How to Speedrun Arcade Classics

23 June 2025

Remember the thrill of stepping into a buzzing arcade, lights flashing, 8-bit music screaming in the background, and those legendary cabinets standing tall like modern-day coliseums? Whether it was dodging ghosts in Pac-Man, stacking perfectly placed bricks in Tetris, or taking down Space Invaders one pixel at a time, classic arcade games have a magic we just can’t quit. Now imagine playing those games—fast. Like, beat-the-world-record fast. Welcome to the wild and wacky world of speedrunning.

If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “I love arcade games… how can I get better? Faster? Maybe even world-class fast?” — then hey, you’re in the right place.

Let’s take a deep dive into how to speedrun arcade classics, break down the basics, uncover advanced hacks, and get you hitting that high score timer like a pro.

What is Speedrunning?

Alright, first things first: what even is speedrunning?

Speedrunning is the art (and obsession) of finishing a game as quickly as possible. Not just any game—but your game of choice. Every second matters, every move counts, and shaving milliseconds off your time? That’s the rush. For arcade classics, where simplicity meets insane difficulty, speedrunning becomes both a science and a performance.

From community leaderboards to livestreams watched by millions, speedrunning has exploded into a global phenomenon. But don't let the pros intimidate you—anyone can start, and surprisingly, the classics are some of the best games to practice on.

Why Arcade Classics Are Perfect for Speedrunning

Speedrunning modern games might involve hours of cutscenes, loading times, or multiple chapters. But arcade classics? These were made for speed. Here’s why:

- Tight controls: Fast reaction times = better results.
- Short gameplay loops: Levels are short but challenging, making them ideal for practice and repetition.
- Immediate restart: Want to try again? Boom—reset and go.
- High skill ceiling: These games are easy to learn, hard to master.

So if you’ve mastered button-mashing your way through Donkey Kong or Galaga, speedrunning might just be your next big addiction.

Getting Started with Arcade Speedrunning

Alright, so you're hyped. But how do you actually start?

1. Pick Your Game

Start with a game you love. Speedrunning takes time, patience, and repetition, so if you're not having fun—what’s the point? Here are a few beginner-friendly arcade classics for speedrunning:

- Pac-Man – light on mechanics but rich in routing strategy.
- Donkey Kong – timing and jumps are everything.
- Galaga – turn reflexes into muscle memory.
- Tetris – the OG puzzle challenge. Timing is king.
- Ghosts 'n Goblins – insanely hard, but rewarding.

2. Learn the Basics

Before trying to break records, you’ve got to know how the game works. That means:

- Understanding levels and patterns
- Getting a grip on controls and character movement
- Learning glitch behaviors (yes, even the bugs are useful!)

Pro Tip: Watch current speedrunners. YouTube and Twitch are goldmines. Look at their paths, button presses, tricks—they’re all there if you pay attention.

3. Choose Your Format (Real Machine vs Emulator)

Running on original hardware is nostalgic, and some leaderboards may require it. But emulators are great for learning:

- Save states: Practice hard sections without restarting the whole game.
- Frame advance: Break down moves frame by frame.
- Input recording: Analyze and improve your runs.

Just make sure you’re using accepted emulators for the game’s speedrunning community (like MAME for arcade titles).

Strategies for Speedrunning Arcade Games

So you’ve picked your game, practiced the controls, and maybe watched a few pro runs. What’s next? Let’s dig into some meat-and-potato strategies that separate button mashers from timeline bashers.

Route Optimization

Ever heard the saying, “Don’t work harder, work smarter”? That’s the whole gist of routing. It’s all about the most efficient path from start to finish.

You want to:

- Avoid unnecessary risks
- Minimize movement (time = movement)
- Look for enemy spawn points and projectiles
- Memorize enemy AI patterns (yup, most are predictable)

The beauty of arcade games is that most runs are under 10–15 minutes. Routes are tight, fast, and can be optimized down to each jump or pixel.

Frame-Perfect Inputs

Arcade games often run at 60 frames per second. That means you have just 1/60th of a second to execute specific inputs at times. Sounds bonkers, right? But it’s possible.

This is where the raw execution and practice come in. You start to feel the rhythm of a run, like dancing to a beat no one else hears.

Tip: Use slow-motion in emulators to break down those tight jumps or perfect fire timings.

Glitches and Exploits (Yes, They're Fair Game!)

In the speedrunning world, “breaking the game” isn’t cheating—it’s strategy.

Some popular arcade glitches include:

- Kill screen skips: Like in Pac-Man, where the game eventually freezes.
- Wall clipping: Pass through solid objects with precise inputs.
- Score overflow: Manipulate the game’s scoring system for faster progression.

Always check the category rules though—some runs are glitchless.

Tools of the Trade

Speedrunning isn’t just muscle memory and caffeine (though both help). You’ll want to gear up with a few essential tools:

Timer Software

You need a way to time your runs down to the millisecond. Popular tools include:

- LiveSplit (PC) – Clean UI, custom splits
- Splitty (Mac) – Easy and minimal
- OBS Integration – Stream your runs with timers visible

Capture Software (If You Want to Share Your Runs)

Streaming’s part of the community. OBS Studio is a go-to for most runners. Capture your screen, webcam, commentary—all in one.

Community Forums & Discords

The speedrunning crowd is super tight-knit. Check out:

- Speedrun.com – Where leaderboards live
- Reddit r/speedrun – News, memes, help
- Game-specific Discords – Find advice, new routes, and friends

Practice Makes Pixel-Perfect

Here’s the truth no one likes: You won’t nail it your first try. Or your tenth. Maybe not even your hundredth.

Speedrunning is part Zen, part madness.

You’ll die… a lot. You’ll forget patterns. You’ll hit the wrong button and throw away perfect runs. And that’s okay. Every death teaches you something new.

Treat failures like stepping stones. Practice individual levels (use save states), break down tough mechanics, and slowly stitch together the perfect run.

Staying Motivated

There will be times when the grind gets real. You might plateau, or worse—bomb your PB at the finish line. When that happens, remember:

- Celebrate small improvements: Dropped 3 seconds on Level 2? That’s a win.
- Join races or marathons: Community events are the jam.
- Stream your runs: Viewers cheering you on is a game-changer.
- Switch it up: Try a different title for a while to avoid burnout.

Arcade speedrunning isn't a sprint (ironically)—it's a marathon made up of 60-second sprints.

Popular Speedrunning Categories

Speedrunning isn’t one-size-fits-all. Your game might have different categories to run:

- Any% – Finish the game no matter what (glitches allowed).
- 100% – Complete all objectives (often longer).
- Low% – The minimalist challenge.
- Glitchless – Play it clean.
- Score Attack – Some classics reward points instead of speed.

Pick your poison, and let the timer roll.

Famous Arcade Speedruns to Inspire You

Need a dose of “holy crap, that’s insane”? Check these out:

- Pac-Man "Perfect Run" – Billy Mitchell hit a score of 3,333,360 by eating every pellet, fruit, and ghost on all 256 levels without dying. Wild.
- Donkey Kong – The race to “kill screen” speed is intense. The game breaks at Level 22!
- Mario Bros. Arcade – Lightning-fast enemy dispatching and insane power-up timing.

Watch, be amazed, take notes.

Final Thoughts: It's You vs Pixels Now

Speedrunning arcade classics is a weird, wonderful, frustrating, glorious rabbit hole. Maybe you’ll break a record. Maybe you’ll just shave a few seconds off a childhood favorite. Either way, you're in for a wild ride.

And remember: it's not about being perfect—it's about improving. Frame by frame. Life by life. Round by round.

Grab your joystick (or controller), fire up your favorite classic, and let the speedrun begin.