The 5 second penalty.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Darth Vader
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I didn't do very many of the rally events or the driving missions, and the ones that I did do were easy anyway. Yet, even with my limited experience with it (it hasn't cost me a race yet...), I can say one thing - it's damn annoying. Getting a penalty for bouncing off walls is not a bad idea, but getting a penalty because you bump the AI car that cut you off? What's that all about?
 
You can still ride the corners and not get a penalty, I do it all the time to catch up for all the penaltys for hitting the other car trying to pass even though I almost always try to pass cleanly. It doesnt work every corner though.
 
I hate it when you get hit from behind and then get a penalty, but you can't blame the game if you're at fault. But I have found a quick way out of it (and apologies if this has been mentioned before now): you'll only get the penalty if you're accelerating when you hit. Happened to me purely by accident on Chamonix, I get terminal understeer on the first corner each lap. First time I fought it and hit the wall to get the penalty, but second time I backed off on the accelerator and only got the motion blur. I experimented elsewhere in Arcade and have found that if you back off, you won't get the penalty (unless another car hits you).

Also, the penalty isn't too bad in some places - Amalfi and Citta di Aria come to mind - because it limits your speed and on the tight corners it actually helps. It's also good in the bottom section of both Cathedral Rocks circuits (the two hairpins).
 
I don't mind it when I'm using a car much more powerful (Outdo the AI by 100Hp+), but when my car is just as equal, it pisses me off.

The 5 second penalty is good sometimes to help the AI, but when hits you and drives away (D*mn Delta HF), that's wrong.

I wonder how many controllers have fallen to the 5 second penalty.
 
I found that when the car hits you, if it is behind you, or less than halfway up your car when it is alongside, that even when it hits you hard, you won't get a penalty.

If it is ahead of you, or neck-and-neck, and then even if it hits you, you might get a penalty.

I also have to agree that it is THE most annoying thing that they put in GT4. I have been avoiding the rally races, frankly, because it was annoying me so much!
 
I think penalties are actually good, it helps people not to cheat in the game. But yes i have gotten hit by the AI. Especially when u are doing really good in a Mission and right at the last turn before the straight or w/e u get hit by an AI. Good thing im done with all that stuff but yeah it pisses u off when it does happen right. Seems like AIs have feelings too.
 
I love the way FOrza applies penalities ... it's a time displayed in the top right corner that is then applied to your lap time at the end ... off track excusion? The little red clock starts to rack up the seconds, so you have nothing to gain by cutting corners and the likes.

In GT4 the penalty is somewhat unrealistic in so much that you wouldn't be able to slow a car for 5 seconds in the middle of a race in real life ... a warning, a forced pitstop perhaps (which IS in the game), but an arbitary 5 second "you must start driving slow" penalty lacks imagination and is uncharacteristic of the PD team, who are normally very thoughtful in their game design. This is just extremely slapdash.

It's worse during the rally because, let's face it, when's the last time you saw two rally cars racing on the same track at the same time (and I'm not talking anout a cross over and starting at opposite ends) ... rally cars just don't do that ... they're in a 1-car 1-track time trial, something the game could have emulated EASILY ... but instead PD decided to change this, which was a mistake, and then add a very stupid penalty system.

The two collide into a very frustrating and silly game mechanism.
 
Xcuz
foeza rocks a lot!did you already play enthusia?very very good!!!!!
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Personally, no, no I haven't ... all my time is spent on GT4 and - sometimes - Forza. I have heard mixed reporting regarding Enthusia.
 
i´ve read some critics and it sound very good.i´ve played it in the shopping and i really loved it but i need po purchase it to know!till then gt really is the best ever....
 
I know, life isn't fair now is it? We always get the 5 second penalties when we don't need them. As for me I can't stand the 5 sec. penalties. :yuck:
 
ErikGT4
I found that when the car hits you, if it is behind you, or less than halfway up your car when it is alongside, that even when it hits you hard, you won't get a penalty.
If it is ahead of you, or neck-and-neck, and then even if it hits you, you might get a penalty.

I also have to agree that it is THE most annoying thing that they put in GT4. I have been avoiding the rally races, frankly, because it was annoying me so much!
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You're lucky. Most of my penalties come from being rear-ended when slowing down earlier than the other car.
 
My favorite reaction to the penalty when it's the lame AI that causes it is to go to the Citta' D'Aria, and slam the AI into a nice blind corner.

I get the 5 secs, but the AI gets stuck there for 15-20 secs - payback!

I know, it's silly, but it relieves my frustration at the bad programming.
 

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