Welcome to our 1.5 Year Anniversary update notes! Hello, this is the "Project SEKAI" development team.
Version 2.0.0, our first major update in a while, will mainly implement a new way to play, the "Rank Match."
"Rank Match" implementation and pre-season
Since its release, "Project SEKAI" has regularly held competitions such as "Proseka CS" (Project SEKAI Championship). We believe that the connection between the rhythm game part of Proseka and the competition scene is one that we would like to continue to strengthen, so we have decided to add a game mode that allows players to demonstrate their skills in an environment comparable to official competitions.
About "Rank Match"
"Rank Match" is a competitive rhythm game mode where players compete one-on-one to achieve a higher rank during a season. Rank Match is added a single game mode, not as an event. This means that it can be played alongside any event.
How to participate in Rank Matches
Because Rank Match is a more challenging mode, it will only be available to players have 10 more full combos on EXPERT and MASTER difficulties.
Rules for Rank Match and music difficulty
Rank Matches have special rules with two conditions:
- The strength of party does not affect the score. Skills do not activate.
- Score calculations are based on the note judgement results.
| Judgement | Score |
|---|---|
| PERFECT | +3 |
| GREAT | +2 |
| GOOD | +1 |
| BAD | 0 |
| MISS | 0 |
In the event of a tie, the winner will be determined based on the following values, in ascending priority:
- Number of PERFECTs
- Maximum combo
- Remaining life
The match will count as a tie if all 3 values are also the same for both players.
In addition, rewards such as Live Rewards, Song Rewards, various types of EXP, event points and badges can be earned in Ranked Matches. The score that determines these rewards is calculated as if it were a Solo Live. Live bonus is also applied.
About music selection
In the competition, songs are selected based on one's rank. The difficulty levels of the songs selected are as follows:
| Rank | Difficulty range |
|---|---|
| Beginner rank | 22-24 |
| Bronze rank | 23-26 |
| Silver rank | 25-28 |
| Gold rank | 27-30 |
| Platinum rank | 29-32 |
| Diamond rank | 30-34 |
| Master rank | 31-36 |
The difficulty levels are after the changed are applied in the "Increase in maximum song difficulty and difficulty revision for some songs" section, described later in these notes. Please read this section for more details.
About Ranked Match ranks and seasons
About starting ranks
In order to determine starting rank in a Rank Match, 3 preliminary matches will be held to gauge the skill of the player. In these matches, players will be matched with other players of similar abilities. This is based on past live performances. Your starting rank will be determined based on the results of these 3 matches and your past live performances.
About rank
To advance in rank, you must accumulate "rank points." You earn on rank point by winning a live performance. You will be promoted to a higher rank by accumulating 5 rank points. However, if you lose a live performance, you lose a rank point. If you currently have 0 rank points and lose a live performance, you will be demoted to a lower rank.
About rank point bonus
There is a rank point bonus, which increased rank points by one rank point for every 100 rank points accumulated. This rank point bonus is increased or decreased depending on the live results. During the preseason, the conditions are as follows, but this may change in the future.
| Condition | Bonus |
|---|---|
| ALL PERFECT | + 20 |
| FULL COMBO | +10 |
| Defeating a higher ranked player | +10 |
| End with 0 life | -30 |
The "ALL PERFECT" and "FULL COMBO" point bonuses do not overlap.
Season
The Rank Match is a season-long competition in which players compete to reach as high of a rank as they can within a certain period of time. The rank at the end of the season is the final score and a season rank is awarded as a title. When the next season starts, your rank will be reset and you still start from the starting rank. The final ranks of the past seasons are recorded and can be viewed at any time from the Rank Match screen.
About the pre-season
A pre-season will be held for Rank Match before the first season. During this pre-season, data will be collected and checked to ensure that the first season can be held in a proper state, with rebalancing to ensure that the number of players within a rank is not overly concentrated. Additionally, this will serve to check the server load and check for any serious problems that may arise while playing the match.
In order to ensure stable matchmaking across all ranks, the queue hours during the pre-season will be limited from 18:00 to 24:59 JST. If we confirm that the matchmaking is stable, we will consider expanding the queue hours during the pre-season period.
Unlike an normal season, the pre-season will only reward players with a small amount of coins at the end of the season, and the results will not be recorded. We hope that players will use the pre-season as a warm-up for the normal season and to try out the Rank Match game mode.
We will announce the timing of the pre-season in a separate in-game announcement.
Increased Master Rank bonus values for 4☆ cards and birthday / anniversary cards
The change in event bonus introduced during the first anniversary that increased event bonus according to Master Rank did not encourage raising the Master Rank of 4☆ and birthday / anniversary cards. The bonus values will be increased as follows:
| Master Rank | Old bonus | New bonus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2% | 10% |
| 2 | 4% | 11% |
| 3 | 6% | 12% |
| 4 | 8% | 13% |
| 5 | 10% | 15% |
| Master Rank | Old bonus | New bonus |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1.5% | 5% |
| 2 | 3% | 6% |
| 3 | 4.5% | 7% |
| 4 | 6% | 8% |
| 5 | 7.5% | 10% |
Additional Kizuna Rank Combinations
The following 3 pairs will be added Kizuna Rank:
Please note that Kizuna EXP is not retroactive, so Kizuna EXP will not be earned by playing lives with these combinations before they are added. Although only 3 pairs will be added this time, we are planning to add more pairs at a faster pace in the future.
Increase in maximum song difficulty and difficulty revision for some songs
Increase in the amount of unit EXP earned in live performances to make it easier to increase unit rank
Discontinuation of some gachas and adjustment of their holding period
Other functional additions/improvements
- Improved functionality of Connect Live
- Back key support for some screens on Android devices.
- Fixed problem of no display on the screen for some bezel-less Android devices.
- Changed the icon design of Character Ranks on the member screen.
Bug fixes
- Fixed some problems in the title screen.
- Fixed a bug with the song selection screen and navigating to profile screen interaction.
- Fixed other minor bugs