Suggestions

Might've been mentioned already & is quite a minor one but I don't suppose the lump name 'STLIVEX' which is the X graphic for the lives counter could be whitelisted to not trip the 'Game is modified' flag?


If one is changing Hud Elements & wanted to avoid modifying the game. They can't change 'STLIVEX' to have the X graphic fit in with their Hud Style as it'll trip the 'Game is modified' flag. You're able to change the letters on the lives counter since it uses the console font graphics, which is whitelisted.
 
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(Cross-post from Mystic thread, but I think this is better off here)

I have a suggestion. Why not simply approach moderation more democratically? Perhaps there are term limits from now on, like, once a year or something. Perhaps there could be a nominating thread and then an election process through a Poll thread.

For example, I think Unknownlight said a few pages back, he's been on the forum since 2007. He's done good work for the game — his post on Era was basically something a PR person would do if this were an official game; there's a few people on the forum besides me who learned about the game from that post and then became the enthusiasts we are today. I would nominate him to be someone that could be a Moderator for X amount of time, if he were up to it. His posts are always thoughtful and respectful. And, nominating & electing would also encourage people to be better community members, because there's a reward for it. People notice.

A system like that might've saved Mystic & Rob from their worst tendencies. The absoluteness of their power is the root problem. SRB2 is a community game. The community should come first, always. I think most would agree SRB is a game "for the community, by the community" and the attitude of the former leaders was very much in opposition to that.

I think that would help as well since Moderation can be such a "full time job" to make it more like... jury duty or serving on a local community council or something.


So maybe it's like, the current moderation team is in place from Now until July 2021 when an election process will occur. To test the new system, perhaps maybe X amount of new moderators (1-3 maybe?) are added to the team in the next few weeks, with the same term ending date.

What do you think?
 
The problem with having moderators be chosen by a vote is that, well, it becomes a popularity contest. It can lead to a lot of cliquishness and moderators that will play favorites.
 
On other communities, people are invited to become moderators because of their generally good and helpful behavior as evidenced by their posting history. You want people with a strong and helpful character as moderators, which is something that an 'election' would not ensure. An example for here, anyone who had an infraction for the past year or so (for legitimate reasons) would likely not qualify. You need to have a strong vetting process to ensure you don't have staff who will abuse their power.

Other communities also make it clear that the job of 'moderator' is not something everyone should dream about. Moderators have to check every post in the forum and their ability to have strong opinions on certain subjects become limited.
 
On other communities, people are invited to become moderators because of their generally good and helpful behavior as evidenced by their posting history. You want people with a strong and helpful character as moderators, which is something that an 'election' would not ensure. An example for here, anyone who had an infraction for the past year or so (for legitimate reasons) would likely not qualify. You need to have a strong vetting process to ensure you don't have staff who will abuse their power.

Other communities also make it clear that the job of 'moderator' is not something everyone should dream about. Moderators have to check every post in the forum and their ability to have strong opinions on certain subjects become limited.

Hmm. Maybe there's like a weighted voting system? Like, your vote counts "more" the longer you've been here / the more "accolades" you've accumulated (ie, have previously been a Mod / Dev / Admin).

---------- Post added at 07:56 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:54 AM ----------

The problem with having moderators be chosen by a vote is that, well, it becomes a popularity contest. It can lead to a lot of cliquishness and moderators that will play favorites.

That wouldn't be any different from the existing status quo, right? Except that right now the community has 0 say in it, unless things get really screwy.

But yeah straight-voting is too easily rigged. But there could be a way to do a "weighted" system where some voters have a bit more say than others based on earned merits.

So it still ensures that the right people are chosen, but also, if a Mod is especially unpopular -- say, Mystic -- they'll get a chance to see that community feedback in the anonymous votes even if they still won.
 
I've talked about this a bit on Discord so I may as well put it somewhere with a bit more permanence - NiGHTS' system is confusing. Admittedly I have never played the original NiGHTS but I don't think that can be an expectation for SRB2's audience. For special stages I understand obviously that you need blue spheres to destroy the capsule, but I have no idea what the difference is between rings and hoops, what exactly refills drill, how do each of the different items contribute to your score, or how bonuses are calculated.

To further complicate the issue, there are three different sets of objects for NiGHTS in the game - Special Stage NiGHTS, "regular" NiGHTS, and Christmas NiGHTS. Imo, there's no reason not to use the blue sphere/ring spriteset for all NiGHTS maps - I get the desire to reference the source material but... the reference is already there, in the actual gameplay.

Finally, what's the deal with 3D mode? In some maps, you start as NiGHTS and if you run out of time, the stage is over. In some maps, you start as NiGHTS and if you run out of time you go into 3D Mode. And in some maps you just start in 3D Mode. I do think 3D Mode is a cool mechanic and probably shouldn't be removed outright, but a little bit more consistency of behavior would be nice! Maybe if you start in 3D Mode, you can go back if you run out of time, but if you start as NiGHTS the stage will always end if you run out of time?

I really want to get into NiGHTS more but it just seems arbitrary, confusing, and intimidating to me - I could be totally wrong and there's a clear and logical pattern behind the madness, but in that case, I'd love to know what it is?
 
This has been stirring in my brain for who knows how long now. It's a lot to ask, yes, but I just think it would be really cool and very useful for modding.
I know 2.2.5 will have actual Hyper colors, but I don't think that's enough when it comes to hyper forms.
Therefore, my suggestion is HFC.
What is HFC you ask? You probably already know (considering the hint above).
Hyper Form Compatibility is supposed to be full compatibility with Hyper Forms, hence the Super Emeralds W.I.P in Editing.
And when I say full compatibility, I really do mean full compatibility.
Sprites, Powers, Perks, etc.
This is mostly inspired by 2.2.5's custom supercolor LUA and the Hyper Abilities script.
Yeah I know it's still a little bit much to ask of, but again, I just think it'll be fun for modding and custom characters.
Opinions and criticism is very much welcome for this suggestion.
 
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This has been stirring in my brain for who knows how long now. It's a lot to ask, yes, but I just think it would be really cool and very useful for modding.
I know 2.2.5 will have actual Hyper colors, but I don't think that's enough when it comes to hyper forms.
Therefore, my suggestion is HFC.
What is HFC you ask? You probably already know (considering the hint above).
Hyper Form Compatibility is supposed to be full compatibility with Hyper Forms, hence the Super Emeralds W.I.P in Editing.
And when I say full compatibility, I really do mean full compatibility.
Sprites, Powers, Perks, etc.
This is mostly inspired by 2.2.5's hyper colors and the Hyper Abilities script.
Yeah I know it's still a little bit much to ask of, but again, I just think it'll be fun for modding and custom characters.
Opinions and criticism is very much welcome for this suggestion.
But 2.2.5 doesn't *have* hyper colors. If you're refering to my ERZ Super Sonic's hyper alt, that's a custom supercolor that he's using which is made to immitate hyper sonic.
 
I only have a few suggestions, first, could there be an option to turn off the weird Eggman intro? I know I can just skip it, but every time I forget to skip it, it just weirds me out, so that's one.

My other suggestion i'm assuming would be way more complicated to implement, but it's a gameplay style that doesn't require the mouse controls. I'm honestly pretty bad at the game and I think most of it is fighting with my mouse skills, I've tried playing with my Gamepro controller but it doesn't work at all on srb2. Although I do know that the game is designed around the mouse and keyboard controls so I would understand if it's not possible to implement that.

I do think the core gameplay needs a few changes, mostly about momentum, I don't think it needs to be as overpowered as that one Momentum mod, I actually wish it had a bit less momentum, for instance when I jump, I feel you shouldn't be able to gain infinite forward momentum, it messes my jumps from platform to platform most of the time.
 
I only have a few suggestions, first, could there be an option to turn off the weird Eggman intro? [...]
There is. If you launch the game with the "-skipintro" command-line parameter/launch option set, it'll skip the Eggman "splash" and the story intro.

This can be accomplished by launching the game through a shortcut or a batch file, where you can add "-skipintro" after the executable name.
Alternatively, if you launch SRB2 through Steam, you can right-click SRB2 in your Steam Library, choose "Properties...", click "Set Launch Options...", and add "-skipintro" there.

(Unfortunately, "-skipintro" can't be set when launching the game by double-clicking the game executable itself in File Explorer or such. Only shortcuts, batch files, or other similar things can add command-line parameters.)


[...] My other suggestion i'm assuming would be way more complicated to implement, but it's a gameplay style that doesn't require the mouse controls. [...]
Within SRB2, try to go to "Options" > "Player 1 Controls..." > "Play Style...", and change it to "Simple". Does this help?
 
I think it would be cool if srb2 had some sort of rich presence support for discord. it could display Your current act/zone along with your currently selected character. Although im not sure of how it should handle wads.
 
Small suggestion here, but I think the invincibility sparkles would really benefit form having fullbright. It looks pretty wack when something that's meant to be emitting light just fades away in darker areas.
 
There is. If you launch the game with the "-skipintro" command-line parameter/launch option set, it'll skip the Eggman "splash" and the story intro.

I mean, that IS a solution, but I think it would be better if they just added the option on the Options menu, just so that people don't have to search how to disable it.


Within SRB2, try to go to "Options" > "Player 1 Controls..." > "Play Style...", and change it to "Simple". Does this help?

To be honest, I actually had tried that play style before, I just didn't know I could use it without the mouse. That being said, I played a few levels with it, and while it does help, it still feels a bit clunky, specially on later levels that have paths that don't go straight or have sharp turns instead of a curved path, the camera takes like a second to turn, which isn't much, but it doesn't feel as fluid as I think it could.

...for instance when I jump, I feel you shouldn't be able to gain infinite forward momentum, it messes my jumps from platform to platform most of the time.

I think I used the wrong word here, I'm actually talking about forward acceleration, not momentum. I think the forward acceleration that the character has when you jump is too much, I shouldn't be able to go forward that much with just the normal jump. It might also have something to do with friction? whenever I land on a platform it feels like I slide a lot, but I'm not sure if that's what it is though.
 
Can you guys PLEASE buff/rework shield abilities? ATM, most of the shield abilities are completely useless and serve little function.

Force Shield's stop ability feels very useless. It would be nice if, instead, force shield's ability is Instashield/wind attack. Reflecting Projectiles and temporary I-Frames would, IMO, make the shield a lot more interesting and give it some interesting uses in maps.

Attraction Shield's homing is.... its ok. Personally I'd just remove the homing entirely and give magnet shield a new ability. Flame Shield's thrust seems very useless. ATM its just a worse thok. Completely useless for Sonic and for others... unnecessary.

It would be nice if Bubble Shield's bounce functioned more like SA2's bounce rather than what it currently is.

Elemental Shield also could use some sort of rework. I'm not entirely sure how to even approach Elemental Shield. The ability is just a really really slow stomp.

Lightning Shield, Whirlshield, and Armageddon shield are perfectly fine. No need to touch them.
 
Here are the changes I would personally make to the shields, in order of how much I think they're worth changing:

Bubble: remove or soften momentum reset

Flame: make it go in the direction you're moving rather than the camera. This would make it much less redundant with the thok (at least if you're using the Standard playstyle instead of Simple).

Force: scrap the ability and replace it with something else entirely

Armageddon: turn into an ash shield after deliberately using, and make it kill egg guards instead of removing their shields

The rest of the shields, I don't see much reason to change. If force and bubble are changed, then the momentum reset stomp would only be on elemental, which also has the benefit of damaging fire. For attraction, I honestly really like the magnetic theming of the ability and don't think it needs to be especially powerful or vital considering the enormous benefit of attracting rings. Whirlwind and lightning can stay as is.
 
The spinning animation (Sonic/Knuckles/Metal) should probably go 1-ball-2-ball-3-ball-4-ball (as in Sonic 3), instead of 1-2-ball-3-4-ball (as it seems to be now).
 
It was trialled at the traditional animation order, but that felt too slow because at max rolling speed the frames last 1/35th of a second rather than 1/60th.

6/35 =~ 0.17s =~ 0.13s ~= 8/60

There's a bit of a gap right now, but it'd be noticably wider if they tried 8/35 =~ 0.23s.
 
It could be better to show the list of needed files even if we can download these when we try to join a server in case the server is too slow or we got stuck on "waiting to download files"
 
Can you guys PLEASE buff/rework shield abilities? ATM, most of the shield abilities are completely useless and serve little function.

Force Shield's stop ability feels very useless. It would be nice if, instead, force shield's ability is Instashield/wind attack. Reflecting Projectiles and temporary I-Frames would, IMO, make the shield a lot more interesting and give it some interesting uses in maps.

Attraction Shield's homing is.... its ok. Personally I'd just remove the homing entirely and give magnet shield a new ability. Flame Shield's thrust seems very useless. ATM its just a worse thok. Completely useless for Sonic and for others... unnecessary.

It would be nice if Bubble Shield's bounce functioned more like SA2's bounce rather than what it currently is.

Elemental Shield also could use some sort of rework. I'm not entirely sure how to even approach Elemental Shield. The ability is just a really really slow stomp.

Lightning Shield, Whirlshield, and Armageddon shield are perfectly fine. No need to touch them.

I think the Fire, Thunder, and Bubble shields were mainly added as nods to S3&K. They never appear in the campaign, most likely because their uses overlap with the original shields. The Thunder shield is very similar to a Magnet shield, both attracting nearby rings. And the Elemental shield is basically a Fire and Bubble Shield put together. I'd leave the S3&K shields alone. If you change them, then that would defeat the purpose of including them at all.

That being said, I do actually like your idea for the Force shield. Considering the Force shield's original use was to grant you two free hits without losing rings, rather than the usual one, changing the jump ability so that it grants you invincibility frames makes sense thematically.

Only other thing I'd change is the homing attack from the magnet shield. I think the shield would be much more useful if the homing attack worked more like Modern Sonic's version of it. It would allow the player to chain attacks across multiple enemies in a line, or grant safe passage across a pit, landing where the Badnik was, rather than catapulting you forward.

I'm fine with the Elemental Shield. It's already the best shield in the game. I mean, fire resistance AND the ability to breathe under water, AND it leaves a trail of fire that damages enemies? For me, there's no easier way to deal with those tortoise shaped Badniks. Just stomp, back up, and wait for them to walk into the fire. It has way more versatility than the others. I see no need to buff it even more.
 

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