Lots of news and a WIP!
First of all, Carl Sagan joined NxCy and me, so this TAS will have three authors! Carl Sagan joined when we were about halfway level 2-2 (after redoing).
As for our current progress, we are currently halfway level 3-3, exactly where we were at the time when walljumping was discovered little over a year a go. We have been redoing from level 1-6, including walljumps, and lots of other stuff we've discovered.
We now release the WIP up to level 2-8 before walljumps were discovered. This will be the last 'old' WIP. The next WIP will be the redone levels up to 2-4. Even though you may have seen the levels up to 2-4 of the old wip, there is every reason to look out to these upcoming WIPs. World 2 is filled with a wide variety of improvements:
Old WIP vs Spezzafer's WIP | New WIP vs Spezzafer's WIP | New WIP vs Old WIP
Level Saved Total | Level Saved Total | Level Saved Total
1-1 283 292 | 1-1 283 292 | 1-1 0 0
1-2 112 404 | 1-2 112 404 | 1-2 0 0
1-3 232 636 | 1-3 232 636 | 1-3 0 0
1-4 286 922 | 1-4 286 922 | 1-4 0 0
1-5 14 936 | 1-5 14 936 | 1-5 0 0
1-6 345 1281 | 1-6 468 1404 | 1-6 123 123
1-7 716 1997 | 1-7 713 2117 | 1-7 -3 120
1-8 711 2708 | 1-8 757 2874 | 1-8 46 166
RESET -1 2707 | RESET 1256 4130 | RESET 1257 1423
2-1 -2694 13 | 2-1 -2099 2031 | 2-1 595 2018
2-2 338 351 | 2-2 1381 3412 | 2-2 1043 3061
2-3 141 492 | 2-3 150 3562 | 2-3 9 3070
2-4 319 811 | 2-4 1736 5298 | 2-4 1417 4487
2-5 215 1026 | 2-5 1524 6822 | 2-5 1309 5796
2-6 505 1531 | 2-6 500 7322 | 2-6 -5 5791
2-7 295 1826 | 2-7 857 8179 | 2-7 562 6353
2-8 516 2342 | 2-8 837 9016 | 2-8 321 6674
RESET 5 2347 | RESET 1328 10344 | RESET 1323 7997
3-1 118 2465 | 3-1 138 10482 | 3-1 20 8017
3-2 329 2794 | 3-2 418 10900 | 3-2 89 8106
(Note that a minus sign means frames lost. Particularly noticeable is 2-1, where spezzafer used a 1-1 warp and we didn't, and some redone levels that had no improvements, but slightly worse randomness.)
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http://dehacked.2y.net/microstorage.php/info/1058159427/yi100-nxcy_baxter_WIP2-8_complete.smv
(These comments point out what is different compared to Spezzafer's WIP, the new WIP is not taken into account.)
2-5
In the train section, the direction the train is facing was changed by taking a different route for a frame. This scrolled the screen which makes the enemies move later, allowing to use a shorter route without getting hit. Other saved frames came from optimization, particular not being hit by bubbles at the very end of the level.
Time saved in 2-5: 215 frames
Total time saved: 1026 frames
2-6
Big timesaver in the first room, skipping the detour to get the 3 red coins behind the gate. An egg was fired while the gate was offscreen before it was spawned, at exactly the right moment Yoshi drops down so that the egg was already behind the gate, and in time for the 3 red coins to spawn and be hit by the egg.
The enemy challenge room was done when first going past it, saving the time it takes for the door to drop down.
Time saved in 2-6: 505 frames
Total time saved: 1531 frames
2-7
Various optimizations in movement, egg- and star collection.
Time saved in 2-7: 295 frames
Total time saved: 1826 frames
2-8
Improvement in arrow lift usage. A glitch lets you get on top of the lift again after spitting it out, even if your vertical position is below the lift. It only works if you pick up the arrow lift and jump at the same frame. This glitch saved time in two rooms in this level.
The pot containing the first key was hit by more eggs, making it move faster for a longer period of time.
Time saved in 2-8: 516 frames
Total time saved: 2342 frames