Link to video
You can do all sorts of things to delay the animation (taking damage, entering loading zones, getting into different animations like in the video), you won't skip it. The interesting thing here can be seen by checking the stats screen: You actually obtain the bonus remote at the moment you touch the 50th item, not after the animation. But so far the only way to skip the animation is by dying.[/video]
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.
I found a trick that changes the route for Out of Toon:
Link to video
By doing this, you not only skip the whole process of reentering the level (as always with this glitch), you also remove most of the backtracking for "Hunt the two hunters" and can start from the faster side of the area.
Even if you subtract the setup time (taking damage, activating the checkpoint) it should still save at least half a minute!
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.
This one might be useful in a 100% TAS, it's way too random for speedruns:
Link to video
The 100% route for this level would look roughly like this:
- Head in the direction of the "Ride the Rocket" remote until you reach the point where you can go down to the hidden remote (collect the fastest items on the way)
- Jump down to the area with the hidden remote
- Collect all the items and the hidden remote
- Jump into the portal to get back to the start
- Go the way that leads to the "Enter the Battle Dome" remote (collect the fastest items on the way)
- Do the double skip for the red and the silver remote
- Get the "Ride the Rocket" remote
This route only contains minimal backtracking (which can't be removed because of the design). The optimal specific route for the items on the way would need to be tested.
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.
Here are my newest finds:
Link to videoLink to video
I especially like the blind drop from the ceiling, that one will look amazing in an optimized 100%!
Regarding 100%, I'm currently trying to route that category. This will take some time, but it's better to wait for the next version of Bizhawk anyway.
Edit: Nevermind, a new version was just released today xD
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.
I found a way to skip the spaceship in The Umpire Strikes Out:
Link to video
Also, for anyone who hasn't seen the new unassisted WR yet:
Link to video
I really recommend watching it, because it is the so far best executed run and only failed a sub-57 because of bad RNG. It's also an impressive demonstration of how much the run has changed due to all the new glitches.
I think I will start a new TAS soon.
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.
There seems to be more to the spaceship skip. Because when I went back to the level and tried it again, I couldn't even get near the platform with the lasers without dying. No matter what angle I tried, I hit the kill planes without even seeing the platform. But when I first jumped on the metal platform (the one after the platform I'm jumping from) before making my jump, it worked fine again. I have only one explanation for this: To make the flight sequence with the spaceship possible, the developers needed to remove a lot of kill planes, because the sequence isn't a cutscene. But instead of removing them permanently from the level, they just put a trigger on a certain point near the spaceship that unloads them.
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.
My new finds:
Link to videoLink to videoLink to video
I'm still not quite sure about the TAS route. It is definitely faster to get all three remotes in Honey I Shrunk the Gecko, but I can't say yet which remote would be skipped in the other levels. At least we're down to two options: One of the remotes in Mao Tse Tongue. For non-TAS, the one with the dragon is longer, but on the other hand, it's also the one where a TAS could potentially save more time. So it's really close and would probably have to be tested.
Another thing about the "dragon remote" is my theory of a "lower sign skip" from the very start of the level. I already did some tests even with TAS tools but had no luck yet. However, I just don't want to believe that it is impossible, because both me and exe have managed to position Gex on the sign for at least some frames. Also, it is possible to tongue-grab it from a very specific angle. I guess this skip could be the deciding factor.
But even without it, the new TAS will look amazing ;)
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.
Cool little timesaver, I'm sure Crash will find more of those!
Btw, I officially started the new TAS yesterday. I lost 38 frames because Bizhawk always has a controller pack present and in Gex you get more lag right after power on if this is the case. But I gained 14 back due to better optimization of the intro screens and the menu. Now the game really begins!
Expect a WIP when I'm done with Out of Toon!
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.
I didn't have much time to work on the TAS, since me and the other Gex glitchers tried a lot of stuff to find a sequence break.
I was actually successful, because I found out a really obvious routing trick that lets you skip Mooshoo Pork! On N64, you can easily get 14 remotes without opening the red gate and proceed to to Honey I Shrunk the Gecko and This Old Cave. The remotes from there will be enough for Mecharez and therefore opening the blue gate. From there on, just ride the platform up to the last area and break in with that easy Tailbounce. Now you can just jump past the red gate from above without ever fighting Mooshoo Pork! This does of course change the route a lot and is, as I said, only an option on N64.
There is also all this other stuff involving "switch cancelling", similar to the reentering skip. We learned a lot about the physics of TVs and even found a way to enter levels early (thanks to P0rtal):
Link to video
It's still not possible to do anything with it, because for this to be useful, we would need to start from the end (it's like the Note Door problem in Banjo-Kazooie). But there just has to be a way to really break this game...
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.
Progress is slow. It was stopped by AGDQ and RL problems. At least I have found new stuff since then and have even more memory addresses to work with (most importantly: X and Y positions)
By the way, someone found a skip in Gex 3 that lets you enter the final part of the overworld early. So far, the only use would be to skip a boss, but it's still something. I'm still trying to find a way to enter Rez early...
Link to video
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.
I experimented with the new OoB in Gex 3 and actually managed to skip another boss! Now Rez will be the only boss seen in a TAS.
Link to video
I'm sure a TAS can easily glide directly to the loading zone. It may be possible even without the Dracula ability (there are no kill planes), but I don't know if that's faster.
Oh and with these new tricks, it would suck more than ever to do a run on the N64 version (where the Agent Xtra cutscenes warp you to the lobby). I'm not familiar enough with PSX emulators to say if this game works well on them.
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.
It's definitely set now which remote I will get in Mao Tse Tongue, because P0rtalz found this cool trick:
Link to video
I also found something, it will be so much fun to manipulate in the TAS ^^
Link to video
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.
Update on the Gex games. It seems that whenever I just want to work on the TAS, new stuff gets found immediately and I have to test it. Not that I'm complaining ;)
First off, Gex 3 nearly got broken to SM64-levels, as Frogburt found this:
Link to video
Sadly, we can only skip 4 remotes with this, as the TV without any requirements in the area happens to be on a level where its range covers the place with Rez' TV. I tried everything I could think of using frame advance, but had no luck solving the problem :/
Also, WR holder exe accidentally did a walljump in Gex 64 from a longjump! I was able to reproduce it by turning the control stick in the opposite direction and pressing A on a specific frame. I only managed to get it on the same wall as exe, but I definitely have to experiment with this, as it has huge potential.
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.
I am incredibly lazy when it comes to such a huge TAS, but people asking about it are probably the best motivation. I really hate myself for not working more on this, especially since I invest so much time in RTAs on Twitch.
But a good news is that I found a really interesting thing about the physics of surfaces, it could be related to walljumping. It seems that there is a certain type of surface that is like a mix of a slippery slope and a wall, which gives you some frames to jump or even tailbounce from it. In real time playing, they just look like almost vertical walls that don't even put Gex in his sliding animation. So far, I was only able to use this for additional timesavers here and there, but maybe it will lead to TAS-only tricks in the future.
The biggest individual find was a tailbounce that skips most of the rope room on the way to the dragon remote in MTT. I got it by pure luck when trying out stuff in real time, it is probably the single most precise tailbounce in the entire game (that's why I don't have it recorded ^^)
Anyway, it's time to finally get something done after all the glitch-science.
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.
It's finally here, the first WIP!
Link to video
My apologies for the loooong time it took me to finish this level. TASing this game is not easy at all due to the movement, and the first level is actually pretty tough to optimize. This killed my motivation for months because I never TASed a 3D game before.
I saved a ton of time compared to Mukkis TAS, literally everything is faster, even menus and level transitions. 2933 frames ahead when starting Smellraiser.
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.
I'm through the first two rooms of Smellraiser and my lead is now over 3000 frames. And I found a cool little trick!
When you finish a climb from a wall, you have to watch a long animation and your speed drops to 1. However, there's a single frame to jump from the wall, where you still make it to the platform and also keep your speed. This saves quite some frames and also looks really funny, because Gex looks like he gets teleported into the air.
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.
