Breaking Down the Fastest Routes in Popular Speedrun Games

28 July 2025

Speedrunning is like gaming on rocket fuel. It’s the art (and science) of beating a game as fast as humanly possible—sometimes in ways the developers never even imagined. For some, it's about shaving milliseconds; for others, it's about rewriting the rules entirely. But no matter your experience level, understanding the fastest routes used in popular speedrun games can both blow your mind and improve your gameplay.

So, whether you're just diving into the world of speedruns or you're looking to optimize your own runs, this article is gonna break down how top runners navigate their way to record times across some of the most iconic games out there.

Let’s go warp-pipe diving into the world of pixels, glitches, and controller-mashing genius!

What Is a Speedrun Route Anyway?

Imagine you're using Google Maps to find the fastest way to work—but instead of roads, you're dealing with game levels, enemy patterns, and frame-perfect jumps. A speedrun route is essentially the optimized path a runner takes through a game, often planned down to the button press.

But here’s the kicker—these routes aren’t always “logical” in the traditional sense. Sometimes, the fastest route means walking through a wall, skipping bosses, or using a menu glitch to literally teleport to the credits screen. Yeah, it gets wild.

Super Mario 64 – The King of Creative Routing

Let’s start with a classic that almost every gamer knows: Super Mario 64. This game is a speedrunner’s playground, thanks to its open design and abundance of movement options.

The Classic 16-Star Route

Why 16 stars? Because it’s the minimum number needed to beat the game using a trick called the "Backwards Long Jump" (BLJ), which lets Mario phase through doors and walls at lightning speed.

Runners only grab the bare minimum required stars—often the fastest ones located in Bomb-Omb Battlefield, Whomp's Fortress, and other early-level stages—before heading to Bowser.

These players use BLJs like warp zones, flinging Mario backward so fast that the game’s collision detection just gives up. You literally break the laws of digital physics.

The 0-Star Route (Yes, Really)

This is where things get even crazier. Through a combination of teleporting, precise movement, and exploiting flaws in the game’s logic, some runners can beat SM64 without collecting a single star. It’s not even about speed at that point—it’s about complete game manipulation. If you’ve ever wanted to see Mario break time and space, watch a 0-star run.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – The Glitch Olympics

If SM64 is a playground, Ocarina of Time is a glitch museum. This beloved classic is practically made for sequence-breaking.

Any% Route

The fastest way to beat OoT? It’s less about fighting Ganondorf and more about confusing the game so badly it gives up trying.

In the Any% route, runners use what's called “Wrong Warp.” Basically, they trigger a cutscene while entering a door and fool the game into thinking they're somewhere else, like the final boss room. It’s part magic trick, part ancient ritual. The fastest runs clock in under 8 minutes, which is mind-bending considering the game is dozens of hours long if played normally.

No Major Glitches Route

Now, if you like a challenge with a bit more “fairness,” the No Major Glitches category might be your jam. It still includes clever tricks but bans the game-breaking stuff, creating a more traditional (yet optimized) route where dungeon routing and movement become the keys to speed.

Minecraft – Crafting Speed from Chaos

Minecraft doesn’t have a set final level, but speedrunners treat beating the Ender Dragon as the ultimate challenge. And trust me, the fastest runners make the randomness of a Minecraft seed look like part of the plan.

Random Seed Glitchless (RSG)

This category means the world is totally random, no glitches allowed. So runners have to adapt on the fly—finding villages, crafting items, and navigating the Nether with insane speed and precision.

The route typically involves:

- Immediately punching trees (of course)
- Finding a village or lava pool for a quick Nether portal
- Speedcrafting armor and weapons
- Locating Blaze spawners and killing Endermen for pearls
- Building an Ender portal and finishing the dragon

It sounds simple, but RSG requires deep knowledge of Minecraft’s mechanics, plus the reflexes of a caffeinated squirrel.

Celeste – Precision and Flow

Celeste is a platformer that values movement mastery over glitch abuse. Its speedrun routes are all about rhythm, timing, and knowing when to take risks for faster time saves.

Any% Route

In this category, runners aim to beat the game by completing all the levels in order, using advanced movement techniques like:

- Wave dashing (using momentum to speed across surfaces)
- Hyper dashing (a grounded dash jump that covers more ground)
- Corner boosts and wall bounces for tight navigation

What makes Celeste so captivating is that runners don’t rely on broken code—they lean into the game’s intended mechanics and simply push them to their absolute limit. It’s art in motion, really.

Doom (1993) – Old School, Fast and Furious

Before fancy 3D engines, there was Doom. And it turns out you can finish some levels in seconds—literally.

Ultra-Violence Route

In Doom, speedrun categories often revolve around difficulty plus 100% completion goals (monsters, secrets, items), or just getting to the exit ASAP—which is way harder than it sounds.

Runners abuse:

- Wallrunning (walking alongside walls at turbo speed)
- Monster AI manipulation
- Rocket jumps and strafing tricks to cross large gaps

The fastest players memorize every level layout and enemy pattern like they’re reading a bedtime story. It’s raw, chaotic, and oddly beautiful in how aggressively efficient it all becomes.

Portal – Shortcuts Through Science

If there was ever a speedrun that looked like a magic show, it’s Portal. The fastest routes through this game are like watching someone solve a Rubik’s cube with their eyes closed.

Any% Route

In this route, runners completely deconstruct how portals work. They use tricks like:

- Save glitching (loading saves to warp locations)
- Edge glitching (placing portals in illegal spots)
- Accelerated backward hopping (ABH) to reach warp speeds

The result? A run that normally takes a few hours completed in under 7 minutes. GLaDOS doesn’t even have time to start being evil.

Pokémon Red/Blue – Gotta Go Fast

Pokémon might seem like a slow-paced RPG, but speedrunners treat it like a sprint. Speedruns of Red/Blue are heavily route-dependent, balancing trainer battles, RNG, and which Pokémon to catch or skip.

Any% Glitchless

In this route, runners:

- Choose Squirtle for early-game advantage
- Skip unnecessary trainers to avoid wasted time
- Manipulate encounter rates as much as possible
- Optimize item usage and battle strategies for speed

And then there’s the glitched route, which uses the infamous “MissingNo” and Trainer-Fly glitch to warp straight to the Hall of Fame in under two minutes. It’s Pokémon, but on warp drive.

What Makes a Good Speedrun Route?

Let’s break this down. A great speedrun route is:

- Consistent: It should be repeatable, not pure RNG.
- Efficient: Ditches the fluff, keeps only the best time-saving tactics.
- Flexible: Good routes adapt to player skill levels and new discoveries.
- Fun: Let’s be real, if the route isn’t fun to play or watch, what’s the point?

Veteran runners spend hundreds of hours testing different paths, perfecting muscle memory, and adjusting based on new tech. So what you’re seeing isn’t just fast—it’s a work of art crafted by trial and error.

How to Start Speedrunning Yourself

You don’t need to be a frame-perfect god to start your speedrunning journey.

Here’s a quick roadmap:

1. Pick a Game You Love
Start with something you enjoy. You’ll be playing it a lot.

2. Watch World Record Runs
Youtube and Twitch are goldmines. Watch and learn.

3. Use Community Resources
Sites like Speedrun.com, Discord servers, and Reddit have tons of tutorials and route guides.

4. Practice in Chunks
Don’t try to do a full run at once. Master a level or area at a time.

5. Time Your Runs & Record Them
Use a timer app like LiveSplit. Record your gameplay so you can review and improve.

6. Join the Community
Sharing your runs, asking questions, and learning from others is half the fun.

Final Thoughts: It's About the Journey And the Destination

Speedrunning is gaming turned into a science. Fastest routes aren’t just shortcuts—they're a testament to how deeply people love these games. Whether you're watching or trying it yourself, each pixel-perfect jump and glitchy trick tells a story of creativity, obsession, and sometimes a little madness (in the best way).

So next time you play one of your favorite games, ask yourself: could this be faster? Chances are, someone’s already found a way—and it’s probably wild.