TAS runs?

Discussion about Rocks'n'Diamonds, Boulder Dash, Supaplex, Emerald Mine and any other BD hybrid.

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Alan
Posts: 661
Joined: Fri Jun 18, 2004 7:48 pm

Post by Alan »

and a small improvement of level 30 to 5:31.
Really like this one, and it's definitely tighter than the youtube run (which I've watched a few times now). I think I've missed the one in between?.....Room 4,pushing the line of lightblocks in the middle is a really clever time saver. Disturbing seeing the gem count for each room getting offset after being decapitated though! :-D

A shame fraps doesn't work with RnDs....something I've recently found out when I tried to make a few vids, what did you use?

As for Zelda2, there's about a quarter of the amount of on-screen enemies than Zelda1 had and you can still out run the fastest ones. Thinking of having a go myself :-)
Anonycat
Posts: 47
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 4:45 am

Re: TAS runs?

Post by Anonycat »

The long downtime significantly dampens the unveiling, but presenting...Snake Bite (Entire Set) in 56:30.08

In the time since this video was compiled, my tape files directory has seen a few improvements, in level 12 (-0.04), 19 (-2.36), and 29 (-1.00), so the current chart looks like this:

Code: Select all

LEVEL                              |MY TAPE                 |||CREATOR DEMO
# |Name                            |Time    |Steps|Featured?|||Time    |Steps
1  entrance hall                     0:26.58   159              0:27.38   165
2  red & green should never be seen  1:17.96   425              1:31.46   501
3  rollerballs                       1:31.92   537              2:12.70   769
4  spit it out                       1:37.66   507              2:01.60   587
5  door mania                        0:55.24   249              2:24.02   723
6  intermission 1                    0:28.14   146              0:33.14   170
7  round and around                  1:46.04   548              2:01.32   620
8  r-r-rebounders!                   1:09.42   378              4:07.88  1160
9  gyro                              2:39.38   900              3:35.38  1162
10 demolition training 101           2:27.74   636  *           5:52.74  1060
11 deflectors                        1:19.84   414              2:31.66   634
12 intermission 2                    0:40.26   195              0:52.50   211
13 level 12a                         1:32.56   446              5:14.74  1252
14 rattus norvegicus                 1:41.32   560  *           3:07.24   856
15 driving range                     2:41.18   655              4:50.28  1065
16 your move, creep                  1:39.92   588              2:58.84  1024
17 i got a crush on you              2:36.70   785  *           4:53.06  1127
18 intermission 3                    0:15.16    83              0:22.76   121
19 calipso                           2:01.28   575              3:17.74   795
20 hunted!                           2:00.38   576              2:25.80   644
21 keep on rollin'                   0:57.36   314              1:12.72   416
22 mad footy skillz                  2:59.32   641              4:42.44   871
23 room 101                          3:19.18  1003  *           5:37.44  1297
24 baker street                      2:56.02   618              3:13.66   912
25 intermission 4                    0:11.56    44              0:53.04    48
26 a trick of the tail               1:36.26   458              4:12.12   844
27 rooms of doom                     1:58.38   640              4:01.48   918
28 necropolis                        2:56.50   967              6:26.52  1823
29 rumble in the jungle              3:39.82  1176  *           4:50.80  1330
30 intermission 5-20                 5:07.94  1518  *           9:15.48  2390
TOTAL                               56:26.68 16717             99:47.94 25495
I've hacked my own RnD installation to display subsecond precision in the timer, which is why the video and the chart contain that level of accuracy; this change is ill-suited to making it into mainline distribution since it requires writing all over theme files, particularly for standalone level sets already released many years ago, and changing hard-coded constants with respect to positioning of the tape display.

Because there's so much downtime, I also managed to start on BD2K3, and finish it, with months and years to spare. Here's that tape directory, and the chart (though in this case the creator demos weren't made under TAS conditions, so the comparisons are for novelty value only):

Code: Select all

LEVEL                          |MY TAPE           |||CREATOR DEMO
# |Name                        |Time    |Featured?|||Time
0  RETRO INTRO                   0:40.16              1:05.70
1  ENTRANCE HALL                 2:56.42              4:57.08
2  KING TUT'S TOMB               3:09.50              5:07.18
3  ONE ROCKFORD AND HIS BOULDER  1:49.68 *            4:42.04
4  AIRLOCK                       1:37.80              2:06.34
5  DIAMOND FACTORY               0:48.14              1:22.88
6  KA-PLUNK!                     1:18.66              1:57.76
7  MAKE YOUR OWN MAZE            0:47.92              0:59.68
8  DIAMOND OBSESSION             0:40.28 *            4:08.22
9  SAND TIMER                    0:42.32              1:05.60
10 WAR!                          0:51.42              2:23.02 (and desyncs)
11 THRILL OF THE CHASE           1:31.70              1:41.02
12 DEMOLITION TRAINING           2:53.36              5:35.86
13 SPACED INVADERS!              1:14.24              3:07.80
14 JAIL BREAK!                   0:48.06              1:51.68
15 ROCKFORD...WHAT A GUY!        1:51.34 *            7:46.38
16 ROCKFORD IN SPACE             3:19.34 *            4:53.96
17 OFF-SET                       1:09.34              2:50.22
18 GLADIATOR                     1:14.38              1:28.70
19 JIGSAW                        0:31.72 *            1:43.84
20 DARKNESS                      3:52.88              6:05.36
21 REMOTE CONTROL                1:36.64              4:31.98
22 HI-HO HI-HO                   3:40.88              7:49.82
23 SURVIVAL OF THE FITEST        1:55.80              3:27.04
24 MIRROR,MIRROR                 0:56.36 *            4:04.52
25 PYRAMID POWER                 1:56.80              5:19.06
26 MOUSE TRAP!                   2:14.40              3:34.48
27 THINK AHEAD!                  3:18.16              5:20.58
28 FROZEN IN TIME                1:58.48              3:11.62
29 ENTOMBED                      2:29.78              4:44.76
30 MIND RIPPER                   1:06.12              3:57.82
31 DEFLECTION TIME!              2:30.84              3:25.82
32 OLD SCHOOL                    2:43.62              7:06.80
33 SUPER PERPLEXED               3:31.84              8:05.72
34 GOING DOWN SIR?               1:56.66              2:30.68
35 CHAR RIOTS OF ICE             0:46.56              1:02.14
36 NAMELESS LEVEL                0:44.74 *            5:47.78
37 SUPER G                       2:15.26              2:32.26
38 RAN-DUM                       0:41.20              1:39.70
39 ASSAULT COURSE                3:41.82              7:17.46
40 THE END?                      5:25.46 *           12:58.14
41 THE BOSS                      0:26.30              1:55.38
42 THE END!                      0:13.58              0:50.12
TOTAL                           79:59.96            168:14.00
I haven't put this on video yet, because level 41 is old and extremely unsatisfactory; I know of a way to improve the start, but every time I've gone through it, the random numbers never work out for getting the final hit in a spot I need it, when I need it. Even worse, sources of entropy are practically nonexistent in that level, and the random lookahead facility I wrote into my installation doesn't look more than one number ahead (in fact, in that situation it doesn't display any numbers at all).

During the making of that, I found that BD2K3 is a real mishmash of a levelset, with different levels being created under different versions of the engine. Normally it's not something you'd notice in the course of play, but when every frame makes a difference you learn to appreciate the levels where walking into a wall only locks out control for 1 frame instead of 8; it's those levels that enable things like the turbo-rock-push in level 3.

And as seen elsewhere in this forum, there's a new levelset called Tigris Mythos; the maker of that set sent it to me for a trial run early on, and I decided why not, these are short levels so I'll tackle that too. It has an interesting optional goal in every 10th level except the first and last, and it's worth tracking times for both options: collecting the penguins or not. So I did. Making use of the snap key, which TM doesn't even acknowledge the existence of in its instructions, and an inordinate amount of luck manipulation (to the point where another one of the hacks I added to my installation was a hotkey for "increment random seed" and "decrement random seed"), I get this obligatory tape folder:

Code: Select all

     NO    WITH
     SAVE  SAVE
     __0   __0   __1   __2   __3   __4   __5   __6   __7   __8   __9
00_ 01.76 --.-- 02.56 06.24 13.08 10.02 08.92 10.98 20.12 13.28 20.22
01_ 12.40 20.02 26.38 21.38 17.54 15.06 16.18 03.22 17.04 20.74 32.18
02_ 14.64 18.88 16.98 22.74 25.40 18.54 21.60 15.44 24.30 14.44 34.00
03_ 10.36 29.28 13.60 27.32 12.84 14.06 28.14 07.12 13.20 03.20 21.00
04_ 07.98 26.82 20.68 06.84 17.44 08.58 20.30 13.62 19.96 18.74 31.24
05_ 05.94 09.84 23.98 16.92 18.12 25.56 25.94 19.90 30.52 29.30 20.92
06_ 09.06 10.14 16.36 41.76 18.90 18.54 11.98 21.98 16.46 09.42 17.32
07_ 13.52 24.94 42.10 14.86 19.72 14.04 15.92 10.82 19.02 47.98 22.92
08_ 12.96 17.78 12.72 10.62 04.24 05.48 21.02 25.24 05.04 21.12 26.34
09_ 07.76 09.42 21.54 18.16 08.98 13.22 16.76 20.74 20.52 22.72 36.94
10_ 08.98 29.32 24.92 36.20 45.00 30.70 31.78 37.12 26.08 13.32 19.66
11_ 21.60 30.64 14.58 30.14 37.80 17.76 25.30 38.98 17.62 20.24 16.50
12_ 12.02 13.92 10.50 10.36 15.04 28.12 14.76 25.26 31.44 21.44 1:45.68
130 01.92
TOTAL    NO SAVE: 42:36.32    WITH SAVE: 44:20.10
If I ever get to other level sets, you might find them here. (There's currently some slow progress on Supaplex, which I don't anticipate finishing any time soon.) Hopefully after less of a delay.
DioramStudio
Posts: 8
Joined: Thu Oct 10, 2013 1:39 pm

Re: TAS runs?

Post by DioramStudio »

Hi Anonycat,

Due to multiple people mentioning that Tigris Mythos doesn't acknowledge the Snap Field move, I have updated the instruction manuals to endorse this feature.

Phil Peer
Dioram.com
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