Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories FAQ (2018)
 
Q: What are you trying to do?
A: Beat Yu-Gi-Oh! Dark Duel Stories as quickly as possible. DDS uses the same cards as the Yu-Gi-Oh TCG but has different rules.

Q: What rules are different?
A: There are fewer magic and trap cards, and they have simpler effects. Most monster effects are simple and must be activated manually. Only one trap card can be set at a time, and traps expire after one turn. A monster's alignment (Shadow, Light, Pyro, Forest, etc.) takes priority over its Attack and Defense during battle; for example, Shadow always beats Light, so Kuriboh beats Blue-Eyes White Dragon.

Q: What are you playing on?
A: Gambatte-Speedrun, an accurate emulator for GameBoy Color games.

Q: What is the world record?
A: Officially, it's 3:08:19 by n1nj4ofshr3d. However, that run saves roughly 3 minutes in text because it's played on the Japanese version, which I think should have a separate leaderboard. The English record is 3:10:39 by Wado3000.

Q: What is your goal time?
A: English version WR. If get the record and I'm still having fun with the game, I'll try for a lower time, or possibly run another category such as No Passwords or Tier 1.

Q: What's the strategy for the run?
A: For Tier 1 and 2, try to get 2-3 beatsticks on the field and overpower your opponent. Beatsticks are high-Attack monsters that require no tributes. Later duelists require a bit more thinking ahead -- you might lead with a weaker monster because you're expecting Raigeki or Change of Heart, and you'll exploit the alignment system heavily.

Q: Who are the hardest duelists?
A: Everyone in Tier 3 and DarkNite can be a huge pain. P. Seto and DarkNite are particularly bad because they have 3 Change of Heart and can beat you regardless of how good your hand is. Everyone before Tier 3 is extremely easy.

Q: What route are you using?
A: https://pastebin.com/6bWHqVkL

Q: Why no mic?
A: I play on keyboard, and it's obnoxiously loud during the menus. Also, I wouldn't be able to respond to chat that often anyway because this game requires a lot of focus. I'll still post in chat between runs.