Glitch Evolution: The History of Superswimming in Zelda: The Wind Waker

[@Pete-vi9cb]

If any Devs read this: please keep forgetting to cap backwards speed, makes it much more fun!

[@Brandon-oc8lr]

On kind of a similar point i find it interesting to think about whether or not devs should try to cater to the speed running community. I feel like speed runners will find something regardless of developer intentions. Im doing my PhD in physics right now and it always crazy to me how much speedrunning research is like real scientific research and having it be nonintentional on the devs part makes it even more exciting - even they dont know what runners will find. Theres something oddly 'naturalistic' about that.

[@Drew-yz7ih]

@@Brandon-oc8lr I think a lot of why these glitches enhance the speedrun so well, might just be the survivorship bias of it. Some glitches can absolutely kill a category to be discovered. So the games that continue to be ran after all these years are just the ones that have the glitches that feel the most naturalistic. "Should devs cater to speed running communities?" I'm not sure, I think there's definitely room at least for consideration when designing intended game mechanics. Look at Celeste for example. It remains to this day one of the most actively speedran games. For glitches, I think there's some magic lost now a days, every game that releases will have a few updates, and development on it might be somewhat active for years. If you think there's something wrong with a glitch being intentionally put into the game just for speedrunners, then I think leaving the glitch (that you learn of after the launch) in would be as intentional of a choice when you can choose to patch it. If Nintendo could patch out superswim, they probably would have in 2010 (well they didn't for hd in 2013, so maybe they just didn't know about it, but they patched techniques they saw that were popular among speedrunners at the time). It feels good to know that we can do things in the game against the intentions of the devs, that there's emergent gameplay being created from the players instead of the devs.

[@moth.monster]

@@Drew-yz7ih Nintendo didn't patch the zombie hover so i doubt they patched anything on purpose.

[@CassiusStelar]

I'm not Nintendo, but noted.

[@FlamingZelda3]

Seems to be a pretty consistent Nintendo error. The BLG in M64 is possible for the same reason.

[@gregvillafane9167]

Imagine the POV of the people just watching this little kid in pajamas zip through the ocean backwards

[@rtyuik7]

Old Man HoHo, looking through his telescope: "what in blazes is THAT?? its coming this way-- aaaaand its gone..."

[@T3sl4]

I bet the reason Gordon Freeman of Half Life is so special is because he has a triforce. Silent protagonist, expert in combat, faster than the speed of sound? Headcanon: Freeman is a distant heir of Link, and both games are in the same universe.

[@M4XD4B0ZZ]

Salute this boy

[@Joey-ok6rs]

Imagine if mss could be done in the Olympics

[@lucakoddsy3000]

lol

[@ForgoneMoose]

6:08 There I am, Gary, there I am!

[@Patashu]

You're tagged in the video!

[@Purplemen101]

Thank you Mr Moose!

[@stargazersdance]

Hi Moose!

[@dr4gonblitz]

I saw you on the TV last night. You were in a Speedrunning explanation video.

[@ahumanbeingfromtheearth1502]

"His speed decreases by 3 units-" Me, remembering mario 64: hey, ive seen this one!

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Yup, same thought.

[@colorcoated]

What do you mean you’ve seen it, it’s brand new

[@lukealias1uk345]

@@colorcoated do you happen to know about BLJ ?

[@colorcoated]

Luke alias 1uk3 I was just finishing the back to the future reference

[@gairisiuil]

blj is multiplying

[@IkeSMB]

Whoa, I didn’t expect to get mentioned in this! Although I will say that I remember getting to Eastern Fairy once even without camera lock, but I wasn’t recording because I didn’t expect to get far at all (especially because I’d never glitch hunted anything before). I haven’t really kept up with TWW since then so it’s really cool to hear what people are doing now. Great stuff!

[@jimmyjohnjoejr]

Good on you

[@snakeorbreak6258]

"Ho, there! Link!" *LINK EXPLODES INTO A WATERSPOUT*

[@Simikins]

I really enjoy history/stories like this that aren't just about "WR history". Getting deeper into the paths of discovery, optimisation, discussion etc. is really fascinating.

[@CGF.]

I wasn't expecting to get mentioned either, to be honest, not in a video as big as this.. man, we've come so damn far. Here's to more years of TWW discoveries!

[@emilianoaventura5295]

16:53 "We gradually became better at pausing"

[@MrCheeze]

"If it saves time and can be done, someone is going to try it." :)

[@884ringo]

15:22 *does math* yep, saves time I don't think I was supposed to laugh as much as I did lol I feel like these glitch videos puts so much perspective on what happened inside the community for a run to reach the point it's now. Thanks for the patience and great work putting this video together, Gym.

[@obisidiangolden1159]

I love the “and bellow zero, there is no speed limit”, this alone hoked me in wathing the most interesing video about a speedruning glitch i ever seen!!!!!

[@Abahbob]

Oooooh boy, this is gonna be great

[@nestrior7733]

I love the credo of the speedrunning community: "If it's faster, someone is going to try it." that we keep using to break the limits of "humanly possible". Which is probably a reason I love this community so much.

[@canrex7540]

When you started talking about the dead zone stealing speed, my first thought was, "So you just map the dead zone to the side, does that work?" That being the answer was a feel-good moment for me lol

[@wazoogus8934]

please make more of these, theyre very informing and your voice is one of the most soothing on youtube, right next to particular mushroom

[@Moonlight24123]

Wind Waker is what got me so invested in speed running and speed running events. I never get tired of you or Linkus explaining super swimming on stream, and I love this video too.

[@mollyfaucet]

i dont know why people would think this would make the run boring it’s so cool

[@redrider578]

"Or left it on because you fell asleep" Dont call me out like that man

[@1Subversion1]

I like these videos a lot, and the voice doesnt get boring or annoying to listen to. Liking this channel a lot, decided to subscribe.

[@hexagal4754]

This is insane! God, the dedication! The incremental fight for improvement! And that funny lock that had link trapped splashing like a magikarp had me rolling!

[@Rammbob]

22:06 I actually do fall asleep to some runs of yours which is pretty chill, but this recap was very interesting and well done. Gladly watched it all the way through :) Thanks for putting this together, also for your Speedruns and other showcases

[@JoshuaFE8]

Even as someone who knew a lot of this stuff already, this was interesting af, and finding out who all the credit goes to was really cool. Awesome video Gym

[@timmaia5082]

Really nice watch, good pacing on both the explanations themselves and the timeline!

[@CZ-PC]

Love these. We get too much history on the world records as a whole as opposed to single dedicated videos on a certain strategy or glitch. Great job.

[@katalbinson6562]

I really like these type of videos! Please make more of these!

[@aortaplatinum]

"No officer I wasn't driving backwards at 400mph through a neighborhood in Summer, I was exploiting the lack of a speed cap"

[@lostthepirate6311]

I love how much credit and respect you and Linkus7 always have for each other in your history vids. You two seem like competitors/rivals, but it makes me smile with how collaborative the community is!

[@nomercyforswine]

Would love to see more content breaking down the history of individual Zelda tricks. You can get a brief overview in a marathon setting when someone's explaining a trick, but it's a whole new dimension to be able to see it evolve though video and deeper explainations. Great stuff man, keep it up. ^^

[@lucakoddsy3000]

Very nicely explained I love this video Thank you so much, I learned alot!

[@mr_pants278]

This was really interesting to watch. I love breakdowns and retrospectives about speedrun stuff in general, but moreso when it's about such a storied game and how certain tricks and skips are able to completely blow a game wide open and how they came to be. I've been on a Wind Waker kick recently, watching a lot of different categories and it reminds me just how much I love this game. 100% is great to see played fast, because there's so much in the game and it's just nice to see everything getting equal attention. Great video, Gym. Would love to see more like this.

[@mirkocollin]

Great Video Gym !

[@Leannehef]

Great video Gym

[@MrAske]

Thank you for this video Gymnast. This video and Elusive Glitches series that you produce is so interesting and inspiring to watch. Really makes me want to pick up speedrunning.

[@HenrikoMagnifico]

Very informative video, great job!

[@MilesHadley]

Really entertaining and informative video, I thought I knew most there was to know about super swimming but there was still plenty more I didn't know, especially with recent developments! Thank you for making this, I love this style of your videos.

[@versutus2699]

I love speedrunning history videos and the visualizations and explanations made it really easy to understand. Keep up the awesome content Gym

[@LeoAbatie]

Thanks, Gym, for always creating and sharing such interesting, polished, and thoughtful Zelda speed running videos. I continue to be entranced and entertained by them.

[@dusk5471]

I love seeing your speedrun related vids. They help me understand the VODS much more :)

[@keepitplaying24]

Wind waker is my favorite speedrun and I love hearing it broken down. Thanks for making this gym!

[@Saplingbat]

I absolutely adore these videos of yours. I mean I watch almost all of them of course, you have a good voice. But the mini documentary style on specific glitches and the history of speed running are so interesting. Thanks for the upload

[@morphogenetic834]

It really goes to show that speedrunning is a community effort! Thank you for the incredible video, it’s very informative!!

[@jakecg9182]

Gym, hearing you talk about the insanity that is wind water speed runs, as well as others is just so absolutely fascinating. Just needed to say that c:

[@ReDeadLauren]

that freaking math equation brought back awful flashbacks from high school like damn. Incredible video tho, really entertaining and interesting. I love videos like this that look into the history of speed runs and what not. It's kinda refreshing that this only focused on one (very important) glitch and how it evolved over time, rather than just the WR

[@not-the-main-character]

This video is great gym! I love the glitch evolution theme, and it would be cool to see more of this content.

[@lindbo4545]

I love these types of videos showing the evolution of certain speed running techniques.

[@acompletelynormalhuman6392]

Really interesting to see the history of speed running like this

[@Rubbly]

MORE GLITCH EXPLANATION VIDS Thanks Gymnast, great content as always. Keep on that speedrun grind you're doing great!

[@MonochromaticPrism]

Always enjoy your videos on glitches and speedrunning discoveries. They provide a window into the struggles and achievements of a niche and committed community of which I would ordinarily be entirely ignorant.

[@jemmalucille]

Yayy another awesome gym video ♥️ thank youuu!!

[@rtyuik7]

22:15 - ha...he said "deeper", which is funny because this video is about Swimming...in the Ocean...

[@SilvaSight]

*Tidus laugh*

[@brofenix]

Hmm, awesome history video and explanations Gymanst :) I was kind of surprised that Cosmo didn't come up in any of the video; I guess I assumed Cosmo discovered some of the superswimming techniques or first used them to get records. But I guess Cosmo was more a very good runner but not much of a glitch finder in Wind Waker.

[@munchingbanana4566]

Watching this makes me wish there was a video like this on storage. Well done.

[@rezahydra]

Great video. Can’t wait for the next one as always Gym.

[@diamondjub2318]

so basically, it's a backwards long jump?

[@horesfan400]

YAHOO!

[@Patashu]

It's a BLJ that got a PhD

[@discountchocolate4577]

It works for similar reasons: the devs only put a cap on positive (i.e. forward) velocity, but not negative (backward) velocity. The trick works because a player is able to make Link continue "losing" forward velocity after he starts moving backward with each turnaround, such that the velocity's absolute value (i.e. Link's speed) increases - deceleration from the subjective perspective of Link's front becomes acceleration in absolute terms.

[@benjaminshields9421]

Yup. But instead of facing one direction like mario, link has to turn around

[@sagacious03]

Very informative & fun story! Thanks for uploading!

[@sephroark]

Always look forward to your videos! This one is awesome as always :)

[@LumpAbundance]

Your best video… well the only video I saw from you. A very good video, so good I remember it and came back.

[@deinemama6303]

Very interesting video as always! Keep up the good work! 👍

[@1PulseDawg1]

This is awesome gymnast. Sometimes when I watch videos I forget how much effort goes into making them. You did your research and showed all your sources, it's like they say, a video essay. It makes me want to write a research paper, or even a thesis on speedrunning. Considering I'm a Math Education major, that might not work out, though things like that super-swimming formula make me hopeful. That formula is what math should be, a way of studying patterns and solving problems, not route repetition and formula memorizing *shakes fist and traditional United States math teach practices*

[@noeilia1758]

I almost did fall asleep watching this last night hahah, finished the video today instead. Ngl superswimming is a really interesting concept and looks pretty cool and funky, I'd totally mess around with it myself if I had Wind Waker!

[@epiccrownking2952]

That's very interesting! Always excited for a new video.

[@gaming_bigfoot]

Informative videos like these are why I'm glad I stuck around for more than just rando runs

[@nappkins9346]

Please more of these, this was brilliant. 😍

[@lq6202]

How could I fall asleep while watching content as good as this?

[@crease701]

I hope to see more stories like this one in the future!

[@triplebog]

Great video! I hope we get more content like this soon

[@Patashu]

NGL I was super hyped and ready for dry storage to be brought up, still such an awesome trick to this day

[@mrpokemon1186]

19:00 it sounds like someone having "fun" with Jell-O

[@MaxLebled]

This was an excellently made video! great work! My only bit of criticism that I wish to suggest is that a photosensitive / epilepsy warning would have been nice on the super swimming parts

[@DeviPotato]

i feel personally called out by the falling asleep comment, but this is a very informative and excellent video. thanks!

[@WannabeMarysue]

8:42 Beautiful glitch. Current Mood.

[@F1realone]

22:06 I can't fall asleep while something is playing in the background but I agree with everyone else expressing the sentiment that your voice is very relaxing and pleasant to listen to. You could read the phone book and make it sound interesting

[@familiarbit5319]

Agree. Would have fallen asleep had the video gone on for longer

[@paulogodoyp]

Nice vid! It's refreshing to see some WW content

[@Xershade]

Everyone: Your trick is stupid! Gymnast: I'm about to set a world record and ruin "anyone who thinks this is a stupid trick"'s career.

[@nerdyursus4689]

Can I just say he has a perfect voice for this stuff. I need more history of speed running tricks

[@mrchangcooler]

I miss your WWHD runs. They were nice to watch.

[@graslund42]

great video my man! keep it up, love these glitch videos

[@expensivecrayon]

i love this kind of speedrunning content

[@DerBeybladeFan]

Summoning Salt vibes. Great work!

[@benjaminnewell5214]

awesome video gym!

[@hokostudios]

I haven't fallen asleep (yet), but I feel so called out right now. Guess I know what to put on next for my sleep noise.

[@scuttlebug9214]

Awesome history. You have a very relaxing voice.

[@pedroscoponi4905]

I love these so much, glitch discovery and implementation is not unlike real-world science...

[@Arc_ride]

Gym with the good well thought content

[@fweqfeqwa]

Nice, watched this over dinner! Thank you for such an informative video!

[@jgcodes2020]

Ah, the glitches that result from forgetting a negative speed cap. first the BLJ and hyperspeed walking, now this

[@SuperMarioMinecrafter321]

Don't forget accelerated backhopping in Half Life 2.

[@fnln3011]

Link actually looks upset at being softlocked and I love it

[@einootspork]

I'm a little surprised that you didn't mention Item Sliding in WWHD at all. It's mostly tangential to what you're talking about, but you can use it for a version of Superswimming so it at least deserves a mention.

[@relaxmas]

why not combine the deadzone tricks at 18:30 and 5:40? do they already do that?

[@ItsmeAz]

I haven't watched the video yet, but I just want to say that's an excellent thumbnail.

[@tctrainconstruct2592]

3:26 speedrunners, use a timer! if you ever watched a DK64 speedrun, you know that ISG requires the use of timers... and storage also does

[@triforcecreeper]

You should do more of these

[@adrianbrave6044]

Very insightful and entertaining

[@simontingle6739]

Please do more of these :)

[@TheAngryGamer360]

I always love these videos

[@pulim-v]

"If you fell asleep" I have never been so offended by something I 100% agree with

[@gameitornot]

19:06 Jesus, my arm would explode trying to do that :D

[@gregvillafane9167]

windy boi go ZOOOOOOM

[@MrRobotVPN]

boy*

[@kolskullkid140]

Man speed running is a beautiful community