
------------

First off, do you consider yourself mainly a viewer or a maker of speed demos? Or an equal mix?

[b]At first i just watched the demo...  Now after about 1 week I hold 14 records including 1 id record!!!  So i'm more equal now ;)[/b]

When did you first come across the idea of speed demos? When did you first come across this site?

[b]The idea comes naturally.  My experiences with speed demos came from quakeworld (a much faster modification of the original quake).  There were a few trick maps that were very popular that were at one time so difficult it for newer/less expereinced players it would be nearly a miracle if they could finsh each trick once on the maps.  So some players decided to step it up a notch (me included) and run through them all the fastest time emerging victorious.  Clearly if you didnt fail you got better times.  Than as you got good enough you could add tricks to allow you to run through even faster.  Thus in the 2 popular trick maps of quakeworld I got the world record for map trick1 and i'm up there on map ztricks.

Quake single player speed runs i knew had been done fast.  The skills needed in these runs were different but I felt I had what i needed.  I came in recentely and followed their leads.  The players here have already done the mapping out of all the routes needed for optimised times on the quake maps.  All that is left is runners willing to take the tricks to the next level.  I am willing to give it a try.

I only recently came across this site.  probably earlier this year.  I can check in my forum account (what i'm useing RIGHT NOW) because that would give me an accurate time.  I like the fact that this site is updated frequently (normally with fun humor).  Another thing is this is more of an individual game.  But at the same time your getting full support by all the other runners.  I used to play quakeworld for the challenge of games but less and less people play that and I find that i'm alone more and more often.[/b]

What is the appeal, for you, for making and/or watching speed demos?

[b]I dont really have a preference.  Hell, making a speed demo could not give you a more satisfiying feeling.  Working on 1 demo for up to 5 hours (as i did with single tricks NEVER BEFORE ACCOMPLISHED in quakeworld).  makes you feel on top of the world.  But as your study should show there is so much support between runners that when I watch a CLEAN, INCREDIABLE demo by another player I get almost the same feeling.  Its gratifying to see the game near completion with every improvement.  The game isnt complete till its done correctly... FAST!!!! :)[/b]

[b]I could write for hours...  When you first beat a game you feel satisfied.  You did it...  Others have done it...  If your competative naturally you want to do it better.  That is one reason players will strive to speed run.  To be the best.  Another: to be distinguished.  To do what no other player has doen before (and countless players have tried).  2 examples of this are: Peter Horvath's e1m1 ER time and Kay B's 100m time...  Both unparalleled.

Recap: Competition.  Achievement/Honor/Glory

So for a person to want to speed run they should be competative.  Oh ya...  and so many quake players i know have spent hours and maybe weeks working on one demo.  Patience helps! :)

To make a good run you have to have so many skills.  let me see what I can list.  You have to know what your doing.  Map it out.  Run through a map a couple - many times.  See how every move you do affects every object in the game.  Physics applies in quake as much as real life physics.  A perfect example of this is Stubbgard's Nightmare 100% on THE WIND TUNNELS.  He shoots a scrag, jumps in the water and grabs some rockets....  The result of his actions is that he stocks his ammo and attracts the scrag to an easier position to kill.  
Movement is the key to speed runs.  In quake moveing can be as simple as holding down a key (+forward) or rapidly alternating keys to run faster, move quicker, and outperform the simple basics.
As always.  Luck is a factor.  An example: In quake there is a rocket launcher.  A direct hit to a monster or person causes 100 dmg and 1-20 dmg calculated randomly.  So if you hit a monster 3 times direcetly you do 303 dmg or 360 dmg...  Maybe kill it... Maybe not...  That is only tenths of a second but that could be too much in this now nearly optimized quake.

Recap:
1) Know what your doing and how that Affects everything.
2) Excel at the basics, always do your best
3) Get some Luck.[/b]

For demo-makers: How long does it take to make a good speed run? Can you take me through the process?

[b]Some maps require more skills than others.  e2m1 can be performed in 7 seconds... It has not been done faster and it might be impossible to be performed faster.  But my point is to do that demo you need only know how to perfrom a few skills (bunny hopping) and you can get the fastest possible time.  You dont have to know how to aim or shoot or manipulate monsters.  Each map has different lamounts of skill required.

A good speed run requires knowledge of th emap, mosnsters, and your abilities.  If you cant aim dont choose to do a 100% run that requires just that.  Knowing what you can do allows you to focus on maps that you have a chance of improving.  But as each demo comes in and an improvement is made, Quake gets more impossible to imrprove.  Probably to improve an ID record right now you would ahve to spend 1 hour minimum learning everything you can about the map and monsters before you can truely make a run that you know how every monster is acting while your going through it.  If you know so much about a map you can do much better.[/b]

Mainly for demo-watchers: What makes a speed demo enjoyable to watch? Do you have any interest in tactics that might sacrifice speed for imaginative or even "artistic" actions?

[b]Good point.  The best speed demos are imaginative, perform tricks that the average player wouldnt notice or be able to do.  Eye candy always makes it enjoyable.  The fastests demos are normally straightforward but when they have tricks that are the ones that people like to watch.
Examples: 
e3m6_028 nightmare run
e1m4_019 and 018 i think
e1m3 nightmare 100% at the end....
So many i cant name them![/b]

Regarding community: Is making speed demos a competitive pursuit, or does everyone work together to achieve the best results?

[b]Competition brings out the best int he players but the most wonderful part is that everyone is cheering you on and congragulating you for every thing you do.  Great fun! [/b]

[b]I cant answer this one to well.  I always have funw ith them and they have good humor.  They are so supportive!  Its enjoyable.[/b]

[b]Cheating is detectable when you play a game so long that you ahve almost unrestricted understanding of it.  There are ways to cheat and in some cases competitions useing improper settings to maximize fun and add another challenge to the game.  But in the original records cheating is unsportsmanlike.[/b]

What types of games are the best for making speed demos? What makes these games so interesting to speed through?

[b]  Any game.  In my case its the games I'm good at.  Phil told me the other day I have a knack for fps games.  I have accomplished so much in my quake career that so few others have done.  I would be catagorized in a different catagory than individual players who have won cahmpionships (Duel-Mania/NetQuakeRank) but I have reached a point in quakeworld that I am content.  Including doing some things no other player has done and I have demos of these moments. But almost everyone has their favorite moments.  The thing is I caught mine on tape and can show others.  That gives me my extra boost.  name any game and you can have some speed thing.  I'll list some examples:
Diablo II (RPG): Fastest win time.  Fastest lvl 99.
Starcraft (Strategy): Fastest win vs 7 random computers all vs you.  For all 3 races.  Non-expansion and with expansion
Super Smash Brothers Melee (Game-Cube): SO SO MANY: tiem trials, home run distance, fastest times, most knock outs. 
Everygame you can finsh an=d say to yourself.  How can i do this better.  And how can this be done best...[/b]

What is the most impressive speed demo you've seen? What makes it so impressive?

[b]Ah shoot...  Let me name a couple because everything is so good.  Aw shoot let me just say these projects are incrediable.

There have been numerous projects.  Quake don Quick, faster, wwith a vengence, lite, 100%....  The wonderful part is its a team of people working together to perform a marathon of quake the best that it can be performed.  I think that is worthy of fame.  I guess it was advertised in a magazine a while ago and that is cool![/b]

Hope that helps.
Joe Pecoraro

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