Pokemon speedrunner beats Let’s Go Pikachu in under three hours

The Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu speedrunning record has been beaten by mere seconds and now sits at under three hours, four years after the game's initial release. 

The new record was completed by Pokemon speedrunning expert Etchy, who uploaded their just under three-hour playthrough to YouTube. Right now, Etchy is the current record holder with a time of 02:59:52 on any percent, overtaking their previous 'any % NMS' record from six months ago by just a few seconds. Chatting on Reddit, the speedrunner explains that some mid-game strategy changes have helped them save 24 seconds on average each run. 

This record is specifically for Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu, but Etchy also holds the current speedrunning record for Pokemon Let’s Go Eevee, according to speedrun.com, which was also an any percent run that came in at 03:01:05 three months before their latest record. 

Etchy is clearly proud of this brand new achievement as the description of their video reads: "So unbelievably happy with this time and how far I've come since picking this game up three years ago."

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To call Etchy a Pokemon speedrunning professional would be an understatement as the speedrunner has attempted to break records with not just Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee, but also Pokemon Diamond/Pearl, Pokemon Platinum, Pokemon Shield, plus many more. Etchy’s efforts don’t just stop at Pokemon games though, as they’ve also attempted speedruns for other games such as Earthbound, Kingdom Hearts 2, and Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic. 

We’re sure there will be a few more Pokemon speedruns once Pokemon Scarlet and Violet release later this year. If you didn’t know, the gen nine Pokemon game is due to release on November 18, 2022, and will see players exploring a brand-new currently unannounced region that appears to have some kind of Spanish influence. 

Want to try your hand at speedrunning? Take a look at our best Pokemon games list to help you decide which one to start with.