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Remake: LEGO Racers 2


bradleybrand
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Who would like a LEGO Racers 2 remake?  

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  1. 1. Who would like a LEGO Racers 2 remake?



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If not too advanced, maybe mod support could be implemented into this remake. So those with the skills could easily mod changes. If not, still will be great on completion.

 

I would just like to note that the original game is totally playable single player and isn't an eye sore, but the remake could allow a better multiplayer feature to race with multiple friends in the races. Also modernizing this game could make it look better and better support higher resolutions - as it would be built to support them.

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9 hours ago, tomfyhr said:

Fortunately, all models (except the cars and terrain) have already been ripped from the game (see "Racers 2"-link and "Clothes for minifigures"), which should make things easier. 

(you only have to place the folder in Unity and the textures will automatically be applied to the model)

 

Here is a website with LDD-models from various theme (including car-models):
https://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?/forums/topic/41226-key-topic-official-lego-sets-made-in-ldd/#entry722512


Yeah, I've found it, thank you. Been using them as references, and I'm making good progress. It seems that LDD is missing a lot of parts, so some of the models on that list use other ones to replace them. I want the models to be as accurate as possible, but I don't think its worth checking each one piece by piece. I'll just bite the bullet and make every model by hand in Bricklink Studio. Its going to take a bit longer, but I'm having fun building these sets.
 

2 hours ago, LDD Mods said:

https://github.com/lorenzorutayisire/lr2-blender-loader

 

This might help with world extraction. You'll have to do some fine tuning to get the textures properly working though


Thank you. Its going to come in handy. I've also seen the page for WRL-s, and there is a lot of useful data I could extract. 
I think I could reuse the camera scripts from the game data, to do the camera animations for the cutscenes.

1 hour ago, bradleybrand said:

If not too advanced, maybe mod support could be implemented into this remake. So those with the skills could easily mod changes. If not, still will be great on completion.

 

I would just like to note that the original game is totally playable single player and isn't an eye sore, but the remake could allow a better multiplayer feature to race with multiple friends in the races. Also modernizing this game could make it look better and better support higher resolutions - as it would be built to support them.


Since I'm most familiar with Unity, I'm going to use that as the engine. As I said, I've never done any modding, so I don't know how I'd go about supporting it. Some input from others with experience in these sorts of things would be much appreciated.

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20 minutes ago, EggKiddo said:

Yeah, I've found it, thank you. Been using them as references, and I'm making good progress. It seems that LDD is missing a lot of parts, so some of the models on that list use other ones to replace them. I want the models to be as accurate as possible, but I don't think its worth checking each one piece by piece. I'll just bite the bullet and make every model by hand in Bricklink Studio. Its going to take a bit longer, but I'm having fun building these sets.

 

I like the idea of trying to use the exact pieces of the era of the models, but it's not end of the world if you cannot find 100% exact.

 

20 minutes ago, EggKiddo said:

Thank you. Its going to come in handy. I've also seen the page for WRL-s, and there is a lot of useful data I could extract. 
I think I could reuse the camera scripts from the game data, to do the camera animations for the cutscenes.

 

That would be great!

 

20 minutes ago, EggKiddo said:

Since I'm most familiar with Unity, I'm going to use that as the engine. As I said, I've never done any modding, so I don't know how I'd go about supporting it. Some input from others with experience in these sorts of things would be much appreciated.

 

That's understandable. I don't know about game design or Unity. I was just suggesting allowing mods could be cool but only if achievable, doesn't matter if you can't. I don't really know about the process of making games.

 

Also: Just a thought also. So there are texture mods for LEGO Racers 2 which enhance game textures but only for the specific game engine. Perhaps, if we rebuild this game, someone could improve upon existing game textures. Like the grass and sand, for instance. This is additional extras though, the new base game is top priority. I was just suggesting that anyone - on these forums - with the skills, if they wanted to invest any time, could contribute. :)

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1 hour ago, bradleybrand said:

 

Also: Just a thought also. So there are texture mods for LEGO Racers 2 which enhance game textures but only for the specific game engine. Perhaps, if we rebuild this game, someone could improve upon existing game textures. Like the grass and sand, for instance. This is additional extras though, the new base game is top priority. I was just suggesting that anyone - on these forums - with the skills, if they wanted to invest any time, could contribute. :)

 

There are HD textures updates for LEGO Racers (1). If any game needs a face left, then LEGO Racers (1) needs it. :)

 

LEGO Racers 2 is not that dated in comparison (although one does not rule out the other. It is possible to make remakes of both of the games at the same time, since they have pretty much the same mechanics :)

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5 hours ago, tomfyhr said:

(although one does not rule out the other. It is possible to make remakes of both of the games at the same time, since they have pretty much the same mechanics :)

 

Even if we made a game of just custom multiplayer races, I would be happy. As original you could only race 1v1 humans on split screen with 0 NPC opponents.  It would be cool to decide your own settings for the race. Maybe 8 human players. :)

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Quick update:
At this point, I've made 72 out of the 90 actual LEGO models from the SANDY BAY folder. I also did a bit of research into the LDRAW file formats, and its just plain text, with really simple commands. It should be really easy to write a Unity importer. This could be one of the natively moddable features. You just provide an .ldr file, and the game could load it in.
I can also write a script that will generate a list of parts used in each model, so I can create game optimized meshes only for the ones I actually need. 

My plan for now:

- Finish making the models

- Write import tool for Unity
- Create a tool for importing complete WRL-s into unity

Hopefully I'll get all of this done in the next two months, then I can start working on gameplay mechanics.

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I've been playing LEGO Racers 2 and I noticed some obstacles which I thought I would mention. Despite not being too keen of the Xalax world, there are track loops where the player drives upside down. So some form of 'gravity' would have to be implemented on these loops so that the player could make the loop. Another thing is how certain objects - like barrier signs - a player can drive into at speed and drive over them.

 

The pickups - like in Mario Kart - where you can drive into a 'magical-like' brick and get a special would need to be implemented too. The general way how the world and game behaves maybe a obstacle. Ice is slippery but with improved grip upgrades, the player would slip less. Other single player upgrades include engine (speed) and shield. During races, there are repair zones you can drive into where they repair the damages of your car to a degree. If you car is completely destroyed, you have to run the race.

 

The 5 worlds include:

  • Sandy Bay (LEGO Town theme)
  • Dino Island (Dino and Adventures theme)
  • Mars (Mars theme)
  • Arctic (Arctic theme)
  • Xalax (Xalax theme)

Personally, I think there is a good selection of world themes. My favourite is Sandy Bay as as a child I have mostly been interested in City / Town sets. I quite like the sense of adventure with the Dino Island and Adventures (Johnny Thunder) theme too. Arctic was interesting as I never owned the old Arctic sets because with what little money I had I mostly invested in City / Town sets. But I still liked the look of such sets and which I had some as a child.

 

The Bonus Games are not a big priority but you may be a taxi driver, or pickup the barrels of water, or the crystals, etc. Still, the mechanics of these maybe a bit tricky. Unless someone knows what they are really doing. It maybe a time consuming process. But however, even if the remake was just a Multiplayer version, without any Bonus Games, I would be happy. 

 

There is the custom car and character creation which was great, I really liked. It reminded me of when I first played the Elder Scrolls Oblivion where I got to actually design my character. The thought of being able to design your own LEGO minfig was great. If we could reimplement such a feature would be fantastic.

 

Once the worlds are done - if they ever are completed - a race feature would have to be implemented where the tracks are set up for each race type. All the signs, barriers, checkpoints, etc, would have to be spawned in (enabled) for the players. A minimap would have to be updated, with the track layout on it. The navigation arrow would need to show you where to go for each race check point.

 

This is just some. Basically, I am trying to describe the kind of work we may expect. I can understand why others have not undertaken such a project yet because it sounds lengthy and long already. I feel people would need to be very passionate to undertake such a project.


Furthermore, I understand certain features are very hard-codded into LEGO Racers 2. I am not sure if it would be possible to edit upon this game, even if features maybe encrypted or protected. But even if a better multiplayer could be implemented into the base game that would be great. The game's engine could be expanded upon maybe. But I am not sure what process would need to be taken to achieve this.

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  • 1 month later...

Doubtful anyone has done anymore work on this. But just think. Some other Multiplayer mods include - Skyrim Together, Oblivion Online, The Sims Sync, etc. If people can make Skyrim, Oblivion, the Sims multiplayer, there must be a way.

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If it's multiplayer you're after, I've heard that people have used Steam Remote Play on unsupported games (switching the game directories/executables to trick Steam into launching your own game) to play splitscreen games online. That could work for LEGO Racers 2? At least it's something that can be done now instead of holding out hope for fans rebuilding this game.

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58 minutes ago, JimbobJeffers said:

If it's multiplayer you're after, I've heard that people have used Steam Remote Play on unsupported games (switching the game directories/executables to trick Steam into launching your own game) to play splitscreen games online. That could work for LEGO Racers 2? At least it's something that can be done now instead of holding out hope for fans rebuilding this game.

 

That's very interesting. Steam Remote Play on unsupported games. Something that should be tried.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello everyone. I'm doubtful anyone is currently working on this. I wanted to share something with you. Recently, I tried out LEGO Racers 2 split-screen multiplayer via Steam Remote Play. I downloaded and installed a game called Space Smack! and backed up the game's files. I then copied and pasted the files of LEGO Racers 2 into that game's directory and renamed the LEGO Racers 2 executable file to SpaceSmack.exe.


I managed to get LEGO Racers 2 working with the Steam overlay and Steam Remote Play. Finally, I could race another friend over the internet. The issue however was that the opponent was not really as interested in the old game as I was. He seemed more interested in playing a different game sadly, but at least I was able to test out the multiplayer. Even if we did not complete a full-length race together.

 

So with the original LEGO Racers 2, my issue is this. The multiplayer only allows 2 human plays. That's it. The races could be, by far, much more interesting with multiple human opponents. I do highly enjoy what the game has to offer, such as the tracks and power ups. I admit, some tracks allow cheating in certain areas like skipping corners, but I do not mind this as much as any player can do this. The major issue, at least for me, is only allowing 2 human players.

 

So, if we could just create a multiplayer arcade mode. We do not even have to bother with the single player and the gold bricks, as long as we have a multiplayer arcade mode with multiple players. That is what I dream of.

 

So we have to reimport the maps (think this is what we need to do) into modern game engines, re-work the textures, reimplement game mechanics. I am not sure what this process would involve, but simply experiencing LEGO Racers 2 we can learn, and have an idea of, what needs to be done. But I admit - it is very time consuming work. Only a certain amount of people would be capable of achieving such a project, and they may have very little time or may not share the same level of passion.

 

But I can imagine now. If we had a LEGO Racers 2, with the tracks and cars, maybe the car builder, but multiplayer - members of Rock Raiders United would be trying to race each other. Perhaps, if not too ambitious, a multiplayer lobby with friends list could be setup. Else, we could just do private multiplayer sessions hosted on client machines. It would be amazing to play the game multiplayer without the split-screen experience as well.

 

Any thoughts?

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  • 9 months later...

I found this topic today and I've been thinking of remakes of my 2 favorite lego games for several years.
I wonder, did this topic die? I'd love to help if it did not.

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14 hours ago, Schwimpy said:

I found this topic today and I've been thinking of remakes of my 2 favorite lego games for several years.
I wonder, did this topic die? I'd love to help if it did not.

 

Sadly I don't have the skills to make a game. I was trying to see if people would be interested. I don't think much was done. Some world maps may have been exported and imported into programs like Unity.

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  • 3 months later...
On 1/25/2021 at 4:15 PM, bradleybrand said:

Hello everyone. I'm doubtful anyone is currently working on this. I wanted to share something with you. Recently, I tried out LEGO Racers 2 split-screen multiplayer via Steam Remote Play. I downloaded and installed a game called Space Smack! and backed up the game's files. I then copied and pasted the files of LEGO Racers 2 into that game's directory and renamed the LEGO Racers 2 executable file to SpaceSmack.exe.


I managed to get LEGO Racers 2 working with the Steam overlay and Steam Remote Play. Finally, I could race another friend over the internet. The issue however was that the opponent was not really as interested in the old game as I was. He seemed more interested in playing a different game sadly, but at least I was able to test out the multiplayer. Even if we did not complete a full-length race together.

 

So with the original LEGO Racers 2, my issue is this. The multiplayer only allows 2 human plays. That's it. The races could be, by far, much more interesting with multiple human opponents. I do highly enjoy what the game has to offer, such as the tracks and power ups. I admit, some tracks allow cheating in certain areas like skipping corners, but I do not mind this as much as any player can do this. The major issue, at least for me, is only allowing 2 human players.

 

So, if we could just create a multiplayer arcade mode. We do not even have to bother with the single player and the gold bricks, as long as we have a multiplayer arcade mode with multiple players. That is what I dream of.

 

So we have to reimport the maps (think this is what we need to do) into modern game engines, re-work the textures, reimplement game mechanics. I am not sure what this process would involve, but simply experiencing LEGO Racers 2 we can learn, and have an idea of, what needs to be done. But I admit - it is very time consuming work. Only a certain amount of people would be capable of achieving such a project, and they may have very little time or may not share the same level of passion.

 

But I can imagine now. If we had a LEGO Racers 2, with the tracks and cars, maybe the car builder, but multiplayer - members of Rock Raiders United would be trying to race each other. Perhaps, if not too ambitious, a multiplayer lobby with friends list could be setup. Else, we could just do private multiplayer sessions hosted on client machines. It would be amazing to play the game multiplayer without the split-screen experience as well.

 

Any thoughts?

 

Wow, you were the first ever to play LR2 over the internet? That's kinda awesome if you ask me.

I read your aspirations about making a remake of the game and would like to join in.
I'm not much of a programmer myself although I can write some lines of code, but I'm a movie director, script writer and musician by profession, so I could lend you some of my spare time to help you write new story-lines, record music or direct some cutscenes, if you like?

I really wanna see a new, modern LEGO-game that's not just another clone of LEGO Star Wars again...

You can contact me via Discord, you can find the ID on my profile.

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