Just how hard does it get?

[ZenDJiNN]

I'm still on the Vector stuff (Unlocked the Beta bits) and whatever ship i chose i end up being HEAPS slower than the rest of the competition! .... OK, i know i've got a lot to learn and there's a way to go..... Months & months possibly, but this is the first level!! I'm struggling here..... Heehee..... It took me a solid 2 hours of play to get a GOLD on the 2nd Beta Track (Sorry, can't remember the names yet).

Is it always going to be like this or does it get a LOT harder & MUCH MORE frustrating! Go on.... you can tell me..... i can take it!

Great fun though...... Shame you can't take pics of the race etc as you can in Pulse... that would be really cool.

[Dr. Angryman]

It will get harder, sadly.... But if you practice hard enough, you'll might actually find the higher classes more fun!

[Task]

The AI are only that difficult for the first lap. As long as you can keep off the walls, passing them should be easy after that. The weapons firestorm of that first lap is tough to survive though. So you'll have to improve both your piloting skills and your weapon-absorbing skills at the same time. Singe Race is definitely the way to go though, so you're on the right path. Be sure to run the Tournament as soon as you've got gold on all the tracks for that set. I would suggest high-shield ships only for Tournament play.

Phantom is at least 10x more difficult than Vector.

It's a long road, but you'll get there.

[ZenDJiNN]

It will get harder, sadly.... But if you practice hard enough, you'll might actually find the higher classes more fun!

I thought that would probably be the case... But hey, persistence is the key right?

What i'm doing at the moment is doing mainly single races & working towards winning those to get Golds, then moving onto the next race/track once that's achieved. Seems to be working, and after about 2 hours of intense "Blowing Uppery!" this morning, i finally WON the race!! Hurrah.....

The AI are only that difficult for the first lap. As long as you can keep off the walls, passing them should be easy after that. The weapons firestorm of that first lap is tough to survive though. So you'll have to improve both your piloting skills and your weapon-absorbing skills at the same time. Singe Race is definitely the way to go though, so you're on the right path. Be sure to run the Tournament as soon as you've got gold on all the tracks for that set. I would suggest high-shield ships only for Tournament play.

Phantom is at least 10x more difficult than Vector.

It's a long road, but you'll get there.

I most certainly will! Heehee..... thanks for the info. I did actually (finally) win the race that i was talking/asking about, so i know that it can be achieved. What got me was the fact that even at this level, things are so quite fast & furious (Ar they seem to be from my beginners perspective).

The weird thing is, i've played some other single races on other tracks & actually got good results even when i've only raced on the track once or twice, so maybe it's also down to the fact that the tracks etc differ quite a bit.

I'm also finding that different ships react differently in different environments/track settings etc. I tried a number of different ships on this track, but they all perforned like slow & cumbersome hunks of metal (or should that be "Poly Plastic" or "Neo Fibrous Material" or something?).... So in the end i went for the one that i've used the most (Qirex) which, in the end, worked!! HURRAH!!

I would like to say thanks to yourself & Dr. Angryman (& the other people on this fine forum) for al of your help & insight. It really makes a difference to a rookie.

[zargz]

If you find a specific track extra difficult, try racing it in Time Trial
till you learn where the speed-pads are and how to take the hard corners.
that way you'll find the best/fastest line!

[phl0w]

I tried a number of different ships on this track, but they all perforned like slow & cumbersome hunks of metal

That's just a sign that you are not used to WipEout's racing physics.
Contrary to some that find time trailing the way to go first, to get familiar with track design, I think, especially for one who's new to the W'O" series that racing is the key. Sure, TTs are great if you want to memorize new tracks- and there are Golds awarded too afterall, but I guess you'll get bored soon. Not being able to win on Vector and Venom is not a result of your not knowing the tracks (because there's plenty of time to correct your line through corners), but most of all your problems with the game's mechanics. Different ship classes (light, medium, heavy) require different controls, thus sticking to one ship is usually beneficial to getting familiar with the game. What I think works best at the beginning are just 2 things really:
*) Use advanced controls! I don't know why that's possible in Pure but not being able to operate airbrakes seperately is more obstructive than it's beneficial for newcomers. Which leads to the next tip:
*) Since Venom is so slow, try to corner without the use of your d-pad/ nub (which you only use for the occasional overtake manoeuvre and correcting your line on straights ). Two reasons: For one it's a perfect practice for faster classes and you're not that dependent from ships' handling stats. And secondly, you get a feel for the tracks' camber angles which have a huge impact on your cornering and will eventually expel your reliance on traditional steering

I hope this helps and don't forget that the slower classes are there to get a feel for the game. The game is balanced in that it don't gets much harder, just faster (in fact, Gold times on Phantom are the easiest). Of course you wouldn't be able to clear a single turn on Phantom at your current skill level, but that's not the point. Don't look ahead too far but do the classes properly and diligently and you'll progress alongside the game.

[ZenDJiNN]

If you find a specific track extra difficult, try racing it in Time Trial
till you learn where the speed-pads are and how to take the hard corners.
that way you'll find the best/fastest line!

Thanks for the info zargz..... I find that i'm realy getting into the "Time Trial" & "Free Play" as a way to get used to the circuits & also the ships & manouveres etc. Finding the right line is quite tricky at the moment but i'm sure that it will improve the more that i play.....

[Mark Of Insanity]

When I wanted to do a track better I just raced 20-30 laps of it on the highest speed class available in free play - that got me through fine. Works differently for different people though, I think.

[zargz]

*) Since Venom is so slow, try to corner without the use of your d-pad/ nub ..

what do you mean?
turn with the air-breaks?
I saw arno talk about that but wasn't that only for the fast classes?

[phl0w]

but wasn't that only for the fast classes

I tried and raced all SR on Venom only using airbrakes and did fine. Of course you'll lose more velocity that way, but it's a fine way of practicing and getting the hang of the airbrakes for the faster classes where airbraking is essential. On Phantom though steering only using airbrakes would slow you down too much. That's when those handy side shifts come into play. But it's a long way for him to get there, so I focused on a proper way of practicing the airbrakes-only technique =)

[ZenDJiNN]

That's just a sign that you are not used to WipEout's racing physics (...) .
and you'll progress alongside the game.

Wow!! Thanks for that phl0w. There's a lot to take in there & i agree with everything that you're saying. I'm getting a much better feel for the whole thing just by doing single races at the moment, and i feel that i'm improving just by doing that alone.

I'm not 100% sure what you mean when you refer to the d-pad/ nub..... I was under the impression that i would use one or the other, not both in the same race.....

I've been trying to get a smoother "Racing Line" in every race that i've been in so far, and although i'm far from getting it spot on all the time, it's getting better, especially on tracks that i've done quite a few races on.

I think i know what you mean about the "Speed" thing as well. I've been playing "Quantum Redshift" on the xbox recently (It was that game, solely, that led me on the path to Wipeout) and what i've noticed on QR is that as you go up the levels, everything's the same but just faster. After reaching the Master levels, which, when i started i thought i would never reach, i then went back to the Novice sections and it felt like a crawl..... but the mechanics & the manouvering was still the same.

Thanks once again for the help.... it's very much appreciated & taken on-board (Excuse the pun!)

[phl0w]

I'm not 100% sure what you mean when you refer to the d-pad/ nub

See Zargz post.
What I meant was turning without the directional inputs (either d-pad or nub, whatever you use to race, therefore d-pad slash nub ), but relying on airbrakes alone.

EDIT: Oh, and is Quantum Redshift any good? Haven't had the chance to play it yet, only watched the demo on the JSRF/SegaGT DVD that came with my XBox back then. Looks good though.

[ZenDJiNN]

See Zargz post.
What I meant was turning without the directional inputs (either d-pad or nub, whatever you use to race, therefore d-pad slash nub ), but relying on airbrakes alone.

Aaahh, i see what you mean now. Using only the airbrakes for directional racing etc.... sounds like fun, i'll give that a go & see how i get on. It'll be interesting to say the least.

EDIT: Oh, and is Quantum Redshift any good? Haven't had the chance to play it yet, only watched the demo on the JSRF/SegaGT DVD that came with my XBox back then. Looks good though.

I'm not really qualified to say if it's good or not, mainly because i don't play many games at all (I'm new to it all in many ways) and i've only started in the last few weeks, with QR being the first game that's really grabbed my attention.

From my own beginners perspective (If it's helpful) i think it's a great game, and loads of fun. It's a bit corny in places (the storyline etc) but once you get past that it's OK. It's not a patch on Wipeout when it comes to Graphics and stuff, but if you have an old xbox lying around & you're looking for a decent game that's of an "AG" nature, then i think it's perfect. It's certainly taught me a lot in the short time that i've been playing it (Just a few weeks).