After... a long time… SinaRun is back with an update! This will be the final major update, marking the end of SinaRun’s development, and leaving it in a state I’m finally happy with. I started working on this game when I was a young teenager, a kid really, and despite the fact that I definitely have not been working on it consistently, it's been a huge part of my life. I've learned a lot about game development, programming, and myself through this project. I'm ashamed of the state it was left in. A lot of it was due to a lack of motivation, perfectionism, the last 10%... and in more recent years, a lack of time (I'm an adult now, believe it or not). I can't say I've completely overcome these issues, but I've learned to make the necessary compromises to get things done.
Funnily enough, today is the 10 years anniversary of SinaRun's Steam release, ha. To celebrate this update, the game is currently 25% off for the coming week, after then (assuming there's no glaring bugs), the game will be leaving Early Access and this will be that.
I'm extremely grateful for all the support I've received from the community over the years, and I hope you enjoy this update!
For players on other platforms: There's still some work needed to get the DRM Free version fully working, so the update will be delayed for those platforms. When the game exit Early Access, it should all be updated as expected.
General
Removed Multiplayer Mode
I never intended for SinaRun to have a multiplayer mode. I realize that it is fun to play with friends, but it ended up being waaay too much work for teenage me to handle and the only reason it was initially added was to please a single person who asked for it a very long time ago (and ended up never playing it). SinaRun is ultimately a lonely speedrunning game, and I think that's okay.
If you'd like to relive the multiplayer experience, the previous version of the game is still available on Steam as a beta branch. Note however that the server list and connection facilitator no longer work (and haven't for around 9 years now), so you'll have to connect directly to your friend's IP and you may have to open ports.
If this is a dealbreaker for you, and you would like to get refunded your purchase, but are not eligible for Steam's refund program, please contact me at [email protected] (with a proof of purchase and how you'd like to get refunded) and I'll be happy to help you out, no questions asked (and if do have questions, I'll answer them!).
Added a new Speedrun game mode In this mode, all levels from the chosen category (or both) are played in a row, with the total time being the sum of all individual times. This mode includes a leaderboard for each category.
This game mode needs to be unlocked by completing any level at least once (including the tutorial in normal mode)
Reworked menus with more modern UI elements and visuals
Reworked in-game UI
Improved keyboard and controller navigation in menus
Updated application icon
Replaced game logo with a higher resolution and properly colored one
Added support for binding more keys (ex: mouse4, mouse5 etc can now be bound)
The game is now available for Apple Silicon Macs
Added support for Steam Cloud
Updated credits
Removed the walk function
Removed WIP multiplayer mode
Removed Training mode (it wasn't really working, nor useful)
Improved UI scaling
Improved performance
Renamed the level categories as follows:
Main Line -> StandardClassic -> Legacy
Legacy levels now needs to be unlocked by completing any level in the Standard category at least once
Levels
New Tutorial
The tutorial has been redone from scratch to better prepare and teach players how to play the game. A common complaint was that the previous tutorial was a bit demeaning towards both the player and the game itself, so I tried to make it more fun and engaging.
It is now a short level that introduces the player to the basic mechanics of the game, while also being a fun and pretty level to play through. It now has its own leaderboard, and after being completed once, it can be played as a normal level in the Standard category.
New Level: Coffee Swirl
A happy-looking level with a lot of different paths to take, should be pretty fun to go through! This level is part of the Standard category.
Blast Tendency
Improved visuals consistency with the rest of the game
Wanderer Hideout
Wanderer Hideout has been reworked to be more visually appealing and to have a better flow.
Reworked lighting
Improved "mountains" formation
Reworked platform formation
Moved side pillars to make it harder/impossible to climb in unintended places
Lessened initial rotation of the player
Updated particles
Reworked the end of the map
Fixed a few platforms being darker than intended
Since overall best times are lower than the current best times (by around 700-800ms), leaderboards won't be reset
Community Interest
Fixed certain collision issues
Elastic Light
Added music, Four Prophets by General Fuzz (the music previously used in Spiritual Era)
Spiritual Era
Moved to the main line category
Changed music to Go Inward by General Fuzz
Slick Talk
Improved lighting. Platforms should be easier to see without necessarily being blinding like they used to be a few patches ago
Golden Opportunity
Updated lighting
Adjusted certain platforms towards the end to make the shortcut possible from both sides
Inner Synergy
Moved to the legacy category
I do not have the motivation to rework this map completely to make it flow better, and too many people over time told me they liked the map as it was, so I decided to leave it as is. Although, as I do not consider it to be up to the quality of the other maps in the main line category, I think the legacy category is a better fit for it.
Updated lighting
Fixed certain collision issues
Removed death zones throughout the map
Slightly updated certain platforms to avoid getting stuck now that death zones are removed (No changes have been made to the "exploit", it's okay to use it!)
Legacy Maps
Red Things
Modified map scaling so it works better with the current movement engine
Adjusted certain platforms to make it easier to get through the map
Reduced fog
Added leaderboard
Light City
Adjusted map scaling so it works better with the current movement engine
Reduced fog
White Things
Adjusted map scaling so it works better with the current movement engine
Moved spawn position back a little bit
Added leaderboard
Bugs Fixes
Fixed a bug causing 00:00:00 times. I'm not sure that's the name you wanna be known for but thanks to 'The Loliconvict' for finding how to reproduce this bug!
Fixed end door hitbox being larger than intended (this does not affect times, as it was unlikely to hit the part of the hitbox that was larger than intended)
Fixed speed meter jittering between values at max speed
Fixed player own score not being properly highlighted in the leaderboard in certain cases
Fixed the minimum speed indicator not working correctly after reset
Fixed underscores not showing properly in names on the leaderboard
Fixed an issue where shadows would shake/flicker on certain maps
Fixed an issue where other Steam users statistics on the same computer would override the current user's statistics
Fixed an issue where keyboard bindings would not properly reflect the current keyboard layout
Fixed a thousand little things over the past few years...