Multiple tiers of "official" ship configs

[jukibom]

I'd like to expand the current leader board with some additional tiers, to both make the game a little more beginner-friendly and also expand the skill ceiling with a ridiculous config.

The configs should work with existing maps, I don't have the capacity to build config-specific maps unless we REALLY have to.

• Beginner config
• Expert config
• (stretch) anything-goes-within-reason config
• UI to support selections (per-level? as part of the time trial menu? on the leaderboard? something else?)

[jukibom]

Contender for expert config with a ridiculously high speed, rapid boost charge with higher boost cost

{
  "angularDrag": 0.0,
  "boostCapacitorPercentCost": 80.0,
  "boostCapacityPercentChargeRate": 16.0,
  "boostMaxSpeedDropOffTime": 12.0,
  "boostRechargeTime": 1.5,
  "boostSpoolUpTime": 1.0,
  "drag": 0.0,
  "inertiaTensorMultiplier": 175.0,
  "latHMultiplier": 0.5,
  "latVMultiplier": 0.7,
  "mass": 200.0,
  "maxAngularVelocity": 7.0,
  "maxBoostSpeed": 2000.0,
  "maxSpeed": 1400.0,
  "maxThrust": 220000.0,
  "minUserLimitedVelocity": 250.0,
  "pitchMultiplier": 1.0,
  "rollMultiplier": 0.3,
  "throttleMultiplier": 1.0,
  "thrustBoostMultiplier": 3.25,
  "torqueBoostMultiplier": 2.0,
  "torqueThrustMultiplier": 0.08,
  "totalBoostRotationalTime": 6.0,
  "totalBoostTime": 5.0,
  "yawMultiplier": 0.8
}

[jukibom]

Possible contender for the beginner config, lower top speed and slower boosting with a buff to manoeuvrability and lateral / vertical thrust under boost and a lower boost cap cost

{
  "angularDrag": 0.0,
  "boostCapacitorPercentCost": 45.0,
  "boostCapacityPercentChargeRate": 2.5,
  "boostMaxSpeedDropOffTime": 20.0,
  "boostRechargeTime": 5.0,
  "boostSpoolUpTime": 1.0,
  "drag": 0.0,
  "inertiaTensorMultiplier": 175.0,
  "latHMultiplier": 0.7,
  "latVMultiplier": 0.85,
  "mass": 700.0,
  "maxAngularVelocity": 7.0,
  "maxBoostSpeed": 850.0,
  "maxSpeed": 550.0,
  "maxThrust": 220000.0,
  "minUserLimitedVelocity": 250.0,
  "pitchMultiplier": 1.0,
  "rollMultiplier": 0.3,
  "throttleMultiplier": 1.0,
  "thrustBoostMultiplier": 2.0,
  "torqueBoostMultiplier": 2.0,
  "torqueThrustMultiplier": 0.08,
  "totalBoostRotationalTime": 7.0,
  "totalBoostTime": 9.0,
  "yawMultiplier": 0.8
}

[CardamomCake]

I played around in the UI a bit, and this have this as a suggestion on how config/level select could look like. (the medal icons are placeholders)

[jukibom]

I do like the simplicity of this, though I fear it might violate cognitive UI linearity somewhat (that is, a lot of shit on one screen!) but that's a trade-off between ease-of-configurability (vs., say, navigating back one first) and ease-of-use.

[CardamomCake]

Not sure if there is a better place to select it. If it was less visible it would be less distracting. It could just be a drop down menu instead, above the summary maybe?

Also has the added benefit of not requiring icons (score!).

[jukibom]

Oh no, if it's on this screen it should be prevalent like your mockup - I more mean the linearity of UI.

Like

single player => time trial => difficulty (?) => map selection

arguably the tabs for map type already sorta violate this

[CardamomCake]

Personally I would be hesitant to add another transition panel which needs to be clicked though

It could also be moved to the 2nd phase of the level select panel at the same place where the original map type select was. That panel is not yet as cluttered and it sort of makes sense to select the difficulty after you have selected the level IMO

Very rough mockup:

[jukibom]

Only problem with that is that the personal best + medals are shown on the previous screen

[CardamomCake]

Kinda blanking on better ideas
So basically the options are?:

• Accept the clutter, and slightly nonlinear UI
• Add a difficulty transition panel before level select
• Some other solution/compromise

[jukibom]

I'm also down to just redo the whole UI for this if need be, there's nothing that says the current setup is ideal either. But I guess I'll probably just cludge something in for the purposes of folk actually being able to use and test it for now...