A scientific approach to character stats.

[Jakke]

So I entered the stats and names in Matlab, and I wanted to know which character is "the best". Now I haven't been playing this game long enough, so I don't know which stat really is favorable over the other. It also depends on the map. I neglected mods because I would end up with LOTS of graphs. I also don't know the system behind mods, so I can't calculate the new stats for any char and any mod (yet?).

Anyway, I set up a weight vector that determines "the importance" of each stat (S A H B A) in the calculation of the final quality. The quality is calculated as the scalar product of [S A H B A]*[w1 w2 w3 w4 w5]=S*w1+A*w2+...+A*w5

E.g. [1 1 1 2 1] means that you find boost twice as important as the other stats.

Which characters have more/less stat points? I expected all chars to have equally many, but that's not at all true!
Weight: [1 1 1 1 1]
http://i.imgur.com/4M0kTvs.png

Some characters appear to be inherently disadvantaged.

What if you find Boost and Speed important? [2 1 1 2 1]
http://i.imgur.com/zOeJlAY.png

Again Dr. Eggman and Joe Musashi seem to return.

Furthermore a couple of graphs where the emphasis lies on
Acceleration
http://i.imgur.com/rsCiwYp.png

Handling:
http://i.imgur.com/uYtNQWN.png

Boost:
http://i.imgur.com/ToQiBH8.png

All-star:
http://i.imgur.com/000CxQr.png

The script can be found here:
http://pastebin.com/ybUX4YBb

If you guys wanna try out other weights (personal "builds" that seems to win you a lot of races), feel free to ask. I'd also love to look at actual matchmaking winning stats to figure out which stat seems to win races, but I have no idea where to find that data...

Even neater would be finding the optimal stat config by randomly distributing these points and letting the AI do hundreds of races and applying some sort of evolutionary algorithm, but I'm too lazy and don't have the time/resources.

[IceBlade]

Impressive work, but there are some very important things to consider:

1) The stat values for speed and boost for each character differ (Joe Musashi, for instance, is around 4% faster than Amy just because he's Joe Musashi)

2) Given the dynamic nature of this game's design, objectively determining who the best is will depend on various situations eg. what track, what mode, how many racers, online/offline etc.

3) There is a tested and inherent imbalance with the game's Boost stat, prioritising it far above the others

4) Vehicle size and shape will greatly affect boat speed and handling characteristics

5) The All-Star stat means nothing about the efficacy of an All-Star, just the type

The general consensus amongst the high end meta game is that the Boost stat outweighs every other stat by a significant enough margin to be considered the 'go-to' stat. Characters with less than 4 Boost are frowned upon for competitive play

If you would like the individual weightings for the characters, and the multiplier values for the stats, let me know.

[Jakke]

Wow, didn't know it would be that complex. All I did was look up stats in some GameFAQ :P

The game seems very undocumented. If you have more info on how stats affect actual handling/speed/boost/... I'd love to know. The game seems very undocumented, the tips at the loading screen seem to explain only a very small part of the game.

Also, my aim isn't really to actually find the best char as you pointed out in 2) but rather find a way to determine the best char given a certain scenario.