Features and Changes

[The Gracer]

Uhh, updated the thread to match the website.

N.B. All features and changes are subject to revision. WipEout Pulse is still under development, so nothing here is concrete.

Gameplay & Visual

• Status effects - things like smoking engines, fire damage and HUD interference

• AD-HOC and Infrastructure Multiplayer modes - Single Race, Head To Head, Tournament and Eliminator.
There is also a LAN mode which allows you to connect to a WLAN router first, to help eliminate lag

• Smoother graphics and textures

• Online Livery Editor, allowing user created content into the game. Liveries are saved and downloaded onto the memory stick for use in the game.

• Two new thrust trails appear to the right and left of the main trail behind ship when a Boost powerup or pad is utilised

• New HUD 'fish-eye' wrapping option

• HUD responds to contact with walls and weapons

• Mag-Lock sections, allowing loops and vertical sections of circuit

• Custom playlists

• FASTER!!

• EASY, MEDIUM and HARD difficulty selection in Single Player, affecting the AI, not the craft speed

• Vector class has been dropped

• 'Pack' racing - the AI now races more realistically, more like, say, a touring car race

• No replays.

Modes

• New 'Race Campaign' mode, working off a grid system - will feature a total of 80 to 85 events that are spread across all the single player modes.

• In-game Photography mode, letting you take pictures of your craft in action!

• New 'Speed Lap' mode, which is a 7 lap time attack mode. One Boost powerup per lap, as usual.

• 'RaceBox' mode, allowing you to create your own race structure and then use it

• A 'Race Campaign' grid editor is planned to be shipped with the game, so that we can create our own campaign grids and save to memory stick.

• Revamped 'Zone' mode - a blend of Fusion's and purE's where each of the standard circuits is given a 'purE Zone' graphic style overhaul. Each team now has its own zone ship design, but the change is purely cosmetic.

• Eliminator mode returns!! Base weapons will do more damage, and there are two weapons exclusive to this mode.
- Shuriken (A crazy bomb-rocket that ricochets off walls and then explodes, heavily damaging surrounding craft
- Repulsor (A force-field that surrounds your ship, pushing people away, then explodes outward as a shock wave causing heavy shield damage)

• Head to Head mode - A one on one race with a highly competitive AI.

Miscellaneous

• All download packs are compatible with all regions

• The 'Sleep Mode' bug appears to have been fixed in the preview code.


Circuit List

• Each track will have a 'Black Run' and a 'White Run' - simply reverse routes of each track, slightly altered with their own challenges depending on the speed class and the game mode.

In no particular order :

• Moa Therma
• Talon's Junction
• Metropia
• Platinum Rush
• Arc Prime
• De Konstruct
• Tech De Ra
• The Amphiseum
• Fort Gale
• Basilico
• Outpost 7
• Vertica



Confirmed Weapon List

• Leech Beam (NEW) Drains locked opponent's energy and makes it your own.
• Auto-Pilot
• Shield
• Turbo
• Rockets
• Missile
• Cannon (NEW) 30 proton shells that can be fired at once or preserved to shoot in bursts.
• Plasma
• Quake
• Mines
• Bomb
• Shuriken (NEW) Razor sharp disk projectile - bounces from walls and ships causing damage until it detonates after a set time period.
• Repulsor (NEW) Ring of disturbance flies from the ship, causing damage and knocking opponents off course.

Confirmed Team List -

• There is a new 'Team Loyalty' points system, which ties in to unlockable content.

• FEISAR

• AG-SYSTEMS

• QIREX

• PIRAHNA

• EG-X ( EG-R and XIOS combined)

• GOTEKI-45

• TRIAKIS

• ASSEGAI

• Auricom is to be released in a pack at a later date, as is Harimau, Icaras, and a new team, Mirage.

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Just a small edit - the game (unfortunately) doesnt run at 333mHz like i thought i read somewhere. Sorry for any confusion!

[Task]

Stickied. For now. Subject to removal without notice. 8 )

The Eliminator weapons have been named, but not detailed. One is "Energy Drain" and I believe it's called Leech. One is called Shuriken, it might be the Minigun. Have a look in the interviews, the information is there.

[The Gracer]

GAH! missed the interviews thread. Thanks, ill get right on it

[RJ O'Connell]

Icaras will also be available as a download team, same with Mirage - recent speculation says Mirage is based somewhere in the Middle East or West Asia.

Also, Triakis isn't on the list.

[The Gracer]

Thanks RJ - i had Triakis written in my notes, but somehow it didnt make the post. Weird. Icaras has been added also.

[Frances_Penfold]

Thanks much for doing this-- the amount of info summarized in different threads and interviews was starting to hurt my head

Overall, I think just about all of this great. Major leap forward, not only for Wipeout but more generally for arcadey racing games and portable gaming

I do have one question and one comment.

1. Is there any information about ONLINE features related to Time Trial modes, for example, leaderboards or ghost sharing?

2. I'm curious about the exclusion of replay modes, at least for Time Trial mode. IMO replays would bolster TT competition because it makes proof'ing more straightforward.

[Dogg Thang]

I can't help notice Tigron is missing from the list. I got to love their banners in Pure. Any word on Tigron returning?

[Sausehuhn]

Music Tracklist

track plans (no names)

additional info

another Trackname and 1st look at website

another shot of the website

[Task]

Just like "Leech Beam" is likely a renamed "Energy Drain", I would bet that "Repulsor" is a renamed "Reflector". "Minigun" was a cheat weapon in WOXL, so that one could be returning as well.

[tapioca]

These are the track names i can remember from the press demo i had the chance to see for a few (i checked the records tables and found this…). Rob i hope this is not confidential. Please tell me if it's the case. (BTW, nothing "download"-related)

these 5 are included on the disc (check El Habib's page or IGN for pictures)
Arc Prime / De Konstruct / Metropia / Talon's Junction / Moa Therma

and then, in no particular order :
Basilico
Vertika
Tech de Ra (that one made me laugh but i think that's because i'm french)
The Amphiseum
Outpost 7 (or 9, not sure about it)
Platinum Rush
sorry for the 12th track, my memory isn't that good or it wasn't mentionned

Can someone confirm this ?

I can't wait until September, the game felt really fantastic (but highly responsive controls at first, although i didn't try the Triakis).
Viva Studio Liverpool ! Looks like you did a great job again…

[G'Kyl]

"Minigun" was a cheat weapon in WOXL, so that one could be returning as well.

*smart ass* As a matter of fact, the minigun appeared in WO64 as a regular weapon as well. *smart ass*


I have to agree, the new weapons sound like a return of what's been done before. But then, what could you possibly come up with that has never been used before? I never liked miniguns in thissort of games, by the way. It will probably replace my previous favourite for absorption - the disruptor bolt. *g*

Ben

[The Gracer]

1. Is there any information about ONLINE features related to Time Trial modes, for example, leaderboards or ghost sharing?

2. I'm curious about the exclusion of replay modes, at least for Time Trial mode. IMO replays would bolster TT competition because it makes proof'ing more straightforward.

1)AFAIK, there will be an online leaderboard that you can upload to. im a bit shaky on details, so i didnt add it - i wanted everything in the post to be as concrete as i could.

2)As for replays, a ghost would be fine for proofing - but only for lap times, not race times in its current form, and we havent really had need for proofing here by the look of things, everyone is pretty honest about their times. I know i have to be - people would be very suspect if i started posting awesome times

Task, the minigun returns as the Proton Cannon. It was described as about 30 miniature Plasma's being fired out of the front of your ship by IGN if i remember correctly. Sounds destructive.

As for the tracks, i wont add them until they have been confirmed.

[RJ O'Connell]

In Fusion the only benefits were about 1 point of shield energy drain and a few consecutive hits would slow the target craft down. IF you could aim it properly.

Maybe the power was boosted, but I don't see the Proton Cannon in Pulse being 30 rounds of plasma. X_X

[Dr. Angryman]

I think the mini-gun would be awesome if they work it out correctly. It has to be more damaging than in Fusion, yet not as damaging as thirty rounds of Plasma.

I also heard that IGN had trouble seeing the circuit when firing the mini-gun. It's no use destroying people if you hit a wall in turn.

[Dogg Thang]

That could well be deliberate so that people consider the consequences of using it. It would require more thought and strategy.

[G'Kyl]

I mostly absorbed the minigun. It does too little damage and causes a huge distraction from keeping your racing line. Plus, I never liked miniguns in this sort of games in the first place.

Ben

[Egg]

Are we still talking about the promo version? The one with the early effects?

Let's reserve judgment on the weapons - especially the cannon - until we're all playing the finished game ...

[stin]

I mostly absorbed the minigun. It does too little damage and causes a huge distraction from keeping your racing line. Plus, I never liked miniguns in this sort of games in the first place.

Ben

Imagine online play against asa?, I would say, might be ideal, just to annoy him

stevie

[G'Kyl]

Are we still talking about the promo version? The one with the early effects?

We are. Then again, they hand out preview code so people can make up their mind about what they see...

Imagine online play against asa?, I would say, might be ideal, just to annoy him

Would be great if the cannon distracted others as much as it dazzles your own field of view. ;-)

Ben

[phl0w]

What's "no replays" supposed to mean? I mean it's not as if there were replays in Pure. Or were there?? At least not in my version... ^^

And why "still" backquake? You couldn't fire weapons backwards in Pure, not unless you'd turn around, that is. But that's not what I understand under "fire backwards" anyway.

Really looking forward to playing Pulse. What I saw on screenshots looks promising (this fish-eye-HUD looks amazing), and according to those that played the preview, framerate is much more solid than in Pure. What I think will need time to get used to though is this blur effect when turbo-ing. Can't stand those effects in racing games. Here's hoping I'll change my mind when it's used in a W'O'' game...