SRB2Kart 1.6

[Edward The Cat]

I've played RRR. I gotta say it's better than SRB2K, but there are some considerations:​

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(-) Negatives

- The intro is super cute and all, very "Unique" but kinda annoying. Having to wait for the dialogue to finish the setup? Can we just press A to skip the dialogue and get to the point?​

- The tutorial is absolutely overwhelming: The game doesn't need to be this complex to need such a massive and tiresome tutorial. If it is, the game will need some serious refurbishing (Yeah, it's terrible you may need to redo something you spent so much time, but for the sake of this game being accepted by more people outside the nieche, it must be done)​

This can be solved as being "unlockeable lessons". The player could feel more rewarded to learn thing little by little with its own effor. Seeing as the tutorial tries this hard to make the player "as PRO as possible!!!"
- Also, trying to read the dialogue while steering and trying out what to do was a very bad idea. There are a couple times when the game actually stops so you can read what Tails or Eggman have to say.
- One of the worst aspects from SRB2K: Karts still need more traction and weight. It's great to "gotta go fast", but we're still struggling to steer, bumping into walls and falling off the tracks, you know.
- The "Breaks" is absolutely pointless since "Spindashing/ Bounce" is much more useful and provides the action necessary, and also "Breaks", this could be a single command. One button less to care about.
- Why Spindashing more than 3 second is a punshment? You're already stopped and vulnerable.
- Please, let me save the resolution I've chosen. I don't want to set it back every. Single. Time.
- Why not using the good and old "Let's wait and spindash at the countdown"? This new "Sonic Riders-like free roaming start line" is confusing and it allows for Tryharders to bully new players. It makes the game harder overall. If you fail, the punishment is way too harsh. Failing it will guarantee you will lose a race.
- Could you please change the music on Northern District? I know you like Touhou but please, this is a Sonic game. Don't put Touhou in this game. Thank You.​

(+) Positives

- Graphics are much better
- The new compositions are very good and the remixes are good (Heh, still using Fluvial Beat Deposits as the title theme? Simon Stålenhag is cool with this?)
- Althought not perfect because of controls, but the new tracks are much better designed than SRB2K
- You've seriously put a huge amount of effort on menus and GUI
- The hands at each lap are a nice touch
- Bonus stages are a little tricky but a good addition. Reminds the bonus tracks from Stunt Race FX

Unfortunately this game is definetly not a "Pick and play", that you can recomment to your friends to play, because they will struggle and pass off, unless they're inside the SRB2K niche and hyped to play (I've witnessed people that gave up on SRB2K because of controls). But since there is still room for improvement on controls and it's freshly released, I hope you consider all these points to make this game something beyond SRB2K was, so anyone can play.

Of if you think that everything above is *****, it's okay. There's nothing bad on making something tailored for a specific public to enjoy, if that's the purpose.
Good Luck on developing the game​

 

[Willytor]

Actually they've been banning people from the Discord server for posting the passwords there. Because how dare anyone play the game the way they want to, right?

ive seen passwords be shared around just fine i think what people are getting banned for is sharing complete save files

 

[Kaius]

There's not much I can say that hasn't already been said, but I still feel like my opinion's valuable so I'm gonna voice it anyway. I'll work my way up from my least favorite aspect to the stuff I really really like. I think RRR is a pretty great game but it's definitely struggling from launch day woes, so I want to help wherever possible.

• The tutorial's implementation is really, really messy. The length on its own isn't terrible, but it's made worse by the fact that you have to do all of it at once. What's there is kind of all over the place, especially compounded with the fact that other mechanics and features are glossed over or aren't brought up at all.
  
  I understand the vision, and I get why this is the way it is, especially since SRB2Kart was a much less accessible game in theory due to being purely PvP, but the learning process of DRRR can be assisted with the existence of PvE content, so the sheer amount of tutorialization feels like an overcorrection that makes the game end up convoluting itself.
  • Like many people have said, having the tutorials for things like tricks and SPBs be introduced when the maps/skill level of upcoming cups calls for it would be a lot better for the user experience. The tutorial is so far off from the introduction of certain tech and mechanics that I feel like I ended up forgetting what the game had taught me by the time I was meant to put them into practice. Being told to outrun an SPB before you're even allowed to race is ridiculous. That's like throwing a baby in the Atlantic Ocean before you let them go swimming at the community pool (minor exaggeration, but hopefully it illustrates the core of the issue).
• Conversely, a lot of key modes like Record Attack that would really help people learn this game more effectively are locked behind the unlock system. It feels really counterintuitive to really encourage the player to learn the game and then lock away the resources with which to do so. With things like Record Attack, Online Play, Addons and even player colors being locked, it feels like we have to "work our way back up" to having SRB2Kart, which creates a weird gamefeel overall. I don't dislike the unlock system by any means but there's a lot to be said about some really basic things being way too hard to get.
  • Additionally, some of the quests in question are really time-consuming. A particular blemish for me is the one where you need to clear Sega Saturn with Flicky in under 32 seconds. In theory, this is totally fine, but in practice it's unnecessarily difficult because you are required to do it in a mood where you cannot accurately judge your time (in GP, Prison maps count down instead of up) and in a mode that doesn't let you retry, so you're constantly playing the same two races until you get the one good Sega Saturn run. Not that I think all the challenges should be easy, they're "challenges" for a reason, but the need to redo a bunch of other stuff just to try to do this one other thing for a challenge compounds into a really frustrating player experience.
• The AI doesn't really feel like it has a happy medium to it. In Gear 1, they're so easy they may as well not be there. In Gear 2, they're really really aggressive, and in Gear 3 it can feel like the rubber banding straight up makes them cheat. It's hard to want to be challenged, but not frustrated. It's clearly designed with the experience of the people who are already really good at SRB2Kart's gameplay loop in mind but it makes learning the game feel really not fun.
  • While I'm talking about things that can be frustrating to players, the trick system is also cool, but I think it could be telegraphed a lot better. With how fast players are moving, they often don't see the Trick Pads and end up accidentally using a trick while trying to correct their jump arc, which more often than not ends up flinging them off the map and wasting a lot of their time.
• The visuals aren't bad by any means. They're great, actually, but there's a lot of visual clutter at times. There's a lot of screen tilt, screen shaking, etc. and especially a lot of noise on screen with moments where things like shrink rays and rings are flying everywhere on top of the already extremely bright courses. Some of this is togglable as an accessibility option but a lot of it is not when it probably should be.
• The control scheme is a little confusing at first. I understand why Honking had to be rebound to a new button, but making it the same button as Look Behind is a really strange choice. Not necessarily bad, just... strange. Besides that, I think the game feels pretty good overall.
• Speaking of, I actually really like the movement in this game. I think the fast-fall is my favorite thing that's been added. I especially like it when courses reward intuitive use of it with secret passages, rewards etc. rather than punishing not using it with a random spiked ceiling.
• Everything else I think is generally fine and not really worth talking about in detail. The roster is great, but I feel like it's missing a lot of characters I feel like should be there. Having every Chaotix member except for Vector is kind of crazy. Nothing mods can't fix, I suppose.

Oh, before I forget.

As I mentioned in my previous post the fact you can't assign multiple binds to a button unless you reset to default (which is annoying because this was something Kart was able to do)

Hold all of the buttons you want to assign at the same time. It's finicky but it's something.

 

[Ace Dragon]

I just played through the tutorial, and I will not say a whole lot since a lot of points are already covered.

There is the potential for a great game here, but the drifting and wall collision especially could feel a bit tighter and less bouncy. The tutorial is also quite a challenge for something that is supposed to teach you the game (with the real challenge coming later) and it could've used a lot more arrows and other guides to figure out what to do. It is also pretty odd from my perspective that the main menu and even the Kart Krew splash of all things would be gated off behind it. The story guiding you through such things as graphics and control options is cute, but a lot of people could be thrown off if the tutorial is not at least skippable with the option of doing it later.

Then there is what the tutorial covers, sections like the bomb chase could be significantly shortened, and is it necessary to explain what springs are considering how unlikely it is for a player to not know what they do? The control icons could also be made a lot clearer and with a version designed to be read by keyboard users.

That is all, I do have time to do the cups yet tonight (the fact the game now has AI racers is a major factor in me picking it up).

 

[Sandwichface]

My expectations for DRRR were at rock bottom and somehow I was still disappointed.
It's very easy to tell that no thought went into any of the new gimmicks that were slapped onto this game, and it's also very easy to tell that Kart Krew didn't think anybody who wasn't them would play it.
The huge amount of criticism this game is getting from pretty much everywhere right now is deserved because there aren't really any redeeming qualities to it beyond "it looks nice".
Dr. Robotnik's Ring Racers is a very real contender for the worst Kart Racer I've ever played.

 

[realmoc1105]

-You seriously need to shorten that tutorial and make it skippable. It was exhausting. Before I tried a single race with bots, I was writing a whole post about how that was turning me off from the entire game and modding for it.
-The visuals of the maps and GUI are way too hard on the eyes (the photosensitivity warning in the splash is a red flag). You also should water the menus down as I find it excessively hard to locate certain options, and include an option to turn off the squash and stretch on characters.
-The new gameplay mechanics feel tacked on. I spent a while trying to perform my first Insta-Whip but had trouble with the key bindings, again thanks in part to the menus. I don't see myself including many of those in any maps I do for this.
-Driving physics need work, especially underwater. I barely got past the halfpipe section in the tutorial.
-Addons, skin colors, and extra modes should be available immediately. I know of no arcade racers that make you unlock extra colors or time trial mode.

All this said, there is a lot of serious work by a lot of people here. Obviously you're going for an arcade-style racer, and you've captured that pretty well. As a character modder, I'd be more psyched to do the frames for driving in reverse and being ejected from the kart (glancing at SLADE I don't see a frame for the kart itself so what will this mean for those with unique vehicles?). Unfortunately, I can't recommend/don't like Ring Racers as is, so I can't develop for it right now. I obviously need to know that SLADE, Kartmaker, and Zonebuilder will account for it before I consider it, and that comes from other sources. In the very least, you really only need to do an update to SRB2 Kart with bots and a cup mode.

 

[wolfnexus]

The art, design and music are wonderful, probably the best-looking and sounding fangame I have seen in years. Since the game inherits from SRB2K, the base controls are pretty good. Well, except the drifting. I don't know why drifting without going offroad is so hard when Mario Kart pretty much nailed it.

I didn't mind the tutorial too much, it allowed me to get into the controls again even though some sections are cumbersome and I sometimes felt like I passed doing the wrong thing. It's just a shame that it's 30 minutes long just for me to start last place in my first race because I hadn't realized it uses the Sonic Riders electric barrier at the start thing, which was not mentioned in the tutorial if I remember correctly. But that's only one time, afterwards it's fine. All the locked stuff has been said a lot already and I'm not too bothered by it either, even though I do find it weird.

A complain that I haven't seen much is that the AI is stupidly agressive, even in easy mode. It's already hard to get used to all the new things and to manage to focus on the race with all the colors and HUD but I was being pushed around and hit all the time as a bonus. Rubberbanding is also a bit excessive. It's basically impossible to explore the levels and find secrets if you want to learn layouts, and since Time Trials are locked, you can't use that either. The game was probably mostly tested by veterans and not by beginners, it seems easy to you but not to us.
The physics can be hard to master, I'm being pushed by springs and dash pads all over the place and can barely register what is happening. It's very hard not to hit walls, something that I didn't have trouble with in other racers and even in the sequel.

I think most complaints about base gameplay would be lifted if the option to press down for sharp turns was turned off by default instead of on. I know the game forces you to check the options but most people will not change the defaults before racing once.
The levels seem to underutilize the new mechanics, I don't remember having stumbled on a trick pad yet. At the same time, I'm not sure I want them to be used more because things are already hard to manage as-is, I don't need more. I also don't think that forcing people to stop for a spindash or to find some rings for ramps is a good idea. It should be used for shortcuts, but there's already a shortcut mechanic in place and I actually like it, so spindash and boosts just sound redundant and add more things for the sake of adding things instead of just letting us climb ramps like every other game.

This game is not made for beginners or casuals, and that's fine, but that's also not what people will expect of a kart racer and they can get angry as a result, especially since the previous game is much more beginner-friendly.

I hope I don't come off as harsh or anything and I hope you haven't been insulted over that release, it's just a game at the end of the day !

 

[DocThok]

I really, REALLY hope the devs actually listen to the criticism given here, on Discord and any other social media website. The game a ton of potential, and seeing it getting roasted to death is really discouraging...

 

[HajimeBannings]

After playing 2 lines of cups. Yes I know that's a lot this is what I have to say.
Positive:
- Colorful Graphics.
The textures and sprites do live and fit for it's 2.2 counterpart since this is built in 2.2

- Spin dash in case you're stuck on a slope
The spin dash is a life saver in case you're going up a slope and such or even just to get out of offroad.

- Respawn button if you're stuck somewhere
This is huge. Getting stuck on a part of a map is not good but having the respawn button makes it good.

- Unique menu
Having it's own menu style is awesome as not many srb2 mods do have something like that.

- Prison Mode when you're alone in Battle
This is a nice game mode as it's to destroy all prisons before time runs out. It's definitely good

Negative:
- AI rubberbanding.
The AI seems to be cheating way too much at least from my experience. Even if they are like last place they get back immediately.

- Long tutorial map.
There's a lot of stuff to know on RR yes but.... half an hour tutorial seems a bit too much for a simple tutorial to show you how it works.

- Spin dashing punishment.
I get that it's to not supposed to be cheesy after 3 seconds but still its a little unfair since you're already vulnerable when charging it.

- Addons and Online locked.

I get that the online part is understandable as they want to encourage you to first to try for your self on single player but having addons locked it's.. not good. Addons have been available to use even in the first version of 2.2 so don't get why it should be locked in the first place.

- Locked Colors.
This one always confused me... Not sure why you would see to unlock simple colors like red, blue and all that. If it was like special unique colors that I could understand but the simple colors seems a bit off putting...

Overall at least for me the game is fun and there's a lot of potential on what's to come but some of these negative stuff seems a bit overwhelming...

 

[Miko64]

Actually they've been banning people from the Discord server for posting the passwords there. Because how dare anyone play the game the way they want to, right?

aint no way bruh...

 

[Ace Dragon]

There's a lot of stuff to know on RR yes but.... half an hour tutorial seems a bit too much for a simple tutorial to show you how it works

You must've had some handle on the controls already, I came in completely new and for a tutorial was pretty tough in terms of the maneuvers you had to make to pass some sections. The drifting section was the hardest and was where I wondered if I was going to make it through at all.

In my opinion, the tutorial level should more or less be the easiest part of the game, it really should not be that easy to have your kart blown up unless you are simply careless with your driving. At least the team had the foresight to have the checkpoints be somewhat frequent. In addition to what I already said about the bomb chase, I would also remove or fence off many of the pitfalls as well, or at least convert them to teleporters like in the fan section. Now I will add to my critique regarding the bomb chase and say that some rings can be thrown in to make it a little easier to pass (so you can boost normally in a pinch and not have to drift as much).