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Posted: 5/4/2008 7:16 PM
Post subject: Star Wars Pod Racer
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dartht33bagger
Joined: 12/10/2007
Posts: 260
Location: Oregon
Would anyone be interested in TASing this game? This game is pretty fun really and with TAS you could kill at this game. I'm working on F-Zero now so I wont be working on this. This is just an idea, no one needs to make a TAS for this game.
Posted: 5/4/2008 9:01 PM
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Sticky
Joined: 2/26/2007
Posts: 1365
Location: Minnesota
Isn't this one of the fated Star Wars games that refuses to emulate? If not, yeah, this run would be great (and more dizzifying than Turok!) I still haven't beaten that fucker...grrr
adelikat wrote:
I very much agree with this post.
Bobmario511 wrote:
Forget party hats, Christmas tree hats all the way man.
Posted: 5/4/2008 9:48 PM
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Comicalflop
Editor, Experienced player (734)
Joined: 6/13/2006
Posts: 3300
Location: Massachussetts, USA
Speedy TAS of 2009
Star Wars that emulates: -Shadows of the Empire -Pod Racer Don't emulate: -Battle for Naboo -Rogue Squadron Now, here's the problem: Pod Racer uses ExP Pak. It desynchs. I believe I had a lot of graphical problems trying to run it. Someone once got the game to run almost fine, there were a few graphical problems here and there (using Jabo's 1.6.) I suspect the game will run better with Napalm, but the desynchs will likely remain. If the desynchs can be overcome, it'd be nice, but unfortunately I don't think a new level of awesomeness can be achieved vs. what is already done on console, unlike F-Zero X for example.
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Posted: 5/5/2008 2:57 AM
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Sticky
Joined: 2/26/2007
Posts: 1365
Location: Minnesota
flop, it doesnt need it. I had pod racer, and the only thing that I used was the rumble pac... but that was not a required perephrial.
adelikat wrote:
I very much agree with this post.
Bobmario511 wrote:
Forget party hats, Christmas tree hats all the way man.
Posted: 5/5/2008 3:08 AM
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Comicalflop
Editor, Experienced player (734)
Joined: 6/13/2006
Posts: 3300
Location: Massachussetts, USA
Speedy TAS of 2009
Are you sure? It's listed here I think the confusion is that 4 games REQUIRE it to play, 2 games require it for major features, and the others use it for increased performance (of which episode 1 racer is one of them). On mupen, if the game would normally use it, it does, I think? And many of the games on that list desynch, simply because of this.
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Posted: 5/5/2008 4:33 AM
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Sticky
Joined: 2/26/2007
Posts: 1365
Location: Minnesota
Couldn't you check the box (?) for using/not using an enhancer? IIRC you can do that, at least. But, if it makes the graphics look better (and they are glitchy) I would hate to see what it would look like without the pack.
adelikat wrote:
I very much agree with this post.
Bobmario511 wrote:
Forget party hats, Christmas tree hats all the way man.
Posted: 5/5/2008 3:50 PM
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superjupi
Joined: 10/15/2007
Posts: 685
It's not horrible to look at without the expansion pak. And I say this after having played the Dreamcast version to death. It may not be marvelously pretty, but it's not as though most of the N64 games have aged well, either. I'd like to see it, either way; this and Rogue Squadron were the only two Star Wars licenses I actually enjoyed playing.
Kirby said so, so it must be true. ( >'.')>
Posted: 5/6/2008 1:55 AM
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Twelvepack
Joined: 5/2/2006
Posts: 1020
Location: Boulder, CO
I would like too see it. Curious what would happen under tas settings.
Has never colored a dinosaur.
Posted: 5/7/2008 5:56 AM
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Satyrium
Joined: 4/29/2008
Posts: 71
I've always been very good at this game. I'd give tatooine a shot If i could find a working rom for sure.
Posted: 5/10/2008 8:41 PM
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Weatherton
Experienced player (607)
Joined: 10/23/2004
Posts: 706
N64 TASer of 2016 TAS of 2016 First edition TAS of 2016 N64 TAS of 2016
Comicalflop wrote:
If the desynchs can be overcome, it'd be nice, but unfortunately I don't think a new level of awesomeness can be achieved vs. what is already done on console, unlike F-Zero X for example.
I think you are wrong, Myles Bukrim can attest to some of the amazing things that can be accomplished in this game. It has not been very hotly competed in. It is extremely fast, and there are several shortcuts that Myles knows of (some of which he has shown me). If someone were to tell me how to get this game to a TASable state, I would definitely take it on. I already mentioned this to you on AIM.
Current Project: - Mario Kart 64
Posted: 5/10/2008 9:15 PM
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Joe
Joined: 6/10/2006
Posts: 152
Location: Wisconsin
I agree that this game has good TAS potential, especially sincethere is some added strategy in upgrading the pod racers.
Posted: 5/11/2008 4:49 PM
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WMJ
Joined: 5/11/2008
Posts: 21
Location: Netherlands
I'd like to add that I've done time attack runs for all the tracks back in 2005 that could be of help here: http://speeddemosarchive.com/EpisodeIRacer.html This game has indeed a lot of TAS potential so it shouldn't be a problem to beat those times. The only track I've done which is really outdated now is Abyss where Myles Bukrim has found a huge shortcut. I think using Ben Quadinaros on a lot more tracks should also give faster times. For individual time attack runs like those done for F-Zero X upgrading the Pod racers is irrelevant since it's very easy to get a fully upgraded pod racer at the end of the game. I.e. you can easily buy the best parts for the pod racers by the end of the single player game.
Posted: 5/11/2008 5:01 PM
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Comicalflop
Editor, Experienced player (734)
Joined: 6/13/2006
Posts: 3300
Location: Massachussetts, USA
Speedy TAS of 2009
Well, I love to be proven wrong on these matters. Best of luck! My advice: 1) find the right plugin. L4yer once told me he had it working perfectly with onetype of Jabo's, I forget which one but it always gave me problems. If not, use glide 64 napalm, I haven't tested it yet but seeing how it's managed to render many unplayable games, it could make it work. 2) use the anti-ds mupen just in case of desynchs.
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Posted: 5/11/2008 6:39 PM
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dartht33bagger
Joined: 12/10/2007
Posts: 260
Location: Oregon
I can't get Gilde64 napalm to work very well on my computer it seems. Games that it says it helps makes it worse than rices video for me.
Posted: 5/11/2008 6:48 PM
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Comicalflop
Editor, Experienced player (734)
Joined: 6/13/2006
Posts: 3300
Location: Massachussetts, USA
Speedy TAS of 2009
Hm, Jabo's 1.6 seems to work perfectly for me. Try that. Haven't tested for desynchs yet. A good way to know is to make a 1 rerecord movie just fooling around, completing a few courses and such, make the movie file be about 5 minutes or longer, then replay it and see if the movie desynchs anywhere.
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Posted: 10/21/2018 3:41 PM
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andypanther
Any
Former player
Joined: 6/30/2010
Posts: 1107
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
Time for a 10-year bump, but I figured that it would still be better than another thread. The community has been very active lately, several new skips have been found: Beedo's Wild Ride: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/325521852 Executioner: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/325148963 Andobi Mountain Run: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/325582960 Boonta Classic: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/323352054 So far, the skip in Boonta Classic is the only one to actually be useful in any% (which involves beating the Galactic Circuit, since that's what triggers the credits). The PC version was used in all of the videos, but one of the skips (Executioner) has already been confirmed to work on Dreamcast. I see no reason why all of them shouldn't be possible on the N64 version, which still remains the only option for TASing.
Current project: Gex 3 any% Paused: Gex 64 any% There are no N64 emulators. Just SM64 emulators with hacky support for all the other games.
Posted: 10/22/2018 1:29 AM
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dan
He/Him
Joined: 9/23/2016
Posts: 25
My brother found a shortcut on The Abyss about 20 years ago, it looks like no one is using the skip. I am not sure whether it is known or not. He used Mars Guo to do the skip because he had highest top speed by default. Based on the video below, there's a shortcut from about 25s to 58s on the lap timer for the first lap of the Abyss. This is from about 41s to 1:14s on the split timer. - It starts about when the split timer is 41.20 and race timer is 25.10. You can see the end of the track in the background to the left. - It ends about when the split timer is 1:14.56 and the race timer is 58.27. You can see the beginning of the track down to the left. Link to video To do the skip, before the track curves to the right, activate a full boost, and drive up the left wall. Even though it is see-through, it can be used like a ramp. You will catch some air, and can end up landing on the platform before the end of a lap. With a tight enough turn, you can have enough momentum to land on the last platform without falling.
Posted: 10/22/2018 7:24 AM
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andypanther
Any
Former player
Joined: 6/30/2010
Posts: 1107
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
The run you linked is a no skips run, it intentionally avoids those tricks. But the Abysss skip has been known for years, this is what the WR for the track looks like: Link to video If you want to learn more about the game, check out our leaderboard and join our Discord server!
Current project: Gex 3 any% Paused: Gex 64 any% There are no N64 emulators. Just SM64 emulators with hacky support for all the other games.
Posted: 10/23/2018 1:18 PM
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dan
He/Him
Joined: 9/23/2016
Posts: 25
I don't have the game anymore, unfortunately. But thank you for answering my question without making me feel too stupid :)
Posted: 10/31/2018 12:17 PM
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bonecrusher1022
Joined: 2/11/2015
Posts: 41
Location: Pennsylvania, USA
Seeing this thread bumped, I'm surprised the very old TAS that already exists of this game was never posted Link to video It isn't very good and completes every single level in order as opposed to an any% run. You can go to the link in the description for the videos on nico so the annoying comments aren't there. I guess I'll use this post to list what all I remember cause this was a while ago and it's on my laptop I rarely use anymore. In regards to skips, I want to say the are usually done with Mars Guo because his ship flies slightly higher above the ground than the others and I'm not sure if that's actually a requirement or not. I remember messing a lot with the debug menu and looking into things with a friend here's the spreadsheet we made of the debug menu stuff if one doesn't exist by now with some sort of calculation we made to figure out optimal boosting. We even had a basic route idea for the game: Start out going to the junkyard and getting a high level Cooling part so you can boost more. Then do Executioner or Sunken City for a better Pod and money for a speed part. Then do the 4 last tracks. This was before there really was anything done single segment so not much was done with it, kinda happy that's how it ended up RTA too. Would absolutely love a TAS of any category of this, assuming it's possible using Bizhawk. Not sure if there are any hurdles with the expansion pak. I never managed to find any memory addresses for this cause I hardly knew what I was doing. I TASed the first part and went to mess around during waiting for the part RNG and then saved a ton of lag frames so it wasn't there anymore and gave up lol
Posted: 11/3/2018 4:02 PM
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andypanther
Any
Former player
Joined: 6/30/2010
Posts: 1107
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
That TAS seems to be some sort of playaround, but not a very good one. It watches most skippable cutscenes, but skips some. It has no clear upgrade route and seems to intentionally leave out certain skips, most notably in Bumpy's Breakers, Gauntlet and Inferno. Interestingly enough, it uses some tricks that were only found very recently, like that skip in Ando Prime Centrum, somehow the TASer must have known about those before we did. An optimal 100% would start by doing Semi-Pro to get Bullseye and Boles Roor, which are both very useful for certain tracks. It would also not do Inferno last, so that at least Ando Prime Centrum could be done using Ben Quadinaros. Any% would use Ebe Endocott for Executioner and then switch between Toy Dampner and Mawhonic. It was only found very recently how much potential certain characters have that were overlooked for years. Obviously, both runs would use crazy upgrade routes that are only barely possible with perfect RNG.
Current project: Gex 3 any% Paused: Gex 64 any% There are no N64 emulators. Just SM64 emulators with hacky support for all the other games.
Posted: 9/7/2019 12:05 AM
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InfamousKnight
He/Him
Joined: 9/12/2014
Posts: 539
Location: Waterford, MI
Making a tas of this on bizhawk, and it desynced on me at Vengence.. I really wish bizhawk devs would update their n64 core.. Desyncs cut my motivation. Im not planning on submitting a tas of this game, as its one of the most difficult genres to truly optimize.
Posted: 9/7/2019 8:24 AM
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andypanther
Any
Former player
Joined: 6/30/2010
Posts: 1107
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
So this is one of those games that can still desync whenever it wants. How great it would be to have good N64 emulation. But I'm curious now about your TAS, what did you do in those first five tracks, what was your goal? I recommend joining our community Dioscord if you want to get in touch with the runners.
Current project: Gex 3 any% Paused: Gex 64 any% There are no N64 emulators. Just SM64 emulators with hacky support for all the other games.
Posted: 9/8/2019 1:19 AM
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InfamousKnight
He/Him
Joined: 9/12/2014
Posts: 539
Location: Waterford, MI
Ok, it turns out the desync was caused by the fact that its not bullet proof rerecording. So I cant make back up save states.. I dont see why it would desync all of the sudden. I do recall loading an old save state which desynced upon loading it. Anyhow, Im back into business now. My goal is to have it look clean, use boosting as much as possible, use the best pod racer available, and just test around. I dont know of any skips or much about this game, so this will be just a testrun. Route so far, use the 2nd pod racer(forgot what its called, but its available from the start), get a top speed upgrade after 1st race, save up for the pug5(I think thats what its called, its to upgrade top speed and cost 6000 thrug bolts). Obviously Im not gonna get killed or lose my boost because I hit a wall or something. Because I made a save state right before a mistake, some of it looks unoptimized. Im not using the virtual pad or game controller for precision, although that might change. I just dont like the virtual pad, but the game controller would be a lot more confortable. Still have to figure out how to configure that. I have an xbox one controller, anyone know of some good mapping for that?
Posted: 9/8/2019 11:15 AM
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andypanther
Any
Former player
Joined: 6/30/2010
Posts: 1107
Location: Zurich, Switzerland
If you're looking for the best route for Amateur Circuit, check out this guide: https://www.speedrun.com/swe1r/guide/al5iv No N64 runner currently uses Aldar Beedo, as his very low traction is even harder to deal with when using the more limited controls of that version. But a TAs should have no problem with that. As for a good controller layout to play on emu, I'm still looking for one myself ^^
Current project: Gex 3 any% Paused: Gex 64 any% There are no N64 emulators. Just SM64 emulators with hacky support for all the other games.
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