Talk: Race tracks

The Racetracks

I remember making this suggestion back in I think the autumn of 2019 or so, and I know that at least one of you guys agreed with me that each of the racetrack articles' introductions will probably need to be edited eventually. I recall making the descriptions of those articles a bit too subjective at the time, then when I attempted to edit them back afterwards, I was told not to do so (which to an extent makes sense). But I do remember you guys saying that there are very few instances when we can assign a racetrack as "objectively easy" or "objectively difficult".

We do know that the Dethdrome is probably the widest, smoothest, and most spacious racetrack in the entire game with mostly clear straightaways and almost no tight corners at all. Likewise, Kras City and even more so Waterfront Loop are full of narrow paths and tight corners. I'm not sure who originally said that Loading Docks is one of the easier tracks in the game, but to be honest, I don't really agree myself. Honestly, I would say that Loading Docks is in between the Dethdrome and Kras City in terms of how straightforward it is and how muddled it is, respectively. And obviously, Seaport Strip is in between the Dethdrome and Loading Docks in that sense too. Western Tour on the other hand, is (obviously) all of the above.

What's interesting about all of the racetracks in Spargus is that each of them has its own set of straightforward sections and muddled sections too. But maybe Canyon Run is slightly more muddled than Spargus City is, and Precursor Temple is slightly more muddled than both are? I mean, obviously Beachfront Drive, Badland Sanctuary, and Northern Tour are all in the middle - but that goes without saying anyway.

Pretty much all of the racetracks in Haven City are full of narrow paths, rough points, tight corners, and few clear straightaways. (Honestly, it's no wonder that Adventure Mode doesn't include Turbo Dash and Rush Hour for any of the racetracks in Haven City - otherwise that would be way too difficult.) The Forbidden Jungle track in particular is definitely a bit less muddled compared to all the other racetracks in Haven City. Meanwhile, the Haven City track itself and Sewer Raceway are definitely as confusing as hell at first, but then once you get a slower and well-armored racecar as well as a knowledge of those tracks' layouts beforehand, then they're a bit more manageable. City Outskirts, Eastern Tour, and especially Waterworks Circuit are probably the three most muddled racetracks in the entire game.

Finally, despite the Icelands being comprised of primarily slippery grounds, I think that Frozen Speedway is really the only track from there where those grounds pose a reasonable threat. All of the other racetracks in the Icelands are definitely more straightforward than muddled, though both Mountaintop Highway and Icebound Citadel do admittedly have a couple of "obstacle sections". On the other hand: Timberline Track, Southern Tour, and especially Glacier Alley are all very straightforward.

Regarding the combat arenas, Dirt Stadium definitely has the most straightforward layout and the fact that it's large in size is mostly an advantage too (though the latter can unfortunately bite you in the butt once in a while). Clifftop Battlefield is also the same too, but by contrast, it is also very hilly and bumpy...which makes the competition itself more challenging. Desert Arena and especially Mar Coliseum are such small arenas to the point where it's not only easy to target your opponents, but also be a target for them too. Finally, everybody agrees at this point that Atoll Arena, Wasteland Isle, and Ice Pit respectively are the third, second, and first most complex combat arenas in the game (although the complex layout of those three arenas in particular can ironically serve as a minor advantage at times).

What do you guys think? 71.104.75.6 02:56, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

Familiar Locations

I know that the Spargus City racetrack in particular is based on Spargus City from Jak 3 - but just out of curiosity, are the very beginning and end of that track based on the eastern half/main square section of Spargus City from Jak 3 or not necessarily? Also, I could be wrong, but I'm assuming that the beach section from the Spargus City racetrack is based on the beach from the western half of Spargus City in Jak 3, right? Also, is the "arena-like area" from the Spargus City racetrack based on the Arena of Death from Jak 3, or is it an entirely different arena? Finally, is the Spargus palace from Jak 3 visible from the Spargus City racetrack at all?

Additionally, I am curious if the Precursor Temple track is based on the Monk Temple from Jak 3 too. (I'm assuming that the answer to this question is probably "no", but once again, I could be wrong.) Also, I know that Canyon Run takes place in the Wasteland - but just to make sure, it is not from any part of the Wasteland that was already visited in Jak 3, right? However, the ruined buildings from Canyon Run do slightly resemble the desert village (surrounding the Wild Leaper pen) from the Wasteland in Jak 3 though.

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On the other hand, I do know that it is confirmed that the Haven City racetrack is based on Haven City itself from both Jak II and Jak 3 (although the "New Haven" section particularly obviously only derives from the latter game). Same with Sewer Raceway being based on the Haven sewers from both Jak II and Jak 3 too. I also know that Atoll Arena is based on the Pumping Station from Jak II as well. But I do remember being told previously that Forbidden Jungle and Clifftop Battlefield are unlikely based on any previous location in Haven City that was from Jak II and/or Jak 3 (which makes sense).

Additionally, I do know that the Desert Arena is based on at least part of the Wasteland that was used in Jak 3. But what about the Wasteland Isle? Is that also based on any part of the Wasteland from Jak 3 too? (Once again, I'm assuming that the answer to this is "no", and that the only similarity is the fact that the name Wasteland Isle starts with "Wasteland" - but I could be wrong.) 71.104.75.6 03:21, 28 March 2023 (UTC)

This relates to all of the above: At a glance/skim this breaks the "This talk page is only for discussing improvements to the page "Race tracks"." rule. This isn't bad per sé but if you want user engagement you're better off for conversations on either the J&D subreddit or the related discord server (https://discord.gg/aGnCZzT). Tim H (talk) 11:20, 28 March 2023 (UTC)