100% I'm always at the edge of my seat when watching all his videos, and because I didn't know Salt's backround in speedrunning, THAT's the moment that sent me over the edge. It felt like finding out that your history teacher was the one that created the material that he's teaching about
Its easy to look back on ones older work and cringe at it a bit, but for the time, those videos pretty much pioneered proper scripted speedrunning content on UA-cam. It's been awesome to see you improve your craft so much and we all look forward to whatever is next
Crappy first drafts are an important, if awkward, parts of every creator's learning process. To be great you have to know why you don't want to make trash, and the best way to do that is make some trash. If you will be a great content creator, even your trash will be at least inspirational. Hopefully to yourself, to do better.
This is so true for any art. I'm a hobby photographer. Sometimes I look my collection through from my first photos onward. I made SO MANY dumb mistakes and BAD photos back then. It really is inspiring to see how much I actually improved. I still have so much to learn (and always will), but it really puts things in perspective.
Recency bias aside, Tetris truly is his greatest work to date. It's such a rollercoaster of a story and he did such an amazing job navigating the story in a suspenseful and fascinating way.
I really love the tetris video. I find most of his videos pretty interesting, but the tetris video left me with the rare feeling of being excited about the future of a run after watching the video. Granted, that's because the story of the video is crazy and leaves you on a cliff hanger.
Yea I thought the progression of that was fantastic and had me doing my own research on the runners. Like from going from Tetris being capped at 999,999 to progressing into runners hitting 8 millions is amazing
i never took that one as a mistake tbh, always felt like a small gag. plus saying '-which there was no footage for' out loud only extends the amount of time you're gonna go without footage.
Still consider them all S tier in my heart. Edit: also just wanted to share an anecdote here. I actually know ERoadhouse in real life but never knew the dude was a speedrunner. I remember watching the lego star wars video and when I first saw him on screen I went nuts.
The quest to bet matt turk still deserves number 1 in my heart. It had what i feel is the most intense story of any of yours so far. Its not the most interesting or absolute cleanest in comparison to newest but it will be a favorite youtube video for a very long time, and is my personal favorite.
Honestly the most striking part about the Matt Turk vid is the ending where you saw who holds every record today. Feels like an incredible epilogue to an incredible story
I think the cheeky reveal at the end of Matt Turk deserves more credit, as it was the first time that I (and presumably many others) realized SummoningSalt wasn't just an observer, but had a real stake in speedrunning. And the fact that it's the last record at the very end of the video really hits you too, like a hollywood after-credits twist. That whole video had a really personal tone to it that I think some of the more left-field vids (you point out Halo 2 as an example here) don't quite capture as much.
honestly jimmypoopins is one of my favorites if not my all time favorite. i think it was a very unique take on the "quest to beat" type videos, and it felt like i was seeing a full character arc for jummypoopins. idk it just felt personal.
Jimmypoopins deserves to be in the top tier. Great story, godly Arcus surprise appearance with "NINJA GAIDEN 1 WORLD RECORD HOLDER" appearing on screen like he's a Zelda boss, Jimmypoopins slowly losing relevance and then making a surprise comeback when it seemed like the new generation left him in the dust (and the title of the video made you think he was beaten for good, like in the previous Quest To Beat abney317 video), the brutal grind and final payoff of him getting his record back. Plus the name itself "Jimmypoopins" just makes me giggle every time I see it
I agree and think jimmypoopins was your best. Love so many of your videos, but your storytelling is what made this one special. It is just topnotch writing and editing geared towards emotion. The ending is UA-cam perfection and is such a human story.
Super Mario: The Human Limit is by far your best video. The reason? STRUCTURE. It's the ONLY video where you've 100% laid out the ENTIRE structure of the run upfront (8 levels) and in turn explain the mechanics of each level as they got knocked off. In every other video including your later ones, there's parts where you don't give the structure of the run and we are explained at the last minute some mechanic or new trick without the ability to anticipate the runner succeeding (or failing) at it and it's contribution to the world record. Also, your use of music in that video was PERFECT and very well matched to the mood as the story unfolded. The sheer level of TECHNIQUE you brought to that video is unmatched in anything you've done before or since.
i still love how he transitioned from talking about frame rules to talking about 8-4. imo human limit more than anything deserves a remake, especially now that 8-4 has been defeated.
It's in our nature to be critical of our own work. That's why so many artists think they are bad at drawing/painting/writing/etc. They're acquainted with every detail that has gone into making whatever they make. They're aware of all the little imperfections. Some people do tend to be way harsher with themselves though.
I know I’m a little late to this, but my film teacher showed that 4-2 video in my class as an example of good web documentaries! You were definitely doing something right at the time.
The 5-2 video is one of my personal favorites. Nothing has made me laugh my ass off like watching AndrewG clipping into a pipe as “Hall of the Mountain King“ plays in the background
The Human Limit is my favorite of your videos. Maybe even my favorite video on all of UA-cam. It gave me a full on existential crisis in an "Alexander Wept for there were no worlds left to conquer" sense I also love the Halo 2 video and I'm glad you ocassionally branch out into games that aren't ideal for your bread and butter audience even if you know it won't set the world on fire
The Human Limit was my first video of Salt's. I hardly ever play anything (and if I do, it's not the kind of games he talks about), and I didn't really get the appeal of speedrunning, so by all accounts his content shouldn't have been in my niche. But this title hooked me, and I was blown away by the storytelling, editing and just great quality overall. I wanted more of that, so I watched more and more of his videos, and now I regularly tear up watching some guy I didn't know about an hour ago play a game a second faster than another guy 😅
Every episode where he weaves a narrative are totally GOATed. "The quest to beat Matt Turk" The Andrewg videos. You do suuuch a good job of making a "nemesis" out of some people, in a good way. Turning these legendary figures in to characters who truly feel like the "final boss" of your video is just soooo peak. I love it.
im not very prone to recency bias, new videos generally take a bit to grow on me before i can think of them as highly as the good ol classics. that being said, from the moment i watched the tetris video i knew it was your best work ever
18:34 I love how this progression went. I would so watch more Pokémon. Also, before anyone steals it, this video should have been called "SummoningSalt World Record Progression Progression", and framing ones like 4-2 as side categories
1:25 - Tbh, putting the date and runner a little above the bottom is really nice so it doesn't get covered by the YT player progress bar when you pause, making it harder to read it if you're pausing to search their name or whatever.
Don’t you wish he’d release special editions of his best videos so we could show our love for them? I’m thinking VHS releases or Nintendo gold cartridges.
Sorry but The Quest to Beat Matt Turk is the best to me bc it’s YOUR story. Loved the Tetris video, but I knew a lot of its lore going in. Not knowing your backstory and getting the reveal made it feel like I was watching a movie. Goosebumps.
Controversial take, but I loved loved love the Halo 2 video. One of my absolute favorite Summoning Salt videos. You do a real good job of framing how first person shooters work and move and function in story mode playthroughs Summoning Salt!
Definitely agree on the Tetris video. Not only do I think it's your best video, but I think it's the best youtube video I've ever watched. The story is amazing, and you can tell that you took the time to get every detail.
It’s neat that there’s kinda different eras of Salt videos, the early 2017 era of learning how to do it, the coming into his own era where he rapidly improved the videos, the golden vintage era filled with lots of NES and SNES game records and all like 35-55 minute videos spanning from roughly blindfolded Punchout to the Human Limit/Super Punch-Out and now the modern era covering more variety of games, record categories and an expanded hour+ video length.
Best modern is probably Tetris, it was an incredible ride the whole way through. At the same time, the Choco Mountain one was the very first video of yours I saw, and I still have a soft spot for the Ultra Shortcut videos.
I can still greatly enjoy all the older work, but it is cool to see the growth over the years as well. I refuse to watch any other speedrun channel because they don't hold up to this one. gg
I guess you can't argue with the literal creator of the content but the punch out video shook me to my core to the point that I stood up in front of my screen at the end of it completely focused by your words and I just felt like I had lived another life for the span of these 2 hours. genuinely the best video I ever saw on youtube
The Quest for World Record Perfection is an S+ fr that video is so goated, the layout and structure and introduction/transition from one point to another is PEAK Summoning Salt work
I wonder if Salt ever thinks about how insanely lucky he was to get that video out when he did. He's talked before about all the times he releases a video, only for a new WR to make it obsolete within a couple of days, but the Matthias video came out shortly before a heel turn that would have utterly ruined the story if it had happened during the time frame the video covers.
The Tetris video was so S tier. I remember it popping up in my feed thinking "oh, Tetris, meh, I really never enjoyed Tetris at all, and two hours? well, I'll put it on, but I fully expect to check out 5 minutes in," then of course I marathoned the entire thing, gained a whole new respect and understanding of Tetris, and threw it on a second time later for good measure because it was such a wild ride I don't think I fully grasped it the first time through. P.S. PLEASE do another pokemon video.
Your Tetris video legit made me cry. I usually put your videos on while I'm cooking but about ten minutes in I paused and just sat down and gave it my full attention. Masterpiece man.
I remember being hooked to your channel since finding the Mario Bros world record progression back in 2017 maybe 2018. I think my favorite video of yours is the Mario Kart 64 Quest for Perfection. You were dragging me along the whole video, I had no idea I could be so invested in the story of these people. That video felt truly above and beyond a quality bar that was already stratospheric.
As a perfectionist myself, this has been an eye-opener. Because so many of the videos you have in "Bad" and even "Trash" I love and have watched multiple times.
TQTBMT is the only long form video I can say I've watched over 30 times, it's just so good. That, and the recent Tetris video, are IMO in a tier of their own.
Glad to see both Mario Kart 64 vids and "The Quest to Beat Matt Turk" all in S Tier, I regularly go back to watch them because they are so well-produced.
Dude, your videos can move me to tears talking about videogames i have never even played. I understand why you must be your own harshest critic, but man several of those are better than you give then credit for.
Genuinely I think you’re just right, the Tetris story and history is so incredible. I’ve kept up with a lot of different communities over the past decade or so, but no other community has had the same kind of history as Tetris, I could talk for days about it. I think the craziest part is that your video feels like it covered so much, and yet it’s barely scratching the surface of the Tetris community.
I don't know if I agree with all of your rankings, but that Tetris video is legitimately fire. If you're not paying attention to the progress bar of the video, it _just keeps going_ and getting more and more insane as it does.... which is in large part a credit to the way you wrote the episode. S+ tier, tbh.
For me, what makes the Mario Kart Wii such a good video is a combination of things that work perfectly together. First, it's a game almost everyone has played. Even my parents lol. So many people enjoyed it and nostalgia makes a really big impact in these types of videos. Secondly, it's a big surprise to realize how broken your childhood game is. It shows the game from a completely different perspective and reignites the feeling that discovering the game produced. Also, I'm definitely not the only one who revived my Wii and tried to pull at least a single trick from that video. Another point is that the story is really good. As you said, some games have better story than others and there's nothing to do about it. In the case of MKWii, the fact that the checkpoint system was discovered after finding a couple ultras leaves you wondering how the hell those things are happening, which is a good way of causing interest. After that, the other question is to know which track is the one that will fall next and how the hell it's done. This guessing game with our nostalgia is really engaging. I feel that the only video that I liked more than the MKWii one is the Tetris one just because the story is so fucking good. The big wr jumps that constantly happen are really impactful and it's an amazing video, so congrats on that. I feel that it should've made a bigger impact than the MKWii video, but maybe length and the fact that, even though it's a well known game, it doesn't cause so much nostalgia because it's most people haven't played it although they know about it, is what makes the difference. However, if you want to recreate the MKWii success, ask a non-gamer which games they know and have played and see if some of those have a speedrunning scene with a good story. Also, try to keep the video shorter and simple to cater to a wider audience, even though I would watch a 5 hour video lol. Hope any of this helps and keep doing the amazing work you always do!
While I absolutely agree with all of your takes about the Halo 2 video (It was a pretty “meh” video, and while there were interesting parts, I really didn’t care for it), I also think it’s a good idea to keep making videos like that. Just occasionally cover a game that’s out of your usual wheelhouse. It’s always good to diversify your profile, and it’s neat to hear stories about other types of games. Your speedrunning history videos are easily my favorite ones (and this is coming from someone who’s been watching since pretty much right when you started, as well as someone who’s watched similar content from other creators), so I’d absolutely adore hearing you tackle other kinds of games. Halo 2 wasn’t your best vid by any means, but that just shows that the next time you do something different, you’ll go in with a better understanding of how to make it hit where that one missed.
i think Salt could do fantastic work with Doom & Quake, most obviously, and Doom is more culturally relevant in the current landscape than Quake or Halo (didn't they just announce a new one really recently?). Doom also has the angle of being the first game to ever have an organized speedrunning scene on the Internet...
Your MegaMan 2 Video is an absolute MASTERCLASS in Tension, Build up, and storytelling in a youtube video. I consider cyghfer to be one of the greatest speedrunners of all time because of his MM2 runs.
YES! I literally said to my friends “this is his best work” when tetris history dropped. Such a good video man, it truly is the pinnacle of what your channel is supposed to be.
Quest for World Record Perfection is so good, it may never be beaten. It's not just my favorite video of yours, it's one of my favorite videos on UA-cam.
Its really great seeing you talk about your mistakes without being embarrassed. Its okay to make mistakes and learn. Almost like its a speedrunning video lol
Hearing you talk about all the old videos really makes me want to see a remake/updated version. Leave the originals as is, but I want to hear the full stories of Portal and Mario 3
I think it's a testament to how good of a story teller you are by how you can take a topic that seems completely uninteresting to me on the surface like "The Quest to Beat..." videos, and within 40 minutes I'm glued to my screen going, "No way! He didn't just..."
Petition to re-update Super Metroid video, especially in light of the continued contributions of Shiny, Zoast and Oats? It's practically THE classic speedrunning game - would love to see the modern Salt-take on it!
All of your stuff is S+ tier, Mr. Summoning, to me. Like speed runners, the subject of your efforts, you are never satisfied. That is the mark of the true artist, continually searching for the perfect moment. Just know, all of your documentaries get better each time I rewatch them. Bravo, brutha!
salt i really really really liked the section where you cast call all the record holders and do a "where are they now" section at the end of the video. I hope you bring it back :)
What I quickly learned about people that they are ether the harshest critics of themselves or the “nicest”(idk the word but they just love everything they do) critics of themselves, rarely fair.
The fact that you didn’t include yourself in the blindfolded Mike Tyson’s Punch out video shows that you are a genuine person! With that said, we not only love your videos, but we love you too! Take your slice of the cake! You deserve it for working so hard with these videos, and to achieve the record.
You've clearly put a good amount of thought into this! Honestly, the quest to beat Matt Turk is still my favourite, but the videos you ranked above it rock too
Tetris video was legitimately very good high A or S. Truthful yeah I did feel like some videos as very similar but that doesn't mean I didn't like them even though I may rank them lower. I think it made the summoning salt music into guy wearing a very large hat because he speedran Ninja graden for too long joke amazing.
Such a neat video and perspective. I can honestly say this is the only channel where I watch every single video. Even if I lack interest. The stories are good and it's relaxing content. You definately beat most to the punch when it comes to longer form content that can capture attention thru-out.
This was a really fun watch just for realizing how early I was to watching these videos. I started with the, then less than two weeks old, SMB3 any% vid, watched all the prior ones over the next week, and haven't missed any since. Nobody, and I literally mean nobody, succeeds at this format like you do or for that matter comes close. The best competitors I've seen on UA-cam for video game world record historys manage to maybe match the quality of the 'Good' tier vids.
I watch your videos regardless of if it is a game I played or not. I've been watching them pretty much since the beginning and it has been a great experience watching you grow as a creator. Some of the videos I have watched multiple times because they are that good.
I actually preferred the old audio quality a bit more. I emphatized with the kinda monoton voiceover and the seemingly never ending grind. Perfekt mirror of my modern grownup real life! 😅🙈 Much love and keep up the great work!
26:43 Me realizing he used my tierlist template because the frappe snowland video is super small lmfao Glad I might've helped give you the idea to make your own tierlist, this was a fun watch! 😁
Ah, so you were the one who made the tier list. Riddle me this, where's the old Mega Man 2 video or the Donkey Kong video? They would've made great additions to trash tier. Oh and let's not forget SummoningSalt's greatest work, the Kash Dash video, which is also missing. What a shame.
As a fellow UA-camr I find your statement at 9:20 about just rerecording a line interesting. I will usually do it if I actually get a fact wrong, but sometimes I will just correct it with text. For example, in a recent video I said "Tick128GuestUpdate" instead of "Tick128UpdateGuest" as the name of a function a few times. I couldn't be bothered to setup my recording setup and rerecord those lines so I just corrected it with text on the screen the first time and left it there. So basically if it's just a word or number said wrong I often use text, but if it's a bigger fact I'll often rerecord the lines.
It’s wild to think I’ve been watching you since the Sonic Adventure 2 video. The growth you’ve made as a video producer, as a content creator, as a storyteller. It’s fantastic to see. I fully agree with the top rankings being as high as they are. You’re truly someone to look up to in the amazing work you do. Keep it up and keep it 100!
I used to run Super Metroid, and I was kinda down on that video when it came out, even though it did cover the record progression itself pretty well. With that said, I think you’ve come a hell of a long way since then, and I’d love to see an updated entry, especially since the any% run has more or less plateaued in recent years.
definitely still watch most of the older videos. i have a whole playlist with a bunch of WR Progression videos from you and others in a big play list and i have it playing in the background a lot
The Quest to Beat Matt Turk and The Human Limit are tied for my favorite videos...like, ever. They both made me actually cry (a cathartic release I don't get often), and no matter how many times I watch them, they remain engaging.
I know you can’t rank them all s tier, but they’re all so special. Every single video is so memorable to me. You literally created an entire UA-cam genre!
![Ocarina of Time 100% TAS (No SRM) by PancakeTurtle and Migu [Commentated]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/EwT4l9Nh1LQ/mqdefault.jpg)
I wont argue with placements but the single best moment in a video IMO was "...this runner was me."
I legitimately started crying when he said that, it honestly might be my favourite Summoning Salt video partly because of that.
100%
I'm always at the edge of my seat when watching all his videos, and because I didn't know Salt's backround in speedrunning, THAT's the moment that sent me over the edge.
It felt like finding out that your history teacher was the one that created the material that he's teaching about
what video is this quote from?
The History of Mike Tyson's Punch-Out World Records. That’s the only game I’m aware of him being a world record holder.
“And his name was Matt Turk” would like to have a word
Its easy to look back on ones older work and cringe at it a bit, but for the time, those videos pretty much pioneered proper scripted speedrunning content on UA-cam.
It's been awesome to see you improve your craft so much and we all look forward to whatever is next
Hey Ricky! I love your content and how supportive you are of other speedrunning content creators. I feel like you're a bloodhound for great videos.
Crappy first drafts are an important, if awkward, parts of every creator's learning process. To be great you have to know why you don't want to make trash, and the best way to do that is make some trash. If you will be a great content creator, even your trash will be at least inspirational. Hopefully to yourself, to do better.
This is so true for any art. I'm a hobby photographer. Sometimes I look my collection through from my first photos onward. I made SO MANY dumb mistakes and BAD photos back then. It really is inspiring to see how much I actually improved. I still have so much to learn (and always will), but it really puts things in perspective.
I remember when I watched his first SM64 video I thought it was one of the coolest videos on UA-cam.
If you look back upon your old work and cringe at it due to low quality, that probably means you've improved your craft
Recency bias aside, Tetris truly is his greatest work to date. It's such a rollercoaster of a story and he did such an amazing job navigating the story in a suspenseful and fascinating way.
Yeah he is one of the few where i get excited the longer the video is
I really love the tetris video. I find most of his videos pretty interesting, but the tetris video left me with the rare feeling of being excited about the future of a run after watching the video. Granted, that's because the story of the video is crazy and leaves you on a cliff hanger.
Yea I thought the progression of that was fantastic and had me doing my own research on the runners. Like from going from Tetris being capped at 999,999 to progressing into runners hitting 8 millions is amazing
@@TheGahtaThe best part about his long videos is that they don't FEEL long.
I watched it all at like 12 am as soon as I saw the notification
"No footage : (" is iconic. Some of those mistakes are very charming and humanizing, but I get how they'd bother you as the creator
: ( moment
i never took that one as a mistake tbh, always felt like a small gag. plus saying '-which there was no footage for' out loud only extends the amount of time you're gonna go without footage.
tf
Still consider them all S tier in my heart.
Edit: also just wanted to share an anecdote here. I actually know ERoadhouse in real life but never knew the dude was a speedrunner. I remember watching the lego star wars video and when I first saw him on screen I went nuts.
Lmao that actually sounds INSANE
That’s crazy haha
They all are S tier videos, but he’s ranking them within the S tier from lowest to highest. That’s what I think.
The way he started it gave me such 2014 UA-cam vibes and I'm here for it.
true
What’s different since then?
real
That was the most common opening every said back then in vids, so yeah makes sense.
Made me laugh a little from remembering
Tier lists were not a thing in 2014 lol
The quest to bet matt turk still deserves number 1 in my heart. It had what i feel is the most intense story of any of yours so far. Its not the most interesting or absolute cleanest in comparison to newest but it will be a favorite youtube video for a very long time, and is my personal favorite.
Yup or even the quest to beat abney purely for that forest moment.
Man got caught with recency bias for sure.
I've watched most of summoning salts vids and Matt turk Is the only one I have watched 10+ times
Honestly the most striking part about the Matt Turk vid is the ending where you saw who holds every record today. Feels like an incredible epilogue to an incredible story
Agreed wholeheartedly. He’s made some great videos since but none can match the unbelievable story of Matt Turk
thats no doubt the single most iconic summoning salt video ever
I think the cheeky reveal at the end of Matt Turk deserves more credit, as it was the first time that I (and presumably many others) realized SummoningSalt wasn't just an observer, but had a real stake in speedrunning. And the fact that it's the last record at the very end of the video really hits you too, like a hollywood after-credits twist. That whole video had a really personal tone to it that I think some of the more left-field vids (you point out Halo 2 as an example here) don't quite capture as much.
honestly jimmypoopins is one of my favorites if not my all time favorite. i think it was a very unique take on the "quest to beat" type videos, and it felt like i was seeing a full character arc for jummypoopins. idk it just felt personal.
Jimmypoopins deserves to be in the top tier. Great story, godly Arcus surprise appearance with "NINJA GAIDEN 1 WORLD RECORD HOLDER" appearing on screen like he's a Zelda boss, Jimmypoopins slowly losing relevance and then making a surprise comeback when it seemed like the new generation left him in the dust (and the title of the video made you think he was beaten for good, like in the previous Quest To Beat abney317 video), the brutal grind and final payoff of him getting his record back. Plus the name itself "Jimmypoopins" just makes me giggle every time I see it
The Ninja Gaiden video brought tears to my eyes S tier
That last line at the end about it really being Jimmy's quest to beat himself hit hard.
I agree and think jimmypoopins was your best. Love so many of your videos, but your storytelling is what made this one special. It is just topnotch writing and editing geared towards emotion. The ending is UA-cam perfection and is such a human story.
I think mine personally was Abney. It was the first video I seen of SS and Mario kart is already a nostalgic game for me.
Super Mario: The Human Limit is by far your best video. The reason? STRUCTURE.
It's the ONLY video where you've 100% laid out the ENTIRE structure of the run upfront (8 levels) and in turn explain the mechanics of each level as they got knocked off. In every other video including your later ones, there's parts where you don't give the structure of the run and we are explained at the last minute some mechanic or new trick without the ability to anticipate the runner succeeding (or failing) at it and it's contribution to the world record.
Also, your use of music in that video was PERFECT and very well matched to the mood as the story unfolded.
The sheer level of TECHNIQUE you brought to that video is unmatched in anything you've done before or since.
i still love how he transitioned from talking about frame rules to talking about 8-4.
imo human limit more than anything deserves a remake, especially now that 8-4 has been defeated.
It’s a UA-camr’s God given right to absolutely hate everything they made when they fast started.
It's in our nature to be critical of our own work. That's why so many artists think they are bad at drawing/painting/writing/etc. They're acquainted with every detail that has gone into making whatever they make. They're aware of all the little imperfections. Some people do tend to be way harsher with themselves though.
It’s true, but it’s also because some of those early videos were actually bad.
I know I’m a little late to this, but my film teacher showed that 4-2 video in my class as an example of good web documentaries! You were definitely doing something right at the time.
"1800s camera" >>> "Tyler got a capture card"
They are both great gags, I think he recreated the lightning in a bottle with 1800s camera lmao
Easily his best joke the way he says it you might not even think about it if you're not super paying attention lol
ngl his delivery on the former was so good i was like "well damn, they had a 1800s digital camera, my digital photo teacher lied to me"
What video is 1800s camera from?
summoningsalt never misses with his jokes, they're so infrequent, but so well timed when they come. kinda like a defunctland video in a way.
Lmao. "like what parts? Which ones? Give me some examples? " had me rolling
had me hypertapping
@@Mr.HowardEatsPantsHad me DASing
@@Mr.HowardEatsPantshad me DASing
Brought me back to turning in assignments, and my teacher saying the exact thing.
Where was that?
6:52 I just assumed it was supposed to be like the curtain that you see in the intro screen.
Same, honestly. Like, he lucked out being lazy in that specific manner for that specific game LMAO
Yeah, or NES Screen Artifacts that would normally be cropped away in CRT overscan anyway, since SM3 had a lot of screen artifacts anyway.
The 5-2 video is one of my personal favorites. Nothing has made me laugh my ass off like watching AndrewG clipping into a pipe as “Hall of the Mountain King“ plays in the background
It was the first sal vid i saw
The Human Limit is my favorite of your videos. Maybe even my favorite video on all of UA-cam. It gave me a full on existential crisis in an "Alexander Wept for there were no worlds left to conquer" sense
I also love the Halo 2 video and I'm glad you ocassionally branch out into games that aren't ideal for your bread and butter audience even if you know it won't set the world on fire
The Human Limit was my first video of Salt's. I hardly ever play anything (and if I do, it's not the kind of games he talks about), and I didn't really get the appeal of speedrunning, so by all accounts his content shouldn't have been in my niche. But this title hooked me, and I was blown away by the storytelling, editing and just great quality overall. I wanted more of that, so I watched more and more of his videos, and now I regularly tear up watching some guy I didn't know about an hour ago play a game a second faster than another guy 😅
That bit about how if you have time to put text on screen, you have time to record another line is so true.
Every episode where he weaves a narrative are totally GOATed.
"The quest to beat Matt Turk"
The Andrewg videos.
You do suuuch a good job of making a "nemesis" out of some people, in a good way. Turning these legendary figures in to characters who truly feel like the "final boss" of your video is just soooo peak.
I love it.
Lmaoooo hell yeah I just got to the part where he rates The Quest To Beat Matt Turk - GOAT
Choco mountain was what got me into your channel salt! I'm glad you rated it so highly.
Same, it was the first Summoning Salt video I watched and I was hooked!
Oh yeah, the quest to beat Matt Turk is one of my favorites! "Tyler got a capture card" is actually an insane joke, I was dying when I watched that!
im not very prone to recency bias, new videos generally take a bit to grow on me before i can think of them as highly as the good ol classics. that being said, from the moment i watched the tetris video i knew it was your best work ever
It was 9:30PM when the algorithm brought it to me. I had work at 4:00AM. I accidentally watched the whole thing
The Human Limit is my all time favorite. Still watch it every couple months to get some inspiration out of it :D
Same
18:34 I love how this progression went. I would so watch more Pokémon. Also, before anyone steals it, this video should have been called "SummoningSalt World Record Progression Progression", and framing ones like 4-2 as side categories
play xenoblade chronicles definitive edition
@@Tonjit41 play Swirl W@tch
"All the way up in "Meh"." I love that for whatever reason
Also, his use of "highly meh" as a praise, since most vids before the one in question were lower x'-D
All I'm hearing here is "time to redo some videos" and I'm absolutely here for that
The matthias 31/32 story is honestly my favorite video on the internet. Such a well and intresting made video and the story is absolutely crazy
seeing how close he got only to make ONE SMALL MISTAKE and watch the entire tower crumble was heartbreaking man
That one gave me a jarring rollercoaster of emotions that I've never felt from anything else.
The SMB3 thumbnail bit really took me off guard. Like that thumbnail looks really good
1:25 - Tbh, putting the date and runner a little above the bottom is really nice so it doesn't get covered by the YT player progress bar when you pause, making it harder to read it if you're pausing to search their name or whatever.
I have the Quest for Matt Turk vid downloaded and watch it almost every other day. Teasing the S Tier was cute lol
Don’t you wish he’d release special editions of his best videos so we could show our love for them? I’m thinking VHS releases or Nintendo gold cartridges.
Fascinated to see your views on your own art overtime. Looking forward to sitting down and watching thanks!
Sorry but The Quest to Beat Matt Turk is the best to me bc it’s YOUR story. Loved the Tetris video, but I knew a lot of its lore going in. Not knowing your backstory and getting the reveal made it feel like I was watching a movie. Goosebumps.
Controversial take, but I loved loved love the Halo 2 video. One of my absolute favorite Summoning Salt videos. You do a real good job of framing how first person shooters work and move and function in story mode playthroughs Summoning Salt!
Same! I’d love to see more games like that.
Definitely agree on the Tetris video. Not only do I think it's your best video, but I think it's the best youtube video I've ever watched. The story is amazing, and you can tell that you took the time to get every detail.
It’s neat that there’s kinda different eras of Salt videos, the early 2017 era of learning how to do it, the coming into his own era where he rapidly improved the videos, the golden vintage era filled with lots of NES and SNES game records and all like 35-55 minute videos spanning from roughly blindfolded Punchout to the Human Limit/Super Punch-Out and now the modern era covering more variety of games, record categories and an expanded hour+ video length.
Best modern is probably Tetris, it was an incredible ride the whole way through. At the same time, the Choco Mountain one was the very first video of yours I saw, and I still have a soft spot for the Ultra Shortcut videos.
I can still greatly enjoy all the older work, but it is cool to see the growth over the years as well. I refuse to watch any other speedrun channel because they don't hold up to this one. gg
I guess you can't argue with the literal creator of the content but the punch out video shook me to my core to the point that I stood up in front of my screen at the end of it completely focused by your words and I just felt like I had lived another life for the span of these 2 hours. genuinely the best video I ever saw on youtube
The Quest for World Record Perfection is an S+ fr that video is so goated, the layout and structure and introduction/transition from one point to another is PEAK Summoning Salt work
Yeah, by far the best story he's told so far, I've never been so attached to any other narrative I've seen on youtube (Matthais is still the GOAT)
I wonder if Salt ever thinks about how insanely lucky he was to get that video out when he did. He's talked before about all the times he releases a video, only for a new WR to make it obsolete within a couple of days, but the Matthias video came out shortly before a heel turn that would have utterly ruined the story if it had happened during the time frame the video covers.
yes, it’s probably my favorite youtube video of all time, the story got me hooked in an insane way
@@CosmicPlatonix that’ true, it’s the only bad part of the story
That one had me on the edge of my seat! Like he says, the story almost writes itself. But it was very well executed too.
The Tetris video was so S tier. I remember it popping up in my feed thinking "oh, Tetris, meh, I really never enjoyed Tetris at all, and two hours? well, I'll put it on, but I fully expect to check out 5 minutes in," then of course I marathoned the entire thing, gained a whole new respect and understanding of Tetris, and threw it on a second time later for good measure because it was such a wild ride I don't think I fully grasped it the first time through.
P.S. PLEASE do another pokemon video.
Would love to see some of those older videos get remade. Especially Mario 64 and Super Metroid.
Your Tetris video legit made me cry. I usually put your videos on while I'm cooking but about ten minutes in I paused and just sat down and gave it my full attention. Masterpiece man.
Loving the Summoning Salt: World Record Progression - Progression
I remember being hooked to your channel since finding the Mario Bros world record progression back in 2017 maybe 2018. I think my favorite video of yours is the Mario Kart 64 Quest for Perfection. You were dragging me along the whole video, I had no idea I could be so invested in the story of these people. That video felt truly above and beyond a quality bar that was already stratospheric.
That Pokemon vid gets recommended to every youtube account even remotely interested in speedrunning or videogames. The Algo LOVES IT
As a perfectionist myself, this has been an eye-opener. Because so many of the videos you have in "Bad" and even "Trash" I love and have watched multiple times.
TQTBMT is the only long form video I can say I've watched over 30 times, it's just so good. That, and the recent Tetris video, are IMO in a tier of their own.
YOOO. If Mario Kart Wii isn't S teir purely for how it blew up his career I riot
So where are you rioting? He did talk about blowing up the carrier tho...
Honestly compared to his newer stuff, it doesn't hold up as well. He's improved so much and we should celebrate that.
Just because it made him blow up doesn't always mean it was a good video
Glad to see both Mario Kart 64 vids and "The Quest to Beat Matt Turk" all in S Tier, I regularly go back to watch them because they are so well-produced.
Dude, your videos can move me to tears talking about videogames i have never even played. I understand why you must be your own harshest critic, but man several of those are better than you give then credit for.
Genuinely I think you’re just right, the Tetris story and history is so incredible. I’ve kept up with a lot of different communities over the past decade or so, but no other community has had the same kind of history as Tetris, I could talk for days about it. I think the craziest part is that your video feels like it covered so much, and yet it’s barely scratching the surface of the Tetris community.
hearing summoning salt talk so like. casually is so jarring but also so charming LOL
I don't know if I agree with all of your rankings, but that Tetris video is legitimately fire. If you're not paying attention to the progress bar of the video, it _just keeps going_ and getting more and more insane as it does.... which is in large part a credit to the way you wrote the episode. S+ tier, tbh.
the sarcastic way abney says "LARGE skip" and his expression watching it is definitely one of the best moments in any video. its so good
For me, what makes the Mario Kart Wii such a good video is a combination of things that work perfectly together.
First, it's a game almost everyone has played. Even my parents lol. So many people enjoyed it and nostalgia makes a really big impact in these types of videos.
Secondly, it's a big surprise to realize how broken your childhood game is. It shows the game from a completely different perspective and reignites the feeling that discovering the game produced.
Also, I'm definitely not the only one who revived my Wii and tried to pull at least a single trick from that video.
Another point is that the story is really good. As you said, some games have better story than others and there's nothing to do about it. In the case of MKWii, the fact that the checkpoint system was discovered after finding a couple ultras leaves you wondering how the hell those things are happening, which is a good way of causing interest.
After that, the other question is to know which track is the one that will fall next and how the hell it's done. This guessing game with our nostalgia is really engaging.
I feel that the only video that I liked more than the MKWii one is the Tetris one just because the story is so fucking good. The big wr jumps that constantly happen are really impactful and it's an amazing video, so congrats on that.
I feel that it should've made a bigger impact than the MKWii video, but maybe length and the fact that, even though it's a well known game, it doesn't cause so much nostalgia because it's most people haven't played it although they know about it, is what makes the difference.
However, if you want to recreate the MKWii success, ask a non-gamer which games they know and have played and see if some of those have a speedrunning scene with a good story. Also, try to keep the video shorter and simple to cater to a wider audience, even though I would watch a 5 hour video lol.
Hope any of this helps and keep doing the amazing work you always do!
While I absolutely agree with all of your takes about the Halo 2 video (It was a pretty “meh” video, and while there were interesting parts, I really didn’t care for it), I also think it’s a good idea to keep making videos like that. Just occasionally cover a game that’s out of your usual wheelhouse. It’s always good to diversify your profile, and it’s neat to hear stories about other types of games. Your speedrunning history videos are easily my favorite ones (and this is coming from someone who’s been watching since pretty much right when you started, as well as someone who’s watched similar content from other creators), so I’d absolutely adore hearing you tackle other kinds of games. Halo 2 wasn’t your best vid by any means, but that just shows that the next time you do something different, you’ll go in with a better understanding of how to make it hit where that one missed.
i think Salt could do fantastic work with Doom & Quake, most obviously, and Doom is more culturally relevant in the current landscape than Quake or Halo (didn't they just announce a new one really recently?). Doom also has the angle of being the first game to ever have an organized speedrunning scene on the Internet...
Your MegaMan 2 Video is an absolute MASTERCLASS in Tension, Build up, and storytelling in a youtube video. I consider cyghfer to be one of the greatest speedrunners of all time because of his MM2 runs.
YES! I literally said to my friends “this is his best work” when tetris history dropped.
Such a good video man, it truly is the pinnacle of what your channel is supposed to be.
Quest for World Record Perfection is so good, it may never be beaten. It's not just my favorite video of yours, it's one of my favorite videos on UA-cam.
Its really great seeing you talk about your mistakes without being embarrassed. Its okay to make mistakes and learn. Almost like its a speedrunning video lol
The castlevania one was my favorite, personally
That 1 rocks. Top 3 for me, too. Was surprised Salt didn't think more highly of it and the Ninja Gaiden vids
The Tetris video is also my absolute favorite, especially Fractal's side story almost made cry.
Hearing you talk about all the old videos really makes me want to see a remake/updated version. Leave the originals as is, but I want to hear the full stories of Portal and Mario 3
I don't think it's recency bias, Tetris is an incredible video! Great work making it here!
I think it's a testament to how good of a story teller you are by how you can take a topic that seems completely uninteresting to me on the surface like "The Quest to Beat..." videos, and within 40 minutes I'm glued to my screen going, "No way! He didn't just..."
Petition to re-update Super Metroid video, especially in light of the continued contributions of Shiny, Zoast and Oats? It's practically THE classic speedrunning game - would love to see the modern Salt-take on it!
All of your stuff is S+ tier, Mr. Summoning, to me. Like speed runners, the subject of your efforts, you are never satisfied. That is the mark of the true artist, continually searching for the perfect moment. Just know, all of your documentaries get better each time I rewatch them. Bravo, brutha!
salt i really really really liked the section where you cast call all the record holders and do a "where are they now" section at the end of the video. I hope you bring it back :)
What I quickly learned about people that they are ether the harshest critics of themselves or the “nicest”(idk the word but they just love everything they do) critics of themselves, rarely fair.
I always like when a youtuber can go back and talk about their own videos in detail like this. Shows a real care for the craft.
9:01 Thank you so much for calling this out. The lack of re-recording to correct mistakes drives me crazy too
tetris was a fantastic video -- from knowing nothing to being blown away. so good
The fact that you didn’t include yourself in the blindfolded Mike Tyson’s Punch out video shows that you are a genuine person!
With that said, we not only love your videos, but we love you too! Take your slice of the cake! You deserve it for working so hard with these videos, and to achieve the record.
You've clearly put a good amount of thought into this! Honestly, the quest to beat Matt Turk is still my favourite, but the videos you ranked above it rock too
Tetris video was legitimately very good high A or S. Truthful yeah I did feel like some videos as very similar but that doesn't mean I didn't like them even though I may rank them lower. I think it made the summoning salt music into guy wearing a very large hat because he speedran Ninja graden for too long joke amazing.
Such a neat video and perspective.
I can honestly say this is the only channel where I watch every single video. Even if I lack interest. The stories are good and it's relaxing content.
You definately beat most to the punch when it comes to longer form content that can capture attention thru-out.
Matthias Mario Kart 64 will forever be my goat.
I rewatch it every couple of months.
This was a really fun watch just for realizing how early I was to watching these videos. I started with the, then less than two weeks old, SMB3 any% vid, watched all the prior ones over the next week, and haven't missed any since.
Nobody, and I literally mean nobody, succeeds at this format like you do or for that matter comes close. The best competitors I've seen on UA-cam for video game world record historys manage to maybe match the quality of the 'Good' tier vids.
Yo, JimmyPoopins video is literally ONE of a kind. S tier.
I watch your videos regardless of if it is a game I played or not. I've been watching them pretty much since the beginning and it has been a great experience watching you grow as a creator. Some of the videos I have watched multiple times because they are that good.
Love the insight and honesty.
Your Wii Sports Resort Golf video inspired me to start speedrunning that game, as well as some other obscure games (mostly Flash games).
Tiers be damned, the content is always good though
I actually preferred the old audio quality a bit more.
I emphatized with the kinda monoton voiceover and the seemingly never ending grind.
Perfekt mirror of my modern grownup real life! 😅🙈
Much love and keep up the great work!
26:43 Me realizing he used my tierlist template because the frappe snowland video is super small lmfao
Glad I might've helped give you the idea to make your own tierlist, this was a fun watch! 😁
Ah, so you were the one who made the tier list. Riddle me this, where's the old Mega Man 2 video or the Donkey Kong video? They would've made great additions to trash tier. Oh and let's not forget SummoningSalt's greatest work, the Kash Dash video, which is also missing. What a shame.
@@poudink5791 I included every speedrun documentary video currently public on his main channel in addition to running with speed.
@Zack207 ur no one
Lol you're a jackass. Grow up@BusterDoggy2
As for OP, good for you 👍 😊
I gotta say I really enjoyed even the “bad” ones. These have become my way to relax. I even rewatch them just to disconnect after work
As a fellow UA-camr I find your statement at 9:20 about just rerecording a line interesting. I will usually do it if I actually get a fact wrong, but sometimes I will just correct it with text. For example, in a recent video I said "Tick128GuestUpdate" instead of "Tick128UpdateGuest" as the name of a function a few times. I couldn't be bothered to setup my recording setup and rerecord those lines so I just corrected it with text on the screen the first time and left it there.
So basically if it's just a word or number said wrong I often use text, but if it's a bigger fact I'll often rerecord the lines.
Boooo
I'd love some more of any metroid speedrun videos ! 🙏
If you hate your early videos so much, have you considered redoing them?
It’s wild to think I’ve been watching you since the Sonic Adventure 2 video. The growth you’ve made as a video producer, as a content creator, as a storyteller. It’s fantastic to see. I fully agree with the top rankings being as high as they are. You’re truly someone to look up to in the amazing work you do. Keep it up and keep it 100!
More quickly > quicker
The Tetris video is absolutely amazing. An insane story, and told very well.
More quickly is a perfectly cromulent phrase
I used to run Super Metroid, and I was kinda down on that video when it came out, even though it did cover the record progression itself pretty well. With that said, I think you’ve come a hell of a long way since then, and I’d love to see an updated entry, especially since the any% run has more or less plateaued in recent years.
will you ever remake these older vids with better done research?
He said he wants to remake the Mario 64 ones
definitely still watch most of the older videos. i have a whole playlist with a bunch of WR Progression videos from you and others in a big play list and i have it playing in the background a lot
as a portal speedrunner and speedrun historian... yeah that progression was a bit silly lmao.
The Quest to Beat Matt Turk and The Human Limit are tied for my favorite videos...like, ever. They both made me actually cry (a cathartic release I don't get often), and no matter how many times I watch them, they remain engaging.
Now rate them again, faster.........
I know you can’t rank them all s tier, but they’re all so special. Every single video is so memorable to me. You literally created an entire UA-cam genre!