Another week in the speedrunning community brought a mix of world records, technical breakthroughs, community discussions, and heartfelt moments that remind us why this hobby is about much more than fast times.
Ocarina of Time Runner Pushes Classic Kakariko Route to 15:07
One of the biggest achievements this week came from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, where TorjeSpeedruns set a new 15:07.900 world record on the Classic Kakariko route. Ocarina of Time continues to be one of speedrunning’s most optimized games, making every improvement increasingly difficult as runners squeeze out fractions of a second.
A Tribute to Ghostrunner Runner Cecel
The most emotional post of the week came from the partner of Ghostrunner runner Cecel, who recently passed away.
She shared his Speedrun.com profile and YouTube channel, hoping members of the community who watched or competed alongside him could leave one final message in his memory. The response served as a reminder that behind every leaderboard entry is a real person whose passion leaves a lasting impact.
Kaizo Mario Creator Returns
Guy Collins, creator of the legendary Kaizo Trap, stopped by the subreddit after reuploading his TAS runs of the Kaizo Mario trilogy.
He reflected on how the speedrunning community helped launch his work over a decade ago, thanking everyone for the support while introducing newer runners to a piece of speedrunning history.
Community Debates the Greatest Runs Ever
One discussion asked a fascinating question:
What was the speedrun of each year?
The thread highlighted iconic performances including:
- AndrewG’s first sub-5-minute Super Mario Bros.
- Narcissa Wright’s groundbreaking Ocarina of Time run
- Karl Jobst’s legendary 52-second Dam in GoldenEye
- Cheese05 and Suigi’s Super Mario 64 milestones
- Niftski’s modern Super Mario Bros. dominance
Rather than arguing over world records alone, runners discussed cultural impact, technical breakthroughs, and moments that fundamentally changed entire games.
Could Reddit Build a New Speedrunning Community?
Another discussion proposed an interesting experiment: what if the entire subreddit collectively adopted an obscure game with little or no existing competition?
The idea sparked conversations about discovering forgotten childhood games, routing them from scratch, and building new communities together instead of competing only in established titles.
More World Records This Week
Several other impressive records appeared throughout the week:
- Plants vs. Zombies Night World completed in 34:34
- Pokémon Pearl completed in 13:33 using the first Generation IV save corruption TAS
- Star Fox 2 Hard New Game+ finished in 20:50
- TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge Episode 10 Gnarly world record
- Complete Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition Art of War world record showcase
New Discoveries and Content
Technical discoveries continue to keep mature games fresh.
A frame-perfect Sonic Adventure trick introduced a brand-new waterfall skip, while another creator explored how runners effectively beat EarthBound “backwards.”
Meanwhile, several creators released world record history videos covering classic games like Joust, continuing the growing trend of documenting speedrunning history for newer audiences.
Events Around the Corner
The community is preparing for Barbiethon 2026, taking place August 1–2.
The biennial marathon celebrates speedruns of Barbie games while raising money for the National Immigration Law Center. Alongside traditional runs, the event will feature a Barbie Horse Trails Any% tournament bracket and remains open for last-minute submissions.
Signups also opened for DPX 2026, giving runners another event to look forward to later this year.
Beginners Keep Joining
As always, the weekly help thread remained active with newcomers asking everything from iPad recording setups to routing questions for Elden Ring’s notoriously difficult Godskin Duo fight.
It’s another reminder that no matter how optimized the biggest games become, there’s always someone discovering speedrunning for the first time.
Final Thoughts
This week perfectly captured what makes speedrunning special.
Yes, there were incredible world records and technical innovations. But alongside them were conversations about preserving history, celebrating legendary runs, creating entirely new communities, and remembering runners who left their mark.
Whether you’re chasing your first personal best or the next world record, the community continues to prove that speedrunning is built just as much on people as it is on perfect execution.
Source: reddit.com