Some terminology mess-ups
A [12][34] jumptrill also requires both hands to perform correctly. You might want to define it as a jumptrill which requires two one-hand trill motions to perform correctly instead.
The term "one-hand trill" should also be added if you have "split jumptrill" in the glossary.
Split jumptrill: A jumptrill which uses both hands at the same time to perform correctly - i.e two one-handed trills.
A [12][34] jumptrill also requires both hands to perform correctly. You might want to define it as a jumptrill which requires two one-hand trill motions to perform correctly instead.
The term "one-hand trill" should also be added if you have "split jumptrill" in the glossary.
General guidelines
The guideline did not state whether the note-to-sound correlation must be consistent (barring exceptional circumstances). This is particularly important to distinguish because there are many maps that are not necessarily consistent in its layering in the ranked section, yet layering consistency is something that is valued in many mapping circles. I mentioned this before in the previous draft, but I didn't receive a response.
There are also certain notes that technically go to multiple sounds at the same time, like a LN where the LN head is justified by a hi-hat and the LN aspect of the note being justified by a syllable (vocals). Certain moments of the song with no percussion but vocals will not have any note in that moment of the map. How do you deal with cases like these, where a certain type of note (not but the note itself) correlates with a sound?
There are also some edge cases where notes do not strictly correlate with the start and end of a sound should be added because of the properties of the sounds that are supposed to be captured, but that's a different discussion altogether. I wouldn't mind discussing about this further with the people at hand.
- Almost all instances where a section is unreasonable to play if a map were to capture a rhythm with maximal accuracy are due to inappropriate difficulty spikes in terms to either physical demand or rhythmic complexity. "would be unreasonable to play with full accuracy" is redundant and should be removed.
- What does this mean for instances like using a 1/6 stream for a 1/8 rhythm? A 1/4 non-LN stream (or even 1/2 non-LN stream) to capture a 1/8 rhythm has been permitted before, and a 1/6 stream is typically more effective in representing a 1/8 rhythm than a 1/4 stream in terms of general intensity. There are also cases like 1/16 swing that have to be considered.
- "Difficulty spike" needs to be defined further. Are you referring to difficulty spikes in terms of density, or can it refer to difficulty spikes in timing difficulty? Maximally accurate guitar solos are notorious for being very difficult to time for KB play, and they would be considered "spiky" despite not being too much harder than a straight 1/4 or a 1/6 stream.
The rule seems pointless without giving a justification for why this rule is instated. The only reason that I can think of is that you would like releases to be justified by the "release" aspect of a note, but many many maps already violate this rule if you were to care about releases that stringently.
There are also occasions where releases on different snaps would be justified based on where the notes end in the song.
Every note should correlate to a sound present in the music.
The guideline did not state whether the note-to-sound correlation must be consistent (barring exceptional circumstances). This is particularly important to distinguish because there are many maps that are not necessarily consistent in its layering in the ranked section, yet layering consistency is something that is valued in many mapping circles. I mentioned this before in the previous draft, but I didn't receive a response.
There are also certain notes that technically go to multiple sounds at the same time, like a LN where the LN head is justified by a hi-hat and the LN aspect of the note being justified by a syllable (vocals). Certain moments of the song with no percussion but vocals will not have any note in that moment of the map. How do you deal with cases like these, where a certain type of note (not but the note itself) correlates with a sound?
There are also some edge cases where notes do not strictly correlate with the start and end of a sound should be added because of the properties of the sounds that are supposed to be captured, but that's a different discussion altogether. I wouldn't mind discussing about this further with the people at hand.
Exceptions in favor of simplification should be made when following the music completely accurately...
would be unreasonable to play with full accuracy.
would be effectively represented with a consistent, predictable snap
would cause an inappropriate difficulty spike.
- Almost all instances where a section is unreasonable to play if a map were to capture a rhythm with maximal accuracy are due to inappropriate difficulty spikes in terms to either physical demand or rhythmic complexity. "would be unreasonable to play with full accuracy" is redundant and should be removed.
- What does this mean for instances like using a 1/6 stream for a 1/8 rhythm? A 1/4 non-LN stream (or even 1/2 non-LN stream) to capture a 1/8 rhythm has been permitted before, and a 1/6 stream is typically more effective in representing a 1/8 rhythm than a 1/4 stream in terms of general intensity. There are also cases like 1/16 swing that have to be considered.
- "Difficulty spike" needs to be defined further. Are you referring to difficulty spikes in terms of density, or can it refer to difficulty spikes in timing difficulty? Maximally accurate guitar solos are notorious for being very difficult to time for KB play, and they would be considered "spiky" despite not being too much harder than a straight 1/4 or a 1/6 stream.
Long notes should not have release timings that use different timing snaps. For example, long note releases should not have a 1/3 snap on the end of it and a 1/4 snap at the end of another.
The rule seems pointless without giving a justification for why this rule is instated. The only reason that I can think of is that you would like releases to be justified by the "release" aspect of a note, but many many maps already violate this rule if you were to care about releases that stringently.
There are also occasions where releases on different snaps would be justified based on where the notes end in the song.
Difficulty-specific guidelines:
Normal
This is extremely important (and I'm not sure if this is overlooked), but consecutive 1/4 snaps should be three notes long at least. In a map with mostly 1/2 rhythms, a 1/4 gallop (2 consecutive 1/4s) requires omitting a potential 1/2 note, which would cause timing difficulties (especially for new players) and major issues if you were to layer a certain sound consistently.
If Normal is the lowest difficulty of a beatmap set, it has to abide by these additional rules:
Consecutive 1/4 snaps may only be two notes long. More dense rhythms are not appropriate for the lowest difficulty of a beatmap set.
This is extremely important (and I'm not sure if this is overlooked), but consecutive 1/4 snaps should be three notes long at least. In a map with mostly 1/2 rhythms, a 1/4 gallop (2 consecutive 1/4s) requires omitting a potential 1/2 note, which would cause timing difficulties (especially for new players) and major issues if you were to layer a certain sound consistently.
Hard
You should specify that you are referring to 1/4 jack usage. 1/2 jacks (90 BPM 1/4s in this example) are usually far more bearable to players who are just approaching Hard difficulties.
I believe that giving a set frequency for the number of doubles that can be used per beat would be better here. Doubles every 2/1 seems like a more reasonable cutoff than "only a chord in the beginning and/or the end".
Jack usage is discouraged. These can be too physically demanding for players of this level. Minijacks with ample rest time in between may be acceptable.
You should specify that you are referring to 1/4 jack usage. 1/2 jacks (90 BPM 1/4s in this example) are usually far more bearable to players who are just approaching Hard difficulties.
If Hard is the lowest difficulty of a beatmap set, it has to abide by these additional guidelines:
Chords within streams are discouraged. The density of these patterns is often too difficult for players of this skill level, especially when used on the lowest difficulty of a beatmap set. However, using a chord at the beginning/end of a stream is fine.
I believe that giving a set frequency for the number of doubles that can be used per beat would be better here. Doubles every 2/1 seems like a more reasonable cutoff than "only a chord in the beginning and/or the end".
Insane
Is this only referring to non-rolly streams? There are several maps that have very long 1/8 rolls that are permitted into the ranked section (e.g. Blue Dragon). If you're referring to non-rolly streams, do include that.
This does not align with the Hard guideline where 1/4 minijacks are practically not perimtted (barring minijacks that are very infrequent). A jumptrill is a very simple motion, and a minijack into a triple is not particularly difficult. I don't mind this rule personally, but it seems a bit odd to disallow minijacks like that when those patterns are only hard when they appear frequently.
This should be rephrased as "5-note split jumptrills". That said, I think that 9-note split jumptrills should be the maximum instead of 5. This one is a bit more contentious, though.
Avoid 1/8 streams lasting longer than 4 beats. Streams of this type of snap are hard to execute and should only be used if the song warrants it.
Is this only referring to non-rolly streams? There are several maps that have very long 1/8 rolls that are permitted into the ranked section (e.g. Blue Dragon). If you're referring to non-rolly streams, do include that.
Using jump trills of any kind that lead to a hand is discouraged. Unless a beatmap uses jacks frequently or other complex patterns frequently, this pattern is difficult to hit at a moderate to high speed. For 4K, this creates a mini jack that drastically increases the pattern difficulty. If a hand is really necessary, delete the note before it that would create the mini jack.
This does not align with the Hard guideline where 1/4 minijacks are practically not perimtted (barring minijacks that are very infrequent). A jumptrill is a very simple motion, and a minijack into a triple is not particularly difficult. I don't mind this rule personally, but it seems a bit odd to disallow minijacks like that when those patterns are only hard when they appear frequently.
Avoid more than 5 consecutive split jump trills. These are more physically exhausting than other patterns of similar density.
This should be rephrased as "5-note split jumptrills". That said, I think that 9-note split jumptrills should be the maximum instead of 5. This one is a bit more contentious, though.
Other things that I didn't list I didn't think they were issues, or I've never tried experimenting with (e.g. SVs).
Apologies if this was listed anywhere, but what is the goal of the new ranking criteria? I understand that the ranking criteria is supposed to be something like "minimum requirements" for maps, and the updated ranking criteria seems to have more specific rules on the minimum requirements for specific difficulties, but is there any other motive behind the updated ranking criteria?
For instance, there was a discussion on whether dump charting/mapping should be permitted, but there are several rules that go against this (e.g. the general LN length guideline and how each note must correlate to specific sounds). I'm personally ambivalent on the idea of allowing dumps, but I know that a fair section of the community is quite accepting of dump charting.
Besides that, are there any other goals or motives that the updated ranking criteria is set to accomplish? Again, I apologise if this has been mentioned before, but I haven't been in tune with the ranked section community or the ranking criteria because the circles that I'm in don't focus on the ranked section to begin with.