Odessa Keys advice sought...

Hello, fellow wipers!
Does anyone have any good tips regarding that last damned right turn just before the pit lane on the Odessa Keys track? I can't seem to finesse that one. I can't find the line to power through it at full speed (if there is one), and when I use the air brake, I always just smack up onto the wall only to watch about 3 ships blow past me.

The best I've been able to do on that track is 3rd, and that took me many, many races.

Any advice would be helpful. (I'm racing a Feisar on that track for the turning ratio)

Thanks,
C.

i know what it means and feels using the FEISAR, but speed IS everything! try another craft.

i used to slow down before the last sharp corner and additionally using the airbrake, but sometimes its even the better case just turning your craft and to hit the wall (not too heavy). on the other hand you may try to use the pitlane for smoothing down the corner sharpness (so you dont have to turn that hard).

originally i dont have wise hints - i just did it (and still do it) with a QIREX and later on with the hungry flying fish :P

How the hell do you take that corner at Rapier speed with a Qirex? That thing turns like a river barge! :roll:

I tried the track with the AG ship, but it got even harder! That track has some diabolical touches, like that tiny little jog in the left-side wall after making the first tunnel left (just before shooting straight up to that really tight right into the checkpoint). I've had that little edge stop me dead...

I haven't unlocked the Pirhana yet (obviously, since I haven't beaten either track in Rapier class!), so unfortunately I don't have the fishy option.

I'll keep playing with the other ships...

c.

well - i never said that im making perfect laps at all with a QIREX, but at least i unlocked everything with it. perfect laps (hitting nothing - even not your enemies) are only available to me with a FEISAR on SAGARMATHA at RAPIER (because i used to play this scene quite a lot before i got the full game).

it can be made - just dont stop to try. i think there was also somebody out there who used to unlock everything with FEISAR only...

Hey, that's okay - I was just in awe of your ability to race that big tub! I was using the Feisar at first but it seemed a bit too squirrelly, so I switched to the AG ship. Then I couldn't beat Valparaiso. Tried and tried, but when I switched back to the Feisar, suddenly I could do it. Since then, I've just stuck with the Feisar. Now that I am used to the tight handling, it's no problem.

But thus far, bronze is the best I can do on Odessa, so I guess I'll have to learn some new ships! By the way, I race with weapons off. Maybe this is a mistake. I know I'll be screwed when it comes time for the challenge, as you have to use weapons then. I'm sure weapons will change the whole dynamic of Odessa.

And yes, so far my only "perfect laps" (no collisions) are on Sagarmatha.

Hmmm... time to do some flying!

c.

Well, you were right - I flew the Qirex and, though it was like being the ball in a pinball machine, I managed to score a bronze! Actually, in the second race I was about to finish first, when I was bumped from behind right into the jog in the wall just before the finish line! Both of the other ships blew past me at the last second...

Oh well, at least now I know I can do it... just have to keep trying! I have this sort of brute force technique of throwing myself into fishtail skids at the corners... pretty silly to watch, but reasonably effective.

Thanks for the advice!

c.

off the jump before the turn, pull back on the pitch and go off the track to the left. come back on in the pit. while you are off the track the game physics will keep you in the air, but beware the wuss wagon. This takes a little practice, but then you can use qirex without worrying about that turn.

cool i'm gonna try that!

i used to have a lot of probs with that turn too. the way i did it was to slam on both brakes before i gut to the turn then hold the right brake and puch the nose down so tha back of the ship moves more than the front as you go round.

BTW that works for most of the sharp corners on wipeout 2097/XL, push forward on the sharp turns, back on the wide ones... mostly. just experiment with pushing the nose up and down as you turn.

Thanks! I am wortking on this technique, although I fly from a keyboard, so I'm having a little trouble mastering this. Still haven't sussed out that aerial pit jump, though...

:-?

c.

Well, it's getting better... I can score a bronze on Odessa Keys fairly consistently now, and I have won silver 4 times! This is using the Qirex. With the combination of dropping the nose and some well-timed airbraking, I can manage those turns much better now. Every now and then I hit one perfectly... it feels good!

I also turned the weapons on, to see how much it changed the dynamic, and I still managed to score a bronze. I guess I'd better play with the weapons on from now on, just to be ready for the first Arcade Challenge. Actually, the weapons can make things pretty hilarious at times... and it sure feels good to get a missile lock on some arrogant frontrunner!

Thanks to everyone for all the good advice - it has really helped!

:wink:
c.

Woohoo!!!!! I did it! I'm now in the 1st Arcade Challenge... it must have been all the good vibes from my fellow wipers regarding the icons... whatever it was, I took a break from working on them just now and managed to rapidly score gold in both Rapier circuits!

Practice makes perfect! (and a well-timed autopilot pickup helps, too!)

:lol:

c.

didn't get a cut movie, though... :-?

You know, I was reading the main site headline about the Mega Mall challenge and how much you can improve your skills... it is so true! I remember when I first tried to fly the Qirex and I thought "My god, it's like racing a school bus!". I had no idea how I would ever win a race with it.

It made me remember when a friend of mine and I happened across a sports show on tv... they were doing these jumps in the water with JetSkis. My friend thought it was really pathetic. He said "This is so stupid. It's like jumping station wagons." :wink:

Tonight I was racing the Qirex on Gare De Europa, and every so often - swoosh, a perfect turn, a slick overtake, a clever dodge. Fantastic! Who'd have thought you could fly the thing that way? And the speed in Rapier when you hit the curves and straights just right - damnit, this is one exhilarating game!!

Stoked! :D

c.

Ok, I usually play with the Pirhana Team at Phantom Class, but AG has similar characteristics (obviously it's far less good...), so try with it. I do it this way:
I fly on the righ, then i turn left and i use the RIGHT airbrake, then i immediatly turn right and i take the pit lane. note that you only have to touch the airbrake; if it works with Pirhana it should also with AG. (sometimes i collidde with the wall, but not to hard, so it's acceptable...)

I'll give this technique a shot. I'm flying the Qirex pretty exclusively now... I am working on the first challenge, all the first 6 tracks at Rapier speed... I can win each one fairly consistently except Phenitia Park, for some reason... who would have thought that track would give more trouble than, say, Gare de Europa?

:-)

thanks for the tip!

c.