Speedrun virgin - Where to start?

Edit history:

LeeIsMyName: 2013-05-11 09:43:46 pm

2013-05-11 09:39:37 pm

Hi everybody, first time account here. Glad I finally made an account. Now onto the topic!

I've watched speedruns here for quite a while, though I've never done any speedruns myself (mainly because I have no capture card). I'd love to start though, as the idea of beating a game as fast as possible really interests me.

Can anyone give me some tips for a beginner, helpful information or just information about it in general? Also, what are some good games that I could start trying to speedrun with? I own an Xbox 360, so anything I can get on there, be it arcade, on demand, whatever, would be preferred.

Thanks in advance, have a nice day guys Smiley

Note: I guess I should mention, I did try to speedrun Dark Souls for the past two days, and while I had the better part of the game planned out, there were so many variables to account for (when to level what, how to manage buying and leveling, hellkite dragon enjoying being random at parts) that it got pretty overwhelming. I think I should start with an easier one.

Thread title:

Hi everybody, first time account here. Glad I finally made an account. Now onto the topic!

I've watched speedruns here for quite a while, though I've never done any speedruns myself (mainly because I have no capture card). I'd love to start though, as the idea of beating a game as fast as possible really interests me.

Can anyone give me some tips for a beginner, helpful information or just information about it in general? Also, what are some good games that I could start trying to speedrun with? I own an Xbox 360, so anything I can get on there, be it arcade, on demand, whatever, would be preferred.

Thanks in advance, have a nice day guys :)

Note: I guess I should mention, I did try to speedrun Dark Souls for the past two days, and while I had the better part of the game planned out, there were so many variables to account for (when to level what, how to manage buying and leveling, hellkite dragon enjoying being random at parts) that it got pretty overwhelming. I think I should start with an easier one.

Stormknight

2013-05-11 09:44:37 pm

Now Reap The Whirlwind!

I'm a newbie myself, and the most important thing about speedrunning that I've learned is pick something you like. Whatever you choose to run, you are going to be playing it over and over again. Pick a game that you really enjoy and play it a bunch of times. If you don't get sick of it, then really start working on routes and strategy. Also, have fun.

LeeIsMyName

2013-05-11 09:48:21 pm

I read that tip on a site, actually. My favorite game though is Bayonetta, has been since I first played it. The problem with speedrunning it (for me, not for the guy who did it on this site) is that the reason I enjoy it is because I value "style", so I can't not go for the most hitting, most ludicrously long combo I can on every enemy. I don't think that is very speedrunner friendly Tongue

JackintheBox333

2013-05-11 10:22:20 pm

Professional Shaq Fu Speedrunner

Well you do not necessarily have to be the best at a game in order to speedrun it. It could be just for your own self gratification at going as fast as you can, regardless of what other people think or have to say on the matter. The absolute best advice is to speedrun a game you enjoy playing. Speedrunning is not too dissimilar to just playing through a game casually. If you have a list of games you enjoy playing, but do not enjoy the routing part of it, then find a game that is light on routing. Just play around and find something you are happy playing.

Ragecat

Edit history:

Ragecat: 2013-05-14 06:33:37 pm

2013-05-12 04:34:50 pm

I am a student, teach me

I have that problem with Dark Souls, it is without a doubt my favorite game and has a popular speedrunning following but for me I feel like running it takes a lot of the enjoyment out of it. Later on I decided to playthrough Super Metroid because I never finished it as a kid and quickly fell in love with it and started doing runs. It sounds like some cheesy line out of a movie or something but really, if you want to get into speedrunning you will eventually find a game on pure coincidence that you'll like to run, you can't really force it.

RedArremer

Edit history:

RedArremer: 2013-05-12 07:39:37 pm

RedArremer: 2013-05-12 07:39:17 pm

2013-05-12 07:38:26 pm

Generally, pick a game that you really like, and that you can see yourself playing over and over again. Perhaps even prepare to not like that game anymore. Tongue

Other than that, go nuts. I wouldn't recommend starting with very popular and highly competitive games like Ocarina of Time, because there's just so many strats and glitches you need to learn in order to even slightly keep up with the others. On the other hand, a healthy competitive community with many races can help you better yourself quite easily.

I'd recommend checking both SDA for threads/run videos, and SRL to see if there's anybody racing the game(s) you want to speedrun.

Dark Souls actually has a few runners that stream regularly, so if you are interested in running that, you might want to check out their streams to pick up their route.
There's also this thread here on SDA (though keep an eye on the post dates of some of the posts in it Wink

):
https://forum.speeddemosarchive.com/post/dark_souls.html

As for Bayonetta, I know that flicky is a runner of that, so maybe you want to get in touch with him.

Generally, pick a game that you really like, and that you can see yourself playing over and over again. Perhaps even prepare to not like that game anymore. :P

Other than that, go nuts. I wouldn't recommend starting with very popular and highly competitive games like Ocarina of Time, because there's just so many strats and glitches you need to learn in order to even slightly keep up with the others. On the other hand, a healthy competitive community with many races can help you better yourself quite easily.

I'd recommend checking both SDA for threads/run videos, and SRL to see if there's anybody racing the game(s) you want to speedrun.

Dark Souls actually has a few runners that stream regularly, so if you are interested in running that, you might want to check out their streams to pick up their route.
There's also this thread here on SDA (though keep an eye on the post dates of some of the posts in it ;) ):
https://forum.speeddemosarchive.com/post/dark_souls.html

As for Bayonetta, I know that flicky is a runner of that, so maybe you want to get in touch with him.