RickR Posted January 1, 2021 Report Share Posted January 1, 2021 Yeah, I think you're right, Harry. Thank you for the tips. Cutting corners and going straight for as long of stretches as possible. Hours and hours I do not have. HDN, Justin and socrates63 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted January 2, 2021 Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 12 hours ago, RickR said: Hours and hours I do not have. I feel like that played a huge role in my success. Without all the time I spent I would probably still be chillin’ with Phil around the 2’18 mark (not like that is a bad thing). I practiced a lot for this, and it paid off. I think another part that helped is that I used to play this game a TON. Plus, it’s 16 bit, which helps. I don’t think I stand a chance with virtually any 2600 or NES game. Not yet anyway. socrates63 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted January 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 On 12/31/2020 at 7:47 PM, Atari 5200 Guy said: Aww man. I hope I don't miss out on this one. I'm going to try to get in a couple of track times in a bit. There's always next year ☺️ HDN and socrates63 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted January 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 On 12/27/2020 at 4:22 PM, RickR said: Observation from another "trying to improve" player. Your lap times look good, but you'll notice that your lap 1 time is slower than Justin/Harry. I was having trouble on lap 1 too, but then I realized you can time your gas pedal at the start, and it cuts at least a second off. Do it like this 3...2...1...(and stomp on the gas about half-way between 1 and the start). If you do it right, you'll immediately be in second place with only yellow in front of you. Hopefully Justin and/or Harry will refine what I typed, as I'm not 100% sure that's the best advice. Little note on this, @RickR. I improved my strategy on this by not simply timing my "stomp on the gas" about halfway between 1 and the start, instead I rapidly tap the button between 1 and the start which guarantees a boost start. HDN, Sabertooth, RickR and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted January 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 Congratulations HDN! Congratulations to @HDN on a triumphant win! HDN has become our 2020 F-ZERO Champion, he takes the top spot in the Final Standings with an outstanding time of 2' 13" 92. Legendary High Score Squad champ @RadioPoultry was hot on HDN's tail with an amazing time of 2' 14" 14, claiming 2nd Place on the Final Standings. Another HSS hotshot @nosweargamer dominated with a superb showing, taking our 3rd spot on the board with a time of 2' 18" 45. I took 4th Place with a time of 2' 18" 88. @RickR came in 5th Place with his impressive time of 2' 19" 95, @Sabertooth takes 6th with 2' 20" 80, @socrates63 takes 7th with 2' 24" 51, and @Gianna gave it her all with her first time playing in the F-ZERO Championship with a time of 2' 42" 38. Congratulations once again to @HDN for the win, and as always I'd like to encourage HDN to post his new high score on the Scoreboard, and let's make sure this Challenge continues on! And a big congratulations to everyone on their amazing runs! Here's to everyone who gave it their all to shave off every last millisecond from their time. I hope everybody had fun with this game over the holiday season, and we'll see you back here on the F-ZERO track this time next year! NOTE: Our next High Score Squad Challenge is Video Pinball for Atari 2600! Be there! RickR, Gianna, HDN and 2 others 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted January 2, 2021 Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 55 minutes ago, Justin said: Little note on this, @RickR. I improved my strategy on this by not simply timing my "stomp on the gas" about halfway between 1 and the start, instead I rapidly tap the button between 1 and the start which guarantees a boost start. Oooh, I shall try that one, boss. Thanks for the tip. HDN, Justin and socrates63 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted January 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 8 minutes ago, RickR said: Oooh, I shall try that one, boss. Thanks for the tip. You got it! F-ZERO tips are easy to give but hard to master 1. Rapid-Tap the gas button at the starting line for a boost start. 2. Keep laps tight. That means straight lines, short corners, hugging the wall where it counts. Imagine placing down a line of string in the course, pulling it tight and tying it in a knot to create the shortest length possible. Follow that tight line. (This is true for many racing games we do in High Score Squad!) 3. Keep your energy level high. Avoid walls, recharge in the Pit Row every lap, and no matter what - avoid the glowing exploding cars that kill your energy! Your top speed decreases as your energy goes down, do your best to keep your energy up and stay at high speeds. 4. Skirt Jump Plates where possible. Jump plates are fun, but they slow you down from your top speed by a good 20%. If you're going for the best lap time, it's best to avoid them all together. Usually you can skirt past them on either side by hugging the wall. When shaving milliseconds counts, this is a strategy that adds up. 5. Use Super Jets (turbos) regularly at the same spot every lap. Find your safest stretch of track and unleash one Super Jet every lap. Saving them up doesn't really help you. Using them regularly each lap, at a good spot on the track, adds up to saved time. Sabertooth, socrates63 and RickR 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted January 2, 2021 Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 Just now, Justin said: 4. Skirt Jump Plates where possible. Jump plates are fun, but they slow you down from your top speed by a good 20%. If you're going for the best lap time, it's best to avoid them all together. Usually you can skirt past them on either side by hugging the wall. When shaving milliseconds counts, this is a strategy that adds up. That is true to an extent. In reality, if you pull back on the dpad while in midair (down), you’ll maintain momentum and maybe even increase your speed if you aren’t at your top speed. Think of it like adjusting your landing angle in Excitebike. socrates63 and RickR 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justin Posted January 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 27 minutes ago, HDN said: That is true to an extent. In reality, if you pull back on the dpad while in midair (down), you’ll maintain momentum and maybe even increase your speed if you aren’t at your top speed. Think of it like adjusting your landing angle in Excitebike. Pulling back on the D-Pad also increases your chances of falling off either side of the track, so be careful doing that. HDN 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HDN Posted January 2, 2021 Report Share Posted January 2, 2021 Why, thank you everyone for the Squad Challenge! I had a lot of fun competing with you all. I love this game, and I'm happy that we'll be playing this again next Christmas! Congratulations to everyone! 26 minutes ago, Justin said: Pulling back on the D-Pad also increases your chances of falling off either side of the track, so be careful doing that. That is true, but it can provide a helpful boost if you're low on speed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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