LE MANS 24 HOURS: STRATEGY GUIDE
by
Wolf Feather/Jamie Stafford
FEATHER7@IX.NETCOM.COM
Initial Version Completed: October 2, 2002
FINAL VERSION Completed: October 15, 2002
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CONTENTS
Spacing
Permissions
Introduction
The Strategy
Other Guides for Le Mans 24 Hours
Contact
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SPACING
For optimum readability, this driving guide should be
viewed/printed using a monowidth font, such as Courier.
Check for appropriate font setting by making sure the numbers
and letters below line up:
1234567890123456789012345678901234567890123456789012
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
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PERMISSIONS
This guide may ONLY be posted on FeatherGuides, GameFAQs.com,
PSXCodez.com, F1Gamers, Cheatcc.com, Absolute-
PlayStation.com, InsidePS2Games.com, RedCoupe, gamesover.com,
GameReactors.com, CheatPlanet.com, The Cheat Empire,
a2zweblinks.com, Gameguru, cheatingplanet.com,
vgstrategies.com, hellzgate, Games Domain, RobsGaming.com,
CheatHeaven, IGN, ps2fantasy.com, and neoseeker.com.
Permission is granted to download and print one copy of this
game guide for personal use.
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INTRODUCTION
Having set aside this game for several months, I decided to
restart from the beginning and wiped all files from my memory
card. In considering all that there is to unlock in the game
(circuits and cars), this can be quite a daunting task for
those who wish to unlock everything, especially those
attempting to unlock all circuits and cars in the least
amount of time possible. Therefore, this guide provides a
strategy for unlocking everything in the game.
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THE STRATEGY
First, circuits and cars are unlocked by simply winning
races; the CPU does not care whether this is done on Easy,
Intermediate, or Hard difficulty. Therefore, those wishing
to unlock the many elements as quickly as possible will
likely wish to use Easy difficulty; after all, it would be a
real shame to spend twenty-four hours in the full Le Mans
2000 race and end up losing by less than a lap on Hard
difficulty :-(
As with all other games, the first thing a player should do
is to go to the Options menu and make sure controls and game
settings are to the player's liking. Note here that of the
race-related settings, only Quick Race settings cannot be
changed before entering a race in Quick Race Mode, so it is
important to make sure these settings are to the player's
liking (note that the default race length is three laps).
While in Options, take note of Progress. This section gives
a quick visual reference as to which races/events have been
completed, and - except for Quick Race Mode, which only
unlocks circuits - also shows which cars have been unlocked.
Once ready to begin racing, the player needs to first sweep
through Quick Race Mode - again, the settings for Quick Race
Mode can ONLY be adjusted in the Options menu. Only four
circuits (Le Mans, Suzuka East, Donington National, and Road
Atlanta National) are initially available; winning at each of
these circuits will unlock another circuit, winning at the
unlocked circuits will unlock more circuits, etc. Finally,
once the player has won at least one race at all twelve
circuits in Quick Race Mode, the three reverse circuits will
open; this is essentially optional, as there are no bonus
cars to be unlocked at the reverse circuits in Time Trial
Mode. Note that players will be racing against nineteen
competitors in Quick Race Mode.
While Quick Race Mode only unlocks circuits, it is important
in he overall scheme of the game, as Time Trial Mode only
allows players to race at the four initially-available
circuits plus those unlocked in Quick Race Mode. However,
the few initially-available cars simply CANNOT be used to
best the posted goal times in Time Trial Mode (thus unlocking
new cars), so once Quick Race Mode has been completed,
players need to progress to Championship Mode.
Championship Mode consists of several points-based series
(Rookie GT, Pro GT, GT Enduro, Open Prototype, Closed
Prototype, Prototype Enduro, Super Enduro, and Winter
Challenge). Winning each championship depends upon having
the most points at the end of each championship.
Unfortunately, should a player wish to skip a race in a
championship, the only way to do this is to actually enter
the race, then cancel out (and confirm) just as the race
begins. The championships themselves begin with fairly few
races with just a few laps each, but then add more and more
races of longer and longer length, with the final
championship (Winter Challenge) adding the nuisance of
constant rain; however, those who can drive well and still
maintain a fast speed in wet conditions will note just how
much the CPU-controlled cars slow down in wet conditions.
Note that the medium- and long-length championship races will
each require at least one trip to Pit Lane to refuel and
(likely) to change tires, although double-stinting the tires
(i.e., changing the tires after every other Pit Stop) may be
possible for really good drivers.
Winning each championship unlocks another car. These
unlocked cars are all better than the initially-available
cars in some respect, but GT cars are still slower than Open
Prototype and Closed Prototype vehicles.
Once a player has unlocked several prototype cars, they
should be viable enough to unlock more cars in Time Trial
Mode (which, again, depends upon the initially-available
circuits and those circuits previously unlocked in Quick Race
Mode). The trick is finding the right car with the right
set-up and the right racing line for an entire hot lap around
the chosen circuit. While Time Trial Mode does not show the
tire indicators (which theoretically means that tire wear is
not an issue), this mode DOES include tire wear - which is
quite noticeable for those using Soft Tires and running for
more than about six laps.
As more and more cars are unlocked in Time Trial Mode, the
player will gain greater familiarity with the various
circuits. If there are any championships to be completed,
the time spent in Time Trial Mode will be greatly beneficial;
also, the player will have access to more and better cars to
use in completing Championship Mode.
The final set of races to complete is in Le Mans Mode. Here,
the player can participate in Le Mans 2000 or Petit Le Mans.
There are four time intervals for races at each circuit
(remember the Petit Le Mans is held at the full Road Atlanta
circuit). With the many cars unlocked previously in the
game, players should be able to either blow away the
competition (especially if using Easy difficulty) or at least
be very competitive for race wins. Winning each event at
each time interval unlocks one more car; winning Le Mans 2000
at the full 24-hour time interval unlocks TWO cars. Note
that those cars unlocked by winning at the four time
intervals in Le Mans 2000 can ONLY be used in Le Mans Mode.
If the player still has Challenges to win or cars to unlock
in Time Trial Mode, the cars won at the 10-hour and 24-hour
time intervals in Le Mans Mode should help nicely :-)
Total minimum game completion time estimate: SIXTY HOURS.
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OTHER GUIDES FOR LE MANS 24 HOURS
To my knowledge, I am the only person on the planet who has
written game guides for Le Mans 24 Hours. This may or may
not actually be true, but on the gaming Web sites I frequent,
only my guides are available for this game. Some of these
guides may be of great use to players:
Car Acquisition This guide lists ALL the cars in Le
Checklist: Mans 24 Hours, but does not list how
these vehicles can be acquired. This
is great for those who want to be
surprised by the cars they unlock in
the game, yet have a list handy to
visually see how they are progressing
in terms of car acquisition.
Challenge Mode Guide: This guide provides tips for Challenge
Mode, and suggests cars and set-ups for
each circuit in each Championship.
Circuit Histories Those interested in the history of each
Guide: race venue in Le Mans 24 Hours will
find this guide rather interesting.
Circuit Instructions For visually-oriented persons such as
Guide: myself, this guide in Adobe Acrobat
format presents the detailed driving
instructions of the Driving Guide with
maps of each circuit in the game. This
allows players to scrutinize the maps
to better spot potential trouble areas
at each race venue. This guide is ONLY
available at FeatherSites and at
GameFAQs.
Driving Guide: This is essentially a general guide to
Le Mans 24 Hours, with detailed driving
instructions for each circuit as well
as a full listing of the cars and
circuits in the game and how to unlock
them.
Le Mans 2000 Guide: This is an in-depth guide covering the
Le Mans 2000 race, primarily the longer
time intervals (240 minutes, and 24
hours). Suggested car set-ups are
provided, along with general tips and
detailed driving instructions for the
Le Mans venue.
Petit Le Mans Guide: This is similar to the Le Mans 2000
Guide, instead covering the Petit Le
Mans held annually at the full Road
Atlanta circuit. The Petit Le Mans
Guide focuses upon the 100-minute and
the 10-hour time intervals of the Petit
Le Mans race.
Time Trials Guide: This guide presents general Time Trial
Mode tips, lists the goal time for each
circuit (for reference purposes), then
presents circuit-specific tips to
achieving the lowest possible lap
times. Also included are the game's
circuits and cars and how to unlock
them all, as much of this is directly
related to Time Trial Mode.
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CONTACT
For rants, raves, etc., contact me at FEATHER7@IX.NETCOM.COM;
also, if you have enjoyed this guide and feel that it has
been helpful to you, I would certainly appreciate a small
donation via PayPal (http://www.paypal.com/) using the above
e-mail address.
To find the latest version of this and all my other PSX/PS2
game guides, visit FeatherGuides at
http://www.angelcities.com/members/feathersites/
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