Hi there! I am proud to present you my GTA III 100% speedrun. This is my first ever speedrun and quite an ambitious one to start with if I may say so myself. Many thanks to CannibalK9 for his original run that I used for some strategies and routes and also to l2ebel for his awesome any% run that I took some strategies from. Also to the guys from wikigta.org, which is by far the best GTA resource site out there. Their maps and lists helped me out a lot. And last but not least to the guys from SDA for running a great site and all the people in the forum for supporting me during this run and for keeping me from going insane. It's nice to know I'm not just doing this for myself. :)

Run history:

The first general ideas for this run came to me back when I saw CannibalK9's 100% run of GTA III. I remember being blown away by his planning and strategies and how well everything fitted together. I generally find speedruns of the average game quite boring to watch because of the linearity that usually defines the fastest possible route. I was fascinated by the optimization possibilities this game allows because of the openness and freedom that GTA games are known for.

I went to study CannibalK9's route a bit closer and came to the conclusion that it could be done better. There were a lot of unnecessarily long travel times between objectives and I found it a challenge to try and minimize these as much as I could. I like to think of it as trying to find one huge chain through the entire game with as least gaps as possible.

I started planning this run somewhere during the summer of 2008 and it took me about a half year to finish a planning that I thought was near optimal. I then did a test run to see if my planning was doable or even possible. I ran the entire game from start to end and along the way I updated the routes many times after discovering new strategies and route possibilities, until I was satisfied with the route planning. I started the actual run around March 2009 and finished it in October 2011, which adds up to about two and a half years of running, although that includes all the much needed breaks in-between!

General run comments:

This run was recorded using the PC version of the game. I had always played the PS2 version before so you might notice a gradual improvement in gameplay while I get more used to playing on PC. I use a gamepad + mouse and switching between them doesn't always go very smoothly so if you see some weird movement that's the reason.

The main goal was to minimize traveling time as much as possible, so you'll notice that my segments always start with the boss that is closest to the hideout. Also, the most random parts of the game are generally planned at the start of segments to reduce the amount of time lost on attempt failures caused by pure bad luck.

I only break the door off cars when I am going to use that car for a significant amount of time and have to get in and out more than a few times, otherwise I don't bother. Also the horn trick doesn't work with the gamepad, for me anyway.

I never switch radio stations for the sake of variety, except for one time when I accidentally pressed the button, which kind of bummed me out to be honest. :(

There were a few factors I couldn't really take into account when planning the run such as the weather and time restricted missions, so I had to adjust my strategy on the spot sometimes, but overall it worked out wonderfully I think!

Segment comments:

Here I'll give some general comments about everything I think is worth mentioning for every segment. I tend to ramble on about the most insignificant details, so this could be quite long for the average reader, but I've tried to keep the trivial bits to a minimum and focus on the big picture. There is also subtitle commentary included in the videos that will explain the little things that might not be entirely clear or are not worth mentioning here.

Per segment, I will list all the missions, rampages, jumps and packages completed or collected. The numbers will correspond to those on wikigta.org. I will also include the percentage and all completed stuff cumulatively to see the progression.

MI = Missions, SM = Sub Missions, HP = Hidden Packages, RA = Rampages, UJ = Unique Jumps, IE = Import Export Vehicles, EV = Emergency Vehicles Crane, DP = Days Passed In Game.

01)

MI: 'Give Me Liberty', 'Luigi's Girls', 'Don't Spank Ma Bitch Up'
SM: Paramedic, Taxi Driver 10/100
IE: Yankee
EV: Ambulance

This segment is nearly exactly the same as CannibalK9's first segment because it only makes sense to do Paramedic after 'Don't Spank Ma Bitch Up'. Looking back at this segment now, I find the start somewhat poor but it isn't too bad. The Paramedic mission is the all deciding factor here and that went very well.

It's unrealistic to expect a perfect run with the Ambulance, but completing it in half an hour is very good. I make one tiny little route mistake on level 10 and there's some retarded women on level 12 who thought it would be a good idea to go stand behind a fence while bleeding to death, but apart from that it's not all that interesting so I don't expect you to watch it all.

This is the only time in the game I'm actually in an Ambulance in Portland so I deliver it to the crane right away and then get lucky finding a Taxi right outside the harbor exit. I need to do some fares until about 21:30 on the game clock to put it on the correct time for a time restricted mission in the next segment.

Progression: MI: 2/73, SM: 1/8, IE: 1/32, EV: 1/7, DP: 2
Percentage: 3%

02)

MI: 'Drive Misty For Me', 'Mike Lips Last Lunch', 'The Crook', 'The Thieves', 'Farewell Chunky Lee Chong, 'Pump-Action Pimp', 'Diablo Destruction'
SM: Firefighter 20/60
HP: 29, 26, 27, 8, 30, 31, 32, 5, 6, 16
RA: 5 (20 Triads - Shotgun)
UJ: 3

Saving at 21:30 in the previous segment sets the clock on 03:30 when I start this one. I need to do that because Joey's first mission can only be done from 05:00 - 21:00 and Marty's missions from 9:00 - 19:00. That jump with the Taxi to my first package has screwed up many good attempts but saves a lot of time.

For the Firefighter mission I use a PC-only trick where you complete the objective by loading a replay. It's actually faster to constantly restart the mission instead of waiting for the next objective but I didn't found that out until later. It doesn't matter much here because I have to drive over to the crane anyway.

I had originally planned to do the Uzi rampage after getting the packages in Chinatown but I would paint myself in a corner later on if I did that, so I do the unique jump instead. 'Pump-Action Pimp' is somewhat random cause the car goes all the way up to Saint Marks sometimes, but I got lucky this time.

Progression: MI: 9/73, SM: 2/8, HP: 10/100, RA: 1/20, UJ: 1/20, EV: 2/7, DP: 3
Percentage: 9%

03)

MI: 'The Fuzz Ball', 'Van Heist', 'The Wife', 'Her Lover', 'Cipriani's Chauffeur', 'Taking Out The Laundry', 'Dead Skunk In The Trunk'
HP: 28, 23, 25, 18
UJ: 11, 1
IE: Trashmaster, Coach
EV: Police

It took me quite a while to decide how to use my time during 'The Fuzz Ball'. I could either get all the girls and finish the mission sooner or get the minimum amount of girls and use the remaining time to do other stuff. I figured the latter would be better because I have to do the sidestuff anyway so getting the other girls instead would be wasting time.

I take the Yankee after delivering the Police because it does so much more damage in 'Van Heist' and makes the mission much easier and faster. This mission and 'Taking Out The Laundry' are very random and can really screw up the segment. Both went very well here though.

'Dead Skunk In The Trunk' is also tricky but luckily the Forelli's didn't do much. One of them even broke the window for me so I didn't have to damage my precious Banshee. :)

Progression: MI: 16/73, HP: 14/100, UJ: 3/20, IE: 3/32 EV: 3/7, DP: 4
Percentage: 13%

04 & 05)

SM: Taxi Driver 86/100
IE: Securicar, Pony, Bobcat, Rumpo

These segments are dedicated to the Taxi driving. I do about 40 fares in each segment, all in a row and without resprays, which I can tell you is not easy in a fragile Banshee! I use a trick to be able to do the mission in a Banshee, it's pretty self-explanatory if you watch the video, which I do not recommend. If you are going to watch it all, I put on Chatterbox for some entertainment. The segments kind of overlap, but Fernando never gets old.

At the end of segment 5 I was going to save but then I spotted a Securicar so I took it to the garage and took care of a few more I/E vehicles while I was at it. Saves a bit of hassle in later segments, but the downside is that I have to go get a new Banshee. Also, there's a funny little moment at about 3:15 into segment 5. ;)

Progression: IE: 7/32, DP: 6
Percentage: 19%

06)

MI: 'Turismo', 'I Scream You Scream', 'The Getaway', 'The Pick-Up', 'Salvatore's Called A Meeting', 'Chaperone', 'Cutting The Grass'
SM: Taxi Driver 100/100
HP: 9, 10, 7, 21, 14, 11
RA: 2 (13 Vehicles - Rocket Launcher)
UJ: 10, 6, 2, 5
IE: Moonbeam, Patriot, Mr. Whoopee, Flatbed

'Turismo'! It's fun but really stressful if you try to do it without any mistakes. It's pretty much always the traffic's fault though, they usually bump into you at least once. Also, the bump to start the race fails more often than not, so I had to plan this mission at the start of the segment.

I shoot the Mafia in 'I Scream You Scream' myself because I want to keep the Mr. Whoopee for the garage. Also, I need to find three other vehicles for the garage in this segment, the Moonbeam, Bus and Flatbed, or else the segment fails. You'll notice that I take a few slight detours through Chinatown to help spawn these vehicles.

I really like my strategy for 'The Pick-Up'. It's faster than using the Shotgun. On 'Salvatore's Called A Meeting' I get a wanted star when driving through the Ammunation alley, which almost never happens, and I have to wait a few seconds for it to go away, but going around the block would have cost me a the same time so it doesn't really matter.

'Chaperone' is probably the most boring mission in the game, so I make it a bit more interesting by doing some risky unique jumps with the Cheetah that's always parked there. The jump off the grassy roof with the Taxi on 'Cutting The Grass' is kinda random, it sometimes flips you over. I also got bumped into on the way to Luigi's, but luckily the guy still found my Taxi acceptable. I personally would have gone for the other one, haha.

I finish off the last four Taxi fares at the end and get very lucky with the last fare who wants to go to the car showroom, so I can get me another precious Banshee!

Progression: MI: 23/73, SM: 3/8, HP: 20/100, RA: 2/20, UJ: 7/20, IE: 12/32, DP: 8
Percentage: 31%

07)

MI: 'Trial By Fire', 'Patriot Playground', 'Triads And Tribulations'
SM: Vigilante 20/60
HP: 19, 15
RA: 4 (25 Triads - Uzi), 3 (20 Mafia - AK)

The start of this segment is a race against the clock because I have to make it to the train station before the train comes or it'll run me over or hold me up. 'Trial By Fire' is basically a rampage and I do another rampage after that so I could just luck manipulate it until I was fast enough. I do the Uzi rampage in a car because it is much faster and easier, saves health and allows me to travel to my next objective.

'Patriot Playground' is easy if you know what to do, but MSX really gets on my nerves. The rampage after that and 'Triads And Tribulations' always make me nervous cause for some reason I'm horrible at aiming with the AK. :( Both went very well in this attempt though.

In a moment of insanity (or brilliance?) I decided to go for the parked Police car during 'Triads And Tribulations', something which I had never done before, but it worked! Those cars are locked like 70% of the time so yeah.. luck is what we need sometimes! Vigilante went really really well, it's the fastest I've ever completed it. I use the old pause trick and restart the mission whenever I think the criminal is too far away, you can see it works quite well.

Progression: MI: 26/73, SM: 4/8, HP: 22/100, RA: 4/20, DP: 9
Percentage: 34%

08)

MI: 'Big N Veiny', 'Mafia Massacre', 'Blow Fish', 'Bomb Da Base: Act I',' Bomb Da Base: Act II', 'Last Requests', 'Sayonara Salvatore'
HP: 3, 1, 2, 4, 22, 12, 13, 33
RA: 1 (30 Diablo - M16), 6 (10 Vehicles - Grenades)
UJ: 7
IE: Linerunner, Blista

I got this segment on the third attempt, which is really lucky considering the luck involved, especially in the end. The time isn't really important here, cause this segment only matters to the minute because of 'Sayonara Salvatore'.

I took the route in 'Big N Veiny' from CannibalK9's run, it saves quite a bit of time. I remember when this mission was supposed to be a big deal, but it isn't difficult in the slightest. My apologies for sitting still for like a minute and a half during 'Mafia Massacre', but I have to keep an eye on the Kuruma cause I need it for the next mission and otherwise it might not be there. I usually try to make these things a bit more entertaining so sorry for that!

I use l2ebel's old strategy for 'Bomb Da Base' because it's easier and doesn't matter for the time anyway. After delivering the Linerunner it's faster to run up the hill to the grenade rampage than to get the Kuruma and drive up there. I took out three vehicles with one grenade two times. Win. Almost blew up my own car in the end though, haha.

I arrive at Staunton Island at 02:40 and I'm 99% sure it's impossible to get there before 02:00, so this segment is as fast as it can be. I take a Diablo Stallion to Staunton for later and then I shoot a cop because I need a police car for the next segment. I never managed to get one to follow me into the hideout before though, haha.

Progression: MI: 33/73, HP: 30/100, RA: 6/20, UJ: 8/20, IE: 14/32, DP: 10
Percentage: 41%

09)

MI: 'Bling Bling Scramble', 'Under Surveillance', 'Kanbu Bust-Out', 'Casino Calamity', 'Grand Theft Auto', 'Paparazzi Purge', 'Payday For Ray', 'Silence The Sneak', 'A Ride In The Park', 'Arms Shortage'
HP: 39, 65, 68, 54, 51, 47, 48, 44, 53, 36, 45, 56, 50, 57, 55, 38
RA: 7 (17 Yardie Heads - Sniper), 12 (16 Yakuza - Molotov)
UJ: 14, 12

The nightmare segment! This one took me approximately 2000 attempts... Most of those ended in the first couple of minutes though. The horror part is 'Bling Bling Scramble'. There are two possible route layouts and I need the easier one or I restart. I have no idea what determines what route you get, I think it's a pure 50/50 chance. I get 7 checkpoints, which is enough to win, and then go and do some sidestuff while the other drivers finish the race for me. This is also very random and the fact that the other racers are extremely retarded doesn't help. Sometimes they don't even finish at all. The unique jumps I do aren't easy either. I'd say there's about a 2 maybe 3% chance I finish the first part of this segment successfully. :)

The rest of the segment isn't too hard as long as you stay concentrated. No exciting new mission strategies, but my route is pretty interesting I think. I considered saving after 'Grand Theft Auto' but then I wouldn't be able to take the BF Injection in the next segment because of the time.

I take a slightly longer route on 'A Ride In The Park', but this way puts me right next to Ray so overall it saves time. In 'Arms Shortage' I buy two sets of rockets and take the bulletproof Barracks OL that will be very useful later on!

Progression: MI: 43/73, HP: 46/100, RA: 8/20, UJ: 10/20, DP: 12
Percentage: 50%

10)

MI: 'Uzi Rider', 'Multistorey Mayhem', 'Two-Faced Tanner', 'Deal Steal', 'Shima', 'Smack Down'
HP: 60, 59, 17
RA: 10 (15 Vehicles - M16)
UJ: 13
EV: Enforcer

I do the rampage here now because the next mission provides you with a vehicle so I can just destroy everything in sight. 'Uzi Rider' allows you to runover the Diablos instead of drive-by them, which is great because that way they won't attack you.

90% of attempts of this segment failed on 'Multistorey Mayhem' because I found that it actually is possible to complete the unique jump from the carpark while grabbing the last checkpoint, but you have to be extremely precise.

'Shima' sends you to Portland so I use the opportunity to deliver the Enforcer to the crane and take a BF Injection on the way back. The BF Injection only spawns from 18:00 - 24:00 and I get there at 18:05, and since I'd have to have been at least 18 minutes faster overall to be able to grab it on the previous day, which I'm pretty sure can't be done, I like to think that it's impossible to be any faster at this point in the game. :D

The first two targets on 'Smack Down' are always the same but the rest is random so it's kinda tricky to end the segment with. Also, the BF Injection is very fragile and spins out of control at the slightest bump, so I runover the Yardies with a bit of caution. It could have been faster here but it's alright. I finish by doing a nice camera failure pas de bourrée.

Progression: MI: 49/73, HP: 49/100, RA: 9/20, UJ: 11/20, EV: 4/7, DP: 13
Percentage: 54%

11)

MI: 'Evidence Dash', 'Liberator', 'Waka-Gashira Wipeout', 'A Drop In The Ocean', 'Gone Fishing', 'Gangcar Round-Up'
SM: Vigilante 40/60
HP: 37, 49, 52, 24, 40
UJ: 4
EV: FBI Car

I use a trick from l2ebel's run to force the game to load a Banshee for me. 'Evidence Dash' needs to go at the start because of the randomness. I would only accept if I finished somewhere near Donald Love. It takes me a while to find a Cartel Cruiser but it's ok cause 'Evidence Dash' went really well.

I already did the unique jump in the previous segment so I can just kill Kenji the safe and fast way by using another of l2ebel's strategies. 'A Drop In The Ocean' puts you right next to Donald Love's next mission, but this is the only time in the game where you get five stars so I have to go for the FBI Car now.

Vigilante went extremely well, I got really lucky with the criminal spawnpoints. I only accept when they are in the lower region of Staunton cause it's easier to navigate and there are no enemy gangs. I also finish right next to my next mission!

I really like my strategy for 'Gone Fishing' where I incorporate delivering the FBI Car to the crane. The guy won't spawn until you get into a police boat though, so that's why I had to do it this way. After this mission I drive over to Salvatore's to pick up a Mafia Sentinel for 'Gangcar Round-Up'. Running up the hill at the train station and getting one from the road is faster if you find one right away, which you won't, and don't get killed, which you will. The rain messed me up on the hill a bit but not too much time was lost.

Progression: MI: 55/73, SM: 5/8, HP: 54/100, UJ: 12/20, EV: 5/7, DP: 14
Percentage: 61%

12)

MI: 'Plaster Blaster', 'Marked Man', 'Grand Theft Aero', 'Escort Service', 'Rumpo Rampage'
HP: 93, 94, 99, 95, 41, 88, 91
UJ: 18, 17, 19, 16
IE: Mule, Dodo
EV: Barracks OL

The Ambulance in 'Plaster Blaster' always starts at the hospital (no shit) but at the intersection it can go one of two ways, towards me and away from me. I need it to take the route towards me but that only happens like 20% of the times so that caused a lot of restarts. The Barracks OL is great for this mission but its main use is for 'Marked Man' where its bulletproof shield protects me from the CIA's M16s. It looks pretty funny, hehe.

If I don't find a Cheetah or Infernus on the way to Donald Love, I restart. I need one for the jumps at the airport. 'Grand Theft Aero' is the only non-timed mission that sends you to the airport so it makes sense to do them now.

Alright, 'Escort Service' is the mission that went through the most amount of testing and strategy changes. It took me quite a bit of research to figure out how exactly the movement of the van works. Here's the deal. The Securicar will keep moving at approximately the same pace (traffic is a small factor) as long as you're on Staunton Island, anywhere, doesn't matter if you're next to the van or all the way on the other side of the island. But, as soon as you leave Staunton, the van will stop completely until you return. That is, as long as the van itself is on Staunton Island. As soon as it goes into the tunnel towards Shoreside Vale, you can go anywhere on the map and it will keep moving until it reaches the end of the tunnel, when some message will come up to go and secure the exit.

Knowing this, it wasn't hard to figure out the best time to deliver the Dodo, which I do as soon as the Securicar enters the tunnel. However, there are also two Cartel cars attacking the van and I found that if you don't take these out, the chances of the van making it to the end are very low. So, I simply found out where they spawn and take them out at the source while the van makes its way to the tunnel. You can check in CannibalK9's run that he delivers the Dodo while the Securicar is still on Staunton and that it doesn't move an inch while he's in Portland. If everything goes perfect and you make it to Shoreside Vale in time, the message to go secure the tunnel exit won't come up, but I've only managed that once. I'm very happy with how this went.

Progression: MI: 60/73, HP: 61/100, UJ: 16/20, IE: 16/32, EV: 6/7, DP: 15
Percentage: 68%

13)

MI: 'Uzi Money', 'Toyminator', 'Rigged To Blow', 'Bullion Run'
SM: Firefighter 60/60
HP: 92, 90, 82, 73, 74, 100
RA: 15 (20 Hoods - Shotgun), 16 (15 Vehicles - Rocket Launcher), 18 (7 Vehicles - Uzi)
UJ: 15

Much randomness here! I would only accept if I managed to do 'Uzi Money' with one car, but it's really hard with the Hoods shooting their Uzis, it needs a lot of luck. 'Toyminator' is also random. The first car is always in the same position and the second one can be in one of two positions but that doesn't matter much. The last van can be all over the place, I got lucky here.

'Rigged To Blow' is horrible because the traffic in the tunnel is ten times more unpredictable than on the roads it seems. This is not my best attempt ever, but it's still pretty good. 'Bullion Run' again needs a bit of luck, with the police this time. The car gets very heavy and fragile from the bullion, went well here though!

This time I use the Firefighter replay trick in combination with constantly restarting, and you can see it goes much faster that way. The downside is that I have to count myself, so I do 22 instead of 20 just to be sure. ;)

Progression: MI: 64/73, SM: 7/8, HP: 67/100, RA: 12/20, UJ: 17/20, DP: 16
Percentage: 72%

14)

MI: 'Bait'
HP: 79, 80, 70, 72, 71, 75, 76, 77
RA: 19 (15 Columbian Heads - Sniper), 14 (20 Columbians - Flamethrower), 20 (20 Hoods Heads - M16)
UJ: 8, 9
IE: BF Injection, Kuruma, Idaho, Landstalker, Manana, Sentinel, Cabbie, Cheetah, Stallion, Stinger, Banshee, Esperanto, Taxi, Stretch, Infernus, Perennial

Car collecting is fun! I planned it around 'Bait' because the mission takes place right next to the garage. I need to find all 16 cars for the Shoreside garage before 12:30 while also completing 'Bait', two unique jumps and a rampage. There's no point in finishing all this before 12:30 because then 'Gripped' in the next segment would take place during the rain and I can't have that.

The unique jumps are not easy at all, especially the second one, and during the sniper rampage the Columbians sometimes just don't spawn, and with all the luck needed with the car collecting I rarely made it through the first stage of this segment. I pick up the armor after the rampage because I usually get slaughtered in the flamethrower one a bit later on, but I somehow made it through with minimal damage this time. Hurray for luck!

Progression: MI: 65/73, HP: 75/100, RA: 15/20, UJ: 19/20, IE: 32/32, DP: 17
Percentage: 85%

15)

MI: 'Rumble', 'Gripped'
SM: Vigilante 60/60
HP: 86, 85
RA: 17 (20 Columbians - Vehicle), 9 (8 Vehicles - Shotgun)

For 'Rumble', you don't actually have to take the guy with you but you have to go up there to activate his talk otherwise the Nines you have to beat up won't appear, and I have to pick up the armor anyway so I might as well take him. He's completely useless though.

I played ahead to this point while planning the previous segment to see what time I had to arrive here because the rain had to be over before 'Gripped'. You can see the clouds drifting away when I start the mission. Went really well too, one of my best times ever and nearly a minute faster than CannibalK9. The route is very studied, using trees for navigation in dark areas. MSX.. :(

Vigilant was very nice, again lots of luck with a lot of targets spawning in Pike Creek. The restarting tactic works brilliantly again. I would only accept if the time was under 10 minutes, I did it in 9 here. If I seem a bit cautious at times it's because I try to check if the criminals have a rocket launcher. They sometimes blow themselves up right in your face which is hilarious but literally kills the segment.

Fun rampage is fun. After that I get myself a Rhino. Grenades are the fastest way to do it. I really like my strategy here, the police have major trouble getting past that low wall to get me so it's great for cover and the flamethrower goes right through it so I can kill the soldiers relatively safely. It can sometimes take a long time for the tank to show up but it arrived very quickly this time. The rampage is also much easier with the tank instead of the tricky shotgun. I don't think the developers had this in mind but whatever. :)

Progression: MI: 67/73, SM: 8/8, HP: 77/100, RA: 17/20, DP: 18
Percentage: 88%

16)

MI: 'Espresso-2-Go!', 'Decoy', 'Kingdom Come', 'Love's Disappearance'
HP: 20, 87, 84, 97, 89, 46, 66, 34, 43, 58, 69, 42, 64, 62, 61
RA: 8 (25 Yakuza - Flamethrower), 11 (30 Yardies - Rocket Launcher), 13 (25 Yardies - Grenades)
EV: Rhino

Driving the Rhino like that is kind of tricky, especially when waving through traffic in Portland. Sometimes when you hit something it can go flying in the air. I saved the package in the harbor all the way until now because I needed to have something to do while the tank is loading onto the ship. I have to go back for a quick check because otherwise the glitch that CannibalK9 ran into will happen.

There are some mistakes during 'Espresso-2-Go!' but it doesn't matter because there's a bridge at 7 o'clock that I have to make. I came up with a faster route for this mission after recording this segment but it wasn't useful because of the bridge package in the next segment.

'Decoy' is really ugly but it's on a timer so it's ok. The mission allows you to leave the Securicar for 15 seconds every time you get out so I had a whole bunch of stuff planned to do but that didn't work out because the helicopter will destroy the van in seconds if you don't have a place to hide it under.

For 'Kingdom Come' I use a rocket for the first two vans but for the last two I have to use the M16 because the bombers are too far away from the van to be killed in the explosion and I can't kill them from close up with the rocket launcher. I'm pretty sure this is the fastest way to do that mission.

My tactic for the rocket launcher rampage is super effective. I had to find a place to do it where they can't see me because I just completed the mission that causes them to attack me. This actually helps me in the grenade rampage cause they'll group together to get me and I can take out multiple Yardies at once. Damn glitchy grenades.

Progression: MI: 71/73, HP: 92/100, RA: 20/20, DP: 19
Percentage: 97%

17)

MI: 'S.A.M.', 'Ransom', 'The Exchange'
HP: 35, 67, 63, 96, 98, 78, 81, 83
UJ: 20

Does anyone know what 'S.A.M.' stands for? I never figured it out. The mission gives you quite a bit of time so I tie up some loose ends on my way to the airport. I'm lucky that the bridge worked along, I reach it just when it's about to go up. In the most unfortunate case I wouldn't have the time to get the package, in which case my backup plan is to get the first two packages in this segment after 'Ransom' instead. The previous lift is around 4:30 and there's no way I could make that so that's why the few mistakes in segment 16 don't really matter.

For 'The Exchange' I use a different strategy than what you usually see. This way is slightly faster for me since I can't take the Dodo to the dam because there are still a couple of packages I have to get. Also, the climax of the game is more fun this way I think. :) I love how Maria calls in to Chatterbox while being held captive by Catalina. Seems there is more important relationship stuff to worry about!

Progression: MI: 73/73, HP: 100/100, UJ: 20/20, DP: 20
Percentage: 100%!

Well that's it! I am quite convinced that this is the most optimal planning that is realistically possible. I'm not the best GTA player in the world so I guess maybe 5 minutes can be shaved off on pure skill, but that's about it. I may be completely wrong though, and if there are some strategies I overlooked, I'd be thrilled to see them in action so feel free to try and improve this!

I'll honestly admit that I did this run mainly for my own satisfaction but I really do hope you enjoyed it! Makes it all worthwhile. I always like reading comments and feedback so let me know what you think in the forum thread on SDA (http://forum.speeddemosarchive.com/post/gta_iii_10096.html) or on my Youtube channel (http://www.youtube.com/user/Silmaranza).

In contrast to the previous run, this run makes heavy usage of manipulating the ‘onmission’ flag (onmission0 = can pick up missions; onmission1 = cannot pick up missions). This is what allows us to enter a mission multiple times or instantly pass them (instapass) with other missions in some cases.


[0:02] –Give Me Liberty–


New strats:
------------------------
-Megaenter/megajack - The use of replays to partially skip door-opening animations. The latter applies when a driver is present, which typically skips the animation completely.


-Pausing into markers - Pausing sets the car speed to 0 which is what’s needed to activate markers.


-Dialogue skip - When replay.rep isn’t present in the game user files directory, pressing F3 before has the side effect of skipping it. Because replay usage is rampant and using this trick in other places can cause issues, this is the only time it is used.


-Camera switching - While not a new strat, the use of it is used very liberally compared to the previous run.
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[1:19] –Luigi’s Girls–


A taxi is needed to hold the taxi driver submission throughout the next mission and to later enter Cipriani’s Chauffeur while on a rampage to dupe and fail the subsequent mission, Taking Out the Laundry.




[2:17] –Don’t Spank Ma Bitch Up/Drive Misty For Me–


The submission key (also bound to look behind) is held throughout this mission to have a rampage running onmission0.


New strats:
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Megajump - Playing replays when blending an animation (attacking or another jump) + jumping will propel you forward very quickly.
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A cop car and pistol are still needed for Joey’s missions. The pistol is situational as you can play a replay on the exact frame the M16 rampage ends to receive ~30000 ammo.




[5:52] –Mike Lips Last Lunch–


Instapass with Vigilante.




[5:59] –Farewell ‘Chunky’ Lee Chong–


The onfoot camera is switched to top-down before the mission to quickly gain control of the camera after exiting a vehicle.




[6:28] –Van Heist–


The van is used to push the taxi closer to the mission's end.




[7:35] –Cipriani’s Chauffeur/Taking Out the Laundry–


M16 replay is saved for Salvatore’s Called a Meeting (SCAM) instapass. Stumbling out of the marker dupes the cutscene when skipped at the very last moment which is a little quicker than manually entering the marker (in most cases after this one).




[10:02] –The Pick-Up/Salvatore’s Called a Meeting–
A taxi is needed for the SCAM IP setup. Megajumps are used to acquire the firetruck for Firefighter which is used to break out of onmission1. The series of replays after the second jump prevents falling and helps with the firetruck spawning. Taxi Driver instapasses SCAM.




[11:57] –Chaperone–


With the use of M16 ammo, the party-goers can be quickly killed to speed up Maria’s exit from the warehouse. Typically it doesn’t give you a 3-star wanted level and make cops unbearable but a poorly placed S.W.A.T. member made that happen.




[15:00] –Cutting the Grass–


The grenade rampage on the tracks is recorded for the end of Portland. You can megajump to deathwarp immediately after killing Curly Bob using the shooting animation.




[17:14] –Triads and Tribulations–


Paramedic takes a few seconds to start after the green message prompt - because Claude is outside of the vehicle, it instantly cancels, making this dupe work the way it does.




[17:45] –Blow Fish–


Similar megajumps from The Pick-Up to the dust cart.




[19:56] –Bomb Da Base Act I/Bomb Da Base Act II–


Typically replays are used to stop the in-game clock for Sayonara Salvatore. However, it wasn’t needed in this case. If I arrived ~10 seconds earlier, I would flash replays after picking up 8-Ball and find other times to do it until the completion of Last Requests. This starts the mission Sayonara Salvatore at an earlier time to avoid having to wait until the next hour for his arrival.




[22:25] –Last Requests–


First mandupe.


New strats:
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Mandupe - Starting a rampage and mission at the same time. Devastating strat as it is essentially random. The time it takes for the rampage to start has to be after the mission’s start, which is based on cycles.
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[23:51] –Sayonara Salvatore/Under Surveillance–


The molotov rampage is the closest rampage that can be reached in a very short amount of time. Most of the time waiting for Salvatore is used for setting up a glitched car (carjack animation is interrupted leaving the passenger standing in perpetuity while the car stays in memory). Enough damage is dealt to the car so it sets on fire in one sniper rifle shot during a future mission, Espresso-2-Go! Rockets rampage replay is made for Paparazzi Purge.


The molotov rampage is picked up at a specific time to line up with the Under Surveillance dupe and fail.




[28:01] –Paparazzi Purge–


Second mandupe. Rockets are needed for the mission and the ammo will be needed for the rest of the run.




[28:14] –Payday for Ray–


Similar to the wait during Mike Lips and SCAM instapass, ammo can be retrieved from rampages. ~30000 rocket ammo being the most impactful.




[31:07] –Silence the Sneak–


Rockets instead of grenades.




[31:57] –Arms Shortage–


30000 rocket ammo speeds this mission up tremendously. The strat of entering a vehicle to spawn the Cartel quicker returns.




[33:49] –Evidence Dash–


Okay pattern. Collecting the sixth package on foot and entering a random nearby car allows us to keep an already fast banshee.




[35:06] –Liberator/Waka-Garisha Wipeout–


A new shot for WGW allows for quickly entering and exiting the multistory.




[38:52] –A Drop in the Ocean–


Stopping by Ammu-Nation for the sniper rifle. A replay is recorded where the packages will drop and played immediately once all packages have dropped. Extremely difficult strat that saves 40 seconds over doing the mission normally.




[42:06] –Grand Theft Aero–


Unfortunate incident.


The introduction of megajumping to the construction site lift. Saves around 2 seconds.




[46:25] –Bait–


Dam touch instead of grass touch allows for the Cartel members to path to the deathtrap quickly and consistently.




[49:08] –Espresso-2-Go!–


Shooting the damaged car from Sayonara Salvatore to remotely destroy the third stall.


Megajumps are used to get to the dodo after the mission.




[54:22] –S.A.M./The Exchange–


Flying into the trigger zone to spawn enemies but enough to not start the cutscene that triggers the heli flight around the dam. Arriving at just the right time allows for an instakill of the helicopter.


GG sub 1.




Special thanks to (in no particular order):
Nick007J, Powdinet, Patrick, karl__k, blacklev, anti (achieved the first sub 1 run), Bristtful (a.k.a. flinch), ComputerRage, Chivu93, Kamiks0320, UltimaOmega07, SourKiwi9, suni, CasterTM, BosZz, domisbak, JOEdrinksBEER, Adam_AK, Eidgod (previous runner), Vegeto, Lighnat0r, and an underground of elusive Russian players for their contributions to making this run go under an hour.