Talk:Mario Kart Wii item probability distributions

I don't like the way you made the boards

Since you put the rankings vertically and the items horizontally, why didn't you do it in MKDS and MKW item probability distributions? Gold Luigi (talk) 08:32, 8 March 2017 (EST)

It was an absolutely deliberate choice: MKDS and MKW use the very same format, in which each column is an item probability distribution. In MK7 and MK8, on the other hand, each row is an item probability distribution. Keep in mind that these data are binary data often directly loaded in RAM, to the point that in the case of MKDS I could discover the item of each row using the action replay codes. The idea is directly represent these data, adding appropriate headers. When the source is not binary data, I prefer the item probability distributions organized in rows.--Mister Wu (talk) 13:02, 8 March 2017 (EST)

Ah, I see now. Are you going to add the other distributions (Frantic and Basic item stributions in MKW and item distributions on vehicles with other item statistics in MKDS)? And yes, I don't know the American name for Frantic and Basic item modes in MKW. But I don't really care about them. Gold Luigi (talk) 16:06, 8 March 2017 (EST)

I'm sorry if what I wrote here and on MKDS' page wasn't clear. In the file there is only one set of probability tables for the standard case, as far as I know the other cases are not coded like this - they are directly obtained from these same values using an unknown method. MK7 and MK8 have every case covered by a probability table, but both MKDS and MKW only contain one set of tables for the standard case.--Mister Wu (talk) 22:57, 8 March 2017 (EST)

Ah, I see now. Also, why did you put the "Special cases" table before the "Battles" table? Gold Luigi (talk) 11:32, 9 March 2017 (EST)

That's because the file is ordered like that. MKDS, MKW and MK8 have the tables in a specific order in a single file, MK7 has each table contained in a separate file. I have yet to order the MK8 tables, if you want to reorder some of the in-game data tables, feel free to reorder the MK7 tables (this includes the stats tables).--Mister Wu (talk) 14:06, 9 March 2017 (EST)

What do the numbers in the tables mean?

The person who wrote this wasn't exactly the most descriptive. So in "Grand Prix, driver by human," would the number 50 in Bullet Bill's row be interpreted as "50% chance that you will receive the Bill"?
— The preceding unsigned comment was added by Walle637 (talk).

"The probability is coded as percentage multiplied by two." I'm not 100% sure I know what that means, but I'm 200% sure that's your answer. I think that means 50 is the number in the code, so that would equal to a 100% chance of getting the item in 12th place. 21:08, 22 July 2018 (EDT)

Each probability in percentage is multiplied by two and then put into that table. Every column has a sum of 200. They used this system since Mario Kart DS.--Mister Wu (talk) 07:09, 23 July 2018 (EDT)

Oh, multiplied and then put into the chart. That makes a bit more sense, since having both the Bullet Bill and Golden Mushroom have a 100% rate of showing up would be conflicting :P 10:37, 23 July 2018 (EDT)

To clarify why it makes sense to just report these number and not adding the probability as percentage: when some items are unavailable - a typical case being Lightning that cannot be obtained immediately after a player has obtained it - the probability of each item is recalculated by dividing the number associated to the item by the sum of the numbers of the available items in the column, which at this point might be lower than 200. The probability is therefore varaible during the race, while these numbers stay the same.--Mister Wu (talk) 16:01, 23 July 2018 (EDT)

Incorrect

I have received POW blocks and Golden Mushrooms in battles (in fact, only bullet bills are unreceivable), so therefore the 0% probability is incorrect. And no, I didn’t pull them out of the game’s files. I got them LEGIT. However, this cannot be edited, at least by me. SupraMayro (talk) 20:35, 2 February 2019 (EST)

Do you have proof? Doomhiker (talk) 20:41, 2 February 2019

POW Blocks can be had in Coin Runners, same for Golden Mushrooms, you can see it in the Coin Runners tables. It's Balloon Battles that miss them, not Battle Mode as a whole.--Mister Wu (talk) 08:43, 3 February 2019 (EST)

"Aggressive"/"Strategic" effect on distribution?

Can't find this anywhere. It seems that data miners have overlooked this mechanic, probably because it's not relevant to singleplayer. Quantitatively, what do the alternative modes actually do?

It's not overlooked, it's simply absent from the tables altogether. The changes are not found in the probability files, but rather applied directly by the game when it runs. Only an inspection of the RAM when the game is running or of the game's code might shed light on how it works.--Mister Wu (talk) 07:52, October 14, 2021 (EDT)