CICADAMATA Speedrun Guide: All 11 Categories & Boards
Two leaderboard systems
CICADAMATA ships with omnipresent in-game leaderboards (per-level, global — Rock Paper Shotgun called the demo “a speedrunner’s game” for exactly this), and the community runs a parallel speedrun.com board (speedrun.com/CICADAMATA) with structured categories and video verification. The in-game boards rank score and time continuously; speedrun.com is where categories and records live.
Full-game categories (11)
| Category | What it asks |
|---|---|
| Any% | Beat the campaign, no restrictions |
| DMND% | Beat it earning DMND clearance |
| 100% | Full completion |
| AllEnemies% | Clear every THREAT |
| Low% | Minimal-kit restriction run |
| Birds% | Community joke-category — see board rules |
| Sphere Rush Any% / DMND% / 100% / AllEnemies% / Low% | The same goals inside Sphere Rush gauntlet mode |
Category rules (timing, restrictions, what counts for 100%) are defined on the board itself — read them there before running; we deliberately don’t restate rules that moderators may still be revising in week one.
Individual levels
Every one of the 31 levels has its own IL board — including the three bonus stages and the nine PROTO levels from the free Demo Disc. That last part matters: you can start routing ILs without buying the game, since the demo’s PROTO boards still count.
Getting started as a runner
- Learn the refund loop — dash/stomp recharge chaining (beginner guide) is the base tech of every category.
- Route ILs first. Short levels, fast resets, instant feedback — then stitch your IL knowledge into Any%.
- Decide score vs speed early. DMND% runs need farm routes (see the DMND guide); Any% skips everything skippable. The routes barely overlap.
- Watch the board. The game is a week old — records are soft, category meta is unsettled, and a new runner can still land top-10s. There is no better entry window than now.
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