Tool-assisted superplay
A tool-assisted speedrun/superplay (abbreviated TAS) is a video of a video game played using tools unavailable in standard play, such as slow motion or frame-by-frame advance of the gameplay in order to play perfectly. There are a number of people within the Super Smash Bros. community known for their TAS exploits.
In slang usage, players with particularly good reflexes and skill are jokingly called "real-life TAS players", such as Isai and Silent Wolf.
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TAS videos frequently feature particularly extreme use of advanced techniques or exploits in order to perform matches that would ordinarily be impossible without external assistance. Common TAS videos feature players playing through matches without taking any damage, forming long, extensive, and intricate combos, and playing long, drawn-out matches involving extensive use of glancing blows and/or extreme DI, among others. Actual battles are not the only subjects of TAS videos; TAS has also been done on single-player modes such as the Home-Run Contest and Target Test games in order to achieve almost impossibly high distances or low times.
In actual battles, TAS players normally manipulate one fighter while fighting one or more computer controlled player. Variations, however, do exist; some videos feature two human controlled players squaring off against each other, and particularly complex TAS videos feature three or more human controlled players.
TAS videos can also features extra features within the video; this TAS video, for instance, includes various texture hacks for Captain Falcon and syncs the characters' actions to a song. versat13, a Brawl TAS player, is also noted for using particularly over the top visuals in the middle of his videos, such as extreme close-up of characters, and overlays for specific items.
SSB64 TAS examples
Antdgar is widely known for creating the first TAS of Super Smash Bros. with a now outdated video where he abused Shine Cancels in order to flawlessly defeat two Level 9 Captain Falcons. Other people within the Super Smash Bros. community known for their TAS's are:
- As stated above, Antdgar, known for his extensive collection of Super Smash Bros. TAS videos.
- JPleal10, famous for his Super Smash Bros. Melee TAS's. He is known as "House" on Smashboards [1].
- BlazeSSB.
- DsGnoll, a Japanese TAS player.
Melee TAS examples
The Perfect Control series by SuperDoodleMan is a well-known example of a Super Smash Bros. Melee TAS. This Smasher is well known for his hack gameplay. Likewise, Antdgar, the same person who has done tool assists on Super Smash Bros. has recently done TAS's of the Ice Climbers' chain grab techniques. Ajp_anton is another well-known member of the Super Smash Bros. Melee hacking community, who posted videos of Home Run Contest and Target Test, pushing the game's physics to its limits.
Brawl TAS examples
Despite Super Smash Bros. Brawl being perceived as a less technical game than its predecessor, there are plenty of TAS's of it. A code for Gecko OS exists which allows frame-advance gameplay. However, the frame advance is manual, resulting in inconsistent progress, such as one frame being advanced slightly later than the previous. Due to Brawl not having a consistent slow-down program such as Action Replay, most TASes done for Brawl are done using the Dolphin emulator. versat13 is the most well known TAS Brawl player.
- Example of Break the Targets by JPleal10 [4].
- Example of a Jet Hammer movement exploit by versat13 [5].
- Example of a TAS match by versat13 [6].
- Example of a four player TAS match by versat13 [7].
