A few subtelties

Windjammers is a simple game but it's not without a few subtelties, some are not obvious.

Balance mechanism

Comeback mechanisms can be found in many competitive games to help the player currently losing.

The game increases the time window during which a player can go for supersonic shots or reversals as the score gap grows in their detriment.

On the other hand, if you throw to many supersonic shots the game will decrease the time window (you may throw a slow disc to recover if you feel the need to).

(Note: I (Tuxo) initially wrote this section as "Hype-keeping mechanism" because I believed that "in order not to break the pace, the game makes it easy to throw a reversal supersonic shot after you receive a supersonic shot" but it turns out this is probably just a feeling. Thanks to Elezar for the correction and fireball for the explanatory video)

Service repositioning

The position in which a character starts each new point varies from a few pixels on the horizontal axis and more so on the vertical axis: each service will therefore be ever so slightly different.

This helps making sure that no character can repeat the same move or has a guaranteed win every time they serve.

Similarly, a character can gain new tricks at service depending on the starting position, especially on bumper stages where a given curve will either hit the bumper on the face or on the side, or even miss it entirely.

The Miller bug

It's more of a design mistake than a programming bug. And it's not only Miller but also Biaggi and Wessel that can be affected by this. But we're still gonna call that "the Miller bug", because meh...

After a successful toss, the player automatically starts charging for a super move if positioned below the place where the frisbee will land. This charging stance cannot be cancelled.

The problem with "the Miller bug" is that you are locked in the charging stance yet the disc does not fall into your hands but just besides your character, on the ground. Your opponent wins 2 points while Miller could not do anything.

This bug happens because the hitbox of these 3 characters differs between the toss and the charge stances. Miller hits the frisbee with his extended toss hitbox but then starts charging and that charge has a smaller hitbox.

It's quite rare to see that in-game and happens mostly when tossing upwards. We consider it's part of the game and won't cause a rematch.

The continuous scoring bug

It's even rarer and still unexplained.

One of the players scores and then all of a sudden the game grants the opponent 5 points, and 5 more a few seconds later, and so on until the match is over.

This is game breaking and will cause to replay the round in a tournament setting.

Own goals

Own goals in Windjammers are a thing. A rare thing though.

Biaggi's super custom on Clay can go into wide circles that can end up in your score zone.

Even rarer: when in the far end of your own score zone, a super spin that spins backwards can follow a circling trajectory that goes through the goals.

Bonus games

Two bonus games are featured in Windjammers' solo mode. They can be played indepentently on the ports by Dotemu.

Dog Distance

After you defeated your first 2 opponents, you will be back on the beach along with your dog. Throw the disc far away and then have the dog run to catch it, jumping above sunbathing tourists.

It doesn't matter which character you play with, in this bonus game they all throw the disc with the same strength. You must throw a supersonic shot anyway if you want to score high and then wait till the very last moment to have the dog jump and catch the frisbee, adding the length of the jump to the overall score.

Longest distance ever witnessed: 221 meters

Bowling

After 4 wins, you are going to the bowling, precisely to play bowling but with a disc and not a ball.

Time is limited so you want to throw the disc quickly, with supersonic shots if possible.

You can score spares and strikes, and get an additional round if you strike at round 10.

Note that the B button will not throw a lob shot but if held, you can move along the vertical line, useful to hit that last standing pin.

It is not very fun, and what's worse is that all characters are not equally efficient. Costa can effortlessly strike all pins most of the time, for instance.