Beginning Drivers: The Starting LineAdvice for people new to Project Gotham Racing® 3 on how to improve your racing skills, and suggestions to take you to the next level.
First Things FirstBy first, I’m talking about first gear. Optimize your control over corners and uncontrolled drifts by using the manual transmission option. Shifting gears manually not only allows for superior handling of your vehicle, it also improves your overall reflex and response times. Those who take the time to learn how to manual shift can virtually outstrip their opponents on the tarmac. Sure, you can get by shifting automatically, but why wait for the car’s transmission to do the work for you? You can downshift, and then quickly shift up in a fraction of a second that it takes an automatic transmission. Furthermore, you can really tackle those sharp curves and abrupt turns when you control the gears. To get the inside edge on downshifting, check out the article, “Downshifting: Dangerous Curves Ahead.”
In PGR 3, you don’t have to set your transmission preference for each and every car. You only have to adjust your Gears setting once and it applies to all of your present (and future) rides. However, the PGR 3 default setting is the Automatic transmission. To change your vehicles to the Manual option:
- On the Main menu, select the More menu, and then select the Options menu.
- On the Options menu, scroll down and select the General menu.
- On the General menu, scroll down, select the Gears option, and then use the Left stick to select Manual.
In addition to using the Manual gear option, you should also give the first person in-car view a test drive. Not only does this view allow you to get a real feel for the track, but some online races force you to use the host’s view to compete.
To change your camera view, push the LB button.
Getting StartedOnce you begin your Gotham Career, complete the Championships on the Novice levels to earn all of the Steel trophies. With each successive Championship, the tracks progress to more challenging pursuits as you advance each Championship series.
If you get frustrated and reach a plateau, start over with the first Championship race, but this time select the Easy level instead of the Novice level. Once you work your way back up to where you left off on the Steel trophies, you’ll find that you can easily beat the Novice track that previously hung you up. A word to the wise: don’t jump ahead and bypass the Steel trophies on the Novice level. Even if you are driving well enough to skip this phase, use the opportunity to find your personal style, build up confidence, and increase your Kudos-earning strategies. Besides, if for nothing else, you’ll want that All Steel Medals Badge.
Which Car?There are so many cars to choose from, it’s difficult to buy just one—so don’t! Buy lots of cars of varying class, difficulty, and ability. Truly talented drivers can handle any car an opponent throws your way and sets you apart from other drivers during online heats. If you always drive the Enzo Ferrari for all of your races, no doubt you’ll be an expert driver of that particular car. Don’t miss out on the experience of learning which cars handle the best for a particular race type or course. So, if you want to strut your stuff online, don’t put yourself in the position that you can only win if you’re driving your favorite ride. Why? If nothing else, some races lock to the host’s car preferences; with so many cars to choose from, chances are their favorite pick won’t be the same as yours
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