I mentioned this idea to the dev team on Discord a while ago, but thought I'd make a post here too, as I think it could be an opportunity to introduce PRO to a wider audience, particularly Pokémon fans and speedrunners on Speedrun.com.

Having PRO listed on Speedrun.com could give our community a place to compete in different speedrun categories, submit times and climb the leaderboards.

I know there's already a possible speedrun server on the dev to-do list, which would be ideal for story runs and other challenges that currently can't be repeated without creating fresh accounts/breaking the four-account limit.

In the meantime though, there are still other possibilities. Full boss runs, for example, or other challenges we could establish categories and rules for. I'm sure the community could come up with some ideas.

I’ve submitted a game request for PRO to be added to Speedrun.com.

I submitted the request through my personal Speedrun.com account, "james", and made it clear that PRO is a fan-made Pokémon MMO. I also provided some additional details about how the leaderboards could work, including possible speedrun categories, rules and moderation. The request also asked for a Wiki/relevant source to help them review the game, so I included a link to the PRO Wiki.

I did mention to the dev team that I was considering submitting a request. That said, if the dev team has any concerns or would prefer that I withdraw it, let me know and I'll do so. The intention is to bring something positive to PRO and attract more interest in the game.

I think speedrunning could offer another fun challenge alongside PvP, hunting/endgame activities, especially for players who enjoy competing or setting personal records.

I'll keep this thread updated on the outcome of the request, whether it's accepted or declined. If approved, we can look at possible categories, rules and how submissions would be moderated.

In the meantime, what speedrun categories or challenges do you think could work for PRO?

Edited October 28Oct 28 by Lacomus

Ideas:

Fastest dungeon run, fastest normal ranked pvp win, fastest random pvp win, fastest shiny common, uncommon, rare encounter, fastest form common, uncommon, rare, fastest trade, fastest auction, fastest travel on Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, individually and total, via walking , via mount, fastest to complete the Pokedex, fastest to get all items, all tm, first to submit at MBCC and first to submit at FCC fastest time overall, fastest to <10 IVs Pokemon, fastest to get 5x31 IVs, fastest to enter Astrella (credits Cae), fastest to catch X Pokemon, fastest to enter a server, fastest to open the client on every os, fastest to get 31 IV on a specific stat, fastest to ev train.

Edit 1:
Win Alto Mare Race as fast as possible.

Find the fastest and more baskets at Easter Basket Hunting Contest.

Win the vday chest as fast as possible with a decent rank.

Score first more than the required amount in the hw weekly competition.

Edited October 28Oct 28 by Lugario

Catch% - Catch a specific Pokémon as fast as possible.

Catch 5% - Catch 5 predetermined Pokémon.

Safari% - Catch a specific Pokémon in the Safari Zone.

Bug Contest% - Catch and submit a Pokémon as fast as possible.

Dig Spots% - Complete a set route of dig spots.

Headbutt% - Headbutt 10 specific trees.

NPC Gauntlet% - Defeat a set of regular NPC trainers.

Cave Escape% - Get from a cave entrance to its exit.

Evolution% - Evolve a specified Pokémon from a fixed starting level.

Travel% - Get from one city to another as fast as possible.

Fishing% - Catch a specified Pokémon using a fishing rod.

Repel Trick% - Catch a target Pokémon using a repel trick.

News Press% - Complete a Pokémon News Press task.

Pokémon Bingo% - Catch 3 Pokémon from a randomized bingo board.

Level Up% - Level a Pokémon from 50 to 60 as fast as possible.

Nice idea! I'm a big fan of speed running.

I like the boss and dungeon speed run ideas. For dungeons, you could introduce hardcore modes, such as clearing a dungeon without any perks active and without negating the dungeon curses, making it more difficult. This is especially tricky in the Pinkan dungeon as it has many different curses making it practically impossible to clear. I can come up with some challenges specifically designed for Pinkan if it ever gets relevant.

Regarding Story speed runs, a category could be "Minimal battles" where you only battle the unavoidable NPCs.

There are also many Nuzlocke rules that could be applied to PRO. I've already seen some players Nuzlocke PRO. One player even Nuzlocked the whole story with only bug types.

Challenge: EV Training Speedrun

Goal: Max out 510 EVs as fast as possible.

Rules:

Start with 0 EVs.

Target spread: 252/252/6.

Vitamins and Power Items allowed.

No cheats, hacks or glitches.

Timer stops when EVs are complete.

Fastest EV trainer wins.

Challenge: Level 99-100 Speedrun

Goal: Reach Level 100 in record time.

Rules:

Start at Level 99 with 0 XP progress.

No Rare Candies or EXP Candies.

EXP Share allowed.

Battles only for XP.

No cheats or glitches.

Fastest level-up wins.

Edited October 29Oct 29 by Lacomus

How to do a story speedrun when we can't create more than 4 accounts ?

@Kimbonairod As mentioned: I know there's already a possible speedrun server on the dev to-do list, which would be ideal for story runs and other challenges that currently can't be repeated without creating fresh accounts/breaking the four-account limit. In the meantime though, there are still other possibilities. Full boss runs, for example, or other challenges we could establish categories and rules for. I'm sure the community could come up with some ideas.

Edited October 29Oct 29 by Lacomus

+1 anyway Speedruns is cool

Below is my proposed ruleset for Hard boss runs, with some input and feedback from other community members. I'm sharing this to welcome other suggestions. If some rules are debatable, we can hold community polls. I would suggest starting with boss runs as a way to establish a foundation for speedruns (if approved). As things progress, we can introduce new categories, such as different variations of boss runs and expand into different types of speedruns in the future, while continuing to refine the ruleset as we develop.

Boss Rush - 20 Bosses (Hard)

Objective

Defeat any 20 eligible bosses on Hard difficulty in the fastest time possible.

Rules

1. Difficulty: All 20 bosses must be defeated on Hard difficulty.

2. Team Selection: Runners may change their Pokémon team between boss battles. Team changes are optional.

3. Team & Moveset Privacy: Runners may choose to reveal or conceal their Pokémon teams and movesets, including covering or hiding this information in their video recordings. Disclosure is optional.

4. Boss Selection: Runners may challenge any 20 eligible bosses, in any order.

5. Excluded Bosses: Prehax, Suspicious Bot, and Mysterious Cultist are not eligible. These exclusions apply to all Boss Rush categories and difficulties.

6. Moves and Abilities: There are no move restrictions. Z-Moves, Mega Evolutions, and Baton Pass are all permitted.

7. Items: All items are permitted, including Escape Ropes and Repels.

8. Game Settings: Runners may freely adjust move animations, text speed, /foreveralone, and /offline.

9. Routing: Runners are free to choose their own boss order, travel routes, and strategies.

Timing & Verification

* Start: The timer starts at the exact moment dialogue appears when engaging the 1st boss.

* End: The timer stops at the exact moment the full “You have won the battle” message is displayed after defeating the 20th boss.

* Time Inclusion: All travel, preparation, item usage, and team changes between boss battles are included in the total run time.

* Video Evidence: A complete, uninterrupted video recording must be provided, clearly showing all 20 boss victories.

* Run Validity: Only victories against eligible bosses count towards the required 20. Runs that count any excluded boss towards their total will be considered invalid.

Potential Future Categories

* Difficulty: Easy / Medium / Hard

* Baton Pass: Allowed / Not Allowed

* Team Format: Fixed Team / Flexible Team

* Boss Selection: Region-Specific / All Bosses

These additional categories may be introduced in the future to offer different challenges and encourage a wider variety of strategies.

Edited 6 minutes ago6 min by Lacomus

Update on leaderboard approval: The proposed ruleset above will be submitted for review, along with an example boss run provided by a community member. Once we've received feedback and confirmation on whether it meets the requirements, I'll share another update.