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Thank you for downloading Ring Rush! I hope you enjoy it!

Feel free to check my other mods in my GameBanana page: https://gamebanana.com/members/2234820

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# Overview:

This mod adds a brand-new gamemode where every ring counts: Ring Rush! You can find it on the Trial sub-menu as a dedicated menu option.

Ring Rush will put your exploring and collecting skills to the test in a 9-level gauntlet in which your objective is very simple: Just finish the Rush with the highest amount of rings possible.

But be careful, you only have limited lives during the Rush and your rings will be constantly draining (and that drain will get faster the further you progress!). If either your rings or lives hit 0 that's it! Your Rush will be over!

No dependencies are required for this mod but for the best experience it's heavily recommended to use HD GUI and high resolutions since there's a lot of custom sprites. Playing on a completed savefile is also recommended.

You can find more details about this mod in GameBanana: https://gamebanana.com/mods/540717

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# Features:

- A singleplayer, ring-based "score attack" gamemode that will put you in a 9-level gauntlet. This gamemode has been added in such a way where it doesn't fully replace any existing modes, same applies to any custom mechanics. That means that you can still play the rest of the game normally!
- Custom-made and coded menus with +100 textures made from scratch that try to follow the original DC aesthetic as much as possible.
- No levels have been edited, this means that Ring Rush is fully compatible with any* level mod (Beta Windy Valley, Spyro Levels...).
- Currently only Sonic is available, alongside some... Metal counterpart... (That green button on the Dreamcast controller is looking pretty nice on that character selection screen...). With another character coming in the future.
- 5 different options and variables to make your Rush a bit different, you can choose from 3 different level orders and 2 difficulty options. All of them are selectable within the added menus! No config options required.
- When you succesfully finish a Rush, your score will be saved! There's an unique score track for each combination of level order + difficulty, and you can always reset the selected combination score before you start a Rush.
- The mod will automatically handle some of the incompatible mods or required mod orders and show you a window with what you need to do to start the game.
- For Mod Devs, stay tuned for future updates. I'll try to implement an API so other mods can check if Ring Rush is active so they can either offer more gameplay modifiers or simply disable things that might be incompatible with the mode.

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# Modifiers:

During a Rush, many mechanics and powerups are altered to adapt to the new conditions:
- Your rings will be constantly draining, and if you get hit you'll only lose a set amount (but you can't recover them!). The effect of both things will get stronger every 3 levels you clear and will be different depending of the difficulty you choose.
- Traditional 1ups have been disabled, instead you'll start every Rush with a set amount of lives (you can't have more than specified), these lives will protect you from bottomless pits.
- Additionally, just like in old Arcade games you'll be able to gain one life back when hitting certain thresholds.
- Not liking how your Rush is going? Pause the game then press Y + LT + RT, this will restart it from the very beginning!
- 1up itemboxes have been replaced by the Time Stop powerup. Inspired by the unused powerup with the same name, getting one will freeze the ring drain for 10 seconds. Make them count!
- Normal Barriers are now upgradeable! If you have one, the next one you pick will be upgraded to a Magnetic Barrier.
- Magnetic Barriers have been nerfed for this mode though... They now last for 20 seconds before they are downgraded back to a Normal Barrier. Picking any type of barrier will refresh the timer.
- If you are in a snowboard, you'll be able to "recharge" the Magnetic Barrier by using the unused crouch feature (Action Button), but have in mind that any other actions (including movement) will stop the refilling. See how long can you extend your stint before it runs out!
- In addition, if you have a barrier when finishing a level... It'll carry over to the next one!
- 5-ring itemboxes are no more, they now act as a 10-ring one.
- ?-ring itemboxes now give a fixed 20-ring amount instead of a random amount.

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# Compatibility Notes:

Due to this mod modifiying a lot of common functions and mechanics (specially menus which are very limited), there's a couple important notes regarding compatibility that you'll need to know before playing.

More than ever, is recommended to load Ring Rush on the BOTTOM of the list to ensure there isn't any conflicts or unintended behaviors. You can check which mods I've found to be incompatible or compatible* down below:

- Incompatible Mods:
  - Character Select.
  - Incremental Ring Loss.
  - Modern Life System.
  - SA2 Conversion (compatibility with this will be added in a future update).

- Compatible Mods (*If you use any of these, just make sure that Ring Rush is loaded BELOW them):
  - Better Tails AI.
  - Dreamcast Conversion.
  - HD GUI.
  - HUD Plus.
  - Multiplayer.

For the case of Compatible Mods*, following the recommended Mod Order will ensure that Ring Rush features work correctly during a Rush and that the features of the listed mods work correctly during normal gameplay.

This mod features some checks via the Mod API to prevent the game from starting when it finds an incompatible mod loaded or if it finds a wrong mod order. It'll show you a window telling you what is the issue and how to fix it.

And as usual, be sure that your Mod Loader, Manager and mods are up to date!

For any other issues not listed here, please feel free to report them in the GameBanana https://gamebanana.com/mods/issues/540717 page.

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- Key Author:
	- Jesus_PK (Mod Creator / Programming / Custom Assets)

- Original Authors:
	- SEGA / Sonic Team (IP / Original Development)

- Contributors:
	- ItsEasyActually (Useful Pointers & Global Help / Mod Testing / Feedback)
	- Kell (Custom Menu Help & Examples / Mod Testing / Feedback)
	- Sora (Mod API Help & Useful Repos / Mod Testing / Feedback)
	- Vwp914 (Time Stop HD Render)

- Special thanks:
	- Dreamsyntax (Mod Testing / Feedback)
	- PkR (Misc Help / Useful Repos)
	- MainMemory (Tools Assistance)
	- X-Hax (Tools / Support)

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