====Description==== Cruis'n USA is an arcade racing game originally released in 1994. It was developed by Eugene Jarvis' company TV Games Inc., and manufactured by Midway Games. It is the first game in the Cruis'n series and features races set in locations across the continental United States. from: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cruis%27n_USA Tool-assisted speedrun (TAS) of Cruis'n USA Arcade (3/3) Devastator in 21:23.99 GOAL: -Complete the game as quickly as possible -Try to beat the times on Twin Galaxies at: www.twingalaxies.com/game/cruisn-usa/arcade www.twingalaxies.com/game/cruisn-usa-rev-l41/mame -The first thing you learn while playing this game is that you never need to brake or release the gas pedal. All curves can be taken at full speed, but you lose speed when sliding. -I did not see any advantage in choosing the manual transmission -I did 3 TAS of this game improving my times in each one. I decided to post all three, not just the last one, because I think there's something fun to look at in all of them. ========Video 1========= kzfaq.info/get/bejne/q6xoqpODvr7Il3k.html -I chose the Devastator because it is the fastest car. (147 mph) -In this first video I learn the limits of the game. -There are 2 main wastes of time: -Loss of speed when sliding in curves -Loss of speed by hitting other racing cars, it's fun to do but costs too much time. -Conclusion: -I have to stop hitting the other cars, the important thing is not to finish first but to have a minimum loss of speed. -I finished first only on 6/14 stages. -There are 8 times on the Twin Galaxies site that I haven't beaten, so it's possible to do better ========Video 2========= kzfaq.info/get/bejne/a7lldNZ61c2xdGQ.html -This second video was made with the Italia car. -As the Italia has a better Skidpad stat (1.01 G vs. 0.85 G), it will likely lose less speed in curves than the Devastator. -I'm going to try not to hit as many race cars as in the first video. -Conclusion: -I have upgraded 11/14 times which is good. It helps to have more grip in the corners, but when the road is straight the Devastator is quicker. -But I haven't beaten 5 times from the Twin Galaxies site -I only finished first on 6/14 stages, like in my first TAS. ========Video 3========= (This video) -I watched the videos on the Twin Galaxies website and noticed that some players weren't playing with an analog controller and were doing a few stages faster than I managed to do, which gives me an idea.. . -Strategy: -Use the Devastator because it's the fastest -Don't hit anything that can slow me down. (cars, roadsides) -Don't try to finish first at all costs -If a turn is not negotiable at more than 140 mph, turn the steering wheel as much as possible so that the car's slide is as short as possible -Conclusion: -I've beaten all but one of Twin Galaxy's times, and a few I've beaten by over 10 seconds. -The only time I didn't improve was stage 6 'LA Freeway', I did 1:48.80 compared to 01:48.32. , that's because this stage only has one curve that slows you down. A TAS therefore does not have many advantages. I should rework this part to get a better time. -I finished first for 10/14 stages. -I abused a bit of the loose collision at the end of Chicago (21:33), but no cheats were used. -I read somewhere that the game is programmed to be harder for a stage after a stage where you finish first, that's why it's difficult to finish first twice in a row, even for a TAS. -Everything I did in these TAS is achievable by a human with a little luck (or not just a little?). I didn't use any special tricks or cheats, just precision driving. What is a TAS? kzfaq.infoabout For a good introduction to TASing: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/f8uknpRevMibn40.html For more information visit tasvideos.org.

I didn't play this much in the arcades, but I always ASSUMED that it cheated. It's good to know we were right.

Finally, a run that (pretty much) beats this game.

Glad you did this one. TASVideos doesn't go for Midway at all (I'm still amazed someone did Rampage World Tour). Basically, they want to have complete control and show the amazing things it's possible to do in a game, but at Midway the game has complete control, so attempting to do any better than a normal player would is invariably an exercise in slamming one's head into a wall. Some trouble spots are to be expected with TASing, but if the programming _constantly_ screams "NO! NO! NO!" at you, you can see why the vast majority of TASers would say the hell with it. There's also the problem with how the American approach to racing games differs from the Japanese. Think back to any Sega, Konami, or Namco racing game you've ever played. What are the two constants? You have to negotiate a large variety of corners, most requiring some degree of braking, and time is a huge factor. It takes _skill_ to succeed at these games. In America, the appeal of racing has been putting the hammer down and tearing around corners, so the whole course can be taken flat out (particularly ridiculous in California Speed; it is _impossible_ to take the real life Laguna Seca or Infineon flat out in anything with more horsepower than a golf cart) and the timer is only there in case the player suddenly has to leave for an emergency. America is also the land of incentives, hence the free replay for finishing first... but since the operator has bills to pay, getting a freebie automatically jacks up the computer cars' speed, so even if you choose the same track you're not going to take first again. Now think about which country has had the most influence, by an _enormous_ margin, on our arcade culture and has done the most to shape the mindsets of its players, and imagine how willing they'd be to negotiate insane rubberbanding, bizarre CPU car movements, and ridiculous junk flying all over the place for fourteen races... _and not even win them all._ Heck, RC Pro-Am 2 has maybe a fifth of the BS as this and it almost never got finished. So yeah, thanks for doing this. Not one of my favorite games, but it was a fun ride, and in the end, that's really all anyone should expect from Midway.

Jarvis did it all in ASM too, what a legend

Midway did have a way of programming the CPU to cheat in order to win. If you ever need to verify that, look at the NBA Jam/Hangtime series. The CPU was notorious for those 4th Quarter comebacks. Anyway, nice TAS! So, what's up next?

19:41 Jumpscare

3:47 Green car on the highway going the wrong way.

Can you please do next a TAS like Golgo 13 on Lupin The 3rd: The Shooting *(2001)*

I'm sure 1cc is theoretically possible in this game if you race super defensively and/or manipulate luck to get more CPU crashes. Rubbin' is racin' after all. But the emphasis here was to get the best possible time, not necessarily to finish first.

I find it kinda funny that this game is called "Cruis'n USA" and yet 7 of the 14 tracks are set in California. Not super representative of the US, I'd say.

Does anybody else get that uncanny valley feeling from watching this video ? California does not have this many tunnels. The Hollywood sign is not that close to Beverly Hills.

337

Not even TAS is allowed to have first place if the game doesn't feel like it. The opponent cars are just sock puppets on rails. It's all a fragile illusion of a hollow game, just like California Speed and Fast and Furious after it (the latter game has Nitrous that straight-up refuses to increase your speed when you're in 1st place).

This kind of run puts the awful "rubber banding" this game had on full display. On some stages (especially Death Valley) this is particularly bad, but on just about all of them where the player is in the lead the opponents will magically either stick very close to the player or somehow manage to stay a specific distance from them regardless of how much it shouldn't seem possible!

Lol the AI in this game is cracked. They REALLY did not want you to get first place 😂 I’m guessing that means a 1cc is impossible if you can’t even get 1st place in each race no matter how good you play. Typical Midway

N64 doesn't really change all that much for gameplay. No new cars (The paintjobs are just upgrades), No new modes, No new tracks... Nothing! Meaning doing a TAS on Cruis'n USA on N64 with base paintjob cars does not change much at all (aside from the AI being scaled WAY back)

What a shit game. Did the programmers _really_ think they were fooling anybody, giving credits for winning races, then taking them back for not winning 'impossible to win' races?

Need for speed is better