posted 02-22-2005 11:31 PM         

Cumulative Progress -Last updated: 11/09/2005 ~ GT Day 1007
Completion percentage:	55.6%	B-Spec mileage:	15998
Winning percentage:	56.5%	B-Spec skill:	6818
Races won/entered:	286/506	Machine skill:	75
Total trophies:	334	Course skill:	67
Credits:	1,895,323	Battle skill:	66
Total prize credits won:	12,230,900	A-Spec points:	10401
Prize cars won:	96	A-Spec mileage:	472
Cars purchased:	?	Cars sold:	0

License tests:..

.80 Gold .

..

.0 Silver .

..

.0 Bronze .

Real life days/hours spent getting gold: 30/55.

Cars in my Garage (how I got them):
..alphabetical by make..

1. Acura DN-X '02 (all A Silver)
   
2. Alfa Romeo Giulia Sprint Speciale '63 (1000 Miles! -European)
   
3. Alpine A310 1600 VE '73 (Rally D'George 5 Easy -SC)
   
4. AMG Mercedes 190 E2.5 - 16 Evolution II Touring Car '92 (Schwarzwaldliga Race B -European)
   
5. AMG Mercedes CLK - GTR Race Car '98 (German Touring Car Cup -European)
   
6. Audi Nuvolari quattro '03 (25% Complete)
   
7. Auto Union V16 Type C Streamline '37 (Grand Valley 300Km)
   
8. Autobianchi A112 Abarth '79 (Sunday Cup -Beginner)
   
9. BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 (Schwarzwaldliga Race A -European)
   
10. BMW McLaren F1 GTR Race Car '97 (Gran Turismo All Stars -Extreme)
    
11. Cadillac CIEN '02 (Rally D'Umbria Easy -SC)
    
12. Chaparral 2D Race Car '67 (Nürburgring 4hr)
    
13. Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 '70 (Hot Rod -American)
    
14. Chevrolet Silverado SST Concept '02 (Trucks -Beginner)
    
15. Chrysler Prowler '02 (Spider & Roadster -Beginner)
    
16. Citroen 2CV Type A '54 (French Cup -European)
    
17. Cizeta V16T '94 (Supercar Festival -Pro)
    
18. DMC DeLorean S2 '04 (Missions 1-10)
    
19. Dodge Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi '71 (New York 200 Mile)
    
20. Dome Zero '78 (all IA Gold)
    
21. Ford Escort Rally Car '98 (Tahiti Normal -SC)
    
22. Ford GT '05 (Premium Sports Lounge)
    
23. Ford GT LM Race Car '02 (Infineon 200 Mile)
    
24. Ford GT LM Race Car Spec II `04 (GT World Champion Cup -Pro)
    
25. Ford GT40 Race Car '69 (Laguna Seca 200 Mile)
    
26. Ford Model T Tourer 1915 (All S Gold)
    
27. Ford RS200 '84 (Rally Grand Canyon Easy -SC)
    
28. Ford SVT F-150 Lightning '03 (Purchased new)
    
29. Formula Gran Turismo '04 (Nürburgring 24hr)
    
30. Ginetta G4 '64 (Lightweight K Cup - Beginner)
    
31. Honda Life Step Van '72 (Japanese Compact Cup -Japan)
    
32. Honda NSX-R Concept '01 (NA Tuned -Pro)
    
33. Honda NSX-R Prototype LM Race Car '02 (Motegi Super Speedway 150 Mile)
    
34. Honda NSX-R Prototype LM Road Car '02 (Motegi 8hr)
    
35. Honda S500 '63 (all B Gold)
    
36. Honda S800 RSC Race Car '68 (World Compact Car Race - Professional)
    
37. Infiniti FX45 Concept '02 (Rally D'Chamony Easy -SC)
    
38. Jaguar XJ220 LM Race Car '01 (European Cup)
    
39. Jaguar XJR-9 Race Car '88 (50% Complete)
    
40. Jay Leno Tank Car '03 (Missions 11-20)
    
41. Jensen Healey Interceptor Mk.III '74 (all IB Gold)
    
42. Lancia DELTA HF Integrale Rally Car '92 (Rally D'Unbria Normal -SC)
    
43. Lister Storm V12 Race Car '99 (Suzuka 1000KM)
    
44. Lotus Elan S1 '62 (Lotus Classics)
    
45. Lotus Esprit Turbo HC '87 (MR Challenge -Beginner)
    
46. Lotus Europa Special '71 (British Lightweight)
    
47. Mazda 110S (L10A) '67 (Mazda Club "RE")
    
48. Mazda BP FALKEN RX-7 (D1GP) '03 (Turbo Tuned -Pro)
    
49. Mazda Kusabi '03 (all B Silver)
    
50. Mazda Mazda6 Concept '01 (FF Challenge)
    
51. Mazda Mazda6 Touring Car '02 (Tsukuba Wet Race Normal -SC)
    
52. Mazda Mazdaspeed 6 '05 (Clubman Cup -Pro)
    
53. Mazda MX-5 Miata S-Special Type I (NA, J) '95 (Purchased used)
    
54. Mazda MX-Crossport '05 (Mazda Roadster Cup)
    
55. Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car '01 (Roadster 4hr)
    
56. Mazda RX-8 Concept (Type I) '01 (Tsukuba Wet Race Easy -SC)
    
57. Mazda RX-8 Concept (Type-II) '04 (all IB Silver)
    
58. Mazda RX-8 Concept LM Race Car '01 (Mazda RX-8 Cup)
    
59. Mercedes-Benz Benz Patent Motor Wagon 1886 (Europe Classic Car Cup -European)
    
60. Mercedes-Benz CLK Touring Car '00 (Mercedes Legend of Silver Arrow)
    
61. Mercedes-Benz Daimler Motor Carriage 1886 (World Classic Tour -Pro)
    
62. Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren '03 (Purchased new)
    
63. Mercury Cougar XR-7 '67 (all S passed)
    
64. Mitsubishi CZ-3 Tarmac '01 (Rally Swiss Alps Easy -SC)
    
65. Mitsubishi CZ-3 Tarmac Rally car '02 (Rally Grand Canyon Normal -SC)
    
66. Mitsubishi FTO Super Touring Car '97 (TokyoR246 300KM)
    
67. Nike One 2022 (all IB passed)
    
68. Nismo 270R '94 (all IA passed)
    
69. Nismo GT-R LM Roadgoing Version '95 (Race of Red Emblem -Nissan)
    
70. Nissan Calsonic Skyline GT Race Car '93 (Tsukuba 9hr)
    
71. Nissan GRAN TURISMO SKYLINE GT-R '01 (all A Gold)
    
72. Nissan GT-R Concept '01 (all IA Silver)
    
73. Nissan GT-R Concept LM Race Car '02 (Dream Car Championship -Extreme)
    
74. Nissan Motul Pitwork Z(JGTC) '04 (All Japan GT Chamionship -Japan)
    
75. Nissan Option Stream Z '04 (Tuned Car -Pro)
    
76. Nissan Skyline 2000GT-B (S54A) '67 (FR Challenge - Beginner)
    
77. Opel Speedster Turbo '00 (Purchased new)
    
78. Opera Performance S2000 '04 (Polyphony Digital Cup -Extreme)
    
79. Pagani Zonda LM Race Car '01 (Missions 21-24)
    
80. Pontiac Solstice Coupe Concept '02 (all S Silver)
    
81. Pontiac Sunfire GXP Concept '02 (all A passed)
    
82. R92CP Race Car '92 (Fuji 1000KM)
    
83. RUF CTR "Yellow Bird" '87 (Boxer Tuned -Pro)
    
84. RUF RGT '00 (Purchased new)
    
85. Subaru Impreza Rally Car Protorype (Rally D'Caburi Normal -SC)
    
86. Toyota 7 Race Car '70 (Missions 25-29)
    
87. Toyota Minolta 88C-V Race Car '89 (El Capitan 200 Mile)
    
88. Toyota Motor Triathalon Race Car '04 (4WD Challenge - Beginner)
    
89. Toyota RSC '01 (Ice Race Easy -SC)
    
90. Toyota RSC Rally Raid Car '02 (Rally D'Caburi Easy -SC)
    
91. Volkswagen Lupo 1.4 '02 (all B passed)
    
92. VolksWagen Nardo Concept '01 (Like The Wind -Extreme)
    

The title of this diary represents both my general outlook and my state of mind.

This diary will be rather bland when compared to others posted here at the Numbers. It will mostly be comprised of my raw sessional recollections. While I am a writer, I prefer poetry over prose. (READ: this could get boring!) Feel free to post here if you want to.

I'll start with my first impressions of the game and my initial plans/goals. Once I finally got the game in my PS2 (and got the digital inputs on my new home theater system set up), I sat watching in total awe of the intro movie, wonderfully broadcast over Van Halen's Panama. Once the menu screen came up, I went to my Home (which took me FOREVER to find!) and transferred licenses and 100,000 Crs from GT3. Immediately after doing so, I realized the transferring of the licenses was a total waste of time, as I had planned on "golding" all licenses before partaking in any other parts of the game, just as I had done in GT3.
...So I guess that's it for now, I'm working on the B licenses and I'll have a Day 1 recap up when I'm done playing. (Hopefully once I have all B Golds.)

Daily Recap "Game Status" Legend -Last updated 4/26/04
(This will be edited as I decided what stats to plug in here)
Game Status: %Complete/ Wins/ Races_Entered/ Win%/ Credits/ Cars_Acquired/ A-Spec_Points/ A-Spec_mileage/ B-Spec Skill/ Machine Skill/ Course Skill/ Battle Skill

[This message has been edited by eggmann (edited 11-09-2005).]

IP: Logged

posted 02-23-2005 09:09 AM         

Happenings:
B1 through B4 are gold.
B5 is .078 too slow for gold. It's tough to keep going fast when the pace car keeps braking too hard/early.

Thoughts:
I was pleasantly surprised to see a full-track license test (B5) so soon.
I wish I would have gotten more than 2 hours of sleep on Monday night; then maybe I could've finished all of B. Oh well, makes for a lighter Day 2 schedule.
I like what I've seen so far of the in-game menus, such as being able to advance to the next license test directly from the current test, instead of first having to access the "top menu" for that license class. I hope that this is a sign of more intuitive game flow (vs. GT3) throughout. One thing that always bugged me about GT3 was how cumbersome the menu navigation was.
I took a peek at the Garage setup, and I see that I'll be able to sort and filter my car list. Cool! Of course, I'll have to get some cars in there sometime. I'm guessing I'll get free cars for gold licenses again, so I'll just leave my 110K Crs in the bank for now. Speaking of banks, I should be earning interest on all the money I'm leaving in there. Why hasn't this been a regular feature of video games?

¹"Playing Time Elapsed" will include all time spent doing something with the game, whether that be setting game options, racing, tuning, watching replays, or whatever. It will NOT include time spent on GT Boards and chat rooms.

posted 02-24-2005 02:56 AM         

Happenings:
B5 through B16 and A1-A4 are all gold.

Thoughts:
These license tests are getting a bit tougher now. On nearly every recent test, it seems like I'm behind "gold" by a tenth of a second after 2-3 tries, then that last tenth takes me anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes.
I was very pleased to see, "this is the final acceleration and braking test." I don't know if that quote's exact, and I don't remember which test number it was, but I do know that I don't have to do any more (until sometime down the road when I start the game over.)
I've figured out why there isn't an "R" license this time around - the rally tests are integrated with the rest of them.
Tried all 3 different camera angles today... I like the one that appears to be mounted on the dashboard or the windshield, but I'm too used to bumper-cam from GT3, so that's what I'll stick with for now.
Speaking of old habits, in GT3 I used the paddle shifters on my DFP wheel. I am making a conscious effort to switch to the shift knob, but it's extremely difficult to think about such petty things while trying to get gold license times. So far I think I've used the shift knob about half the time in my first two days. Hopefully this will change to 100% very soon - the wrists get a bit sore when my hands are following the paddle shifters around the wheel.
I am glad the DFP wheel it performs much the same as it did in GT3. I was thinking I'd have to turn the wheel two full turns for hairpins and the like, but thus far it seems like it wants the same amount of input as I'm used to.
I like the auto-calibration for the Force Feedback!
I've read some people talking about turning off the music in the game... I haven't needed to do this yet, as I haven't noticed any music. Either there is no music on the license tests, or I'm just too into them to notice it. Whenever I do hear the music, I'll probably leave it on for awhile to find out what sort of stuff is on the soundtrack, or maybe I'll just go the music room, whatever they call it and check it out there. I'm glad PD added the options of changing the volume of sound effects and music; GT3's music was too loud and it drowned out the engine's music.
I wonder how much longer I'll be able to refrain from checking out a dealership or two.
I noticed I'm racking up extra days. This doesn't concern me though. I've heard stuff about available used cars being affected by the calendar, but I'd imagine they will still rotate all the cars in and out again eventually.

posted 02-25-2005 11:17 AM         

Happenings:
A5 through A9 are all gold. A10 is silver.

Thoughts:
I still dislike the pace car, but I'm looking forward to winning it for getting all "A" golds.
I've noticed throughout the tests that they seem to be rather forgiving of low-impact wall-touches. I even bumped the pace car a couple times and was allowed to continue my tests. Curious...

posted 02-28-2005 12:41 AM         

Happenings:
Gold on A10-A13 and bronze on A14-16 in about 4 hours. This is going to take some time.

Also spent about an hour browsing the showrooms and demo videos with Stephanie, and another hour playing 2 player mode with her.

Thoughts:
I went ahead and got bronze last night on the rest of "A" so I could win something for my weekend efforts. Steph drives a Sunfire, so I had to win *her* car!
I'm setting a (loose) 30 minute time limit on all future tests before I'll move on to the next test and come back later.
I'm elated that I've found a girl who likes GT.

posted 03-01-2005 09:20 AM         

Happenings:
Gold on A14&A15. A16 is already driving me nuts.

posted 03-01-2005 03:59 PM         

Happenings:
Gold on A14, A15, and IB1-4.
Silver on A16 and IB5.

Thoughts:
I have reluctantly adapted to my new strategy of 30 minutes per test per session, e.g. A16. I'm still contemplating whether the skipped tests should be revisted daily or saved until all others are completed... leaning toward daily.
Thankfully the early tests in each class are a relief compared to the hardest tests in the previous class.
GT4 kicks ass!

posted 03-01-2005 07:13 PM         

[This message has been edited by eggmann (edited 03-02-2005).]

IP: Logged

posted 03-03-2005 12:53 PM         

Happenings:
Gold on A16, IB5-14.
Bronze on IB15 and IB16.

Thoughts:
IB15&16 would be gold too if I didn't have to go to work.
The entire set of IB tests seems easier for me than the A set did. Maybe I'm just getting a better feel for the game. I guess I'll see how IA and S go...
While I was driving one of the tests today, I felt I could relate to Neo taking in all his training in The Matrix before he "went in", even if my training is happening at a bit slower pace.
The Skyline looks like a fun ride, I'm looking forward to driving that. The Nike is one ugly s.o.b. When did Nike start making cars anyway?

posted 03-04-2005 09:37 PM         

Dear Diary,
I'm sorry I was so harsh and brash earlier today.

Sincerely,

posted 03-06-2005 09:53 AM         

Happenings:
Gold on IB15&16 and IA1-4.

posted 03-07-2005 12:43 PM         

Happenings:
Gold on IA5-9 and Silver on IA10.

posted 03-07-2005 07:55 PM         

Dear Ms. K,
I won't be in to work today, as I'm stuck on license test# xx in my new PlayStation game. I hope to pass this test in the next half hour or so, so I could come in late, but typically right when I finish one licence test, I immediately start the next one, which will also take about 30 minutes. Looking on the bright side, I only have 23 tests left to finish, so I should be in sometime by the end of the week.

Sincerely,
Ryan B.

P.S. I just remembered that once I finish the license tests, I also have hundreds of events to race in, so don't plan on me being back to work until 2006.

posted 03-08-2005 10:32 AM         

Happenings:
Gold on IA10-14 and Silver on IA15.

Thoughts:
I made good time on the last few "short" tests, then I found the Nürburgring pace car test. 9 minutes per attempt? Oh well, at least I only have 2 tests left before the S license.
Nürburgring is great fun, but I was "driving scared" through the straight in the last part of the test. I've never driven this track before, so I didn't know whether to speed up or slow down, and the "map" doesn't eggzactly reveal much. 15 seconds behind gold after my first lap. I guess tonight I'll watch the 9 minute demo.

posted 03-08-2005 03:45 PM         

I typical skip license perfection, but I'm finding silvers to be a breeze in this game, so that's my early goal. I only have IA and I'm on the S tests. I don't do them in order, though. I usually do the one lap tests (5-10-15) first, then rally (difficult stuff first). Then I go backwards with what's remaining.

You're a true inspiration for me to continue grabbing golds and improve my license abilities.

Good read so far...

------------------
drive it like it's stolen!

Dale Earnhardt: 1951-2001 #3 = #1

posted 03-09-2005 03:04 AM         

Can you give me a few hints and tips for B5, one lap pace car around Tsukuba in a Mini? I am running about .750 of gold all the time. Maybe some sector times so I can see if I am losing it all in one spot of if I am just not smooth enough and losing it a tenth at a time.

No hurry as I am taking my time and thanks.

Keep up the great work.

------------------
"When faced with certain death, eat strawberries."

Rally Diaries

Mudslingers Paradise

posted 03-09-2005 09:26 AM         

Before even starting this test, you should know this: you never have to use 1st gear, aside from the initial standing start. Launch between 5000 and 6000 RPM. Shift into 2nd at 40 mph, brake slightly entering turn, but coast for most of it, the car seems to behave better. Get back on full throttle (still in 2nd gear) at about 40 mph, steering out smoothly. Stay close or even on the rumbles through the quick ess turn. I recommend shifting into 3rd at about 68 mph (short of max revs.) This is because leaving it in second gear you will hit the rev limiter causing you to slow down.

Brake as late as possible heading into the hairpin, braking to about 43-44 mph, and coasting down to about 37 mph. Get back on full throttle as soon as possible (it is actually a lot sooner that you think), and try to stay as close to, without touching, that inside rumble strip on apex. Try to get over to the left side as quickly as possible after exit. This is required in order to take the quick right turn coming up at full throttle. Getting the turn-in angle correct is a little bit tricky, but after a couple of tries you should get it. Speed should drop no less than 55 mph, and if you get smooth at it you will stay at 57 mph. Once again, follow the pace car nice and smoothly through the double left turns. Shift into 3rd at 71 mph.

posted 03-10-2005 02:42 AM         

I have a Gold replay of B5 on my memory card I can X-Port if you'd like. Just say the word.

I actually have B1 through IA8 - the last test before my rented GT4 had to go back.

posted 03-10-2005 05:03 AM         

I got mine yesterday (Lady S scooted down the shops and picked up our pre-orders at 9:30 (and just as well considering that the pimply-faced-youth on the tills hadn't actually set the pre-ordered copies aside and was just selling them !)).

We scarpered back home after work ... I set up Lady S's game ... kissed her and said "See you later" before going round to my house and beginning Licence Test Hell :winces:.

I'd just worked my way through Golding most of the Domestic B tests (took about three hours) when, just to prove the Universe has a sense of humour, the power went off :screams like a bereft Banshee:.

Because I'd set the game up NOT to save all the time and I hadn't exited the Licence Test Section ... yep, you guessed it ... start again once the power came back.

That was at around 1:30. At 3:15 I succeeded in finishing all the B tests for the second time (8 Golds, 8 Silvers this time).

More Licence fun to be had tonight I'm sure and I have to say that I'm liking the new physics and handling as it seems more to my style that GT3 was.

posted 03-10-2005 11:42 AM         

Happenings:
Gold on IA15&16 and S1.