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New Game Mode Idea
I just thought of an idea for a new game mode for SSGX last night. It's a fairly simple concept and shouldn't be that hard to program/set up either. I call it the Precision Run. It's basically an extension of single player TT & SL. The way it works, you would start of with an unlimited number of laps in a certain speed class, and a lap time to beat for the first lap that is extremely easy to obtain. Then, each lap for the next 10 laps (11 total), your target lap time would decrease by 0.5 seconds, ultimately reducing your target time by 5 seconds after 11 laps. Then, for the next 10 laps, your target time decreases by 0.3 seconds, ultimately reducing 3 extra seconds off the lap time, for a total deduction of 0.8 seconds. Finally, your target lap time will decrease by 0.1 seconds until the game is over (the ending will be explained in a moment), and there is no limit to the number of laps run. Also, the lap is considered passed even if the time is tied exactly (I think the final game should score down to the thousandths: 0.001).
The mode ends when the player runs out of energy, however, just like in TT and SL, you don't lose energy by hitting walls, but you lose 20 integrity points with each lap that you fail to meet the target lap time. On the contrary, unless your integrity is full, you gain 10 of those points back for each lap that you meet or exceed the target, kind of like Zone mode's regeneration. Once the player's energy reaches zero, they do not explode, but it is their final chance to meet the new target, or face elimination. If the player has 10 integrity and fails to meet the target, they are eliminated. The target still decreases whether it is met or not.
So for example, lets say on X track, the lap target starts out at 45 seconds. Your session summary could look like this:
Lap 1: 45.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 2: 44.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 3: 44.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 4: 43.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 5: 43.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 6: 42.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 7: 42.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 8: 41.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 9: 41.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 10: 40.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 11: 40.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 12: 39.70 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 13: 39.40 sec. Fail 80 integrity
Lap 14: 39.10 sec. Pass 90 integrity
Lap 15: 38.80 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 16: 38.50 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 17: 38.20 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 18: 37.90 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 19: 37.60 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 20: 37.30 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 21: 37.00 sec. Pass 100 integrity
Lap 22: 36.90 sec. Fail 80 integrity
Lap 23: 36.80 sec. Pass 90 integrity
Lap 24: 36.70 sec. Fail 70 integrity
Lap 25: 36.60 sec. Fail 50 integrity
Lap 26: 36.50 sec. Pass 60 integrity
Lap 27: 36.40 sec. Fail 40 integrity
Lap 28: 36.30 sec. Fail 20 integrity
Lap 29: 36.20 sec. Fail 0 integrity
Lap 30: 36.10 sec. Pass 10 integrity
Lap 31: 36.00 sec. Pass 20 integrity
Lap 32: 35.90 sec. Fail 0 integrity
Lap 33: 35.80 sec. Fail XX integrity
Session Over.
Laps: 33
Best time: 36.00
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Hey there. Sorry for the late reply and also thanks alot for this long post. Always feels nice to see people are seriously considering some stuff.
I want to be honest with you, my personal opinion: The idea of the mode itself is cool. But even you have the integrity being part of the concept, it all goes very close to some sort of advanced Speed Lap for my taste. We already have two time-based race modes [Speed Lap and Time Trial].
But we were discussing your idea and zero3growlithe had a great idea, which was based on the things you wrote there. We can't go completely "Zone" like you know it from Wipeout, I guess you know that already. But what we like to have is that automatic speed increasing.
So zero3growlithe had the idea of having this feature + an automatic integrity decrease. And it would fill up a bit again every time you complete a lap. Then TypeProton made an addition that people can also recover some automatically drained ship energy by passing speed pads [which of course is boung to certain risks on higher "Zones"].
So, lets join the ideas, and brainstorm this "Zone" mode out already, since I am already working on the visual effects during the races :D
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OK, so you're saying, your speed is constantly increasing, your energy is constantly decreasing, but you regain some of your energy by completing laps and hitting speed pads. I like the idea, maybe you could gain energy from successful barrel rolls too (I know that's going against tradition). On the terms of energy gain from lap completion, if you wanted to combine the ideas, you could incorporate the target lap time for each lap and add energy only if you meet this time, and continuing to let it drain if you don't. It would be a really interesting idea, maybe every few laps you could have an option to complete a Precision Run (not the same idea as mentioned in the above post), which would be something like the fan run idea from the game Blur, where you have to run through a temporary gate on the track, and if you do run through it, another one appears ahead. Then, a sequence of gates follows, and if you completed them all, you could gain energy. Just an idea to consider, please tell me your thoughts on these ideas and we can tweak and change things to create an awesome game mode!
P.S. I think we could call this mode "Velocity Challenge" since that's basically what it is, and it still sounds cool, but if you have a better name let me know. ;)
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Regaining energy with BR sounds good for this kind of mode. Of course, like going over speed pads, there is a risk when you BR but if you gain handle it then you are rewarded.
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The idea of combining this target lap times and only refreshing energy when you meet the target time is very cool!!
But I dunno what exactly you mean with this gates... Is it like an alternate route is opening up [which might be hard to do coding-wise in terms of nodes & checkpoints], or is it like you have tiny gates on the existing route that you need to hit?
Oh and for the name... How about "Velociraptor"? :D :D xd
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The gate idea came from this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrYjE_8iHMw It's just an idea, if it doesn't make it, it won't be that big of a deal, just wanted you to consider it. The route is on the main course, it just may be tricky to navigate while staying inside the gates. Overall, I like the idea that difficulty = survival in this mode, I think it would be really cool, and great for elite pilots looking for a challenge. ;)
As far as the names go, I love them both, now I'm so conflicted! :) I guess we could take a public opinion poll if you wanted to, but really I'm fine with either.
Edit: 100th Post! :D
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I also liked the idea of someone, I don't remember who, who had the idea for "Green Races" with only the self-use (green) pickups. I really like this idea, it would be a nice twist on regular weapons on racing. Also, you could have races using only the defensive or offensive weapons as well, which I think would really fit the game and give it some depth that WipEout never had, because you would have to use very different skill sets to win in each of these disciplines. It wouldn't have to be used all the time, but the option would be nice, as SSGX seems to be a very tactical, intelligent, and skill-oriented game, it would give players a unique and intuitive chance to create new skill sets and hone them in these new racing disciplines.
Also as a sidenote, maybe you could have a weapon selector for custom races (keep that option locked in career obviously), but allow you to race with any combination of weapons that you wanted. I know it may sound strange, but imagine just how hard it would be to win a race where you could only use tractortraps. It would be so difficult, but yet so fun, because not everyone would have to do it, only those who wanted to in custom race mode (unless it was in the campaign). I think one area where you guys could really beat WipEout is in the availability of as many options as possible in custom races, i.e. number of ships, weapon selector, maybe even have a custom lap selector if you choose a custom race. I'm not saying eliminate the names "Single Race" and "Endurance", but I'm saying to keep those modes and just add in a "Custom Race" selection with all of these options. I really hope you guys consider this, as it would make it for me and for many a game that we would never stop playing, as there would always be some option that we hadn't tried, and it would keep the game very interesting and even more fun! (if that's possible :))
Thanks for reading, and I really hope you consider the Custom Race with all of the options idea, as it would be an utterly fantastic addition to the game.
Cheers,
DDD113
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hmm, green races only sounds too powerful, instead, 1 turbo each lap is recieved and weapon pads will recharge your ship, so you still have to make the choice between speed pad or weapon pad, if it's green only, everyone would go for weaps and ope for a turbo, would be kinda meeh i think
an the custom race is a good idea, but i would make it separate from single race/ tournament/... as in an actual separate game mode :)
As something else, i've been missing in wipeout, wishing it was there, is to select a portion of the track you want to practice (select range from point A to point B) allowing you to practice a difficult part or just to perfect it, wanted this for my speed laps on TJR, but had to do full laps all the time in order to do so, also wanted to use it to see which method was faster for that piece of the track ;-)
When arriving in point B you'd just respawn in point A
Cipher
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Yeah, the custom race would be separate from the other modes, but I think the Green Races would still be interesting, because the Teleporter gives you a distance boost, and the Atom reduces friction, essentially giving you a boost, and the Phantomizer would be kinda pointless, but that's why I suggested at the end of my post just to let people select what weapons and how many ships from the list, it can be any combination they want, just goes for a good challenge, wouldn't have to be in Campaign, but it would be fun to experiment with, like I said, it gives you something new to explore, and that's a good thing. A race with only cannons would be loud and slow, while a race with only impulse blasts would be wacky and crazy. I'm not saying they all have to be equally balanced or tame, I would just like to have the option, because if I ever got bored with Single Race, an impulse only race would sure be a way to add interest! :P
The only thing I don't like about the track segment selector is that it almost makes learning the hard parts too easy. That's the challenging and frustrating part of WipEout, waiting a lap to correct a single corner or two, but that's why only the elite persevere, and it makes them better pilots along the way. If you had a segment selector, some people who don't really want to put too much time into the game can figure out a track segment by segment somewhat quickly, against the tradition of patience, trial and error. Just my 2 cents. :)
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mind you, i did 2000+ speed laps on TJR testing and fiddling with the corners….. would've really loved that option LOL
maybe give it a minimum length then or something, but, if the devs agree with ya, then fine :p
Cipher