Shinku Circuit
Control your impulse to attack, lest the walls reduce you to a fine crimson mist.
Country of Origin: Japan, Type: Purpose-Built Circuit, Kart Circuit
Variants: Crescent Rose G.P. (793 m), Ruby G.P. (762 m), Eastern Rose (442 m), Hotlap Western (418 m), Petit (360 m)
With its foundations laid down in the misty Japanese countryside, Shinku Circuit was opened in the late 60's as Japan's very first World Grand Prix circuit. Its high speed, banked "snake" corners became highly popular among drivers, though it was not without its faults. The incredibly high average speeds (by road course standards) came with a price; throughout its storied history, the circuit became synonymous with tragic career endings, resulting in the implementation of the Crescent Corner and the rebuild of the Bridge Entry corner in order to lower speeds coming into these dangerous sections.Control your impulse to attack, lest the walls reduce you to a fine crimson mist.
Country of Origin: Japan, Type: Purpose-Built Circuit, Kart Circuit
Variants: Crescent Rose G.P. (793 m), Ruby G.P. (762 m), Eastern Rose (442 m), Hotlap Western (418 m), Petit (360 m)
Amusingly however, Shinku herself hasn't changed all that much. While the "West" circuit layout has been modified constantly in order to keep up with the demands of ever increasing safety standards, the Eastern Rose Arena has never changed aside from modernization. At both extremes of the circuit are decreasing-radius corner complexes; nailing these one or both of these corners are critical to your success at the circuit. Be warned on approaching the bridge on the GP and West layouts, as you will need to balance the car perfectly to set up for the corner that follows. Shinku has a tendency to punish the inconsistent, since there are no slow corners.
Trivia:
- Shinku essentially translates into 'crimson', a type of red. This explains a lot of the red motif going on around the circuit.
- Several of the layout variants are named after elements found in the character Ruby Rose from the web animation series RWBY. Crescent Rose is her weapon, and it's larger than she is.
- Shinku is also the name of a character from the Rozen Maiden anime and manga.
- Unlike Izumi, which is a blending of a number of European circuits, Shinku is basically a much faster Suzuka.
- Using sunken tires as the pit wall is a practice I've lifted from long-time track maker Aeon. This is a deliberate measure to ensure AI cars can still reach the pits even when knocked way off course. This does mean the track does not have any pit speed limiters, but the entry on all layouts is setup such that you can't cheat by this method anyways.