I DID IT!!!!!
For those who have never seen a speedrun of this game before, here are answers to some commonly asked questions:
Q: What are the requirements for 100% in this game?
A: To obtain 100%, I must collect all 96 gems and defeat the final boss. Crystals do not contribute to the % counter, so it is not necessary to collect all of them.
Q: What version of the game are you playing on? Is this emulator?
A: I am playing the PAL PS2 version on a PAL SCPH-90004 PS2 Slim.
Q: Why are you playing on PAL instead of NTSC? Why PS2 instead of Xbox?
A: PAL is preferred for this game due to a bug that occurs when the game runs at 60 FPS (NTSC). At this framerate, Crash can slide in the wrong direction if you move the analog stick at all during a slidejump, which is very annoying to deal with. I am using the PS2 version simply because it is the one I own. Xbox does have faster loading times, but it would be quite expensive for me to import a PAL Xbox from overseas, so I stick with PS2.
Q: Why are you pausing the game every so often?
A: Pausing causes the game to load stuff more quickly. This is used more extensively on the PS2 version than the Xbox version due to loading time discrepancies.
Q: How are you going through nitros and not dying?
A: Throwing Cortex into the Papu Papu cutscene at the end of the 1st section of Totem Hokum triggers what we call zombie mode. In this state, the game already thinks Crash is dead, so objects that would normally kill him do not. This is both good and bad - since pits no longer kill Crash in this state, falling into one softlocks the game and forces a reset. This same state is used in Boiler Room Doom in order to collect all 6 gems and escape the level without having to fight Dingodile.
Q: Is it possible to die while in zombie mode? What can kill you?
A: The only enemies that can kill Crash while in zombie mode are the villagers with binoculars in Totem Hokum. This is why I wait for the last villager to raise his binoculars before proceeding. Funnily enough, those enemies can only see Crash for 1 single frame (the frame they raise their binoculars). Any time before or after this, it is safe to proceed. Zombie Crash can also die from falling too far, which is used at the end of Boiler Room Doom.
Q: How did you skip fighting Mechabandicoot?
A: The hoverboard that Cortex flies into Crash at the end of the fight is stored out of bounds and is invisible. Fortunately, it is also fully controllable, so I land on it and fly into Cavern Catastrophe underneath the boss arena. This skip is quite difficult, and any slight error results in a softlock and forces a reset.
Q: How are you able to jump over so many large gaps?
A: When Crash does a slidejump, the game stores the speed of the slide. If the next jump Crash does is off the edge of a platform, he will jump with the speed of the slide, allowing him to clear tons of gaps that he isn't supposed to. This is called a longjump and is used extensively in this run to skip puzzles, cutscenes, platforming, etc.
Q: Where can I find the leaderboards for this game?
A: www.speedrun.com/twinsanity
Q: How do I go about learning this game?
A: Feel free to join the Crash Bandicoot Speedrunning Discord Server - a link can be found on the sidebar of the leaderboards page.
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