SoulBlazer 2 hour challenge/speedrun

EverPhoenix · Sat Jul 13, 2013 1:03 am

Here's another one. Same rules as the Terranigma challenge.
Not sure what to do about prizes for this one, I'll think of something.

Rules
No hacking
No SaveStates
Start from a new save
One session if possible, in-game saving allowed.

Current Scores

Manibrandr System · Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2025 11:17 pm Post subject:

Has anyone attempted this?

SoulBlazerFan · Posted: Mon Apr 28, 2025 9:33 pm Post subject:

Manibrandr System wrote:Has anyone attempted this?

At my best as a kid, my record was just a hair shy of 3 hours.

Manibrandr System · Posted: Mon Apr 28, 2025 11:28 pm Post subject:

Ohh, nice. I wonder how you'll do these days.

Being able to see your runs on video would be cool.

SoulBlazerFan · Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2025 5:38 pm Post subject:

Manibrandr System wrote:Ohh, nice. I wonder how you'll do these days.

Being able to see your runs on video would be cool.

Last time I played the game, it was a full game run with the plan to do commentary for a YouTube project that never got off the ground.

That playthrough straight was about 6 hours, and over a decade ago. I don't have the game as committed to memory as I used to. Getting old in my family means getting a bad memory.

DentedRazor · Posted: Tue May 06, 2025 9:59 pm Post subject:

My current personal best in the Any% category for the US version is 1 hour 33 minutes and 53 seconds. For the Japanese version, it is 1 hour 25 minutes and 26 seconds. The rules for Any% on speedrun.org are "Beat the game. Timing starts when the player gains control of the hero and stops when Deathtoll receives the final hit.". Basically, time starts the frame after the first conversation with the Master finishes (i.e. text box closes and Blazer can start walking) and ends when the last boss starts exploding (i.e. first sign of explosion).

My current goal is getting under 1 hour 33 minutes and 50 seconds. I am hoping to get it before my run at RPG Limit Break in a couple weeks, but I've been busy with other stuff, so it's been slow going.

DentedRazor · Posted: Wed May 07, 2025 7:14 am Post subject:

Some other neat notes on Soul Blazer speedrunning from my current research:

1. The earliest recorded speedrun of this game that I can find is a Tool Assisted Speedrun (TAS) by Kaz that was submitted on March 9th, 2006. The time (using current timing rules) is roughly 1:33:45.
2. The earliest recorded run I can find is by Reaif on his twitch channel that was recorded in early 2012 at a time of 1:57:27. Note that is is a deathless run, so no deathwarping to get back to the shrine faster.
3. The TAS was improved by Le_Hulk with his submission on August 21st, 2016 to a time of 1:17:34. Note that this was done with the Japanese version instead, which is roughly 8 minutes faster than the US version due to faster text speed and some bosses being faster to defeat due to lower hit points.
4. My current sources to learn this stuff and more have been posts from Speed Demos Archives forum, TASVideos.org forum posts, the History link on the Soul Blazer page of speedrun.org, the Quintet Speedrun Hub discord, and some answers from Le_Hulk (who has ran the game extensively and is a supermod for the speedruns).
5. There is a great guide by the runner StingerPA that helped me learn the route, and also a video by Everhate, who passed away in 2016. Blame Everhate (an eternal tribute we generally say in the speedrun community, due to his contributions in advanced and promoting the speedrun of Soul Blazer).

Sorry for the brain dump, this has been a lot of fun for me.

Manibrandr System · Posted: Wed May 14, 2025 1:22 pm Post subject:

I watched through your latest Twitch VoD, and I have to say, i am pretty impressed by the level of accuracy with your moves. The strafing move with your sword really is overpowered if you know how to use it right.

DentedRazor · Posted: Fri May 16, 2025 12:05 am Post subject:

Thanks for watching! Strafing is such a crucial tool, especially when Blazer's level isn't high enough to swing a sword.

DentedRazor · Posted: Sun May 25, 2025 12:52 pm Post subject:

Yesterday, LeHulk reclaimed the World Record by 25 seconds with a 1:33:28, and he even got 6 swoops from the Area 6 boss (24 sec of time loss)!

DentedRazor · Posted: Sat Jul 26, 2025 10:27 pm Post subject:

Since my last post, LeHulk had some great PB's:

Any% (US Version)
2025-06-06 - Improved World Record (WR) to 1hr 33min 24 sec
2025-06-09 - Improved WR to 1hr 33min 08 sec
2025-06-22 - Improved WR to 1hr 33min 03 sec
2025-06-26 - Improved WR to 1hr 32min 52 sec (1st sub-1hr 33min!)

Any% (Japanese Version)
2025-06-28 - Improved WR to 1hr 24 min 10 sec
2025-07-05 - Improved WR to 1hr 23 min 47 sec (1st sub-1hr 24min!)

I am currently working on a new Any% speedrun guide for this game, which will also have some notes on the speedrun history of this game.

I have also fixed the links to the videos of Everhate's speedruns of Soul Blazer on speedrun.com.

Lastly, I have been working on an Out of Bounds Any% run, which uses a hack I made to implemente a "walk through walls" game genie cheat by DarkForsaken. My current PB is 24 min 50 seconds (you can skip a LOT with that).

Thanks, have a great day, and blame Everhate.