FAQ - Revision history

TheVoid: /* My game lets me choose difficulty anytime I want to. May I do so? */

2009-10-28T07:07:07Z

‎My game lets me choose difficulty anytime I want to. May I do so?

Kabuto: Administrative decisions collected

2009-10-27T22:48:40Z

Administrative decisions collected

Kabuto: /* What types of games do you accept runs on? */ http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/topic,10594.msg297305.html#msg297305

2009-09-15T18:20:12Z

‎What types of games do you accept runs on?: http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php/topic,10594.msg297305.html#msg297305

Kabuto: Clarified glitch section /* Why do you allow glitch X to be used but not glitch Y? */

2009-09-02T16:06:03Z

Clarified glitch section ‎Why do you allow glitch X to be used but not glitch Y?

Kabuto: Note about historic rule change removed /* What about unlockable rewards and alternate modes? */

2009-09-02T15:37:45Z

Note about historic rule change removed ‎What about unlockable rewards and alternate modes?

Najzere: wikified

2009-08-28T16:10:48Z

wikified

Show changes

Kabuto: Save penalty clarified a bit

2009-08-28T11:30:23Z

Save penalty clarified a bit

Kabuto: Rules link changed

2009-08-28T11:24:07Z

Rules link changed

Kabuto: Added note for freeware games

2009-08-28T11:20:48Z

Added note for freeware games

Kabuto: Modified multiplayer section

2009-08-28T11:16:43Z

Modified multiplayer section

@@ Line 115: / Line 115: @@
 ===My game lets me choose difficulty anytime I want to. May I do so?===
-If you change difficulty during gameplay then your run will get into another difficulty category named "flexible difficulty". You should however only do so if using "flexible difficulty" is faster than picking and staying with any diffulty.
+If you change difficulty during gameplay then your run will get into another difficulty category named "flexible difficulty". You should however only do so if using "flexible difficulty" is faster than picking and staying with any difficulty.
 ===Are bonus levels also part of IL tables?===

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:48, 27 October 2009
Line 100:		Line 100:
	===There was a new run on a separate category and it looks much better than my run. Can I have my run removed?===		===There was a new run on a separate category and it looks much better than my run. Can I have my run removed?===
	Of course! It's your choice whether or not you still want your run posted. Just ask [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=1405 Enhasa].		Of course! It's your choice whether or not you still want your run posted. Just ask [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=1405 Enhasa].
		+
		+	==Other==
		+
		+	Put everything here that was ever decided by an admin (and not corrected since then) and is not too game specific. Describe in your own words if you like to. Things will get reviewed by admins anyway so don't feel shy.
		+
		+	===Do I have to include intro / game menus in my recordings?===
		+
		+	If there are any game-relevant options to choose from you need to include video footage of you making your way through the game's menus. Intro videos before that (e.g. those annoying unskippable publisher logos) don't need to be included. Exceptions can be made if your recording method doesn't let you record that and it's obvious what you've picked.
		+
		+	===Do I have to include outro / credits in my recordings?===
		+
		+	Most runners do, but you are not required to show anything that's not relevant gameplay after you finally lose control when finishing the game.
		+
		+	===My game lets me choose difficulty anytime I want to. May I do so?===
		+
		+	If you change difficulty during gameplay then your run will get into another difficulty category named "flexible difficulty". You should however only do so if using "flexible difficulty" is faster than picking and staying with any diffulty.
		+
		+	===Are bonus levels also part of IL tables?===
		+
		+	Generally yes, of course except bonus levels that are pointless to run, e.g. because they lack a definite ending point (such as staying alive as long as you can)
		+
		+	===May I add/replace game files if explicitly permitted by that game?===
		+
		+	While generally we don't allow players to alter game files there are cases where game developers encourage players to add or alter files. Still, we don't accept changes that alter gameplay compared to an original install. Besides that, it depends. For copyright reasons we won't accept runs of games to which you've added your own music. Things that are clearly either selfmade or don't reach the threshold of originality (such as Half-Life spraypaints) are okay.
		+
		+	===My game has a big glitch related to restarting levels/loading savegames. Any chance I may use this in a single segment run?===
		+
		+	(this is being discussed)
		+
		+	===Is saving/loading absolutely forbidden during single segment runs?===
		+
		+	You may save/load if it's neccessary to complete the game. Examples are games where you need to save/load to be able to reach 100% or that crash when playing too many levels in succession.
		+
		+	===Can I redo just a part of my segmented run?===
		+
		+	Yes, but you must make sure that all transitions match perfectly. You cannot end a part with 70 ammo and then suddenly have 75 ammo.
		+
		+	===I've accidentally introduced a misalignment into my segmented run but noticed it too late. What next?===
		+
		+	Your only chance is to redo some segments around the misalignment to make all transitions match perfectly again. For games with very fine-grained stats (e.g. 6 digits of experience plus 3 digits of gold plus whatever else) when making everything match up would be too tedious due to game randomness we can grant exceptions on case-by-case basis, but still you have to ensure that all remaining misalignments are solely to your disadvantage. (E.g. "magically" losing a gem at a misalingment is not always to your disadvantage since it might free some space you then use later for picking up something more valuable which you couldn't without wasting time for getting rid of the gem first if there wasn't that misalignment).
		+
		+	===May I alt+tab out of a game?===
		+
		+	Yes when it has a practical use (e.g. Diablo I where it skips an otherwise unskippable video). No when it just confuses the game timing or does nothing at all.
		+
		+	===My version of game XYZ has many useful glitches fixed! May I still use it for a run?===
		+
		+	Usually you should pick whatever version lets you finish the game in the shortest time. Please try to get the best version for running, we simply don't want to judge whether a sloppy run beats a well-executed run that just had the bad luck of being played on the wrong version. In cases where it's nearly impossible to get a given version of the game (e.g. steam games): discuss it.
		+
		+	===Why not a WoW speedrun? Because...===
		+
		+	No.
		+
		+	===May I use external tools for inspecting my run?===
		+
		+	(being discussed)
		+
		+	===May I deprive console games of memory cards to shorten auto-save delays?===
		+
		+	Of course. As long as you don't pull a memory card during a save. (being discussed)

@@ Line 41: / Line 41: @@
 ==Planning==
 ===What types of games do you accept runs on?===
-Any computer or video game that was ever distributed by a third-party retailer (i.e. not homebrew, shareware, pre-release copies, etc.). Exceptionally good freeware games (such as Cave Story for PC) can be allowed case-by-case by the site admins. Be warned that if you run an ''extremely'' obscure game, your run might have trouble finding verifiers. Please note that we have many dedicated gamers at SDA, and if the game has even a single review at [http://www.gamefaqs.com/ GameFAQs], it is not too obscure. Our policy is to look for [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php?topic=1285.0 verifiers] before a run is actually sent in to SDA.
+Any computer or video game is acceptable, including freeware games. Be warned that if you run an ''extremely'' obscure game, your run might have trouble finding verifiers. Please note that we have many dedicated gamers at SDA, and if the game has even a single review at [http://www.gamefaqs.com/ GameFAQs], it is not too obscure. Our policy is to look for [http://speeddemosarchive.com/forum/index.php?topic=1285.0 verifiers] before a run is actually sent in to SDA.
-Not every game is fit for speedrunning. A game has to be able to be beaten, so something like The Sims or World of Warcraft obviously doesn't qualify. Some games are just too long; most people don't want to watch a 20 hour "speedrun" of mostly cutscenes (like Xenogears). The soft limit for a run is 7 hours, but at our discretion we will stretch that limit. Another issue is the type of game itself. We used to ban certain genres like fighting games for various reasons, but now we will accept any game where the speed of a speedrun is faster than that of experienced, normal play. This means that games such as fixed autoscrollers or rhythm games are generally not acceptable.
+Not every game is fit for speedrunning. A game has to be able to be beaten, so something like The Sims or World of Warcraft obviously doesn't qualify. Some games are just too long; most people don't want to watch a 20 hour "speedrun" of mostly cutscenes (like Xenogears). The soft limit for a run is 7 hours, but at our discretion we will stretch that limit. Another issue is the type of game itself. We will accept any game where the speed of a speedrun is faster than that of experienced, normal play. This means that games such as fixed autoscrollers or rhythm games are generally not acceptable.
-Many games are available on multiple systems. You may produce your run on whichever system you prefer, but many people would rather watch runs on their original systems. If the differences between game versions are severe, they will be counted as separate categories. For manually timed runs, if the only difference is in loading times, those will be factored out to ensure fair comparison between runs on different systems. If a game has been patched and there are multiple versions, it is recommended to use whichever version makes for the fastest run.
+Many games are available on multiple systems. You may produce your run on whichever system you prefer, but many people would rather watch runs on their original systems. If the differences between game versions are severe, they will be counted as separate categories. For manually timed runs, if the only difference is in loading times, those will be factored out to ensure fair comparison between runs on different systems. If a game has been patched and there are multiple versions, it is recommended to use whichever version makes for the fastest run. However, you may not change your game version in the middle of a run.
 ===What are the different categories like any%, low%, 100%?===

@@ Line 64: / Line 64: @@
 ===Why do you allow glitch X to be used but not glitch Y?===
-We strive for a universal set of [[rules]] that apply to all games, to avoid explicitly laying out rules for every game. In practice though, some games need rule adjustments, and there isn't anything that can be done about it. Things like the "4 minute" Zelda glitch aren't allowed because Radix doesn't like them.
+According to the [[rules]] glitches that skip almost the entire game are forbidden but this is seldom. More common is a "no major glitches" category, forbidding glitches that allow players to otherwise skip large parts of the game; this doesn't mean those glitches are forbidden, using them just puts your speedrun into another category. However, please note, that these basic rules must be construed per game and it also heavily depends on the game whether and where the boundary is drawn. In a game where there's one glitch that allows skipping half the game and all other glitches are way less powerful the decision is easy while in a game where there are tens of glitches that all allow skipping increasing fractions of the game with no major gap in this series any such boundary would be arbitrary so there won't be a "no major glitches" category.
 ===Why do you allow glitches but disallow cheat codes and tricks like crooked cartridge?===

@@ Line 55: / Line 55: @@
 ===What about unlockable rewards and alternate modes?===
-If a game has an unlockable character, bonus weapon, etc. that you collect as a reward, or other such alternate modes, a run on this mode will also be treated as a separate category. We used to only allow alternate mode runs when there was already a completed new game run for that game, but now this is just a recommendation. Keep in mind that the new game category is typically the most popular, and most people would prefer that such a run be available.
+If a game has an unlockable character, bonus weapon, etc. that you collect as a reward, or other such alternate modes, a run on this mode will also be treated as a separate category. While not required we recommend you to submit a new game run for that game first if there isn't already one on this site since the new game category is typically the most popular, and most people would prefer that such a run be available.
 ===What about games with more than one playable character?===

@@ Line 163: / Line 163: @@
 For games that let you save anywhere (i.e. without save points), a half second save penalty is added for each save.
-This is designed to discourage someone from potentially using thousands of segments in a run.
+This is designed to discourage someone from potentially using thousands of segments in a run and to compensate for many games skipping fractions of a second of gameplay when saving or loading.
 We do not restrict segmentation in games with save points because the save points themselves are already a form of restriction.
 The half second penalty applies to both regular saves and quicksaves; menu time isn't counted for regular saves.

@@ Line 3: / Line 3: @@
 Other Important Pages:
-* [http://speeddemosarchive.com/rules_en.html Rules]
+* [[Rules]]
 * [[Submit|Submissions/Contact]]
 * [http://speeddemosarchive.com/kb/ Knowledge Base]

@@ Line 129: / Line 129: @@
 <span style="color:#FF7;">Can I do a multiplayer speedrun with some of my friends?</span><br/>
 Yes, but be aware that your play quality will only be as good as your weakest link, and that multiplayer runs are harder to coordinate.
-Multiplayer runs are a separate category much like the idea of single-segment vs. segmented: you may use whatever number of players you find optimal, and a faster single-player run will obsolete your run.
+Multiplayer runs are a separate category much like the idea of single-segment vs. segmented: you may use whatever number of players you find optimal. A faster single-player run will obsolete your run only if multiplayer mode doesn't increase difficulty (e.g. by strengthening enemies or increasing their number).
 You should exploit as many multiplayer-exclusive strategies as possible.