Skill or not though, I still suck
The tastyspleen jump community seems to be going strong. There are lots of jumpers on the server from time to time, although no where near the vanilla server's standing. Actually, vanilla would probably be number 1, heh. Well, at least it can compete with the TDM/1v1 crowd in terms of numbers. At any rate, it's a pretty cool mod, and people play it 'cause it's fun. And some people choose to make this their main type of game, just like the people who like TDM, RA2, AQ2, those stat-builder thingies (Vortex, KotS) or even standard FFA DM.
Whether your mod takes skill or not, it doesn't really matter as long as you're enjoying yourself , right? Some may have a differing skillset as well (RA2 - aim, Vortex - char builds). So what the hell am I talking about and where does jumpmod fit into all this? Well, it seems that jump has a somewhat low reputation of being a mod that lacks skill. Maybe I'm overblowing the forum posts on TS but I feel the need to write a long wall of text that no one will end up reading that explains why jump takes skill.
So, let's begin...where do I start? Before I do though, first let's describe how jumpmod works. The goal of this mod is to use Quake 2's various jumps (circle-strafe, double, etc.) in order to circumvent a multitude of obstacles and make it to the finish line. The faster you can clear the obstacle course, the higher your ranking on the scoreboard (provided you made top 10 of course). Sounds simple enough, right? Of course, it takes a lot of work to quickly clear the map. Some maps can easily have you struggling just to clear it, let alone completing it with a fast time. Alright, but does it take skill? Sure it does! But how so, Kyper, you low tier noob? Easy. Let's compare this to possibly one of the more impressive feats in general gaming: speedrunning.
At its heart, jumpmod is speedrunning. You know, speedrunning, where you clear a game with the fastest time by using all tools and knowledge available about said game? C'mon, haven't you seen videos floating around of a dude blazing through Super Mario Bros. 3 in nearly 10 minutes? How about any of the Megaman games where people intentionally take hits 'cause it's faster than going around or taking out the obstacle? Yeah, speedrunning.
To flesh out this concept out a little more, let's take a look at Megaman 2 for the NES. For those somehow lacking knowledge of this game, it's a sidescroller where you control a blue cyborg dude and blast people with your aptly named Megabuster. You have 8 selectable stages with a boss fight at the end that gives you a special weapon, and then the Wily stages after that. A few of the first selectable stages also give you a powerup that aids your mobility. So, where the heck do ya start?
Well, before we start speeding through, we should actually have a strong knowledge of the game first. So whatever, we've beaten the game a couple times and know the layouts of each stage, figured out a way to circumvent those trickier obstacles, what the boss weapons and weaknesses are, etc. Alright, so with that, we plan an optimal route that we believe to be the fastest time given that everyone is done perfectly, and then all that's left...is Megaman.exe, execute! Knowledge, planning, execution - the 3 basic steps to speedrunning a game.
Obviously, knowledge of the game mechanics and such are obtained through experimentation, and that you immediately receive by playing the game. So you play the game, and you figure out that after beating Airman's stage you get a nifty special item that lets you ride past ground obstacles. It also travels a bit faster than your walking speed. You take this little tidbit of knowledge and apply it to your plan. You think to yourself, maybe I can use said special item to get past those stupid disappearing bricks in Heatman's stage. In doing so, not only have you made the execution part easier, but you've also used an optimal path that will provide the fastest time. And this also solidifies your plan that you should always complete Airman's stage first, 'cause it gives you a nifty tool that improves your speed and skips tricky obstacles.
Let's compare these speedrunning steps to jumpmod now. First off, assuming you have experience and know all the jumps, how to crate climb, how using different FPS limits can help with jumps, etc., we gotta learn the intricacies of the map by playing it. Or, if someone has already completed it with a fast time, we can watch a replay. As a frame of reference, let's picture a map: it consists of two crates that build a little stairway to a detached long platform. An icy platform stands detached at a distance on the other end of this long platform. This slippery ice platform has a ramp that leads toward the final platform with the goal. With this in mind, you know that you have to use a double jump over the crates to get to the long platform, then a couple of strafe jumps to build up speed to get to the icy platform. Finally, you need to turn your mouse to get enough speed to slide over the ramp and to the finish.
Alright, you know the map, but maybe there are a few tricks we can use to shave off our time. Maybe you're double-jumping at maximum distance off the crates; yeah that'll get you closer to your goal in terms of distance, but it might be better if you can double-jump into an optimal position to start your string of strafe jumps so you don't have to waste time walking into place. And maybe you can try to find a way to slide directly to the goal item to save time instead of just making it to the platform and then jumping the rest of the way. Obviously it all depends on the map, but these are a few examples you could run into.
When compared to speedrunning though, probably the most emphasized part of jumpmod is execution. You can watch the replays all you want and learn the optimal path by example, but you aren't going to get anywhere if you can't do the jumps yourself. To break this down a little, a computer mouse is a sensitive instrument. And because you have to turn the mouse at just the right angle, it's harder to execute even basic circle jump movements at the most efficient rate, compared to Megaman where you just hold down on the control pad to move. And not only that, but you're also controlling your vision as you move. You definitely need to know where the next obstacle is instead of wasting those few precious moments to orient yourself.
Next, you'll probably want to learn how to tackle the more tricker obstacles individually. The only way to do that is to practice each one over and over until you have a high success rate. But even if you can do the last bit of a pure skill series map backwards, you still have to get there first. And when you're working on a real run, you'll need to concentrate if you want that fastest time. Trying to string all the tricky obstacles together can be mentally taxing, and the stress is further added on to by repeated failures and restarts. But once you complete it on your 372th attempt, there's a sense of satisfaction, if only brief after someone else beats your time. Then you get to do it all over again...!
Speedrunning isn't for everyone. It takes lots of patience and frustration before you get that feeling of self-satisfaction. Maybe jumpmod is the same way. But at least for both, you can remove the time element if you so wish. Without a low target time, speedrunning Megaman simply becomes playing Megaman, which is already a fun game (maybe even more so now that you don't have the burden of racing against the clock). With jumpmod, you can just attempt to complete the obstacles at your leisure. Sometimes that may be your only choice, 'cause some maps are long and grueling as hell!
But jumpmod lacking skill? If you knock jump, you're also taking a stab at speedruns. And if you thought speedruns sucked anyway, well...I guess they do, then. Either can't suck as much as me, though!
And a little aside regarding the community...I don't know why the TS jump community is being picked on by other players. I mean, I don't see any reason to post on their forums and act like a fool except for lighthearted shits 'n' giggles. They don't post on the TDM boards, and every share of a community has t3h l4m3rz in it so you can just ignore them. And since this is a tight-knit (or at least a place where people can easily get familiar with each other) community due to its nature of being for a somewhat niche game, you'll just have to deal with it. People shit talk in TDM/1v1, people talk shit in jump. Heh, I don't see much of a difference.