Hang-On's new course

BlueMue

BlueMue

Joined
Jul 26, 2018
Location
Germany
Favourite title
Shenmue II
Shenmue I & II uses a different course for Hang-On than the one found in the original Dreamcast games.
It wasn't made for the rerelease though, it was already in the Xbox version of Shenmue II. Why it was changed there and if this layout was even designed for it or if it has some other origin is still unclear.


I have to admit, I never noticed that the layout is different on the Xbox. I almost exclusively play it at the YOU Arcade as I have other things on my mind when I'm inside the Yellow Head. On top of that I mostly played II on the Dreamcast. So yeah it went unnoticed...

This course is really tough to finish in time. It starts off alright, the first stage is actually somewhat easier here. But then it already hits you hard in Stage 2 with so many tight corners. Of course a different course need a different approach an new practice but I'd really say that this is overall a lot harder, regardles of skill.
 
I think I can answer this, just checked using the arcade emulator MAME. It's been changed... for accuracy it seems!

MAME has versions of Hang-On with different courses; the one in Shenmue before was the stand-up/original arcade version (in MAME this is called either "Hang-On" or "Hang-On (Rev A)". There's then a different set called "Hang-On (ride-on)", and this seems to feature the same track seen in the Shenmue remaster (I watched the demo of the start of the second stage to compare to the video above).

So technically it's now the correct version of the game for the ride-on arcade unit! Why it's been changed is unclear; perhaps d3t sought out the arcade ROMs and found the "ride-on" version and thought that sounded correct... or maybe someone at Sega pointed out the wrong version was being used, who knows?!
 
Interesting facts regarding the changes and accuracy. I play Hang-On quite often but it had been a while since I played it in Shenmue and didn't really think of a change. It did seem challenging though.
 
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I only know about time extensions when you pass checkpoints at the end of each stage.
Reading this thread a while ago inspired me to play some more Hang-On. After trying this layout a few times more I finally managed to get the prize at the arcade. My high score was slightly lower though compared to what I used to have on Dreamcast. Likely because of new tricky parts (and the left stick which made me brake a couple of times...).
 
Wow what a revelation this is then! Shenmue II Xbox actually introduced the right track for the deluxe ride-on cabinet we see in Shenmue? Major news for every fan then.

It is very hard to find any video of this version. All the runs on MAME that are out there have the course like we used to know from Shenmue. It is also no easy feat to track down videos of that particular arcade cabinet, but I managed to find a single one.
If you look at the demo from around 20 seconds in, you'll see the two hard corners at the beginning of Stage 1 instead of the long week right turn.


Wow man, Yu Suzuki was a cruel guy, making a much tougher course for the machine that is much tougher to control.
I guess they chose the "wrong" layout for Shenmue because how it is easier. Maybe they didn't have the board or ROM of the deluxe at the time. But then again how have they created the in game cabinet, by photos?
 
Here is a great article on Hang-On. https://beepgamecenter.com/2016/09/06/super-scaler-monograph-i-hang-on/
Filled with juicy info and videos showing the courses for the ride-on and sit-down versions. I came across them when I used to do speed-runs on super hang-on which also has variations. Really amazing article.
The sit down harder version:
16016801.jpg

Also great articles on the other arcade cabinets used in Shenmue.
Space Harrier fans: https://beepgamecenter.com/2016/09/26/super-scaler-monograph-ii-space-harrier/
Out Run: https://beepgamecenter.com/2016/02/21/monografico-s-s-t-iv-out-run/
After Burner II:https://beepgamecenter.com/2016/03/22/monografico-s-s-t-vii-after-burner-after-burner-ii/
 
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Wow the corners in that video. How can the motorcycle turn so much sharper there compared to Shenmue?
 
LOL I know, the skill is incredible. When I over took speedruns.com boards a few years back then found out about the mame leaderboards that had times that were 20secs faster I was like what the heck am I missing a trick.

A few tricks I do know from S.Hang-On which do apply to Hang-On is taking some turns perfect, leaning at the right moment to stay tight on the bend makes a huge differences meaning you don't need to lose any speed taking them. Also on sharper bends to cut speed without breaking you take it a little too tight using the grass has a sort of buffer or get a breaking timing just right, but I could never do this in a reliable manner and it is only on a rare sharp bend. Even with that the NPC's can total a fantastic run. I can't imagine how many times they have practiced this course to get that WR.

Also notice they have a 90 second timer on the ride-on, while shenmue gives 75. I know on mame you can adjust the amount of NPC riders and also the time you start with using the boards switches. But I don't know if 90 is the default or if they had less riders setting on. You can shoot them some questions: https://twitter.com/outrunner_?lang=en
They were kind enough to upload some incredible S.Hang-On runs for me to see on youtube.
 
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