100% speedrun route

100% speedrun route — speedrunning CONTRABAND is possible but requires specific routing. This guide covers the established route, common time-savers, and known time-loss traps.

Current target time

Top speedruns finish the main game in approximately 4 hours. The world record holders use New Game+ resources and skip every optional encounter. A casual speedrun aiming for any% should target 6–8 hours.

The route

The optimal route skips most side content and focuses on the chapter-critical missions. Expect to ignore crew recruits, side quests, and most ports. Speed comes from path efficiency, not ship power.

Required tech

Several mechanics save significant time when used correctly. Learn the warp chain shortcuts, the dock-skip technique for stations you do not need to enter, and the dialogue-skip patterns for repeated NPC interactions.

Key splits

Speedrunners track time at chapter transitions. Each transition is a checkpoint. Falling 10+ minutes behind PB at a checkpoint usually means a route mistake worth resetting on.

Known traps

Several encounters look optional but have hidden plot dependencies. Skipping them in early chapters causes time loss in late chapters. The community has documented which "optional" content is actually required for the speedrun.

Boss strategies

Speedrun bosses are killed differently from casual bosses. The fastest kill methods exploit specific weapon types and ignore defensive play entirely. Expect to die occasionally — resetting is part of the run.