diff --git a/neode-ui/docker/nginx-demo.conf b/neode-ui/docker/nginx-demo.conf
index ad1ba8ae..8eed97b4 100644
--- a/neode-ui/docker/nginx-demo.conf
+++ b/neode-ui/docker/nginx-demo.conf
@@ -187,8 +187,9 @@ http {
             try_files $uri $uri/ /index.html;
         }
 
-        # Cache static assets
-        location ~* \.(js|css|png|jpg|jpeg|gif|ico|svg)$ {
+        # Cache static assets (media too — the intro video/audio are versioned
+        # with ?v=N query busters, so immutable is safe)
+        location ~* \.(js|css|png|jpg|jpeg|gif|ico|svg|webp|mp4|webm|mp3|woff2?)$ {
             expires 1y;
             add_header Cache-Control "public, immutable";
         }
diff --git a/neode-ui/public/assets/video/video-intro.mp4 b/neode-ui/public/assets/video/video-intro.mp4
index 4ceb62d6..11e95592 100644
Binary files a/neode-ui/public/assets/video/video-intro.mp4 and b/neode-ui/public/assets/video/video-intro.mp4 differ
diff --git a/neode-ui/src/App.vue b/neode-ui/src/App.vue
index 01002a24..47a2c04e 100644
--- a/neode-ui/src/App.vue
+++ b/neode-ui/src/App.vue
@@ -433,6 +433,17 @@ onMounted(async () => {
     onboardingComplete,
     replayRequested,
   })) {
+    // Kick off the intro video download NOW: the splash's <video> element only
+    // mounts ~20s in (after the typing sequence), and on a cold cache the file
+    // would otherwise start fetching mid-sequence and stutter.
+    try {
+      const link = document.createElement('link')
+      link.rel = 'preload'
+      link.as = 'video'
+      link.type = 'video/mp4'
+      link.href = '/assets/video/video-intro.mp4?v=8'
+      document.head.appendChild(link)
+    } catch { /* ignore */ }
     // Coming from boot screen — show the full splash intro (Enter to Exit → typing → logo)
     showSplash.value = true
   } else {
diff --git a/neode-ui/src/components/SplashScreen.vue b/neode-ui/src/components/SplashScreen.vue
index b70d249a..a10129c2 100644
--- a/neode-ui/src/components/SplashScreen.vue
+++ b/neode-ui/src/components/SplashScreen.vue
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
         preload="auto"
         poster="/assets/img/bg-intro.jpg"
       >
-        <source src="/assets/video/video-intro.mp4?v=7" type="video/mp4">
+        <source src="/assets/video/video-intro.mp4?v=8" type="video/mp4">
         <!-- Fallback to image if video fails -->
         <div 
           class="absolute inset-0"
@@ -266,16 +266,12 @@ watch([showWelcome, showLogo], ([welcome, logo]) => {
   }
 })
 
-// Check if user has seen intro
-// Also detect returning users who cleared cache: if we're on a /dashboard route,
-// the backend session is still active so the user has been here before.
-const storedSeenIntro = localStorage.getItem('neode_intro_seen') === '1'
-const isOnDashboard = window.location.pathname.startsWith('/dashboard')
-const seenIntro = storedSeenIntro || isOnDashboard
-// Persist the flag so subsequent loads don't re-check
-if (!storedSeenIntro && isOnDashboard) {
-  localStorage.setItem('neode_intro_seen', '1')
-}
+// NOTE: whether the intro should play is decided ONCE by App.vue
+// (shouldShowIntroSplash) — this component is only mounted when the answer was
+// yes, so it must not re-check neode_intro_seen itself. The old internal
+// re-check silently skipped the whole sequence for any browser that had seen
+// the intro before, even when App.vue explicitly asked for a replay (demo
+// fresh visits, the Replay Intro link).
 
 function handleEnterKey(e: KeyboardEvent) {
   if (e.key === 'Enter' && showTapToStart.value && !tapStartTransitioning.value) {
@@ -468,13 +464,7 @@ function startAlienIntro() {
 }
 
 onMounted(() => {
-  if (seenIntro) {
-    showSplash.value = false
-    document.body.classList.add('splash-complete')
-    emit('complete')
-  } else {
-    window.addEventListener('keydown', handleEnterKey)
-  }
+  window.addEventListener('keydown', handleEnterKey)
 })
 
 onBeforeUnmount(() => {
diff --git a/neode-ui/src/views/OnboardingWrapper.vue b/neode-ui/src/views/OnboardingWrapper.vue
index e2964bf4..7f30d711 100644
--- a/neode-ui/src/views/OnboardingWrapper.vue
+++ b/neode-ui/src/views/OnboardingWrapper.vue
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@
         @pause.prevent="handleVideoPause"
         @ended="handleVideoEnded"
       >
-        <source src="/assets/video/video-intro.mp4?v=7" type="video/mp4">
+        <source src="/assets/video/video-intro.mp4?v=8" type="video/mp4">
       </video>
       
       <!-- Login: static background + archipelago-style glitch (no zoom) -->