The fourth rule we wrote for Sadak Fury was payback and personality: rivals have names, and they remember what you did to them. This post introduces the riders you'll meet on the road, and the system that makes them remember.
The riders
The riders come from all over India. We wrote them as people you might meet at a highway dhaba, not as costumes from a state: a courier, a cricket bowler turned internet star, an ex-police cadet. Most of them carry a weapon, and each has one small perk that helps when you ride as them.
- Arjun is you, the new kid. He grew up in his uncle's garage watching Vikram win on a tiny TV, and he starts on a borrowed 150cc. His perk is extra XP from every race.
- Vikram is the champion and boss of the Black Gold crew, nine years on top. He carries a police lathi and is a little better at everything.
- Raghav is the brute with the cycle chain. His weapons last longer before they break.
- Meera is the clean racer. She rarely fights, and her nitro refills faster.
- Tony is the showman with the cricket bat, and he films every crash. His kicks shove bikes further.
- Rhea is the retro rider with the umbrella, and it blinds riders twice as often.
- Fathima is the hot-tempered pro. Her wanted level rises more slowly.
- Kabir is the courier with the iron rod. He has extra stamina, so he takes one more hit before he falls.
- Ananya is the tech kid who steals weapons. She has extra grip in sharp bends.
- Gurjot is the highway rider with the hockey stick, in his dastar and goggles. He never hits first and always hits back, and his stick hooks handlebars more often.
Perks only apply to the rider you choose, and they're switched off in Wi-Fi races, so friends always race on equal terms.
Grudges: they remember
Every rival has a feeling about you, from −3 (sworn enemy) to +3 (best friend). It moves at most one step a race. Knocking someone off or stealing their weapon costs you a step. Avenging them, by knocking off whoever just knocked them off, earns one.
Some riders start with an opinion. Rhea already likes you quite a bit. Vikram already doesn't.
At −3, a rival hunts you. "RAGHAV IS HUNTING YOU!" appears, he comes after you in every race, and he challenges you to a grudge duel: one on one, on a sprint through his home state. Finish ahead of him to win; knock him off three times and he's out. Win, and he rides for you, and you can race as him.
At +3, a rival becomes a friend. Friends never attack you, give you tips, and join your riders.
The dhaba: tips, chai and taunts
Between races, the career hub is Sethji's dhaba, a roadside eatery that somehow stands on every highway in India. Two or three riders sit at the table, and you can TALK to them:
- Ask for a tip. Free, unless he hates you.
- Buy a chai. It warms a rival up a little. Once a day per rider.
- Taunt. It makes things worse, but if you knock off the rider you taunted in the next race, you collect a bonus.
- Challenge, when a grudge duel is open. Hear their story, and ride as them once they're on your side.
There's one limit: talking alone can never push a feeling past +2 or −2. Real friendships and real feuds are made on the road.
Every rider has a story
Sadak Fury tells its story in short painted comics that play between races, never in the middle of one. Every rider has an origin comic, and some share stories with each other. Some are funny and some are about old scores. You can skip any strip and replay it later from your rap sheet. We won't spoil any of them here.
Notes from the workshop
- "TALK did nothing." In the first version you could tap a rider and nothing happened. Now every rider has real conversations.
- Chai farming. Testing showed you could buy chai and taunt over and over, to make friends or open duels on demand. That's why talking is capped at ±2.
- One language for everyone. We first wrote taunts in mixed Hindi and English. For players everywhere, the lines are now plain English, but we kept the single words that give them their flavour, like bhai, beta and oye.
- Gurjot. He was added after a simple request in a playtest: add a sardarji character, a good one. He's a former hockey star with a strong sense of fairness and a very good hook.
Next up in the devlog: how fights actually work. You can also see every rider's card on the home page.
