Pilotwings: Stage Research

[ParanoidDrone]

Sakurai must really like Wuhu Island, because this is another stage that flies around the place and shows off the scenery. He has a point, it's all very pretty.

Previously Covered
Jungle Hijinxs
Wrecking Crew
Halberd
Pokemon Stadium 2
Big Battlefield
Battlefield
Smashville
Lylat Cruise
Castle Siege
Town & City
Duck Hunt
Delfino Plaza
Kalos Pokemon League
Mario Galaxy
Coliseum
Gamer
Wii Fit Studio
Kongo Jungle 64
Windy Hill Zone
Luigi's Mansion
Norfair
Orbital Gate Assault
Woolly World
Skyloft
Garden of Hope
Mushroom Kingdom U
Wuhu Island
Mario Circuit

Layout
Pilotwings takes place on two separate propeller planes. A red biplane has a lower set of wings with grabbable ledges and can be jumped through from below. The upper set of wings serve as a standard platform while the fuselage itself is solid. There is also a yellow monoplane with only a single set of wings, which also has grabbable ledges and can be jumped through from below. Unlike the biplane, the monoplane features a pair of pontoons, one underneath each wing, that players can stand on but lack grabbable ledges. The fuselage is again solid.

Players start on the red biplane. Players 1 and 2 start on the lower wings near the edge. Players 3 and 4 start on the upper wings near the fuselage. The Omega form floats over a void.

Pilotwings's only stage hazard are various bits of scenery the yellow plane flies close to.

Turbulence
As the planes fly around, they tilt back and forth. The flight path, and thus the tilting, is the same every time with no variance.

The yellow monoplane's flight takes it through a variety of 3D scenery, unlike the biplane which mostly stays over the ocean. The scenery is sometimes close enough for players to touch it, in which case they take 12% damage. Such scenery includes the bridge, the buildings in the city, and the stone arch.

Boarding Pass
The transition from one plane to another consists of the next plane flying ahead for roughly 10 seconds before the current plane catches up and drops players off. Literally. Players standing on the plane at the time fall down to the second plane below them, while airborne fighters are unaffected.

Plane transitions happen at the following moments in an 8-minute match:

• 7:12
• 6:07
• 5:12
• 4:07
• 3:12
• 2:07
• 1:12
• 0:07

With the exception of the very beginning, the stage spends 55 seconds on the biplane and 1 minute 5 seconds on the monoplane. The unusual beginning time is due to the stage starting with the biplane taking off from a runway instead of already being in flight.

The red biplane that players start on. Note the yellow monoplane, which remains visible for about 10 seconds before the stage transitions to it.

The yellow monoplane. The pontoons below offer standing room but lack grabbable ledges. The arch in the background deals 12% damage to players who touch it.

Summary

• Two planes: red biplane and yellow monoplane.
• Biplane offers a two-tier fighting setup. Fuselage is solid.
• Monoplane lacks a second tier of wings but players can stand on pontoons. Fuselage is solid again.
• Stage transitions between the two by dropping players on top of the next plane as it flies below.
• Both planes tilt back and forth as they fly in a consistent pattern.
• Monplane flies close to various bits of scenery that deal 12% damage on contact.

 

[Krysco]

There's more damaging terrain than just the arch. There's also the bridge and the buildings of the city.

1:08 shows the bridge harming Little Mac.
3:20 shows the buildings harming (and amusingly koing) Falcon.

 

[ParanoidDrone]

There's more damaging terrain than just the arch. There's also the bridge and the buildings of the city.

1:08 shows the bridge harming Little Mac.
3:20 shows the buildings harming (and amusingly koing) Falcon.

Edited.

 

[Metal B]

I don't see the hazards as problematic. They a perfectly timed, predictable, noticeable and can easily be dogged. Would be shame to ban such a nice looking and diverse stage, because people don't wanna learn stage-design.

 

[ParanoidDrone]

I don't see the hazards as problematic. They a perfectly timed, predictable, noticeable and can easily be dogged. Would be shame to ban such a nice looking and diverse stage, because people don't wanna learn stage-design.

I don't think anyone really considers the damaging scenery a dealbreaker since it comes and goes so fast. It's more that both planes have fairly powerful camping positions. Players can camp next to the biplane's fuselage on the lower wing and on top of either engine on the monoplane and give their opponent a really hard time if they want to approach. There's a ROB vs. Charizard match of this floating around but my Google-fu is weak.

 

[HavocThunder]

I play a ton of Charizard so I'd like to see this match, out of curiosity. I can't find it myself, though :<

Wanted to add that you can get hit by the Stadium right before the rock, but you have to be waaaaaay underneath the plane. Was very shocked to find that out.

Also, when the planes switch, if you're in front of the other one's cockpit when it enters the 2-D plane the fighters are on, it'll hit for that nasty 12% hit, too. You might even get hit twice if I recall? I don't have the specific kill percent on me, but I think it convincingly killed Jiggly around 60%? It was REALLY early, it has a pretty big hitbox, and it's a big wake up call to anyone hanging out down there when the planes switch.

If you're standing on the engine underneath the Yellow Plane's left lower wing, it's possible to get hit by the building in Krysco's video at 1:08. I have no clue how in the world that happened because it doesn't always occur, but it's certainly happened while I was testing stuff more than once. Maybe the plane doesn't always fly the same path every time or it's character specific?

 

[ParanoidDrone]

I play a ton of Charizard so I'd like to see this match, out of curiosity. I can't find it myself, though :<

Finally got my hands on it again. Here you go.

Spoiler: Embedded Video