____ / ) / / ---/___ /----__---/---/------- / | / ) / / / / _/_____|__(___(_/___/___(___/_ / (_ / ______________________________________________________ __ / ) / / / ---/--------/__----__---/---/----__----__----__----__- / / ) / ) / / /___) / ) / ) /___) _(____/___/___/_(___(_/___/___(___ _/___/_(___/_(___ _ / (_ / ___ ___ ___ ___ |__ \ / _ \ / _ \ / _ \ ) | | | | | | | | | | | | | / / | | | | | | | | | | | | / /_ | |_| | | |_| | | |_| | |____| \___/ \___/ \___/ =============================================================================== Table of Contents =============================================================================== [INTRO] Introduction [MODES] Modes of Play [COURS] Course Guides [CARGD] Car Guide [SETUP] Car Setup [QUEST] Frequently Asked Questions [RECRD] Vinny's Records [VERSN] Version History [COPYR] Copyright [CONTC] Contact Information Navigation tip: Press Ctrl and F to bring down a search bar. Then type in the name of the section you're looking for - like [COURS] for the Course Guides. =============================================================================== Introduction [INTRO] =============================================================================== Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears! Why not quote Shakespeare for the introduction to an FAQ/Strategy Guide? This is my forty-sixth, and not one had opened with a line from "Julius Caesar." I have a lot of good memories playing Rally Challenge 2000 back when gas was cheap and property values were rising (way back in A.D. 2000). To be honest, though, this is not a very good game. The graphics are so blocky and fake - including the miniskirt-clad young ladies in France! I love the replay feature, though. I also like the music, both for the menu screens and the music that plays in the background during races. It seems to fit the game very well, and it certainly beats the terrible punk rock and Euro-pop you hear so frequently. There's a decent variety of sound effects, although they are compressed quite a bit. The controls are no different from most other N64 games, and the game mechanics feel pretty realistic. Unfortunately, after a lap or two, your tires often become so worn that some cars become impossible to control. And this brings us to the biggest flaw with this game: It's too difficult. Even with perfect driving, you can't win in Championship mode unless you use a manual transmission. Worse, there's no way to change the difficulty level. Your only hope is a GameShark code that eliminates tire wear and damage. Arcade mode is more winnable, but it's not as interesting. In order to save your game, you must use a Controller Pak. It really doesn't matter, though, since there's only one thing to unlock in the game. Otherwise, all you can save are your record times. One more annoyance is that many screens take several seconds to load (a long time by cartridge standards). The nine cars (which are real) and nine tracks (which are not) offer some degree of variety, and I like the blend of arcade play and simulation. Rally Challenge 2000 had a lot of potential, but it just doesn't hit the mark. Still, it might be a good way to spend a Saturday when you're snowed in and there's no football to watch. =============================================================================== Modes of Play [MODES] =============================================================================== ---Arcade--- Arcade play is like your typical late-90's Midway N64 racing game: Pick up and play, and don't worry about fine-tuning your car's setup to suit the intricacies of each course. You start the first race in ninth (last) place, but you work your way up the field over the course of three legs. You begin each leg in the position where you finished the last one. If you can pass three cars in each of the one-lap legs, you'll be on the pace to win the gold trophy. There are three races to choose from in Arcade mode, and each includes a more challenging mix of tracks. More importantly, on harder circuits you won't be allowed as much time between checkpoints. In Expert mode, it's easy to run out of time, which forces you to start over. In Arcade mode, the weather is always sunny and bright, and your car will never sustain damage by hitting a car or obstacle. Here's what races are included in each event, along with best car to use: Easy: Australia, Spain, Great Britain (Hyundai Coupe Evo II) Medium: Italy, Brazil, France (Nissan Almera Kit Car) Expert: Germany, Canada, U.S.A. (Proton Wira) Once you win the gold trophy in a class, you can press Right on the race selection screen to choose between regular and mirrored courses in Arcade Mode. Mirrored courses are the same as the regular ones, except all the right turns are now left-handers (and vice versa) - sort of like Mario Kart 64's mirror mode or the GameCube and Wii versions of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Nothing special happens if you win all the mirror events, though. ---Championship--- This is really tough. In Championship mode, you run a nine-race season where you earn points based on your finishing position after each race. If you have the most points at the conclusion of the season, you'll be the champion! Keep in mind you're not directly competing with the other cars; instead, you're trying to achieve a better time than them; all the cars start apart. For this reason, the opposing cars are little more than obstacles. Another unique feature of Championship mode is it's the only one that has damage and tire wear. Every time you touch the wall or slam into an opposing car, you'll suffer damage. Damage doesn't affect your car's paint job or body work, but it does reduce performance and handling and/or make your car veer to the side where the damage occurred. Worse, your tires wear out over time, so by the third lap, it's often like driving on ice. To have a ghost of a chance of finishing above last place, you'll have to set up your car properly for each race and use a manual transmission. In Championship mode, weather is random; some events are run at night or have rainy conditions. You can save your progress after each race if you have a Controller Pak, but it really doesn't take a long time to run through all the races. Select "Load" to load a saved game. ---Practice--- Practice mode lets you run a three-lap time trial at any course using the car and setup of your choice. You can even experiment with different weather conditions or race at night. This is a good way to experiment with different cars and settings to see what works best for you. Also, there's no possibility of damage or tire wear. ---VS. Race--- This only works if you have two or more controllers connected to your Nintendo 64. =============================================================================== Course Guides [COURS] =============================================================================== Unlike many of my F-1 guides, this section doesn't guide you through every corner and straightaway in the game. Instead, I focus on the hard parts and the best setup strategies. I recommend medium-soft tires and very soft suspension unless otherwise specified. ---Australia--- The Land Down Under has what is by far the simplest track in the game. Use mid- low gears, average tires, and one of the "gripper" cars. Unless you make a mistake, you should be able to run the entire event without needing to change gears (although you might want to downshift once right after the bog). ---Spain--- This course, which is shaped like an outline of the state of Texas, is split between city pavement and a tough, winding dirt road. The setting reminds me a little of the city of St. Augustine, Florida. On the paved sections, start outside on the 90-degree turns and veer inside midway through the corner. Select a medium gearbox for this course. ---Brazil--- While Brazil doesn't have many very sharp turns, the muddy surfaces make it tough to keep your car on the road. Worse yet, different parts of the track affect handling in different ways. You need a car that accelerates well, so on the setup screen, move the gear slider just a notch left of the H in "high." ---USA--- This canyon circuit is the longest track in the game. It also has what are perhaps the least impressive graphics in the game (at least in the daytime). You'll probably spend a lot of time in fifth gear here. Select a gear ratio between the center and the highest setting, and pick fairly soft tires. ---Italy--- The scenic Italian resort gives you the best opportunity of finishing on the podium if you foolishly persist in using the automatic transmission. Italy has the best road in the game, but unfortunately there's no runoff area for most of the track, so almost any mistakes will cause you to slam into the wall. Use a gear ratio slightly left of the center marker. ---Germany--- Germany has a challenging sequence of hairpins, but the lengthy straightaways allow you to achieve some very fast speeds. Select a gearbox just a notch higher than the center marker. A "grippy" car is needed to achieve a good time. ---Canada--- Canada's snowbanks provide the most difficult racing environment in Rally Challenge 2000. This is where the Proton Wira overcomes its lack of horsepower to truly dominate the race. Several hairpins require you to go into first gear (at least for "grippy" cars). Just before the final turn, stay left along the bumpy rock so you'll be in good position to make the final turn. Set your car up with very soft tires and an acceleration-based gearbox (but don't move the gear slider all the way to the edge). ---Great Britain--- Merry old England proves to be surprisingly difficult because of several tight corners and the low visibility. The music here reminds of Bowser's Castle from the first Super Mario Kart game. Stay away from the sandy curbs along the road; you can't get much grip when driving near them, especially when it's raining. Pick one of the "slippy" cars if you're in Practice mode, and use a gear ratio that's slightly oriented toward acceleration. ---France--- One of the more "neutral" tracks in the game. Move the gear slider near the H. France offers a little of everything, but there's nothing that's extraordinarily difficult. =============================================================================== Car Guide [CARGD] =============================================================================== This section is designed to highlight the differences between each car model available in the game. First let's take a look at the times required for each car to accelerate from a stop to 60, 120, and 160 miles per hour, respectively: 0-60 0-120 0-160 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V 1.60 5.57 13.86 Subara Impreza WRC 1.49 5.31 13.29 Toyota Corolla WRC 1.46 5.24 13.36 *Nissan Almera Kit Car 2.13 6.21 15.13 SEAT Cordoba WRC 1.43 5.27 13.52 *Skoda Octavia 2.53 6.81 16.43 *VW Golf GTI MK IV 2.31 6.51 16.09 Proton Wira 1.80 7.24 23.04 *Hyundai Coupe Evo II 2.60 7.08 17.30 For this experiment, I used slightly soft tires and suspension, moderately quick steering, average gear ratio, and automatic transmission while racing at the Australia course. I went to great lengths to ensure that each car used the EXACT same configuration during this test, which I repeated several times for each car. First, just because the Mitsubishi Lancer looks cool and is usually running at the front of the pack doesn't mean it's the best car for you. It was my favorite car when I was 11 years old, but further testing has shown it's not that great. And just because the Nissan Almera Kit Car is rarely selected by players of the male gender (the back side of the car is pink) doesn't mean it's a bad choice. For Championship mode, I recommend using the Nissan Almera Kit Car with a manual transmission. The Volkswagen Golf GTI MK IV is the second best; it handles a little better than the Nissan, but it doesn't accelerate as well. Pick the good-looking Skoda Octavia if you want speed. It's good for setting record times in Practice mode at some of the faster courses; namely, Australia. The Proton Wira is the best car for tracks with bad conditions and sharp corners. I think you'll find it works well at Canada. Otherwise, it's way too slow, since it has only five gears instead of six. The most important consideration: Four cars (the Nissan, Skoda, Volkswagen, and Hyundai) are marked with asterisks. Throughout this guide, these cars are referred to as being "grippy." You will notice that they feel markedly different from the other five cars. Try it and see. These cars tend to grip the road in corners instead of sliding. While you won't lose as much speed on gentler turns, you will have to slow down heavily for hairpins and sharp turns. These cars don't accelerate as well as the "slippy" models, but you'll find them to be much easier to control - and that's more important. =============================================================================== Car Setup [SETUP] =============================================================================== ---Tires--- This setting affects the kind of tire compounds your car runs. Softer tires provide significantly better handling but reduce top speed. Harder tires improve speed and acceleration but increase skidding or sliding in corners. In addition, softer tires wear out a little more quickly than hard tires. In general, I prefer using medium-soft tires for most courses. ---Steering--- Faster steering makes your car more responsive, but it doesn't really make it handle any better. You might want to increase it a little bit for slower tracks. Experiment with this setting to see what works best for your driving style. In general, however, this setting can safely ignored. ---Suspension--- By softening the suspension, you make your car much easier to control. Harder suspension might allow your car to make certain sharp turns at slightly higher speeds, which might be useful at Canada. However, I advise using the softest suspension at every course in the game. ---Gear Ratio--- The gearbox setting is easily the most important decision to make when setting up your car. Lower gears provide greater top speed while hurting acceleration. Higher gears allow you to get going faster, but your maximum speed won't be as high. Besides adjusting for the track, you may want to take into account your personal driving style and the car you've selected. Regardless, it's hardly ever a good idea to move the slider to the very end of either side for this setting. ---Other Stuff--- "Save" enables you to save your current car setup to one of four save slots. You might want to do this if you find a configuration that works particularly well at a certain track. Note that each save slot can only be loaded when using that particular car. "Load" loads a previously-saved car setup. Select "Standard" to move all sliders back to their default values. =============================================================================== Frequently Asked Questions [QUEST] =============================================================================== Q: What are the controls? A: The controls in this game aren't tough to figure out, but here they are anyway: Control Stick: Steer car A: Accelerate B: Brake R: Upshift (only if using a manual transmission) Z: Downshift (only if using a manual transmission) C buttons: Toggle between the regular camera angle and a difficult in-car cam START: Pause play If you really want to, you can change the controls under the Options menu. Note: There is no use in braking unless you're using a "gripper" car with an automatic transmission. Usually it's best to slow for sharp corners by letting your foot off the gas or by rapidly downshifting. Hard braking tends to cause you to lose control. Q: How can I get a better start off the line? A: Start holding the A button as the "2" appears on the screen. Just don't start revving too late (the opposite of most racing games). Q: How do I use a manual transmission? A: On the car selection screen, simply press Up or Down to toggle between manual and automatic transmission. Q: Is there any advantage to using a manual transmission? A: Most definitely. Selecting the manual transmission provides a generous boost to your car's acceleration and maximum speed. In addition, the ability to downshift rapidly makes many tight corners much easier, especially if you drive one of the "grippy" cars. The manual transmission is not without its drawbacks. For one thing, the constant shifting requires you to divert some of your attention away from steering and accelerating. Additionally, many players forget to (or can't) shift effectively. My recommendation is for beginning players to stick with the automatic transmission. As you become more skilled, try experimenting with manuals at easy courses like Australia. The best players will probably select the manual transmission most of the time. Q: When should I shift gears? A: Try to keep your engine going around 7,000 RPM. Once you reach 7,500 RPM, it's probably about time to upshift. Q: What's the fastest straight-line speed you've achieved? A: 191 MPH. Use a Skoda Octavia with manual transmission at Italy for your best chance of really tearing up the tarmac. Q: Can I change cars between races of a championship event? A: Not until you finish the championship or cancel it. You can't even change transmission types, although you can (of course) adjust your car setup. Q: Is it possible to get a perfect season in Championship mode? A: Yes. I've done it, getting a perfect 90 points. Nothing really special happens when you do, however. Q: Why does my car want to veer to the side even when I'm going straight? A: Your suspension is damaged unevenly. Most likely, though, it won't stay like that for long. Q: How can I change difficulty levels? A: You can't. Difficulty isn't adjustable in this game. Q: What other notes and tips do you have for the game? A: Here are some miscellaneous tips and random observations for Rally Challenge 2000: * Pay attention to your navigator. A yellow (medium) turn usually requires "grippy" cars to decelerate, and red (sharp) corners mean you will need to downshift or brake. * If you're driving a "grippy" car, you can intentionally hit a wall or another car immediately before a sharp turn to reduce your speed quickly. This is not recommended in Championship mode or if you're using a manual transmission. * In Championship mode, the top four cars are separated by a very close margin. The rest of the field is more widely spread out. * To see your best performances for each track, simply select "Options" and then "Record Time." These will be specific to the mode you're currently playing. * Most other options aren't very useful, unless you're playing on a monaural TV or if you find the background music or sound effects to be too quiet or too loud. You can also use "Options" to change the controller configuration. * The trophy presentation for Arcade Mode has a distinct 1970's feel to it, from the background music to the text that appears on the screen. * The ending credits are shown at the conclusion of every Arcade or Championship season. However, you can skip them by simply pressing A at any time. * Yes, the logo for the Proton automaker is a modified version of the moon and crescent, a symbol of Islam. The company is based in Malaysia, and its logo resembles the Malaysian flag. Nowadays, Proton uses a new logo that depicts the silhouette of a roaring tiger. Q: How often do you get e-mail about your walkthroughs? A: As you may know, my FAQ section occasionally includes a question about things unrelated to game play. The answer: About once every 7-12 days. Sometimes I get a flurry of messages; other times I might go a month without getting any mail. Most people who write to me are estimated to be between 10 and 30 years of age. About a quarter of them seem to be from people outside the United States; the rest are Americans. About a third of them seem to be female; the rest appear to be male. I have never received a threatening, abusive, or obscene message before, nor have I received unsolicited chain letters from people who have read my guide. Everything I've ever gotten from my readers has been a helpful tip or correction, a useful resource, or a question related to game play (which I always reply to, though not always promptly). =============================================================================== Vinny's Records [RECRD] =============================================================================== Feel free to send me an e-mail if you break one of these records; I might print your record in a future update of this guide. Please tell me the kind of car and transmission you used, and it would be nice if you could give me a general idea of the car setup you used. You can use any car or setup you want here. Emulator save states are OK, but no fair using a game-enhancement device. Check the Contact Information for more information. The time in the left column is the best lap time for a course; the right side shows my best cumulative time (if applicable). By the way, my Arcade record for Canada was run on the mirror course, and I turned off damage with a GameShark code when I broke the British Championship record. ---Arcade--- Australia 54.17 MT-Skoda Octavia Spain 1:00.68 AT-MT-VW Golf GTI MK IV Brazil 1:06.39 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car USA 1:09.33 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Italy 52.93 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Germany 59.21 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Canada* 1:03.04 AT-Proton Wira Great Britain 55.61 MT-Skoda Octavia France 59.28 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car ---Championship--- Australia 48.57 2:31.10 MT-Hyundai Coupe Evo II Spain 57.78 2:56.11 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Brazil 58.65 2:58.95 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car USA 1:07.73 3:28.71 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Italy 50.57 2:35.34 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Germany 52.90 2:46.26 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Canada 56.28 2:52.87 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car Great Britain* 51.57 2:44.52 AT-Proton Wira France 52.77 2:44.59 MT-Nissan Almera Kit Car ---Practice--- Australia 47.06 2:27.22 MT-Skoda Octavia Spain 53.77 2:45.39 AT-VW Golf GTI MK IV/MT-VW Golf GTI MK IV Brazil 53.91 2:46.36 MT-Proton Wira USA 1:03.03 3:16.29 MT-VW Golf GTI MK IV Italy 45.29 2:23.21 MT-Skoda Octavia Germany 50.37 2:36.87 MT-VW Golf GTI MK IV Canada 55.47 2:52.37 MT-VW Golf GTI MK IV Great Britain 47.62 2:28.89 MT-Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V France 48.80 2:30.06 MT-Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V =============================================================================== Version History [VERSN] =============================================================================== The version history: All the fun of bad fruitcake, minus the calories. Date | Version | Size | ---------|---------|------|---------------------------------------------------- 12-11-08 | 0.2 | 12KB | Began guide. 12-12-08 | 0.5 | 20KB | Experimented with many things in Practice mode. 12-13-08 | 0.6 | 21KB | Finally figured out how to win Championship races. 12-14-08 | 0.7 | 22KB | Did just a little. 12-15-08 | 1.0 | 27KB | Finished guide. 3-18-09 | 1.1 | 27KB | Made a couple of fixes. =============================================================================== Copyright [COPYR] =============================================================================== (c) 2008-2010 Vinny Hamilton. All rights reserved. All trademarks mentioned in this guide are copyrights of their respective holders. You can print this guide out for your personal use. You can download this guide to your computer for personal use. You can post this guide on your Web site as long as you give proper credit to me AND you don't change a single letter, number, or symbol (not even a tilde). Remember that the latest version will always be available at GameFAQs.com, but don't count on there being many (if any) updates. You can translate this guide into a foreign language and post the translation on your Web site if you ask for permission first. You can't post this guide on your Web site and say you wrote the guide yourself. You can't post this guide on Web sites that contain (or have links to sites that contain) pornography, gambling, racism, or flattery of totalitarian regimes. You can't post this guide on your Web site if you're going to change anything in this guide that took me so many hours to write. If you don't comply with these guidelines, your hard drive will be reformatted (permanently erased) inexplicably, and you'll suffer from constipation for the remainder of your life. Heed this warning. =============================================================================== Contact Information [CONTC] =============================================================================== If you have any questions or comments about this guide, send an e-mail to VHamilton002@gmail.com. Remember that not all e-mails will be read. Please follow these rules: Do include "Rally Challenge 2000" in the subject line. Do tell me about any errors or omissions you see in this guide. Do send polite suggestions about ways to make this walkthrough better. Do send information about any glitches, tricks, or codes you find. Do tell me if you break one of my records. Do ask any questions you have about Rally Challenge 2000 gameplay. I will eventually answer them if you follow all of these guidelines. Do make a reasonable effort to use decent spelling, grammar, usage, punctuation, and capitalization so I can understand what you're saying. Do use patience. I check my messages rather sporadically. Do not send spam, pornography, chain letters, "flaming," or anything that contains profanity or vulgarity. Again, violation of this rule will result in permanent constipation, as well as a lifetime of bad arthritis. And lastly, a public service message: Fight for and affirm the rights of all humans, regardless of race, age, or creed! And... Reserve 200 MPH driving for the racetrack. No one's going to read this section, anyway. For C.M., A.M., and anyone who was playing "Petz" on the morning of September 11, 2001