First, head to LiveSplit.org to download the timer. If you’re not a Windows user, you’ll need to check out the guide for other available timers here in our article Which Timer to Use For Speedrunning?
To set up LiveSplit, first, download it from LiveSplit.org. Once downloaded, open it and right-click to go to “Edit Splits” and add the Game Name and Category. From here, you need to also add splits for your speedrun. Additionally, you can style LiveSplit in the “Layout Editor” and set timer hotkeys in the “Settings”.
LiveSplit Timer Functionality Setup
In the newly-downloaded file, open LiveSplit. First, right-click the timer and head to Edit Splits. Then, in the Game Name section, start typing the name of the game. A dropdown will display the best matches from Speedrun.com so you can easily select the game you are planning to speedrun. Now click on the dropdown arrow for the Run Category field to choose from available categories for that game (or type in your own).
Using the Real-Time tab, type in the name of your first split in the Segment Name column in the table below (ex: Level 1). Select Insert Below to add more splits, and continue adding Segment Names for each. Once finished, click the OK button in the bottom-right corner.
How to Style LiveSplit
Your layout likely looks oddly large at this point, with too much empty space before the final split. Right-click the timer and head to Edit Layout to open the Layout Editor window. Then, click the Layout Settings button and select the Splits tab. To clear out that empty space, uncheck Fill with Blank Space if Not Enough Splits and click the OK button below.
The final necessity is going to be your hotkeys. Right-click the timer and select Settings. Here you can view the default hotkeys for LiveSplit. To change any of the hotkeys, simply click in the field you’d like to change and then press the key you’d like to use for that action.
More Details for Setting Up LiveSplit
If you need more details on any aspect of the LiveSplit speedrun timer, you can read through the complete guide to LiveSplit here: https://www.speedgamingnews.com/how-to-set-up-livesplit-guide-with-screenshots/. Since almost every component, element, setting, and option is discussed in detail within that guide, you can simply search for keywords if you’d prefer.
Alternatively, you could always just comment below and I’ll be happy to answer any questions for you.
I hope this has been a helpful LiveSplit guide to get you started!
