I would like to thank everyone for their thoughtful input on this issue. It sounds like the majority of the community believes this is a valid score. However:
I will not be accepting this submission by Robbie, nor will I be accepting any other submissions from him in the foreseeable future. The outcome of the
TG submission will not affect my decision.
My decision is based solely on the reality that Robbie has demonstrated a desire to find a shortcut to achieve his scores and that this behavior violates the spirit of fair play (Section D, Paragraph d of the
DKF submission rules).
My decision is not based on any personal feelings I have towards Robbie or vice versa. My decision is not based on any bias I have for or against Robbie or any other player. My decision is not based on Robbie's long history of treating other players poorly. My decision is not based on whether the actual gameplay in this submission is legitimate, illegitimate, or malfunctioning.
I believe I am doing the right thing and acting in the best interest of the community. But since my decision appears to be contrary to popular opinion, there is more to discuss here.
Over the years, the community has trusted me (and Scott Cunningham and others) to verify or reject scores based on the standards we have collectively agreed upon. For the most part I or the past score moderators have done this alone. On occasion, the community has been called upon to decide the validity of scores with questionable evidence or to debate new rules. In those instances I have implemented the majority decision. In this case, I am not doing that. The reason is pretty simple: it's more important to me to do the right thing than it is to do the popular thing.
I am asking the community to trust me that this is the right decision. If this was a new or unknown player, would the community reaction be the same? If it was a known player but a non-WR score? Robbie doesn't get a pass just because he's Robbie. This score doesn't get a pass just because it's a potential world record.
If the community believes their trust in me has been misplaced then the path forward is pretty simple: I'll step aside as score moderator and the community can move ahead in whatever way they deem best. Otherwise, we can put this submission to rest and I can turn my attention back to the amazing scores still waiting in the submission queue.
I am not asking or expecting anyone to be happy with me. There is no easy outcome here and, for my money, Robbie probably wants it that way. He's in the driver's seat. If he wants to run himself off the road, fine, but he shouldn't take the rest of us with him.