Editing Sonic Wave Infinity (section)

==History==
In June 2015, at the tail end of [[Update 1.9]], South Korean player [[Cyclic]] released Sonic Wave, supposedly the hardest verified level at the time, but it remained unrated due to a lack of verification evidence. Cyclic subsequently released a buffed version in July, which was briefly rated before questions about its legitimacy led Cyclic to delete his levels and quit the game. After Cyclic's departure, players such as Riot and Mefewe took it upon themselves to verify the level, steadily making progress throughout 2016. Cyclic later confessed to hacking Sonic Wave and other Demons, deleting his videos, and seemingly quitting permanently.

In 2016, amidst [[Update 2.0]], Riot, after dying at 96% on the original level, enlisted Viprin to modernise and succeed Sonic Wave, dubbing the new version of Sonic Wave Infinity (SWI) and aiming to boost the ageing level's rating chances post-verification. Meanwhile, Mefewe collaborated with [[FunnyGame]] and [[Serponge]] on [[Sonic Wave Rebirth|Sonic Wave Rebirth (SWR)]] with similar intentions. A deal was struck: Riot would verify SWI after Mefewe verified his level. However, Mefewe could not verify SWR, and Riot later lost motivation and quit. Aurorus, a notable hacker, leaked a buffed copy of SWI, confusing the community. Riot later returned, announcing that Wabbit and Aurorus would extend the level; in the meantime, Riot still intended to verify the original, unextended SWI. [[Sunix]] verified the original Sonic Wave in November 2016,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GpXTwPgweAk</ref> which was subsequently rated and placed at #1 on the [[Demonlist (Pointercrate)|Demonlist]], rendering both SWI and SWR redundant. Nonetheless, Riot persisted in verifying SWI after the extension was cancelled, but he ultimately dropped the level due to finger pain, passing it to Cyclic (who had since returned and played legitimately); Cyclic later dropped the level for similar reasons. Riot then gave [[KrmaL]] the level again in 2017, with little progress. Riot also gave Sunix a super-buffed version of SWI; Sunix made 25% progress the day after acquiring the level with full intentions to verify,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0iXXBANnzAk</ref> but then went inactive after achieving 68% in 2018. In July 2017, Powerbomb completed an easier version of the level than the one Sunix was verifying; it was not considered official by Riot.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xuhA7Axq3ME</ref>

Progress on SWI went dormant until Riot approached creator Zimnyte (then Zimnior) and his APTeam to revamp the level, impressed by their previous work, [[Apocalyptic Trilogy]]. Zimnyte first announced the APTeam remake of SWI in February 2018,<ref>https://x.com/Zimnyte/status/968988142236831744</ref> and later showcased his redecoration of the first cube part on 10 April 2018.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9hIXvT2kjM</ref> Members of APTeam and Zimnyte frequently posted videos tracking the level's development throughout 2018 and 2019.

During SWI's development, Riot sought a new verifier following Sunix's absence. He settled on [[Technical]] in February 2019,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlUMBEXYyQA&t=187</ref><ref>https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugx9YzM_O2BO6bah7454AaABCQ</ref> who had recently verified the Top 10 level Sigma. However, before the level was fully decorated, Technical withdrew from the verification due to stress concerns.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/post/Ugy2zLI3lZ6UxFBcm1R4AaABCQ</ref>

Mycrafted then took over,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvjIqwWrtZE</ref> streaming SWI while awaiting the completion of development and also finishing his verification of another APTeam project, Apocalyptic Trilogy. APTeam finished the level in December 2019, and Zimnyte showcased it on the 20th.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTl00Hau0yA</ref> Mycrafted super-buffed SWI over the next months, making it near-impossible. Zimnyte showcased this version on 28 June 2020.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2GcGL3fP7Vo</ref> However, Mycrafted lost interest in the game, stating in July that only SWI and Apocalyptic Trilogy kept him motivated to play.<ref>https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/geometry-dash-fan/images/c/c6/Mycrafted_losing_interest.png/revision/latest?cb=20240514231358</ref> He mentioned passing SWI to [[rori]] and the Trilogy to [[nSwish]] if they quit,<ref>https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/geometry-dash-fan/images/a/a2/SWI_rori_APT_nswish.png/revision/latest?cb=20240514231350</ref> which he soon did. A fake tweet then surfaced alleging he nerfed SWI to kowareta difficulty (#15 on the Demonlist at the time),<ref>https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/geometry-dash-fan/images/2/28/Mycrafted_fake_tweet.png/revision/latest?cb=20240514230911</ref> but he denied both the nerf and making the tweet.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqJtvnPm1Y8&lc=UgxFi1TSjQgggb8B2454AaABAg</ref>

Mycrafted passed SWI to rori,<ref>https://x.com/rori_gd/status/1286614876350119936</ref> who made steady progress, achieving 73-100% on 26 July 2020 and a 61-100% run on 19 August.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDvRB3JK0nM</ref> However, rori then went inactive for about two and a half months before being removed from verification for inactivity.

Zimnyte and Riot handed off SWI's verification to Xanii, who, after many nerfs from Mycrafted and rori's near-impossible version, showcased a 59-100% run on his channel on 19 November 2020.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLD4iAccIZc</ref> Two days later, he posted another video, 'I am verifying Sonic Wave Infinity. (59-100 Again)',<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGyGXYr-kz4</ref> explaining rori's removal from the verifier position due to inactivity and demonstrating another 59-100% run. Over the next ten days, he made progress, achieving records of 24%,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjbeIoHxJYo</ref> 34%,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2tqpJ0dC8Q</ref> 40%,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuBF6cdgx0c</ref> and a run of 24-56%.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdVz-60aG8E</ref> Concerns about his legitimacy arose due to his rapid progression, prompting him to upload a video proving his innocence.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAzwjOcSMNc</ref> However, excessive play led to burnout, prompting his first break from the level.

During this two-month break, Xanii beat various Top 40 levels and previous versions of Sonic Wave, including [[Generic Wave]]<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZY8YIzuCYU</ref> and the original SWI from 2016.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h8dNFRzDTwI</ref> He returned to SWI on 16 February 2021 with a 52% run, but his activity on the level soon became intermittent, with breaks interspersed between progress. He briefly paused due to verification duties for WOODKID,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_R2HvzTc1KM</ref> but he returned when WOODKID was revamped as an auto level. He achieved a 24-100% run on 5 April 2021.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1389976161606901769</ref>

In April 2021, Riot discontinued APTeam's version as the official level for unknown reasons, prompting the development of a new version set to be verified by Slithium, using a slightly tweaked version of Viprin's original decoration. Despite this, Xanii continued verifying the APTeam version.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1384985808466333698</ref>

On 21 April 2021, Riot announced that if Xanii published SWI to the Geometry Dash servers instead of APTeam, he would reconsider making APTeam's version official rather than the Slithium version; however, Xanii later revealed that Zimnyte would not allow it.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1394296789461831682</ref> Viprin clarified that non-official levels can still be rated, suggesting APTeam's SWI would probably be rated anyway.<ref>https://x.com/vipringd/status/1394303551371874306</ref>

Xanii resumed his efforts on SWI in early May, consistently streaming more and swiftly progressing with multiple new bests. He continuously achieved incremental progress, culminating in a 63% run.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABuj4pUC1C0</ref> During a marathon session on 15 May 2021,<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xXvc9SXzEA</ref> he died at the final wave section, at 76%.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsQH654XABQ</ref> his verification stress increased significantly, and he was unsure if he wanted to continue.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1395550486737129492</ref>

On 21 May 2021, Zimnyte proposed renaming his version from 'Sonic Wave Infinity' to 'Sonic Wave Eternity' to avoid confusion with Riot and Slithium's official version.<ref>https://x.com/Zimnior12/status/1395787462023204864</ref> Despite widespread community support, Xanii opposed the change, fearing it would alter the level's legacy. He threatened to drop the level,<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1395805394337943562</ref> stating that he chose to verify 'Sonic Wave Infinity, not Sonic Wave Eternity'.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1395804540629360640</ref> As a result, APTeam abandoned the idea of renaming the level.

On 28 May 2021, Xanii unexpectedly died at 82%, the last spam section of SWI.<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opmsfLvtQoU</ref> This setback deeply affected his motivation, with him later referencing Mefewe's infamous 98% death on the original level in a tweet.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1398378488353144834</ref> Nonetheless, he continued his attempts, and on 30 May 2021, Xanii verified Sonic Wave Infinity after six months and 60000 attempts.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1399012369603477506</ref> The level was not immediately published, as Zimnyte wanted to fix specific Legacy Mode errors first.

Later that day, Riot announced the cancellation of Slithium's version of SWI to avoid having two versions in the Top 10 of the Demonlist, recognising it as tedious to top players. He also clarified that the alternate version was created because Xanii took numerous breaks, aiming for a faster release without removing him from verification. However, as Xanii verified his version before Slithium did, Riot again designated the APTeam version as official.

As planned, SWI was uploaded to APTeam's account. Unexpectedly, though, Xanii also uploaded the same level to his account without permission, claiming he was entitled to do so because of his official verification effort. A debate ensued over whose version to rate, with some backing Xanii's points and others criticising his disloyalty to APTeam. Furthermore, Xanii had previously incorporated a tribute to the late [[Michigun]] in the level, which was absent from APTeam's uploaded version. This action sparked more controversy, with some accusing APTeam of showing disrespect by removing the tribute. APTeam, however, denied that the tribute had ever been part of their version.<ref>https://x.com/Mercury6778/status/1399667444202024961</ref> APTeam's version was eventually rated; however, the level was unrated about two hours later due to a trigger discovered in the last cube section, which would crash the game if touched.<ref>https://x.com/vipringd/status/1399534940350451712</ref> Initially, there were suspicions that Xanii added it out of spite after APTeam's version was rated, aiming to nullify their rating and elevate his own; however, he later clarified that it was a forgotten joke from months earlier.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1399541334810279936</ref> Xanii then removed the trigger from his version to attempt a rating on his version.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1399536580314816516</ref> However, recognising his initial conduct to APTeam as immature, he later requested the deletion of his version to prevent further disagreement.<ref>https://x.com/_Xanii_/status/1399560307496951808</ref> Hours later, Zimnyte addressed the issue on Twitter and promised to remove the trigger.<ref>https://x.com/Zimnior12/status/1399628471995875329</ref> Once the trigger was removed in a level update, the level was re-rated on 1 June 2021.<ref>https://x.com/vipringd/status/1399839923067310092</ref>

Pinpointing SWI's placement on the Demonlist proved challenging. Players like [[Crisis]] hailed it as unrivaled,<ref>https://x.com/gdcrisis/status/1399575633500463108</ref> while others such as Ryth<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30nywD-p-BI</ref> and dice88<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUFst_F7rqk</ref> deemed it easier than [[Tartarus]].<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbCMfHERZfI</ref> On 29 June 2021, the level was placed at #3 on the Demonlist, which was considered a significant letdown as many anticipated it to be a potential Top 1 to top the long-reigning Tartarus.

Years later, Tartarus was shifted below SWI, retrospectively making SWI the Top 1 level for four months until the release of [[Firework]].