Welcome to my speedrun of Assassin's Creed II 100% sync in 7 hours, 9 minutes and 51 seconds. The completion rate taken into account is the one shown in stats/overall; which means all side memories have to be done additionally to the main sequences (beat-ups, races, assassinations, courier missions, tombs and lairs). This run features save warping, and it is tagged New Game +, so that 25 knives are available.
I started the project in summer 2013, began to record in january 2014 and finished on 2014-04-05. I wish to thank everyone from TheHiddenBlade for their continuous support (they will recognize themselves), and people from SDA for their awesome work, as well as verifiers.
This run was done on PC with every possible DLC and extra. I used a Logitech controller to play, and Fraps software to record. There is a total of 157 segments, finishing either with a save ("quit") or assuming the save from the previous checkpoint ("exit to windows").
Timing note: what is shown is the in-game time (from the stats menu), but it doesn't take into account all the time you can not press start and see the stats. Which means all loading times and outside animus events (including Altaïr's memory in Acre) don't add anything to the final time. Nevertheless, creating a segment adds about 3 seconds to the in-game time, so I did it only when the warp saves more than 5 seconds, or when the difficulty/randomness/length was high enough.
A particular thing to mention about the assassinations: there are several places from where you can start one, but for each there is a default pigeon cage assigned; if you reload the checkpoint you will spawn there, and this is used in the run of course. Before moving on to the details, I would like to mention the planning was pretty hard, but I believe the run is now quite optimized from every point of view . This is actually the main point of the commentary, especially when comparing to my any% warpless run.
Part 01 - Present 1 & Sequence 01
Segment 001 (00:05 - 03:20)
Plenty of quick time events for the beginning.
Segment 002 (03:20 - 07:18)
After reloading the checkpoint, Lucy is ahead, that is why I segmented. All went well, especially the parking lot battle where Lucy and I were efficient.
Segment 003 (07:18 - 12:56)
Quite boring, but still mandatory.
Segment 004 (12:56 - 17:58)
The battle isn't perfect but it is an excellent one, and I was particularly lucky in both parts.
Segment 005 (17:58 - 23:19)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 006 (23:19 - 28:04)
Ezio spawns outside the palace if you reload the checkpoint, thus the segment at that point.
Segment 007 (28:04 - 30:00)
Here comes the first real save warping.
Segment 008 (30:00 - 34:13)
I segmented there because Maria is ahead when reloading. You have to be careful when punching her, since she may correct her trajectory by slowly walking back to the point where she lost the scripted path.
Segment 009 (34:13 - 35:00)
The game puts you back to the palazzo when loading, given you have not finished the memory yet.
Segment 010 (35:00 - 38:31)
Ezio spawns at the same warp point as previously.
Segment 011 (38:31 - 38:44)
And another save warping.
Segment 012 (38:44 - 39:44)
And one more.
Segment 013 (39:44 - 41:59)
Ezio is much closer to the door when reloading, so I chose to put a segment here.
Segment 014 (41:59 - 44:44)
Finally a save warping to conclude this sequence.
Part 02 - Sequence 02
Segment 015 (00:05 - 01:26)
Nothing special to say for this one.
Segment 016 (01:26 - 01:47)
Surprisingly there is a save warping here.
Segment 017 (01:47 - 12:48)
And another one there. This segment is quite long but there are not so many difficulties, apart from the sets of guards on the way to Leonardo's.
Segment 018 (12:48 - 16:17)
This is the same warp point as the previous one.
Segment 019 (16:17 - 17:32)
And one more save warping. There I was exceptionally lucky since the official spawned right next to the place and no crowd was around him.
Segment 020 (17:32 - 21:04)
Claudia and Maria have made a perfect run to the last checkpoint in this attempt.
Part 03 - Sequence 03
Segment 021 (00:05 - 06:09)
Despite the randomness, all was fine in this attempt, expecially concerning the battles. A side note here: if you reload the first checkpoint of the second memory, it will spawn the merchants, but that does not prevent you from getting to them later.
Segment 022 (06:09 - 10:31)
I ended the last segment before the game prompts the end of the memory, so that reloading puts Ezio right next to the villa. Also, the fight training went very well in this attempt.
Segment 023 (10:31 - 15:16)
Here is a save warping at the same point as before. In this attempt, a glitch happened during the first battle with Mario: I planned to assassinate a few guys, then use the throwing knives for the rest, in order to eliminate them all. But, from the allies' point of view, the alert stopped at the first assassination and they began to run to the next part of the memory, saving about 40 seconds of battle. Then, I automatically tried to buy knives (since I should have used them), and I bumped into some guys, but the second battle was marvelous. So all in all at least 25 seconds were saved comparing to the same segment with perfect battles happening normally.
Segment 024 (15:16 - 21:49)
Reloading this checkpoint gives some knives, which allowed me to quickly kill Vieri from the nearby roof.
Segment 025 (21:49 - 23:25)
Putting a segment here bypasses the viewpoint camera effect as well as the haystack animation.
Segment 026 (23:25 - 27:47)
Once again I used the small amount of time before the end of the previous memory to put Ezio back to the entrance of the villa.
Segment 027 (27:47 - 28:33)
And a save warping to end the sequence.
Part 04 - Sequence 04
Segment 028 (00:05 - 05:20)
Nothing particular to mention for this one.
Segment 029 (05:20 - 14:24)
During the pursuit in the catacombs memory, it is possible to make the first grid to glitch and stay open, but this is depending on the framerate, and I didn't manage to have it. Nevertheless everything went well so almost no time was lost.
Segment 030 (14:24 - 14:43)
Here comes another save warping that allows you to skip the cutscene when you get out of the previous memory, as well as the following one with La Volpe, which is a very good thing.
Segment 031 (14:43 - 15:51)
And one more save warping to do a side memory...
Segment 032 (15:51 - 16:08)
And a warp point closer to the next main memory...
Segment 033 (16:08 - 20:03)
Ezio is closer to the targets when reloading there, thus the segment. This attempt was very lucky in the first battle, as well as the end of the memory, since I didn't need to fight at all.
Segment 034 (20:03 - 23:24)
There is nothing to add here.
Part 05 - Sequence 05
Segment 035 (00:05 - 02:45)
Pedestrians can sometimes be very annoying.
Segment 036 (02:45 - 04:11)
Save warping once again.
Segment 037 (04:11 - 09:41)
And another time.
Segment 038 (09:41 - 09:50)
Because of quitting before the loading screen in the previous segment, Ezio spawns here, without the cutscene.
Segment 039 (09:50 - 14:42)
Save warping, one more time. Also, I seem to have been slow with the horse, but that's actually a very efficient way to kill the target quickly.
Segment 040 (14:42 - 17:45)
Warp again.
Segment 041 (17:45 - 20:41)
And again.
Segment 042 (20:41 - 23:39)
And again.
Segment 043 (23:39 - 26:07)
As you can notice there is something strange with the lock function, so this is the best I could pull off. Especially if you take into account the early end of the alert.
Segment 044 (26:07 - 26:51)
You can notice I wait a little before going through the guards, so that none of the targets can see me approaching. Also, this is the best method I found; for instance there is no way to double assassinate them consistently and quickly.
Segment 045 (26:51 - 28:48)
And a save warping here. Despite it seems quite long to climb the towers without the special jump, it is still faster to do those memories in this sequence, combined with the others.
Segment 046 (28:48 - 31:20)
And a save warping there.
Segment 047 (31:20 - 34:58)
And another one. In "behind closed doors", you need to assassinate the target in low profile so that the two guards nearby do not trigger an early alert and stay in this state.
Segment 048 (34:58 - 35:24)
Save warping once again.
Segment 049 (35:24 - 37:27)
And once again. You may use the sword from the horseback, but it is dangerous and inefficient.
Segment 050 (37:27 - 38:55)
And save warping once more.
Segment 051 (38:55 - 42:33)
And again.
Segment 052 (42:33 - 45:07)
It is possible to hang and jump straight forward from the nearby ledge, but the archer on the roof would trigger an alert, so you couldn't begin the memory.
Segment 053 (45:07 - 46:23)
Another save warping here.
Segment 054 (46:23 - 53:12)
Reloading this checkpoint puts Jacopo really ahead of his previous position.
Part 06 - Sequence 06 & Present 2
Segment 055 (00:05 - 06:26)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 056 (06:26 - 13:06)
Neither there.
Segment 057 (13:06 - 19:22)
Neither there.
Segment 058 (19:22 - 24:19)
No matter how fast you turn alarms on, you have to wait for the scripted sentences to end.
Segment 059 (24:19 - 28:29)
In Acre it is possible to climb the tower from the beginning but then the next part would not be triggered, so you have to follow the scripted events anyway.
Part 07 - Sequence 07
Segment 060 (00:05 - 06:37)
Again this is quite boring but mandatory.
Segment 061 (06:37 - 13:21)
Everything went well in this attempt, actually as fast as it could be.
Segment 062 (13:21 - 19:49)
I have no particular commentary for this part.
Segment 063 (19:49 - 21:47)
At the end, you have to be very careful since some people can go between Ezio and the target.
Segment 064 (21:47 - 27:20)
Some save warping here. This segment strongly depends on the thieves' behaviour, but as you can notice they were nice in this attempt.
Segment 065 (27:20 - 32:01)
If you manage to get to the door before triggering the different shortcuts, you won't be able to open it.
Segment 066 (32:01 - 35:04)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 067 (35:04 - 41:45)
There may be a slightly faster way to jump from the roof to the meeting point (after killing the archers), but everything else was excellent so I decided to keep this.
Part 08 - Sequence 08
Segment 068 (00:05 - 04:10)
It is faster to begin this assassination from another place but it has to be done at this moment. At the end you can notice something is wrong with the character's hitboxes.
Segment 069 (04:10 - 05:05)
A save warping here.
Segment 070 (05:05 - 11:45)
Another one here. By the way, following these guys is particularly easy and boring.
Segment 071 (11:45 - 22:18)
Antonio can run very fast but is not an efficient climber, so you have to show him the way.
Segment 072 (22:18 - 23:24)
Some more save warping there.
Segment 073 (23:24 - 24:17)
And warp once again.
Segment 074 (24:17 - 26:43)
And another time.
Segment 075 (26:43 - 26:58)
Save warping again.
Segment 076 (26:59 - 27:09)
And again.
Segment 077 (27:09 - 32:04)
And again.
Segment 078 (32:04 - 37:20)
And again. An important thing is if you approach the palace too much from the right, the next part will not be triggered. That is why I use this particular trajectory.
Part 09 - Sequence 09
Segment 079 (00:05 - 03:38)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 080 (03:38 - 04:47)
There is a save warping.
Segment 081 (04:47 - 08:53)
I segmented here because it resets the guard patrols, so I can target the guy immediately.
Segment 082 (08:53 - 11:54)
"no laughing matters" is a quite annoying memory, but in this attempt all went well and fast.
Segment 083 (11:54 - 16:30)
After recognizing the target in the party, it may be possible to target him from far away, but it would be very dangerous because of the nearby guards.
Segment 084 (16:30 - 19:52)
There is also a save warping.
Segment 085 (19:52 - 22:50)
There is nothing to add for this segment.
Segment 086 (22:50 - 23:13)
Another save warping here.
Segment 087 (23:13 - 29:35)
And another one there. In "cheaters never prosper" some opponents are quite glitched and some time is lost, but overall this is an excellent attempt.
Segment 088 (29:35 - 35:44)
This where hyperblending becomes useful. Also this is where the game is kind and gives you some ammo right before killing the main target.
Part 10 - Sequence 10
Segment 089 (00:05 - 02:52)
Nothing special to say for this one.
Segment 090 (02:52 - 03:11)
Here is a save warping.
Segment 091 (03:11 - 03:55)
And another one.
Segment 092 (03:55 - 09:12)
And again. As you can see in the first battle with Bartolomeo, a fourth guard was coming but the alert stopped before he had the time to arrive.
Segment 093 (09:12 - 12:50)
Even to free the last set of mercenaries, you don't need to kill the guards, just be stealthy. Also it is a shame you can not use fast travel while in a memory, because "hunting the hunter" is quite long.
Segment 094 (12:50 - 13:37)
Here is a save warping.
Segment 095 (13:37 - 16:45)
And one more.
Segment 096 (16:45 - 22:30)
And once again. Everything went very well in this last memory.
Part 11 - Sequence 11
Segment 097 (00:05 - 04:53)
There I chose to punch Leonardo outside his scripted path, and it went very well.
Segment 098 (04:53 - 09:57)
Nothing particular to add here.
Segment 099 (09:57 - 12:59)
Neither there.
Segment 100 (12:59 - 13:18)
Some save warping here.
Segment 101 (13:18 - 15:59)
Some save warping there as well. Especially because of the brute (in terms of target lock and rocks thrown), I believe there is no faster way to kill the fleeing guard.
Segment 102 (15:59 - 16:47)
Ezio spawns much closer to the end when reloading the checkpoint.
Segment 103 (16:47 - 16:59)
Here is a save warping once again.
Segment 104 (17:00 - 17:16)
And again.
Segment 105 (17:16 - 23:54)
And again.
Segment 106 (23:54 - 32:12)
Now this is where you need some luck. That is what I actually had and so you can see the fight against Rodrigo was fast and efficient.
Part 12 - Sequence 12
Segment 107 (00:05 - 06:50)
I start this segment at the cutscene so that Ezio spawns near Caterina and not at the closest warp point. Also I discovered quite lately that you can bypass the battle before entering the city.
Segment 108 (06:50 - 09:15)
The aim here is to bypass the trigger of the main battles, and make the allies run as much as possible. The only mandatory battle is near the codex page. By the way, I do not pick it up at this moment, otherwise Caterina and Niccolo would trigger an alert with the patrol before finishing the memory.
Segment 109 (09:15 - 12:37)
This memory is full of randomness and many things can go wrong. Fortunately almost everything was as fast as possible during this attempt. At the end I use the hidden gun because a throwing knife would have made the guard fall down and survive.
Segment 110 (12:37 - 15:32)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 111 (15:32 - 17:34)
Here is some save warping.
Segment 112 (17:34 - 21:14)
And more save warping. Poisoning the targets is the fastest way I found to successfully finish the memory "beginnings of a conspiracy".
Segment 113 (21:14 - 26:15)
And save warping again. In "wet work", my aim is to spawn the target on the boat, and then despawn the boat but while the target is still there.
Segment 114 (26:15 - 32:09)
Save warping once more. In the fortress, despite the bad cycle of the guard, it is still faster to try to tackle him than using the normal path.
Segment 115 (32:10 - 37:32)
Here is the better time to get the codex page.
Segment 116 (37:32 - 38:21)
And save warping here.
Segment 117 (38:21 - 38:52)
And again.
Segment 118 (38:52 - 39:58)
The climbing part can be tricky is an alert is triggered, that is why I hired the mercenaries.
Segment 119 (39:58 - 45:30)
Some save warping again there.
Part 13 - Sequence 13
Segment 120 (00:05 - 06:57)
I do not think there is a faster way to bypass the patrols when Niccolo has to follow. Something to notice is Ezio spawns a few meters ahead comparing to the position he had before the scene with the bells and the people.
Segment 121 (06:57 - 08:09)
There is some save warping.
Segment 122 (08:09 - 09:10)
Nothing special to say here.
Segment 123 (09:10 - 09:24)
Save warping once again there.
Segment 124 (09:24 - 11:40)
And again. The aim in this memory is to despawn the bridge where the target is standing on, regardless watching him or not.
Segment 125 (11:40 - 13:28)
I was particularly lucky in this attempt, after "doomsday", since no guard was after me and the alert stopped quickly.
Segment 126 (13:28 - 14:01)
Save warping again.
Segment 127 (14:01 - 14:55)
Nothing to add about this part.
Segment 128 (14:55 - 15:15)
Some more save warping here.
Segment 129 (15:15 - 18:46)
Some more save warping there. From the top of the cathedral, the haystack is tricky to aim, that is why I go to the end of the railing.
Segment 130 (18:46 - 22:13)
You could easily open the sarcophagus from the beginning, but then the window would not open, so you actually need to trigger the different shortcuts to finish the memory.
Segment 131 (22:13 - 22:20)
This is the shortest segment of the entire run.
Segment 132 (22:20 - 24:41)
And save warping of course.
Segment 133 (24:41 - 27:07)
And again. I jumped after the shot in order to avoid an arrow coming from above.
Segment 134 (27:07 - 27:39)
Save warping here once again.
Segment 135 (27:39 - 30:58)
The two double assassinations were particularly lucky, as well as the anonymous escape. Also, "port authority" is where hyperblending is the most useful.
Segment 136 (30:58 - 32:22)
And save warping. In "needle in a haystack", the position of the target is the last of five places where Ezio is able to see him. Being able to see means having it in the front half-space and without any object or character in between.
Segment 137 (32:22 - 32:45)
Save warping here.
Segment 138 (32:45 - 34:25)
And save warping there.
Segment 139 (34:25 - 35:42)
And again.
Segment 140 (35:42 - 38:53)
And again.
Segment 141 (38:53 - 40:32)
You may not notice at first, but I actually dodge an arrow when jumping from the ladder, and also when jumping right after the shot.
Segment 142 (40:32 - 44:30)
Save warping once again here.
Segment 143 (44:30 - 46:56)
And again.
Segment 144 (46:56 - 47:15)
And again.
Segment 145 (47:15 - 48:54)
And again.
Segment 146 (48:54 - 52:36)
And again. Here come a few memories that were missing for the full completion.
Segment 147 (52:36 - 54:08)
Save warping also here. I jump on the right before the group of thieves so that the target does not spot me.
Segment 148 (54:08 - 54:20)
Save warping again.
Segment 149 (54:20 - 55:55)
And again.
Segment 150 (55:55 - 56:26)
And again.
Segment 151 (56:26 - 60:08)
And again.
Part 14 - Sequence 14 & Present 3
Segment 152 (00:05 - 03:36)
This sequence actually begins with a save warping, since there is no introduction scene like the other sequences.
Segment 153 (03:36 - 05:12)
It is possible to activate the first lever without killing the guards, but they would spot Ezio anyway, so I decided to take care of them.
Segment 154 (05:12 - 06:56)
As you can see Ezio spawns directly in the right path for the next part of the memory. By the way, I still do not understand exactly how horses jump, but this time it jumped. At the end, you only need to stop temporarily the alert in order to activate the lever.
Segment 155 (06:56 - 09:08)
I segmented here because it cancels the desync from the previous one. Also, superblending was particularly useful here.
Segment 156 (09:08 - 19:10)
Reloading this checkpoint changes the behaviour of Rodrigo, and makes him go towards Ezio instead of sideways. The last fight ends when Rodrigo has no more health and if all sentences are finished. In this attempt I managed to achieve both as fast as possible; in particular most of Rodrigo's sentences began right before he hit the ground, so they ended early.
Segment 157 (19:10 - 24:13)
There is also some randomness in this part but, as you can notice, everything went fine during this attempt. A good thing is that you can skip the end credits, so no matter if they begin right after Rome or when reloading the checkpoint.
Final stats:
Overall
- synchronization (%) 100.0
- time played 07:09:51
- distance covered (m) 65009
Fight
- deaths 0
- favorite weapon double blade
- enemies killed in fight 268
- enemies assassinated with the hidden blade(s) 125
- air assassinations 6
- double air assassinations 1
- disarms 3
Navigation
- height climbed (m) 1980
- distance covered on ground (m) 41821
- distance swam (m) 358
- distance covered on horseback (m) 7889
- distance covered on gondolas (m) 745
- distance flown (m) 529
Villa
- Monteriggioni restored (%) 3
- Monteriggioni's value (florins) 5790
- Monteriggioni's population 135
- renovations completed (%) 0
- shops completed (%) 19
- collections completed (%) 23
- equipment collected (%) 9
Social
- money earned (florins) 296905
- money spent (florins) 39713
- time spent blended 00:02:39
- times notorious 30
- Borgia couriers killed 0
- courtesans hired 0
- mercenaries hired 4
- thieves hired 4 |