#speedrunning #videoGames

Watching and Learning

I have been watching various different games and runners on twitch.tv after rediscovering this category of challenge running in 2021. I don’t recall exactly how I stumbled upon it this recent time, but many years ago I would watch Narcissa Wright speedrun The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Clearly I had not delved into the sport, otherwise I might have kept up with it.

I generally like to watch newer games as they have new skips and routes being found more often, making things pretty exciting when watching people go for world records. You would think remastered games would be able to use old routes, or tricks, but sometimes things are patched out in a way that makes the game different enough from a speedrunning perspective. Here’s a list of some of the games and a few streamers I have been watching lately:

• Metroid Dread
• Super Mario 64 - Linkus7
• Metroid Prime: Remastered - Samura1man
• The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker - Gymnast86
• Castlevania: Symphony of the Night - Dr4gonBlitz
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Picking a Game to Run

It is recommended to pick a game that you really enjoy, and maybe even have some nostalgia for. If I were choosing a game based solely on nostalgia, it would probably be something on the Gamecube. I no longer have a Gamecube, but I do have a Wii U. Wind Waker would be really cool to learn, but there is a very difficult glitch that is used at the very beginning of the game and I am looking to play something that doesn’t completely wreck my hands. So maybe one day I will explore Wind Waker but for now I chose Metroid Dread for a few reasons.

First of all, it is a great game. It’s relatively new and the glitches are really cool. I already own a switch and a comfortable controller for my hands (pro controller). Also, the community is really great. I’m sure this is true of most of the speedrunning communities, but the Metroid Dread discord is very welcoming.

Slow First

I am learning some tricks for Metroid Dread in order to one day attempt do a full run of the game. I am not putting any pressure on myself though, because I want to save my already creaky hands from further discomfort or pain. I used to play piano, and I have experienced poor hand health in the past. I am not looking to repeat those mistakes so I am taking it somewhat slow. I ran along on my own snail pace with the first 30 minutes or so of a previous record. It took me hours but I was able to keep up with the skips and glitches in this portion. Once things started getting a bit more complicated though, I paused to go back and practice.

The first trick I have learned is called the aim down clip. It is really two tricks. The first trick is called a shine sink (also covered in the aim down clip video). The shine sink is also required for the Bomuhey skew, which is next on my list to learn. These harder glitches aren’t required to start running, but I’d like to learn them and I am having fun :).

Next Steps

I would like to get a capture card to start recording things locally and maybe set up some splits at some point. I’m not in a rush to do this, but it would be cool. I am not looking to crack the leaderboards anytime soon, or at all, but I would like to record anyway! I would love to start streaming again. I’ll be sure to post on the fediverse when I do!