Extreme Kayak (
http://tasvideos.org/2030M.html) is a game where you, you know, kayak the heck out of a mountain range.
This is what Swordless Link (the TASer) had to say after getting a 1:26 in-game record:
"This run takes advantage of the fact that the TAS input plugin does not have a limitation on the range of the analogue stick, meaning that I can extend it well beyond the intended maximum. This is what allows the kayak to move at hyperspeed. On console, due to the N64 controller's limitations, only a fraction of this speed can be achieved (to put this into perspective, the best time recorded on console is 3:36, using this character)."
So, would you, as an experienced TAS expert, say that these kinds of facts fall into the 'glitch' category or the 'abuse' category?
I'd say it falls into the 'glitch' category because early game programs only measured the input of the analogue stick and it doesn't seem like there's any programmed limit.
Anyways, it depends what you mean by 'game'. Do you only mean the software, or do you include the hardware?
It definitely does not include the hardware as using TAS emulators are a given AND using remade games (like using the Switch Online version of Super Mario Bros instead of the original) are acceptable.
If it doesn't include the hardware, then it's acceptable. If you say it only includes the 'official' hardware, like only using Nintendo controllers for Mario, then it's unacceptable.
It depends on what you define a TAS - do you define it as the optimal controller input, or do you define it as the optimal overall input?