Suffice to say whether you're talking movies, theatrical plays, video/computer games, or your average MTM 2 track, sequels should be one or two cuts above in the level of quality than it's predecessor. Where Yves_B's "Autocross II" is concerned I'm happy to say that line of thinking holds up rather nicely!
I've just come off a review of Autocross I, which is a nice, wide track with a hint of MX flavor to it. I made several observations based on what I've seen experience wise as possible places for improvement. Hehe--this is mostly for the author, but just so you know...I don't make tracks, hence my reviews/opinions are derived from a "racer's perspective". For techie stuff where tracks are concerned, I highly encourage you to seek out the heavy-hitters in the field, such as Malibu350, SLO_ObeOne, Phineus, OLD_HotShoe, SLO_Fila, SLO_PreACheR, SLO_Gutterboy, Winterkill...and more! Those guys are overflowing with info related to track making, and I'd lay money (not TOO much money, though hehe) on the premise that if you have a problem, then they have a solution for ya.
That's all I wanted to pass on there...just so you know.
Now on to the track. First of all, I think this is a rather significant improvement over Autocross I. I love the turns, subtle banks/angles...and the layout is fantastic!! You certainly didn't deviate from what seems to be your trademark, which is the color scheme, but hey...everyone has a trademark or "style", if you will; yours just happens to be...well, bright! Hehehe
The width of this track is such that it will easily accommodate 4-6 racers, and everyone should have ample elbowroom to maneuver as they see fit. Personally, I like em wide, narrow, tall, small, hilly, turny...don't matter, but some are a bit more picky than others. For those who gravitate toward having lots of room to move around (or crash around), this one is for you!
Observations: I noticed that once again your cp's register on the outside, and there's a rather large shortcut from cp's 2 to 3. Now, I'm not against shortcuts as a rule, but there are some tracks I feel would be best driven exclusively on the road, with maybe a few corner cuts here an there, and this is one of em. This track is so much fun it's almost a shame to have such a big cut in it. Still, that's merely a matter of opinion.
Just after cp 4 you have two directional signs where the road drops off and makes an acute turn to the right. The sign on the right denotes the actual direction of the road. The one on the left, however, seems to be unnecessary. Maybe a caution or SLOW sign strategically placed would've have been more effective and less confusing. Course, it's not a major issue, because after your first trip thru you're able to figure out what's what, but I thought I'd mention it to ya.
CP 6. Coming off the jump going to and thru cp 6, if you're above the horizontal plane of the marker, it won't register. Now, I will say if this is by design, then that's cool; your call. Hehe--interestingly enough we just had a rather extensive discussion within SLO as to whether intentionally leaving a cp in such a state is a good thing or a bad thing. I don't even want to get into that here because it...well, I simply wanted you to be aware of it. I will tell you that if you want to know how you can preclude such characteristics in future tracks, talk to SLO_Fila (
fila@teamslo.com). He'll get right back to ya with an answer!
Lastly, right after going thru six, as you go to round the hill heading to the finish, the grandstand bin on the right sticks out a little farther than it's supposed to, resulting in striking an object that doesn't appear to be there.
On the whole though I love what you did with this track!!! If this is a continuing series, I'm definitely looking forward to what you have in store next.
Again, my purpose for pointing out the observations in your track is just to make you aware of "one" racer's viewpoint. I certainly don't consider myself an authority with respect to critiquing tracks, but I can tell you I very much love MTM 2 racing, and I also admire those who put in the time and effort making these awesome tracks for guys like me to race on. With that said, I sincerely hope you keep crankin them out, guy!! Also, if you're ever in need of a few beta testers, drop me a line (
slocope@icqmail.com); we'd be more than happy to give it the "once over".
Holding true to form, it's now time to resort to my "Copey Rating" system and kick out a number for this baby. Taking into consideration the cp (passing outside the marker) and bin model discrepancies, and leaving the cp 6 issue as "neutral" since I don't know if that was by design...this one gets an 8.5 out of a possible 10!! The layout and flow constitutes 90% of my rating, which is indicative of how much fun I had on this track!
Finally, my opinion is that you re-release a "fixed" version of this one. Again, that's your call, bud.
Take care, and we'll see ya next time around!
