Hello everyone! I'm Pythonicus and this guide is meant to ease you through the route for New Game+. Using information compiled by MarlonH8, MiniOmegaKing and RoyalSuitAlice from the New Game route, I've put together this route for taking advantage of the fastest possible soldier career, the Athlete, which is generally only usable for NG+ due to the length of time it requires to recruit soldiers (and hoping the RNG gives you Athletes, at that).

NG+ is a fairly different run from NG in that you'll already have all the recruits and items you need, and aside from the single soldier the story expects you to recruit, you won't need to bother with the recruitment mechanic at all. As a result, this run has less menuing required than the NG run since all soldiers will already be mostly in place, with the exception of spies. Many of the stages operate very similarly to New Game, with key differences due to soldier camoflaging and the speed at which they move. As with the New Game route, if you have any questions that aren't addressed by this tutorial, feel free to check out the MPO Speednotes, or ask in the Discord's MPO channel!

If you don't have a New Game+ file with Athletes readily available, there is one you can use here: https://www.speedrun.com/saves/ULES00645003_9hs3t.zip. As there is a guide for the New Game run, I will be omitting any stages without appreciable differences.

Before beginning a run, there's a few things to keep in mind. Firstly, most speedruns are played on the European PAL version. There's a couple of benefits to this that aren't easily apparent from watching a video, yet are incredibly important. Firstly, PAL includes a few quality-of-life changes to the run; the most important one for the speedrun being that if you're falling close enough to a ledge you can grab hold of, your character will do so automatically, with no extra input needed from you. Secondly, in the late game–specifically the Silo Complex–you can grab hold of an enemy soldier and open doors with them that would otherwise require you to grab keycards from the map. This saves a significant amount of time over the alternative.

When you load up the game, instead of selecting New Game or loading a file with a fresh start, this time you'll be selecting a file that has been completed once and is starting the game again.

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In the briefing menu, select the Athlete wearing the standard guard outfit (Iguana in the NG+ save resource) and place him in the first slot in the first Sneaking Unit. Select the FOX unit member (Halibut) and place him second or third. In your equipment, equip the standard guard with a Mk.22, a Mosin-Nagant, the Cardboard Box and TNT. Equip the FOX member with the second Mk.22, an RPG, TNT and extra RPG ammo.

Leave the rest of the soldiers where they are for the moment and enter the Supply Depot. This mission will operate basically the same as New Game, except now you'll be camoflaged, making the grab easy. As long as you have an A-rank in CQC with your standard guard Athlete, you'll be able to throw Johnathan to the ground easily. Alternatively, you can 180-bump-grab and choke him into incapacitation. Personally, I prefer the second, as in NG+ some of the guards in maps have higher stamina values, and a throw MAY not KO Johnny in one go.

After Johnathan is stunned, carry him to the truck as usual. Disregard the TNT, as your file should already have plenty to spare.

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Go straight into the Hospital after exiting the previous mission; your equipment menus should be set up for a large portion of the rest of the game.

The Hospital is another stage where there is minimal difference between NG and NG+. Instead of 180-bump-grabbing the soldier on the right side, you can either go to the right or left of the building, but either way, just disregard the soldier and move into the objective building. Box up the stairs, removing the box at the top, and move to the objective square.

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After exiting the Research Lab, go into the Manage menu and set your spies. Send Jonathan and one other (if available–Bison on the save resource) to the Supply Depot and wait for one cycle to receive the spy report. Enter the Supply Depot, and once you're loaded, head in as usual and disregard the soldier guarding the entrance to the hangar. Grab the secret doc and exit the level.

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Once you return from the Rail Bridge, you should have the spy report from the Supply Depot. If you do, move those soldiers to the Patrol Base, and send two others (again, if available–the save resource has Python and Orangutan) to the Research Lab. These are still random, so just do the missions as the spy reports arrive.

Supply Depot: Start the mission and run directly for the soldier patrolling near the objective truck. Bump-roll through him, plant the TNT on the truck and detonate it.

Soviet Patrol Base: Move Halibut into the first slot in the Sneaking Unit and start the mission. Set the patrol cycles by dropping into the pit one level at a time, and climbing up the other side. Cross through the building, being careful to avoid the patrolling guard. CQC slam the guard at the door and quickly set the TNT and detonate it. If your traps skill is high enough, you'll have plenty of time to set and detonate before the guard's invulnerability frames end.

Research Lab: Start the mission as Iguana and after the calls, box up the ramps and remove it at the top. Allow the scientist to notice you (not alert), and re-equip the box. Enter the door while boxed and remove it before you encounter the guard patrolling the hallway. If you can avoid the guard, do so. If not, bump-roll as in New Game. Set the TNT and detonate on the objective.

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Start the mission as Iguana and move directly for the ship, crossing the bridge. Avoid bumping into any of the guards. If you don't roll through them, they will recover and spot you. If you do roll, they will begin a Caution phase and your disguise will no longer work for the duration. Once inside the ship, just run down the ramp and trigger the cutscene. After the cutscene, proceed as normal.

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As Iguana, enter the base and avoid the first patrol. Enter the building and stalk around the corner, avoiding the FOX patrol. Box up the ramp and remove it at the top, avoiding the guard at the top. Enter the room, equip the box and grab the secret doc.

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Use either Athlete and enter the mission. Climb down the first long ramp, keeping to the right side to avoid the guard in the next room. After the cutscene, move directly toward the ramp to the left and box up it. Remove the box at the top and continue into the hallway opposite. Roll into the room at the top of the ramp to your right and skip the text and the codec call. Jump down to the bottom level and continue as normal. The boss fight should operate the same as in New Game, but care should be taken as you'll likely have less health than in New Game.

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Swap your Sneaking Unit so that Halibut is in the first slot and enter the mission. Proceed as normal, rolling up the first set of ramps. Avoid the FOX guard at the top, and roll over the railing on the next ramp down. Climb the ramp on the building in the center of the map and jump across the wall. Run straight for the mission square. Null is again the same as in New Game.

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Enter the mission as Halibut and after the opening codec call, run to the bottom of the ramp ahead and headshot the guard patrolling the bottom level. From there, continue running and box up once you pass next to the sleeping body. If you were fast enough, you should avoid the alert. Alternatively, it may be safer to just use the standard strategy. Once again, the boss should be the same as in New Game.

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The major difference from this level's New Game route is that after you make the box jump and make it to the other side of the wall, you can hug the wall under the camera and aim straight for the RPG officer ahead. Box before you make it there, bump into him and roll down the ramp. From this point you'll be able to run straight for the mission square.

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Swap to Halibut again and change your equipment to bring chaff grenades with one spare slot open. The items you'll need to keep are the Mk.22 and the box. Enter the mission and proceed as normal for the beginning. Once you've opened the door, incapacitate the guard and then move through. Swing wide around the guard in the alcove, otherwise he'll investigate the sounds. Open the door as normal and continue up the ramp to the next room. Once inside, don't bother with the box unless you're under caution for any reason. Swing behind the guard and grab him, pulling him through the door with you. Choke him out and continue on. Once you're next to the stack of crates, toss a chaff and continue on. If you've triggered a caution, you'll need to shoot the wall and cause the FOX in the room to move. If not, you can just run behind him and grab him. Once you're through the door, box up the next ramp, grab the keycard and hop down onto the next catwalk down. Open the door, grab an extra pack of medkits, and finish the mission.

The rest of the game is the same as in New Game, both for any% and Tsuchinoko. It's highly suggested that you swap out for Snake here, since he will have way more health and stamina than either of the soldiers you've used thus far. After the bosses, you'll be able to skip the last few cutscenes, the credits, and the post-credits scene, and there's your IGT to the minute. If you've PBed, you'll need to save and bring up the file on the loading menu to get your total time. Subtract the time on the file from the beginning of the run to the time on the screen after the run, and you have your IGT to the second for the run you just completed!

Hopefully all of this information is useful as you learn the run. See you on the leaderboards!