Should I really start GT4 AGAIN???

[Rikki GT-R]

Hello guys, I'm new to the forums.

I've been playing GT since the beginning and had always considered myself 'talented'... I had GT4 on release and completed it (after quite some time!). I sold my PS2 about a year ago and left it at that but digging through the loft a couple of months ago, I came across a copy of GT3 and got that urge to hit the track once more. So I bought myself a pre-owned PS2 and got cracking.

After a couple of weeks I decided that I was going to buy GT4 again and ordered it online. While I was waiting I decided to try playing the game with manual transmission (I had always used automatic - I kid you not). I was amazed at the difference it made - I flew through the license tests, collecting gold across the board, and the races seemed so much more exciting and realistic.

When GT4 came a week or so later, I intended on using manual from the start for a change and it was a completely different (much better!) game. I'm currently at 53.4% complete with 40 Gold, 40 Silver and no bronze in the licenses.

The thing is, since reading through these forums, I've noticed that you guys don't even seem to use driving aids (the majority of the time) - something I've never really thought about and just take for granted. But I feel as though I've been sort of 'cheating' as such things make the cars much easier to drive (and is therefore unrealistic).

Another thing that has annoyed me is that my race win percentage is only at about 75% - this is simply down to my idiot B-Spec driver continually losing simple races that I would otherwise win while dozing at the wheel (for what it's worth, my own TRUE win % without B-Spec would easily be over 95%)
I've been reading through the "maxing out B-Spec points" threads and that's something else giving me the incentive to start again.

Should I REALLY re-start the game and play through using manual gears and no driving aids? I'm at a point where I don't want to play on any further because my 53.4% has been achieved unrealistically. But then if I DO start again, I may lose heart completely.

What do you think? (sorry about the long OP!)

Rikki.

 

[Parnelli Bone]

Hello guys, I'm new to the forums.

welcome, sir.

I've been playing GT since the beginning and had always considered myself 'talented'... I had GT4 on release and completed it (after quite some time!). I sold my PS2 about a year ago and left it at that but digging through the loft a couple of months ago, I came across a copy of GT3 and got that urge to hit the track once more. So I bought myself a pre-owned PS2 and got cracking.

After a couple of weeks I decided that I was going to buy GT4 again and ordered it online. While I was waiting I decided to try playing the game with manual transmission (I had always used automatic - I kid you not). I was amazed at the difference it made - I flew through the license tests, collecting gold across the board, and the races seemed so much more exciting and realistic.

When GT4 came a week or so later, I intended on using manual from the start for a change and it was a completely different (much better!) game. I'm currently at 53.4% complete with 40 Gold, 40 Silver and no bronze in the licenses.

OH yes, ABSOLUTELY. If you've never done the game with a manual, it'll be an entirely different experience for you so I would say try it again.

The thing is, since reading through these forums, I've noticed that you guys don't even seem to use driving aids (the majority of the time) - something I've never really thought about and just take for granted. But I feel as though I've been sort of 'cheating' as such things make the cars much easier to drive (and is therefore unrealistic).

Yet another reason to do the game over again.

Driving Aids actually make cornering/accelerating experiences more difficult. Once you get the hang of driving without these nanny-assists, you'll no-doubt find yourself getting better lap times, having more success with oversteer & drifting, etc.

Another thing that has annoyed me is that my race win percentage is only at about 75% - this is simply down to my idiot B-Spec driver continually losing simple races that I would otherwise win while dozing at the wheel (for what it's worth, my own TRUE win % without B-Spec would easily be over 95%)
I've been reading through the "maxing out B-Spec points" threads and that's something else giving me the incentive to start again.

FORGET about Bob. Do most of the driving yourself.

Bob comes in handy here and there....and I'll admit I get amused while watching a B-spec race, but you'll find (after awhile) that any race Bob can do, you should be able to do BETTER. 💡

Again, yet another reason to start GT4 over again....

Should I REALLY re-start the game and play through using manual gears and no driving aids?

Yes. I mean YES

I'm at a point where I don't want to play on any further because my 53.4% has been achieved unrealistically. But then if I DO start again, I may lose heart completely.

What do you think? (sorry about the long OP!)

Rikki.

Here's what I think. If you have some money, go get another memory card. This way, you can start an entirely new game from scratch without ruining the progress of your previous game. 💡 But if you don't have money to spare, just erase that previous game and start fresh.

Even the most lowly of races: Sunday Cup and such, come alive if you do them yourself, but make sure you don't overkill these lower races with too much power. You may find yourself getting quickly bored if you do. 💡

 

[Rikki GT-R]

OH yes, ABSOLUTELY. If you've never done the game with a manual, it'll be an entirely different experience for you so I would say try it again.

I'm not sure if you've misunderstood me, or I've misunderstood you

I AM using manual transmission, and have been since I started this current GT4 save. I was just saying that I thought I was now playing it 'properly' but it turns out I should really have turned off the driving aids as well.

As for B-Spec mode, I just want to max out those skills for the first time. As it turns out, I can do this solely in Family Cups so it won't ruin my 'real game' experience...

Thanks for the reply 👍

 

[Parnelli Bone]

I'm not sure if you've misunderstood me, or I've misunderstood you

I AM using manual transmission, and have been since I started this current GT4 save. I was just saying that I thought I was now playing it 'properly' but it turns out I should really have turned off the driving aids as well.

As for B-Spec mode, I just want to max out those skills for the first time. As it turns out, I can do this solely in Family Cups so it won't ruin my 'real game' experience...

Thanks for the reply 👍

I understood you, and I misunderstood you. I still say it's okay to start over, tho.

 

[Rikki GT-R]

I understood you, and I misunderstood you. I still say it's okay to start over, tho.

I deleted my save earlier, so I'm starting over
Played a few TT's to test out the driving without the TCS and ASM - really enjoyed it 👍

 

[Northstar]

Driving without assists is probably one of the harder things to get used to. But after you do it you won't be able to go back to assists.

 

[Parnelli Bone]

Justin has a point. For an absolute beginner, it might seem harder to drive without assists. But after awhile, they only stifle your development.

Those of us who started with GT1 have had an easier time of it since there are no assists in the first game, but GT1 doesn't allow quite as much wheelspin in the first place.

 

[Aremburgkerve]

Glad to hear you decided to start again! The great thing about GT4 is that you have so many career routes and cars to choose from, you're never going to have the same game twice!

I'll be honest, most of my cars still have TCS and ASM enabled (mainly because I forget to turn it off! ), and I'm 55% or so through the game, but I do use manual so I have that covered.

However, once I complete this save, I'm definitely going to create another, and have another go, without aids and continuing to use the manual transmision, and I'll see which route I go down! 👍

 

[Rikki GT-R]

One thing I have noticed is that there is no way of switching off TCS and ASM 'globally' (for all cars). I have to do it one by one

I'll just get into the habit of switching them off as soon as I climb into a different car - that should do it 👍

EDIT: I've just realised something quite horrifying. I had completed all missions on my previous save. Will have to go through them all again

 

[Aremburgkerve]

One thing I have noticed is that there is no way of switching off TCS and ASM 'globally' (for all cars). I have to do it one by one

I'll just get into the habit of switching them off as soon as I climb into a different car - that should do it 👍

EDIT: I've just realised something quite horrifying. I had completed all missions on my previous save. Will have to go through them all again

Yeah, that's why most of my cars still have it enabled! I'm just too lazy and I've never got into a habit of turning it off every time I get a new one!

And yes, you will need to do them all again! But cheer up, despite the frustration and agony at missing out on thousandths of seconds on particular missions, you've also got the elation and relief when you do finally complete them again! 👍

 

[mafia_boy]

The missions aren't really hard anyway if you're golding your licences.

For me, I got to 90% before I realised about turning the aids off......so I started again on a backup memory card and then did it all again. It's more difficult getting used to feeding the throttle on rather than smashing the button as I used to do when I started the game. This change however transformed how I drove in the game and I try to pass that on to anyone I see that has a GT4 copy at their house. It teaches you how to control the car and to master wheelspin, regardless of you using a DS2 or G25/DFP.

The reason I do that is because I have people that try to play GT4 and keep saying to me, "I can't drive this game, I want to do it NFS style" .......so what I do is create a couple of tuned rides I've memorised over time (GME R8 Clubby, my personal Spec-C drag/race tune), and rather than use the S3's I'd normally fit, I'd fit R3's or R5's and give them the controls and watched their faces light up and be happy with the game again as with the aids off and everything they discovered they could smoke them up off the line and go around corners better, etc.

Try it with the aids off, and discover the difference. 👍 Except for 1/4 mile racing, then TCS is a good thing.

 

[Rikki GT-R]

The missions aren't really hard anyway if you're golding your licences.

I've only ever had trouble with 2 missions; #23 (R34 Skylines) and #34. #34 is the final one and so the reason is obvious, but with #23, I think I'm handicapped by using the dual shock pad instead of the steering wheel. I think maintaining a perfect turn on the test course is imperative so as not to lose speed - something which is infuriatingly difficult to do with the analogue sticks.

I normally head straight for these 2 missions as soon as they are available to me - this way I can get the stress over and done with as quickly as possible

 

[mcsqueegy]

I've only ever had trouble with 2 missions; #23 (R34 Skylines) and #34. #34 is the final one and so the reason is obvious, but with #23, I think I'm handicapped by using the dual shock pad instead of the steering wheel. I think maintaining a perfect turn on the test course is imperative so as not to lose speed - something which is infuriatingly difficult to do with the analogue sticks.

I normally head straight for these 2 missions as soon as they are available to me - this way I can get the stress over and done with as quickly as possible

Mission 23 is a really annoying one, but the trick is to use the leapfrog effect. What I mean is that you use the draft to get past the other cars, then let them draft you back. And so on, and so on. Two important things to note: only use sixth gear if you have to, and NEVER EVER let go of the accelerator.

Here's a good video of it, from a member of this site:

 

[mafia_boy]

I did it with a DS2, so that's not your reason. The main thing is keeping the other cars WITH you and slipstreaming with eachother the whole way through UNTIL you get within 3 seconds of the lead Skyline...then you do one final slingshot from the air you get with those other 4 GT-R's, so give yourself some space behind the 5th place car without losing the slipstream to really wind her up and you'll catch that lead Skyline no sweat and then slipstream past the leader for the win. 👍

My main trick is this because it helps shave heaps of time off at the start of the race....to develop a run up at the start and as I come up to the group of 4 GT-R's I back off a bit and then hit the accelerator again to actually nudge one of the Skyline's ahead NASCAR style to get the slipstream train running but not to ram them and get the 5 second penalty, it does make it a lot harder. Keep allowing the others to slipstream past you and pass them back and keep that slipstream going, DON'T BLOCK THEM, that's how you lose time and won't catch the Yellow GT-R!!

It got frustrating to me because even knowing how to do it, it's getting the AI to co-operate with you to catch the other GT-R that makes it hard.

 

[EJRocky]

Well, I wouldn't say driving aids are unrealistic. TCS and ASM actually DO exist. But, yes, it's definitely better without.

And along with manual transmission, it is MUCH better.

By using aids, you're actually missing out on the experience of sports driving, in my opinion. Like, with driving aids, you're listening to an MP3 player. But without 'em, you're seeing the band live 👍

If you're drifting towards the outside of the corner, dab the brakes to put more weight on the front tyres, so they'll grip better, and pull you back in... if you oversteer, you have to wrestle it back into line... if you wanna have some fun, you can nail the throttle and hang that tail out!

So, yes, it is DEFINITELY worth it.

 

[dennisw]

Well, I wouldn't say driving aids are unrealistic. TCS and ASM actually DO exist. But, yes, it's definitely better without.

And along with manual transmission, it is MUCH better.

So, yes, it is DEFINITELY worth it.

I always do TCS on at the cars that have TCS in real life!
But i never have ASM on.

And, YES, manual transmissoin is much better.

And YES, it is worth it:tup:

 

[Rikki GT-R]

I'm so glad I started again.

I'm already in the habit of turning off the driving aids in each new car I get into - and I have to say I'm finding driving much easier this way. I just did the beginner hall's "FR Challenge" with a Mazda MX-5 1800, with only a supercharger added. I tried stock but couldn't even keep up with 5th place; even so, I was still awarded 100+ A-Spec points for each race. I'm drifting for the first time as well - Special Stage Route 5 was particularly fun. 👍

Hang on... I'm waffling when I should be driving. What are you doing reading this? Haven't you got races to win?

 

[Pescarolo/C60]

I got to 26% and got bored becuase I had loads of money and had B-SPEC'd loads of it, i no longer had to race different races to get money and then feel like I really earnt it like you do at the beggining so im starting again. 👍

 

[Rikki GT-R]

I've made a decision NOT to use B-Spec at all this time around. I've no idea HOW I'm going to complete the 24hr races though - I have a young family and can't really leave the PS2 running for days while I pause it here and there.

I'm sure I'll figure it out 👍

 

[PF]

I've made a decision NOT to use B-Spec at all this time around. I've no idea HOW I'm going to complete the 24hr races though - I have a young family and can't really leave the PS2 running for days while I pause it here and there.

I'm sure I'll figure it out 👍

There's enough to do in the game to keep you busy 'til then, surely. I know what you mean though, I have to fight for PS2 time with a ten year-old. No prizes for guessing who wins. When you need to do the long enduros, pack 'em off to their grandparents' for the weekend, that's my strategy. Try to send the wife as well (joking, sort of...).

 

[Radracing]

Mission 23 is a really annoying one, but the trick is to use the leapfrog effect. What I mean is that you use the draft to get past the other cars, then let them draft you back. And so on, and so on. Two important things to note: only use sixth gear if you have to, and NEVER EVER let go of the accelerator.

Here's a good video of it, from a member of this site:

Anyone have a video replay of the final mission with the McLaren Mercedes? I can seem to shave that last 2 seconds to past the last car.

 

[Austin343]

Try the Mission 34 thread in the Mission Halls & Driving Tests subforum nearer the top of the main GT4 page. By wading through the many pages of the thread, you will find some videos scattered throughout. Just make sure the person that took the video has the NTSC version!

 

[phone]

Yes, I amdoing this time no cheats.I am doing the licence test, mostly bronze and about 3or4 silvers so far.

 

[Rikki GT-R]

Up to 8% complete so far with all licenses achieved: 40 Gold, 40 Silver, 0 Bronze. Averaging about 100+ A-Spec points per race now which is good enough for me.
Bob Spec remains at zero which is where I fully intend on keeping it 👍

 

[Aremburgkerve]

Up to 8% complete so far with all licenses achieved: 40 Gold, 40 Silver, 0 Bronze. Averaging about 100+ A-Spec points per race now which is good enough for me.
Bob Spec remains at zero which is where I fully intend on keeping it 👍

Very nice going mate, keep that up. 40 Gold and 40 Silver is a great record, hopefully convert that for the full 80 soon enough.

Keep Bob in the garage, getting the tea, that's all he's good for!

 

[Rikki GT-R]

Really enjoying this save now. I'm at 33% complete. 48 Gold and 32 Silver.
B-Spec 0 - 0 - 0 - 0
So glad I decided to start again 👍

 

[NURBURGRINGKING]

Ive done it 3 times, so i would say yes.

 

[Parnelli Bone]

Ive done it 3 times, so i would say yes.

Good job reviving a thread which had been dead for four months now.

 

[the.hatter]

Good job reviving a thread which had been dead for four months now.

Ha! That happens.

Not to make you start over from scratch another time, but if you haven't played GT4 with a wheel - get one! The difference is night and day versus playing with the DS2.

And prices on the Logitech driving force Pro and GT have come down a lot so I would suggest one of those.