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Speedrunning, if you donāt know, is a community that challenges each other to get to the endpoint of any video game as fast as possible, ignoring the actual content of the game often through glitches and exploits. As my good friend DJ Wallh4x once said, at its purest, it turns each title into a game of chess. Meaning that, itās inner workings have been so poured over that every possible action has been mapped out into a matrix and optimized, so the closer a record holder gets to the absolute purest optimization, it starts to become years between any signs of progress. Seven years later, this video is still like a comfort stim blanket for me. Itās a breakdown of speedrun techniques used by pros and TAS in a specific world level of Mario 64 but itās such a beautiful illustration of complex techniques used to an end that so many people would call pointless. I kind of think of it like that Malcom Gladwell 10,000 hours thing - and itās so cool to think that that applies to anything, not just more conventional skills and trades. Itās meditative, genius, and weirdly anarchistic. And keep in mind this is just one level of one game. Itās art. I hope to make something as beautiful as this one day. If I try to explain it any more here Iāll sound insane so just watch it for yourself.
Mar 29, 2023
Related Recs
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I never thought Iād sit through an hour long video about the history of speed running a videogame Iāve never seen but itās absolutley fascinating. Some people are absolutley crazy doing this stuff and the lore is so rich. people went to crazy levels to Get the fastest time. A random person would come out of nowhere after 5 years of no one being able to get the record and crush it because they found a new exploit.
https://youtu.be/mmJ_LT8bUj0?si=4gsCp1Lb59Mr1MRy
This one on Mario kart shortcuts is my favourite
Apr 7, 2024
Video games have really interesting and cool stories and fun ways of telling them. When I was a kid I wasnāt very good at video games but my older brother was. I remember how fun it was just to sit and watch him barrel through levels. When he left I missed doing that so I tried to watch letās plays on youtube, but they just werenāt really for me. Even as a kid I just didnāt really love the constant like screaming and stuff that they tend to do while playing, there were some guys who didnāt talk a lot or yell while they played but not a lot, so over the years this was something I just never did anymore. But recently Iāve found there has been a spike in comepletely silent playthroughs getting uploaded and I love to watch them, theyāre like oddly paced movies with tons of action. The ones Iāve been really into watching lately are the SilentHill and Psychonaut games itās a lot of fun and really nostalgic so check āem out
(also the soundtracks always go hard asl)
Nov 12, 2024
Imagine this: You and your best friend are at the bottom of the ninth, and heās kicking your ass by 3 points. Itās 1:30am in real time, but itās all sunshine at Wario City. You are at bat with an underdog, Purple Toad. His career, his team, and this game rest on his shoulders. With just two outs and bases loaded, Purple Toad needs a Grand Slam, or its game over.
With only one swing, he sends it out of the park in what could be the most historic grand slam ever witnessed. No other video game exist where this is possible, and Iām happy its this one.
Dec 29, 2024
Top Recs from @jake-sillen
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If youāve been living under a rock, let me tell you. This is probably the best game released last year and itās only $3. My business partners would be horrified to learn how many hundreds of hours Iāve given to this game. After a long day on set, thereās nothing better than posting up horizontal for a few half hour runs through the Inlaid Library while you listen to the new Lana album.
Mar 29, 2023
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Iām trying to bring theatre back to the city! Back in January Sam Rolfes and I directed a huge one-night-only musical show called Diskokina, and Iām currently developing the Club Cringe showcase for festivals. As a result, theatre is seeping into everything else Iām doing right now. Iāve been spending a bunch of time in the Theatre archives up on 64th st, where you can watch the cityās archive of musicals and plays dating back over 50 years - but the catch is you can only view each production once in your lifetime. Itās so depressing that the only shows we see talked about online is shit like Hamilton. Plays used to be such a big part of New Yorkās cultural export and it feels like itās kind of been handed off to the tourists. I think performers in general play it very safe and calculated these days, which is why Iām drawn to musicians who get up there and present a whole idea in their live shows. Frost Children and Club Eat come to mind immediately.Ā Itās vulnerable and cringe to get up on stage and start sharing things that used to be just in your notes app, to a whole room full of people. I guess thatās where the name Club Cringe comes from. Itās more about the risk of performing something big and high concept and being okay with potentially seeing it flop or be ill-recieved, ācoming off cringeā than it is about the work actually being intentionally cringey.
Mar 29, 2023
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Iām shocked whenever I hear that someone hasnāt watched the Monster Ball. Itās probably the best touring show ever produced. She toured it around the world for two years without stopping. Itās a perfect spectacle of camp, raw talent, and high budget theater. Most people go for the HBO Madison Square Garden filming but personally I prefer another version thatās free on YouTube. Philly, shot right after her five-night Madison Square Garden stint, is Gaga at her loosest. The wigs are unbrushed. The muscle relaxers are flowing. Thereās a branded Virgin Mobile part where she calls a fan on a flip phone. She calls herself a tranny and she fucks up some of her keytar solos, but itās impossible to look away. Itās a masterpiece of improvisation and Iāll take it over the squeaky clean HBO version anyday
Mar 29, 2023