Help:Guidelines

General

• Don't sign your name every time you contribute something. This is already recorded automatically on each page's individual edit history. This is a wiki - information put up here is surrendered to the videogaming community at large. If you want your work to remain yours, keep it on your site.

• Be bold. Don't be afraid to change something that someone else wrote. If you don't think something is explained well enough, don't add your own explanation. Improve the explanation that's already there. If there is an issue which needs discussing, raise it on the page's associated Talk page.

• If you are going to copy and paste somebody else's work, you must seek that person's permission beforehand.

• This is a wiki, not a chatroom, which means you must use good English. Don't worry if your English isn't so great, other people can edit what you wrote and fix it up, but try to do your best.
  • Avoid using the first person. "We" are a collective, so avoid talking in the first person or talking about yourself. For example, instead of "I do this", say "Do this".
  • Use the second person. It's okay to say "you" as in "you may find it is easier to do this instead of that" - this is an instructional website so it's okay to direct instructions at the reader.
  • Avoid using slang words or offensive language.
  • Jargon is okay as long as it's explained elsewhere: for example, you can say "strat" as long as you link to strat.
  • Avoid long run-on sentences or run-on paragraphs. Long explanations should be divided up into === sub-sections === to make it easier for people to read it and find what they're looking for.
  • Capitalize the first letters of sentences and use correct spelling.

• Don't say anything like "IM me if something isn't explained well enough". People can point out things that need fixing on the Talk page.

• This wiki is about taking gaming to its limits. Game release dates, lead programmers, market performance and related controversies etc. etc. are largely irrelevant to speedrunning and don't really need adding. So are dumb, pointless tricks and glitches which don't save any time.

• No antagonism, particularly antagonism directed at other videogaming communities.

• Don't even think about attempting vandalism. We'll know.

• Please... don't try to be funny.

• For other questions not specifically addressed here, assume that Wikipedia policy applies.

Game pages

Check the Game Page Template page, or other already existing pages to see some examples of what a page should look like. Of course not every game can use exactly the same format, but here are some general guidelines.

• The titles of game pages should be named by the full North American name of the game, for example The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is correctly named.
  • Variations such as Ocarina of Time, Zelda 64, and OoT should all redirect to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. This is done by putting this text on the page for each variation: #Redirect [[The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time]]

• First give a short description of the game at the top of the page, including game name, system, release date, and prequels/sequels.
  • To the right of the first paragraph there should be a picture of the game's title screen.

• Then comes a == section == for Terminology and Tactics (if applicable), with the link to each page proceded by a bullet (*).

• Next you should have sections for each major field of competition in this game. Common sections include Speed Runs or Time Trials, Full Runs and Sub-Games. For each section, you should give:
  • A sentence about the competition site, the current world champion, and the current world record (if applicable). Give appropriate links.
  • A === sub-section === of Level Strategies or Course Strategies, followed by a list of levels or tracks, with the link to each page preceded by a bullet (*) or, if applicable, a number (#).
  • Then there should come a section for links to external video pages.

• After all this, put External Links in their own section if there are any.

• Finally, give the game's categories (system(s) and game series). If the game is one of a series, a Template for that series should be created and put at the bottom too.

Level pages

These guidelines can apply to individual levels, tracks, challenges, dungeons, bosses or sub-games.

• Start with a description of the level. Give its full name, abbreviations and number and the game it comes from.
  • To the right, put a picture of the level.

• Put preliminary notes or globally applicable notes in paragraphs at the start.

• Next, put the strats for the level. See how to write strategies above. It's okay to put multiple strategies if there are easier or harder ways to do things, or optional tricks.

• External Links to ranking pages and a representative selection of videos should go at the end, if there are any.

• Lastly there should be a template featuring this level along with all its brethren. This allows easy navigation between levels within a game. See Template:Perfect Dark solo missions for an example.

Strategy guides

• Don't create empty pages. If you don't have a strat for a level, or some kind of useful information about it, don't make a page for it. "Strat here" placeholders are the work of the devil. Those links are better left red.

• Give a target record for each strategy.
• If you are going to quote a world record, link to the page where the record is listed, and remember that WRs rapidly go out of date.

• Assume the reader knows what you are talking about.
  • Don't explain the basic controls.
  • Don't write walkthroughs. This is not GameFAQs.
  • Don't bother giving spoiler warnings. Nobody gets a world record on their first run through a game.
  • Provide links to explanations of terminology and tactics you use instead of explaining them all mid-strat. Create a page for each term and tactic, and link to them when they get used. If there are many minor such pages, put them all together in one big page.

• Don't refer to your personal records when writing strategies.

• This is not Wikipedia so you do not need to maintain a Neutral Point Of View. If a strategy is hard, say so.

• Don't tell people to IM you for a video. If there is a helpful video, upload it and link to it.

Tricks and Techniques

A trick is anything that you use to save time or improve your score etc.. A shortcut in a racing game counts as a trick. A trick becomes a technique when you find you can use it in multiple different locations. A bug is when something happens in the game which shouldn't really happen. A glitch is when something happens which really shouldn't happen. Of course, this is all splitting hairs, because luckily Speedrunwiki doesn't sort meticulously sort tricks by how allowable they are.

Individual tricks and techniques which are common, notable or complex enough should each be given their own separate article.

• List tricks under their most universally recognised name, e.g. Power Crouch Stab.
• In the opening paragraph, explain where the trick is used and in what game(s).
  • If possible, put an image of the trick in action on the right of the first paragraph.
• In the first major section, give as much detail as you can about performing the trick. Images, diagrams and video links should be included if possible.
• In the second section, detail the history of the trick if it has any - who discovered it, when they discovered it and what its impact was.

Other pages you can create

Terminology

Terminology pages can be created to explain the jargon you're using.

• If a game has a lot of terminology associated with it, but none of the terms are worth individual writeups, you can put them all on the same page, called MK terminology or similar.
  • Pages concerning terminology should be named "terminology". Please don't create "GE terms" or "Sonic 2 jargon" as competing standards.

Websites

Important speed-running communities and websites such as The Elite and the Speed Demos Archive are also encouraged.

• You should include a screenshot of the homepage, a founding date and the founder's name, as well as what games it covers, how many members it has, etc. etc.
• A history of the site is a must.
• All sites should be listed under Category:Websites.
• Sites with many related articles can also have their own dedicated category. We don't have many of these yet, however. The primary emphasis of Speedrunwiki is on the games, after all.

People

Articles about prominent figures in speed-running are also encouraged. These include top competitors and world record holders, discoverers of major strats, and creators of important sites.

• Note also that you are not permitted to create an article about yourself, unless it's clear the article is needed. Whether you are significant enough to be worth of an entry on this wiki is for other people to decide. You can edit it once it's created, though. (Though, naturally, so can everybody else.)
• For an article about an actual person, the title used should be the real name of that person. The person's various aliases and screen names should be redirected there, as should his user page if he is a user of this wiki. For example, put information about the creator of this wiki under Jon Barber, not Ngamer or Ngamer64 or Ngamer's user talk page.
• Articles about people should be kept factual, objective, and third-person. Speedrunwiki is not your personal site! Player page vandalism will be dealt with especially harshly.
• Player articles should be put in Category:People as well as in relevant location and community sub-categories.