19/07/02 Gran Turismo Concept 2002 Tokyo-Geneva released in the UK
20/07/02 Started work on this faq
21/07/02 Added early details of pro races and secrets
23/07/02 Started to obtain gold license information
One thing you'll immediately notice about the license tests in GT-3 concept,
is that you are able to wander the grass and use the walls as much as you
like, without being penalised; this makes for some interesting shortcuts.
In the license tests, you are given the option whether to race with the pace
car or not. In my experience, the pace car just gets in your way and seriously
hinders your chance of getting a perfect lap time. However you may want to
watch the pace cars' braking points and preferred racing line if you're having
difficulty getting a gold medal.
Practise is the key to success here, you should find the bronze and silver
medals fairly simple to obtain, but as with previous GT games, getting the
golds is no easy feat.
After racing through each test, you are given the opportunity to race against
your ghost, which makes things soooo much easier.
test no.1
=========
Ahh! the Mercedes SL500, you may have seen this one holding up a large pack
of Formula one cars, with a set of sirens and flashing lights strapped to
the roof.
Brake just after the start of the rumble strip, and move over to the apex
early. Back on the throttle, and through the chicane as smooth as possible,
hitting all three rumble strips (these increase grip and 'pull' the car round
the corner without dropping off too much speed.)
Brake even earlier for the next right-hander, and pass through the
double-apex at a constant speed.
Continue round the left-hander carefully, sticking to the rumble strip; and
brake hard through the chicane for the tight left-hander.
You can nail the last uphill chicane no problem and take the gold...
test car Mercedes SL500
course Mid-field raceway
prize car(bronze) Pennzoil Zexel GT-R Skyline
prize car(gold) Honda NSX-R LM road edition
time required;
bronze medal 1'27.000
silver medal 1'30.000
gold medal 1'37.000
test no.2
=========
Cheating is the key to success here; the first two corners can be
'wall-ridden', leaving the rest of the course a pretty easy affair. Take the
smooth right-hander at a constant speed, not worrying if you push out to the
outside wall and clip the edge.. it hardly slows you down. Wall-ride the next
left; and hammer it down the straight and through the chicane. Take the
double-apex right carefully, and hit the gas again through the next section.
Brake early and gently for the narrow left, and get wide for the last hairpin
right. Razz it down the home straight; you should be able to knock 2 or 3
seconds off the gold requirement.
test car Ford GT40 LM
course Tokyo R246
prize car(bronze) HCD6
prize car(gold) Mazda 6 LM edition
time required;
bronze medal 1'36.000
silver medal 1'43.000
gold medal 1'50.000
test no.3
=========
test car Toyota RSC rally car
course Swiss alps
prize car(bronze) Lotus Elise type72
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal 1'24.000
silver medal 1'30.000
gold medal 1'37.000
test no.4
=========
test car Hyundai accent rally car
course Tahiti maze
prize car(bronze) FX45
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal 2'00.000
silver medal 2'06.000
gold medal 2'20.000
test no.5
=========
OK; I found this test a little tricky at first, but its easy when you know
how.. Brake early for the first corner and make sure you clip the apex.. the
thing to remember with the Elise is to try and keep sliding to a bare minimum.
Dab the brakes, and ease the analog stick round corners. Take the next one
at full speed and go over the grass on the right just into the chicane. This
way you can take the next left nice and wide, and at full throttle, carrying
a lot of speed into the next two easy right-handers. Brake nice and early
for the next tricky right, and use the rumble strips (as always)... they seem
to have an even greater effect on lighter cars such as the Elise.
Carefully tread the uphill left, and continue into the long smooth
right-hander. Again, use the rumble strips to pull the car round, now fly
at full speed through the next section, and over the line... nice.
test car Lotus Elise
course Autumn ring
prize car(bronze) Cien
prize car(gold) Nissan GT-R concept LM edition
time required;
bronze medal 1'31.000
silver medal 1'36.000
gold medal 1'42.000
test no.6
=========
The TT-R is a beauty to drive. To get that gold medal, brake early and nail
the first downhill chicane, trying to keep the car as stable as possible,
and brake hard for the tough right-hander, remember to try and use every
rumble strip on offer. Hammer it through the next S-bend, and cruise through
the medium right-hander. You can go at full throttle all the way now, until
the last left-hander. Turn in early to avoid disappointment; and cross the
line with a 1'13.000. Nice.
test car Abt Audi TT-R
course Mid-field raceway II
prize car(bronze) Toyota RSC
prize car(gold) Nissan mm-R
time required;
bronze medal 1'14.000
silver medal 1'18.000
gold medal 1'25.000
test no.7
=========
test car Honda NSX-R prototype
course Tokyo R246 II
prize car(bronze) Esso ultraflo Toyota Supra
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal 1'59.000
silver medal
gold medal
test no.8
=========
test car Ford Focus RS
course Swiss alps II
prize car(bronze) Abt Audi TT-R
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal
silver medal
gold medal
test no.9
=========
test car Mitsubishi CZ3 tarmac rally car
course Tahiti maze II
prize car(bronze) Daihatsu Copen
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal
silver medal
gold medal
test no.10
=========
test car Nissan GT-R concept
course Autumn ring II
prize car(bronze) Nissan skyline GT-R Vspec
prize car(gold)
time required;
bronze medal
silver medal
gold medal
Generally, these 10 races are pretty easy. Depending on what you choose for
your trusty vehicle, 5 similarly matched opponents will be thrown in the mix,
but they are all very slow and easy to beat;
All races consist of only two laps, but its best to complete them all before
attempting the professional level, as your garage will have some extra cars.
Select whatever car your heart desires and race! I don't think I need to say
any more here...
normal race 1
===============
course Mid-field raceway
distance total length 3597m
prize car Mini Cooper S
normal race 2
===============
course Tokyo R246
distance total length 5120m
prize car Honda NSX-R
normal race 3
===============
course Swiss alps
distance total length 3290m
prize car Ford Focus RS
normal race 4
===============
course Tahiti maze
distance total length 3555m
prize car Mobil 1 Honda NSX
normal race 5
===============
course Autumn ring
distance total length 3036m
prize car Honda V6 ima mid dualnote
normal race 6
===============
course Mid-field raceway II
distance total length 3597m
prize car Castrol Tom's Supra
normal race 7
===============
course Tokyo R246 II
distance total length 3290m
prize car Audi RS 6 saloon
normal race 8
===============
course Swiss alps II
distance total length 3290m
prize car Nissan 350Z GT aero
normal race 9
===============
course Tahiti maze II
distance total length 3555m
prize car Toyota Pod
normal race 10
================
course Autumn ring II
distance total length 3036m
prize car Hyundai CliX
PROFESSIONAL difficulty level
=============================
professional race 1
=====================
Now things are starting to get a little tricky... I found the best car for
this job to be the Suzuki GSX-R/4. You will be against 5 other GSX-Rs but
remember to slipstream and you'll keep up no problem. Don't be put off if
they storm away at the start, you can easily overtake them into corners. The
race is straightforward, just set yourself up for the last chicane by going
wide early, and nailing it at full throttle. Then hold L1 and fend second
place off; and over the line...
Once you have unlocked the Pennzoil nismo GT-R Skyline, then this is an even
better option...
car of choice Suzuki GSX-R/4
course Mid-field raceway
distance total length 3597m
prize car Spyken C8 Laviolette
professional race 2
=====================
The nismo is my car of choice for tokyo, as it has great straight line speed
and acceleration. If you have any difficulty, you can cheat by taking the
first corner round the outside wall at full throttle. Just hug the wall and
smoothly enter the bend, you'll gain a massive advantage over the pack each
time you tear away from this corner.
Learn the fast winding sections, as you can take these at full speed.
car of choice Pennzoil nismo GT-R Skyline
course Tokyo R246
distance total length 5120m
prize car Honda NSX-R LM edition
professional race 3
=====================
I find the rally events to be the easier of the professional level races.
Now I picked the GT Nissan Skyline GT-R Vspec for this, as it has a major
power advantage against any rally opponents you come across. As with all the
rally events you should power into corners and get the car sideways through
the apex, and re-adjust smoothly into the straights. Pressing the brake
whilst turning won't do you any favours here. The Swiss alps course has two
similar, nasty corners; both easy rights, followed by hard lefts. Try to get
as wide as possible on the right hand side, coming into the chicane; and ease
off the power slightly (DON'T BRAKE) and send the car past the apex sideways!
Be warned: the GT skyline will spin if not corrected early enough.. but its'
a great rally car to master.
car of choice GT Nissan Skyline GT-R Vspec
course Swiss alps
distance total length 3290m
prize car design Solstice
professional race 4
=====================
Again, choose the GT Skyline. These rally events are a doddle with this car;
turn in as early as possible to get the car sliding, and if its not sliding
enough tap the brake to push the back end out.
The only mistake you can make here is to over correct the car as it slides
out of control. Remember to steer full-lock into the slides, ready for the
next bend... great fun!
car of choice GT Nissan Skyline GT-R Vspec
course Tahiti maze
distance total length 3555m
prize car Ford GT40
professional race 5
=====================
I prefer the Calsonic Skyline over the Pennzoil nismo for this course, as
it has some great double-apex smooth corners and is much twistier than the
other two road circuits. The Calsonic seems to have better handling, and the
power difference shouldn't matter. Practise the smooth cornering, and
this'll be a breeze...
car of choice Calsonic Nissan Skyline
course Autumn ring
distance total length 3036m
prize car Mitsubishi cz-3 tarmac rally car
professional race 6
=====================
Remember your GT-3 special license? memories will come flooding back if you
choose the Pennxoil nismo (not zexel), and take to the midfield raceway. When
choosing a decent racing car, you are pit against a few skylines and NSXs,
all of which fall about 50 bhp short of the nismo's capabilities. With its'
straight line speed and acceleration, this skyline can blast around the
smooth straight circuit and easily stay ahead of the pack...
car of choice Pennzoil nismo GT-R Skyline
course Mid-field raceway II
distance total length 3597m
prize car Nissan GT-R concept
professional race 7
=====================
Here again, we have a very fast, and mostly straight course. The Pennzoil
nismo is again the obvious choice. It's easy to cheat here again by
'wall-riding' the last left-hander, and the smooth right-hander after
travelling under the fast section under foliage. Just hug the wall and hit
the gas full on... you should tear away from the pack each time you do this.
car of choice Pennzoil nismo GT-R Skyline
course Tokyo R246 II
distance total length 3290m
prize car Chrysler Crossfire
professional race 8
===============
Just use the 'super rally car' and follow the instructions for the forward
direction race! Its as easy as that!
car of choice GT Nissan Skyline GT-R Vspec
course Swiss alps II
distance total length 3290m
prize car Suzuki GSX-R/4
professional race 9
=====================
Again, just use the 'super rally car' and follow the instructions for the
forward direction race! Its as easy as that...
course Tahiti maze II
distance total length 3555m
prize car Mercedes AMG SL 55
professional race 10
======================
Why not try one of the racing Supras you should now have available. Their
tendency to oversteer works well with the twists of the autumn ring course.
Any one of the three should be sufficient. If you have problems, stick with
the Calsonic Nissan Skyline for top results. Finish first and a nice car
awaits...
car of choice Castrol Tom's Supra
course Autumn ring II
distance total length 3036m
prize car Volkswagen W12
ACE mode
========
Right then, you may find ace mode a tad challenging at first, but to make
life easier, get the gold license on the Autumn ring circuit, and jump in
the Nissan GT-R concept LM edition. Now this car is fun... I'm not going to
bother saying any more for the road races, apart from use this car and go
for it!
For the faster circuits (ie. Tokyo R246 and Mid-field raceway), set the spring
rate slightly harder; the tyres to soft (to help increase grip) and the gear
ratios higher (ie. to the left), increasing the top speed capabilities. On
the reverse, for Autumn ring: do the same for the shocks and tyres, but set
the gear ratios low, increasing acceleration.
Unfortunately, you cant' win cars for some reason.
Located at the bottom of the game status screen, are 4 'present' icons. These
hold the following:-
a) Japanese introduction movie
b) Normal ending credits movie
c) Transfer 10 million and license data to GT3
d) Pod race (for 1 or 2 players)
1. By completing all 10 license tests with a bronze or silver medal, you
will unlock the pod race. You can access this through the game status
screen.
2. Upon completion of all races in the normal level, i.e.. finishing first,
the Japanese intro movie will be unlocked; a very long and tedious affair
(!) Furthermore, if you have a GT-3 Aspec game save on your memory card, 10
million credits and the license data can be transferred over to this! Enjoy!
3. Complete professional level and you will be awarded with the normal
end-credits movie, can I just ask? Who the hell chose the music for this movie?
nice one Kenny G, cheers! You are also awarded the tough 'Ace' level; as the
screen tells you: hold L1 and R1 on the skill selection screen, and as if
by magic, it just appears!
Ace mode races consist of five laps this time, and the opponents are much
more skilful and aggressive.
The pod race is unfortunately way too easy, and there is no incentive for
winning. Get in front early, and run wide for the hairpins turning in early,
tapping the footbrake as you go. Don't be tempted to use the handbrake as
it just slows you down.
When stopping dead, use the footbrake first and hold the handbrake just as
you come to a standstill. Make sure you fully hold the handbrake until
prompted to continue;
This really is very easy....