Returning to FFR

[00Razor00]

Re: Returning to FFR

Welcome back! Hope to see you around on the forums and such.

[Pizza_Pi]

Re: Returning to FFR

Also I vaguely remember you from mp so that's cool

I actually remember you too! We played for wuite a while I think, I came home just to seeif you were online, I missed you!

Welcome back! You will find that quite a bit has changed here on FFR. If you find yourself lagging when you play FFR I suggest you try playing FFR on a standalone. It helps a lot! Here is a thread on how to get it: http://www.flashflashrevolution.com/...d.php?t=120256

I actually saw the topic out there in the forums before making this post. I always wished for a standalone. Looks like my dreams have been answered!

To all those that welcomes me back, thank you so very much! I feel aspired to return to this place I once called home

hoo r u?

And who are you? I happen to be Pizza_Pi, a player who played a long while ago.

Hello, and welcome back to FFR, Pizza Pi! Indeed a lot has changed 3 years since.

Yes, I can very well tell! I've looked upon all the frivolous work that's been done to the game, the songs, the engine itself, a whole lot more. It's a lot more than I can swallow at once, and I'll have to explore it all bit by bit!

Aside from "Narutard" being a fairly common term that floated around the internet for quite some time, I don't remember this incident at all. As much as you've made it out to be, I'm sure it was quite small in the whole scheme of things. The community here is generally better than a lot of other sites on the internet (although you can still find certain crummyness that resides in the Garbage Bin forum which I never visit).

I actually remember it very clearly. It seemed to slip under the noses of the moderators all the time, so I tried to bring attention to it. But as far as I've seen, it's stopped. I'll go look to see if I can find the topic I made about it, maybe it's still there.

Actually, during your absence, the whole site went offline for nearly an entire year from late 2009 to late 2010, and this unfortunately drained a lot of the site's traffic today. I bet there are still a lot of people who believe that FFR doesn't exist anymore - they just haven't bothered checking. On that note, you won't see a lot of people on multiplayer these days as a result, although we definitely encourage more activity there. The community here is still quite casual, but in contrast to the past is more close-knit. The more the merrier though.

I remember that too, I actually came to play it around that time, only to be welcomed to a message saying that FFR is down for a while. I think one of my friends pointed it out.

The two requirements for achieving "Veteran" status are to having a grand total of 3 billion, and have joined this site for three years. Since you've been around for a while now, all you need to do is play a lot. Believe me though, 3 billion is more than you think.
But I suppose "a lot" is relative, depending on how much you play.

3 Billion points IS daunting. I remember back then players would be praised for having a single billion even. But for someone like me, it shouldn't be that hard to achieve. Yes, I have to play a lot. I'm willing to do that.

For old songs in the legacy section, they were deliberately left offsync as is. As horrible as that may seem aesthetically, it's now considered a part of FFR's history that we'd like to preserve.

Perhaps I could re-step them, to keep their legacy yet bring back the accuracy of today. I was someone who would well, "fix" songs and steps.

Are you using Stepmania editor or DDReam Studio? Anyways, if you need help with syncing, there are a number of people (myself included) that you can ask for assistance.

Yes, I have been using a version of Stepmania. It came with a custom skin and the ability to step new custom songs. I felt like making an entire step of totally new songs once. There's more to stepping songs than one may think. There are some things you can do to add flow, but some things add unnecessary difficulty. And syncing, I'm sure I can do that down pat. I know math very well actually. (Hence the name)

You're pretty late if you think Sky Dive is a new song. That's ancient.
A lot of offsync songs can be remedied with the Offset option found in the option settings in the main game. Type a number into the offset box and press "Set Speed" on the top of the options menu (yeah, that doesn't correlate, but that button applies your changes in that menu). A negative offset (e.g. -1) will compensate time for arrows that arrive too late and a positive offset (e.g. 1) will compensate time for arrows that arrive too early. A lot of what you might find offsync is simply due to your hardware actually, from the thickness of your keys to the latency period of audio arriving to your speaker set or headphones (both of which may vary as well!). For the most part, offsync songs can be fixed with the offset option.

That sounds like a good idea, but more of a quick fix to the situation. If I found one of my step sets were out of sync, I would go and do it over, and make sure in syncs! But that feature sounds like a good idea until the problems are resolved. And yes, Sky Dive I played since a while ago, and didn't realize that it's old by now! Oops.

And you're certainly welcome to try your hands at stepping and submitting them to this site. Just read the rules on submissions if you're going to do that.

Of course I will! All I need is the tools, and I'll get right to work on some fresh new songs of varying difficulty. I have a few songs in mind as well.

So yeah, I hope you enjoy your stay again.

I already am! It's why I also took the time to reply to every single one.

welcome back

Thank you very much, it's much obliged!

just making sure I heard this right. 2.3 billion is 2300 million, so that's only 4600 more games!

Yeah, with all the arrows in there nowadays, someone could rake in 3 billion fairly quickly. Much faster than 3 years time.

Welcome back! Hope to see you around on the forums and such.

You will see me for an undeterminable amount more (A ratio of Activity to zero activity is undefined)

Additionally!

I can give you all a list of problems I notice with a whole lot of the simfiles/step sets here in FFR.
- Random off beat steps meant to go with vocals. This is the top of the list because it's the mot vague and most frustrating aspect of some of the FFR step sets. There is a random note that ha this precarious colour because its fitted to go with some vocals in the song or some other sound. But it's hard to hit that step accurately and get a feel for that step in turn.
- Standalone steps. These are steps that are maybe at the beginning of the song, or at the end, where there's absolutely no beat or rhythm to follow, or any music whatsoever. This also makes the timing too vague for players to follow the step.
- Strange combinations of doubles or triples. This is probably a more debatable point in my list, but it's one of the troubles with FFR at times, is that there may be multiple doubles in a row. That's okay if it flows smoothly and lets the player get a hold of it. But if used improperly, it can cause an unneeded spike in difficulty in an otherwise fair song, and should be used sparingly.

I just decided to stop and give out what was on my mind a long time ago that I was to shy to share or never got a chance to. They were to help improve overall playability of the game. (This is also why DDR games don't step on the vocals too often.)

[bmah]

Re: Returning to FFR

That sounds like a good idea, but more of a quick fix to the situation. If I found one of my step sets were out of sync, I would go and do it over, and make sure in syncs!

The judging process still looks out for sync/gap issues, so problems should be few if any. You cannot, however, avoid the small but noticeable differences of sound output and response time that accompany various hardware, so it's not so much of a "quick fix" as it is a sensible solution to acknowledge users with different keyboards and audio outputs.

However, there are probably still a number of very noticeably offsync songs that are NOT in the Legacy section (Legacy songs will be left untouched, sync included). If you do find one of these, please report it.

I can give you all a list of problems I notice with a whole lot of the simfiles/step sets here in FFR.
- Random off beat steps meant to go with vocals. This is the top of the list because it's the mot vague and most frustrating aspect of some of the FFR step sets. There is a random note that ha this precarious colour because its fitted to go with some vocals in the song or some other sound. But it's hard to hit that step accurately and get a feel for that step in turn.
- Standalone steps. These are steps that are maybe at the beginning of the song, or at the end, where there's absolutely no beat or rhythm to follow, or any music whatsoever. This also makes the timing too vague for players to follow the step.
- Strange combinations of doubles or triples. This is probably a more debatable point in my list, but it's one of the troubles with FFR at times, is that there may be multiple doubles in a row. That's okay if it flows smoothly and lets the player get a hold of it. But if used improperly, it can cause an unneeded spike in difficulty in an otherwise fair song, and should be used sparingly.

All of these suggestions are case-dependent and are more often than not your personal preferences in stepping. There's rarely a factor in stepping that's outright "wrong". However, you're welcome to state your opinions on the songs that are released - not to mention that there's nothing stopping you from trying to submit your own the way you see it.

[megamon88]

Re: Returning to FFR

I can give you all a list of problems I notice with a whole lot of the simfiles/step sets here in FFR.
- Random off beat steps meant to go with vocals. This is the top of the list because it's the mot vague and most frustrating aspect of some of the FFR step sets. There is a random note that ha this precarious colour because its fitted to go with some vocals in the song or some other sound. But it's hard to hit that step accurately and get a feel for that step in turn.
- Standalone steps. These are steps that are maybe at the beginning of the song, or at the end, where there's absolutely no beat or rhythm to follow, or any music whatsoever. This also makes the timing too vague for players to follow the step.
- Strange combinations of doubles or triples. This is probably a more debatable point in my list, but it's one of the troubles with FFR at times, is that there may be multiple doubles in a row. That's okay if it flows smoothly and lets the player get a hold of it. But if used improperly, it can cause an unneeded spike in difficulty in an otherwise fair song, and should be used sparingly.

I just decided to stop and give out what was on my mind a long time ago that I was to shy to share or never got a chance to. They were to help improve overall playability of the game. (This is also why DDR games don't step on the vocals too often.)

Stepping is a very subjective practice. What one person finds fun or flows well may seem awkward or unnecessary to someone else.

For example, take your first point. I personally love offbeat steps to vocals in songs such as Captain Murasa's Ass Anchor and Powerpuff Gabberz. You, on the other hand, seem to dislike them quite a bit. Funnily enough, I also enjoy long strings of jumps (not hands though), which you also seem to hate. Already between us two we have a couple differences as to what we like in our files. Multiply that with the thousands of people that play FFR and you're going to have a plethora of varying opinions.

There is no "correct" way to step a file. Everyone will have different opinions and interpretations of a song. You just have to realize that sometimes you'll come across a file that you absolutely hate, and that's ok, as long as you remember that someone else may find the file incredibly fun. It's very hard to please everyone when you're stepping.

This list of "problems" you're giving is all just personal preference (with maybe the exception of placeholder notes, but that's not really on-topic). I understand that you're trying to help improve the files on the site, but I kinda felt a vague sense of elitism coming from your post and just wanted to give my opinion on it. :P

EDIT: kinda ninjad by bmah

EDIT2: Also, forgot to mention this but welcome back!

[icontrolyourworld]

Re: Returning to FFR

Welcome back! Play every song, have fun etc.

[Pizza_Pi]

Re: Returning to FFR

The judging process still looks out for sync/gap issues, so problems should be few if any. You cannot, however, avoid the small but noticeable differences of sound output and response time that accompany various hardware, so it's not so much of a "quick fix" as it is a sensible solution to acknowledge users with different keyboards and audio outputs.

I never thought about that, thank you very much! While testing, I'll play through the song multiple times to make sure my audio is in sync as well.

However, there are probably still a number of very noticeably offsync songs that are NOT in the Legacy section (Legacy songs will be left untouched, sync included). If you do find one of these, please report it.

Trust me, I will. I think that means I will go and play all the songs now. Whoopee!

All of these suggestions are case-dependent and are more often than not your personal preferences in stepping. There's rarely a factor in stepping that's outright "wrong". However, you're welcome to state your opinions on the songs that are released - not to mention that there's nothing stopping you from trying to submit your own the way you see it.

Well, they are my personal guidelines I like to follow, I just thought it might help some people who think this way too, but haven't quite thought of it yet. In that case, it's everyone's choice to accept it or not

Stepping is a very subjective practice. What one person finds fun or flows well may seem awkward or unnecessary to someone else.

For example, take your first point. I personally love offbeat steps to vocals in songs such as Captain Murasa's Ass Anchor and Powerpuff Gabberz. You, on the other hand, seem to dislike them quite a bit. Funnily enough, I also enjoy long strings of jumps (not hands though), which you also seem to hate. Already between us two we have a couple differences as to what we like in our files. Multiply that with the thousands of people that play FFR and you're going to have a plethora of varying opinions.

There is no "correct" way to step a file. Everyone will have different opinions and interpretations of a song. You just have to realize that sometimes you'll come across a file that you absolutely hate, and that's ok, as long as you remember that someone else may find the file incredibly fun. It's very hard to please everyone when you're stepping.

This list of "problems" you're giving is all just personal preference (with maybe the exception of placeholder notes, but that's not really on-topic). I understand that you're trying to help improve the files on the site, but I kinda felt a vague sense of elitism coming from your post and just wanted to give my opinion on it. :P

I'm in no way elite, nor elitist. I don't hate any step set, they're all really good, and a lot of effort went into them all. Art is in the eye of the beholder, as they say. And stepping IS an art in itself. It's your choice to make a long repetitive sequence or some random note at the end of the song that goes with a "ding". I just have my persona preferences and my personal peeves. But in reality, I don't hate. I'm not someone that hates, or goes around parading that something is terrible. All I want to do is help make things better overall for everyone. Nothing more! I'll throw a message in a bottle into a sea of bottles, but I'll do it anyway, just for the sake of helping.

EDIT2: Also, forgot to mention this but welcome back!

Why thank you! It's nice to talk to you too, and come back to someone like you as well.