Anyone think the red number on gauge cluster makes the game too easy?
- Thread starter imzjustplayin
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- Parnelli_Bones
I don't think it makes the game too easy. Matter of fact, I think it makes it harder in a way.
I'm talking about for newbs. I think it's good for newbs but also bad. It's good because it gives newbs a sense of when they can safely start braking & downshifting, in a manner that teaches them so they consistently don't wind up going off-track. Newer players who know little about racing often don't have a sense of when to brake (especially). . But it's bad in a way because it is inaccurate. 👎 If you follow its instructions 100%, you'll wind up braking too early and downshifting into 1st gear when 2nd gear is better and carries more speed thru a corner. Know what I mean? As Trico Pro says, this is how the Ai (or B-spec) would drive your car...and they shouldn't be better drivers than we are.
If you went thru GT1 & 2 like I did, you get used to knowing what gear you should be in and when to brake. By the way, when the red number starts to blink, that is when it tells you to start braking. Anyways, in GT4 I paid no attention to the gear/brake indicator at first. Now, I can't help but notice it (if on a subliminal level) as I race, but I usually don't do what it's telling me to do at all.
Remember: to get GOLD in license tests, 95% of the time you should be ignoring the brake/gear indicator.
I'm talking about for newbs. I think it's good for newbs but also bad. It's good because it gives newbs a sense of when they can safely start braking & downshifting, in a manner that teaches them so they consistently don't wind up going off-track. Newer players who know little about racing often don't have a sense of when to brake (especially). . But it's bad in a way because it is inaccurate. 👎 If you follow its instructions 100%, you'll wind up braking too early and downshifting into 1st gear when 2nd gear is better and carries more speed thru a corner. Know what I mean? As Trico Pro says, this is how the Ai (or B-spec) would drive your car...and they shouldn't be better drivers than we are.
If you went thru GT1 & 2 like I did, you get used to knowing what gear you should be in and when to brake. By the way, when the red number starts to blink, that is when it tells you to start braking. Anyways, in GT4 I paid no attention to the gear/brake indicator at first. Now, I can't help but notice it (if on a subliminal level) as I race, but I usually don't do what it's telling me to do at all.
Remember: to get GOLD in license tests, 95% of the time you should be ignoring the brake/gear indicator.
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- GTP_Duke
Yes, but since 99% of all GT newbs brake wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy too late (and then complain that their car doesn't handle), it's OK that the indicator gets you in the habit of braking early. Once you're a solid driver, then you can start to nibble into the suggested brake points.
- 10,544
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- Parnelli_Bones
That's exactly what I was trying to say. It at least gives a pretty solid indication most of the time for when it's safe to start braking for newer players. Most newbs use automatic transmissions, so the actual gear # that flashes is usually irrelevant for these players.
I remember when I lived out west. Me and one of my friends would do races in GT2 all the time and he'd usually mess up those turns that show up after a long straight, since he had no clue about longer brake distances...We'd be racing side by side at Grand Valley for instance, and as we rolled down the straight into that first hairpin, I'd start going "brake...brake.."! just to teach him. I hated it when he wiped out ...that meant he'd get grumpy
and I'd have no one to race against for a few days! 
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- 232
I don't use it because it is wrong all the time.
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- Parnelli_Bones
hmm i never knew you can turn it off
but i dont really rely (sp?) on it anymore since i almost memorized much of the courses. and if you wanna go for a fast lap, you need to ignore it much of the times
I totally forgot you could turn it off. But to do so means you also turn off the g-meter at the bottom of the screen (the thing that shows your g-forces as you corner). I admit I'm addicted to the stupid g-meter.
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- 477
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- potatobreath
I like the instrument gauges in GT4; they look very professional compared to the previous GTs. I only use the red gearing guide only for the first few practice laps in an unfamiliar car or course. Afterwards, I find it useful to avoid AI cars when passing by out-braking.
mafia_boy
(Banned)
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- GTP_Mafiaboy
With the red gear teller, I've noticed something that can allow you to semi-train the game to change what it thinks to what you're doing.
Eg. Nurburgring....there's plenty of corners where it says do it in 2nd gear and you're in 3rd gear or it says 3rd gear but instead you're in 4th gear going through the corner 30kph more than it thinks you should be doing, still making the corner and then after say 3 to 5 laps depending on consistency, you'll see that the gear change actually slide across more to your liking.
And it works vice versa too. Tsukuba is a perfect example of where if your gearing is set up differently, you'll have it telling you 2nd at the 1st slow hairpin when you should be in 1st ready in your powerband to take off quickly.
Mafs!!
Eg. Nurburgring....there's plenty of corners where it says do it in 2nd gear and you're in 3rd gear or it says 3rd gear but instead you're in 4th gear going through the corner 30kph more than it thinks you should be doing, still making the corner and then after say 3 to 5 laps depending on consistency, you'll see that the gear change actually slide across more to your liking.
And it works vice versa too. Tsukuba is a perfect example of where if your gearing is set up differently, you'll have it telling you 2nd at the 1st slow hairpin when you should be in 1st ready in your powerband to take off quickly.
Mafs!!
- 24,120
- Midlantic Area
- GTP_Duke
The gear indicator does get adjusted if you change the tune of the car. However, I do NOT believe it adjusts to your driving style if you do not change the tuning and do multiple laps. I think what it's doing is adjusting to the tires' condition, which it does in both GT3 and GT4.
- 40,422
I dunno about that. I've run photomode laps (where tire wear isn't a factor) and have had it show different gear numbers over different laps. For example, if I take a turn in 3rd gear in the powerband and the light says I should be in 2nd, the next lap usually says that I should be in 3rd rather than the 2nd it originally displayed.
I've noticed this in GT3 in races where tire wear wasn't measured, as well.
mafia_boy
(Banned)
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Duke, I realise if you change the GEARING of the car that would be the case, but I was meaning with standard ratios and pretty much standard cars. The power of the car doesn't change what the ratios limit the speed to, but it can affect the handling of the car aswell by having those extra revs (or not if it's turboed).
Spec-C at Tsukuba would be the 1st car I can think of for that, especially last hairpin.Toronado......so it's not just me seeing the adjusting gears??
Mafs!!
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- Parnelli_Bones
Interesting. I also want to add: it doesn't change with license tests. I've done many many of these and the gear/brake indicator is pretty rock-solid run after run..then again, I'm usually not varying my racing lines too much.
That's a question, actually. Could it be you're taking different racing lines to avoid Ai (or something) and that could influence a variety of indications?
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- 3,212
Sorry I can't answer your question, Parnelli, but the gear-change sign assists the player to an extent. It doesn't always show the correct gear, as perhaps it is programmed for a 'conservative' driver, but even the notion of a blinking light to warn of a corner, especially a blind one, has actually helped me tremendously.
So, it makes the game EASIER, but for skilled drivers, it's just another flashing light that can distract.
So, it makes the game EASIER, but for skilled drivers, it's just another flashing light that can distract.
- 10,544
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- Parnelli_Bones
Yeah, that makes sense. Now that I've been reminded about turning this feature off, it turns out my racing in the last few days feels slightly less cluttered. 👍
4 years ago (or was it 5?
) when I was getting thru my first PS1 racing sim Ford Racing, I could have used an indicator for maybe that first week or so. I knew plenty about racing, driving lines, and braking points, but using them in a videogame setting was something I needed to get used to for sure! It woulda meant many many un-smacked walls..many many sandless driving adventures, many many safe ai passes I used to joke that whoever takes care of the grass & foliage on the side of the tracks in Ford Racing must have been ticked whenever I got behind the wheel!
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magburner
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mafia_boy
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- GTP_Mafiaboy
I'm going to do more research on this over the weekend.....I've entered this particular corner on Nurburgring that has multiple lines about 100 different ways and it ALWAYS is one gear lower than I need to be. Only problem is it takes nearly 4 minutes each time to get to with a worked road car. 👎 The Tsukuba one is an easier one to demonstrate as it's quicker to get to.
Mafs!!
