ROCK N' ROLL RACING (SNES) FAQ V 1.0, June 18th, 2002 By Korasoff (korasoff@hushmail.com) ************************ FAQ history: 1.0 (June 18th, 2002): FAQ created! The sections are Introduction, Which Driver To Choose, Which Ride To Choose, The Upgrades, The Races, Racing Tips, and Conclusion. ************************ Sections: 1) Introduction 2) Which Driver To Choose 3) Which Ride To Choose 4) The Upgrades 5) The Races 6) Racing Tips 7) Conclusion ************************ 1) HEADIN' OUT ON THE HIGHWAY... (Introduction) Rock N' Roll Racing may very well be my favorite racing game of all time. Created in 1993 by Silicon and Synapse (the guys who also made Lost Vikings 1 & 2 for the SNES, and who turned out to be Blizzard Entertainment, makers of Warcraft I, II, & III, Diablo I & II, and Starcraft for PC), it boasts colorful graphics, a split-screen two-player mode, and probably the most awesome soundtrack a SNES game ever got. It's not a very complicated game, not by a long shot, but there are a few secrets, tricks, and general advice anyone could benefit from. Hence, this FAQ. Controls are quite simple. The B button is your throttle - get to know it, intimately. I find the best way to drive is t hold B with my thumb and to crook my index above so I can reach the other three main buttons: Y is your main weapon, X your boost (which can be Jump Jets or Nitros), and A lays down mines. Start will pause the game (giving you the option to chicken out of the current race if you're losing). The left arrow on the control pad will make your car turn left (its left, not yours), ditto for the right arrow. L and R are "hard turns" you can make if you're in danger of hitting something or if you missed a power-up or turn. You can use L or R in addition with the left or right arrow for controlled spin-outs! Finally, the down arrow on the control pad allows you to brake - but to quote the manual, "Who brakes in Rock N' Roll Racing?" I strongly suggest you play this game on a good old SNES system, or, barring that, with a Joypad on your PC. The controls will be much more intuitive. Also, I can't get the Olaf trick (See Section 2 below) to work on a PC keyboard. One weakness of RNRR is that you can't save your game. Instead, you have to note a lengthy password, which you can find in the F/X menu on the main screen. There are two different modes to RNRR. The first, New Game, lets you drive in a championship. You amass points and prize money to get better cars and improve them. When you collect enough points, you move on to a new planet, where you'll face new terrain and a new local driver. After you complete the required numbers of planets, you'll win the game. The second mode is VS Mode. The goal is not to get money, since you can buy new cars for free, and they come to you *fully* upgraded. Points are also of no importance whatsoever, since you can move between the 5 first planets freely (there's a trick to get to the sixth). The only real role points serve is as a measure of your talent: play with a friend and see who can amass the most points in a set number of races! ************************ 2) PEOPLE THINK I'M INSANE (Which Driver To Choose) All drivers have different abilities. Choose one who fits your style or who compensates for your own weaknesses. It's important to understand that no driver sucks totally, but once you get the Havac those with Jumping are at a disadvantage - although before that, they need to spend almost zero money on shock absorbers. 1 - Snake Sanders (Homeland: Terra) Acceleration +1, Top Speed +1 Verdict: Snake is all speed, baby. His lack of Cornering makes him a tough choice for Rookies, but I highly recommend him once you've mastered the basics and know the tracks inside and out. The driver of choice for skilled Veteran players and the grizzled Warrior. 2 - Cyberhawk (Homeland: Serpentis) Acceleration +1, Jumping +1 Verdict: I said no driver sucked, but Cyberhawk is the least good of them. And it's a shame, such cool art... I'm not saying you can't win with this driver, just that you better have some experience under your belt before you pick him. He doesn't give you much of an edge on any level of difficulty. 3 - Ivanzypher (Homeland: Fleagull) Jumping +1, Top Speed +1 Verdict: He's better than Cyberhawk. An average driver, but I kinda like him. Very good on the early tracks. 4 - Katarina Lyons (Homeland: Panteros V) Jumping +1, Cornering +1 Verdict: Also an average driver. She's all about control: choosing Katarina will give you one smooth race. Oh yeah, and she's the only woman driver you can choose, so girls who play RNRR usually pick her. An alternate choice for the Rookie who's afraid of high speeds - but if that's your case, maybe you're playing the wrong game, pal. 5 - Jake Badlands (Homeland: Xeno Prime) Acceleration +1, Cornering +1 Verdict: Now we're talking. Probably the best choice for a Rookie just starting out. Acceleration means you can recover quicker from mistakes, and Cornering means less of them. He's not bad at higher difficulty levels. 6 - Tarquinn (Homeland: Aurora) Top Speed +1, Cornering +1 Verdict: The opposite of Cyberhawk: doesn't look like much, but packs quite a punch. The combination of Top Speed and Cornering owns big time. After you've finished the Rookie level with Jake, consider switching to Tarquinn for Veteran and Warrior. 7 - Olaf (Homeland: Valhalla) Acceleration +1, Top Speed +1, Cornering +1 Verdict: He's got three abilities (and the best ones!), so of course he's the top driver. Still, he's hard to get... At the driver selection screen, hold down L, R, and Select, then scroll to the end of the list. The last driver will be Olaf. I feel as if I'm cheating whenever I pick him, though. A good choice for any level of difficulty. (In case you were wondering, Olaf is a character from Silicon and Synapse's other hit SNES game, Lost Vikings.) ************************ 3) NOBODY'S GONNA STEAL MY CAR (Which Ride To Choose) Fast Eddie, a furry-toothed slick salesman, will provide you with new vehicles to race. New cars cost quite a bit, but they all have different armaments (except for the Marauder and the Dirt Devil) and even special abilities... Dirt Devil (18,000$) VK Plasma Rifles, Locust Jump Jets, BF's Slipsauce Availability: Chem VI, Drakonis. Verdict: One of your initial two choices. Has better handling than the Marauder but isn't as fast. Basically, if you have someone with Cornering abilities, pick the Marauder. And even if you don't have Cornering, try to stay away from the Devil as a general rule - although one wicked bit of fun is choosing the DD in VS mode and going to NHO. Atlas Power Claws? Let the party begin! Marauder (18,000$) VK Plasma Rifles, Locust Jump Jets, BF's Slipsauce Availability: Chem VI, Drakonis, Bogmire, New Mojave. Verdict: My favorite initial car, way above the Dirt Devil (isn't that a vacuum cleaner, by the way? No wonder it sucks!). It has the exact same armaments as the DD, slightly looser handling, but definitely better speed. Highly recommended for your first ride. Air Blade (70,000$) Rogue Missiles, Lightning Nitros, Bear Claw Mines Availability: Chem VI, Drakonis, New Mojave, NHO, Inferno. Verdict: Your second vehicle. An all-around better ride than the two initial choices, plus with better armaments (Yee-Haw, Nitro!). Veterans and Warriors have two different strategies with this one: either upgrade your Marauder/Dirt Devil and skip the Air Blade completely on your way to the Battle Trak, or save your money and get the Air Blade ASAP with few upgrades for your initial vehicle. Rookies should upgrade their initial vehicle, then switch to the Air Blade once they get to Drakonis, and even then, if you won quite a few races and got a good engine, you can keep that Marauder/Dirt Devil a little longer. Battle Trak (110,000$) Rogue Missiles, Lightning Nitros, K.O Scatterpacks Availability: Bogmire, New Mojave, NHO, Inferno. Verdict: Holy crap. Now there's a good ride. Two advantages over the Air Blade: better mines (Scatterpacks beat Bear Claws any time of the day), and *insane* handling, without having to invest even one dollar in tires! The first few races, you'll hit corners head on 'cause you're too used to slipping! (Watch out for water puddles and the like, though, they still affect the Battle Trak). When you get a better engine, though, the Battle Trak starts to slip a little... Friendly advice: don't get the Atlas Power Boss on this one. The Battle Trak is a life-saver on New Mojave, but loses its cornering power once you get to NHO because of the ice. At that point you can get the... Havac (130,000$) Sundog Beams, Lightning Nitros, K.O Scatterpacks Availability: NHO, Inferno. Verdict: One nice vehicle for NHO's frozen tracks. Completely ignores terrain and traction (although the banks of snow on NHO and the green slime on Drakonis will still affect you). Its Sundog Beam is a great weapon: the little red spheres home in on the closest competitor without any need of aiming! On top of that, you don't have to invest any money in tires or shock absorbers. I like to upgrade my Battle Trak on Bogmire and New Mojave until I have level three upgrades for everything. Then, I start saving money for the Havac. This usually happens halfway through New Mojave's Division B - but hey, I'm real good! ************************ 4) IT'S A KILLER MACHINE, IT'S GOT EVERYTHING (The Upgrades) Gordo the slimeball is always ready to make improvements to your ride... for a price. I don't need to go into great detail about armaments upgrades: upgrading weapons, boosts, or mines once will give you one more charge during a race, that's all, up to a maximum of 7 (initial 1 + 6 possible upgrades). There's no way to make armaments more effective other than getting a new car with better ones. Oh yeah, and in case you hadn't noticed, during a race, your armaments will recharge completely every time you finish a lap - talk about quick pit stops! Here are the costs for upgrades (x1): VK Plasma Rifles: 14,000$ Locust Jump Jets: 6,000$ BF's Slipsauce: 20,000$ Rogue Missiles: 20,000$ Lightning Nitros: 24,000$ Bear Claw Mines: 20,000$ KO Scatterpacks: 24,000$ Sundog Beams: 20,000$ Upgrading your ride is *vital*. Each car has its own characteristics, and the driver you choose also impacts its performance, but even if you have Snake Sanders you won't win unless you get a better engine to increase your speed. Engine upgrades: Cobra Mark VII (Start), War Hammer (40,000$), Super Charger (70,000$), Atlas Power Boss (110,000$). Your engine influences the acceleration and top speed of your car. One of the first upgrades you should get with a new vehicle you just bought and intend to soup up. They are the costliest, though, and higher speed means a decrease in your car's handling capacities. Body upgrades: Defender (Start), Rhino Skin (24,000$), Saber Tooth (48,000$), Atlas Powerplate (64,000$). Upgrading the body gives your ride more toughness (the colored dots in the top-right corner of the racing screen indicate how many hits you can take). I'm unsure if it makes you deal more damage to someone you ram, though. Quite useful, and once you leave Chem VI you'll need at least Rhino Skin to survive for long. Shock absorbers upgrades: Grasshoppers (Start), Hydrosprings (20,000$), Hydro Twinpacks (40,000$), Atlas Power Lifts (60,000$). As their name implies, shocks absorb the impact of landing. The least important upgrade... Get Hydrosprings last of the first round of upgrades and stick with those for a while. Don't waste cash on Atlas Power Lifts unless you're *swimming* in dough. If your driver has Jumping +1, ignore those. Note that you cannot upgrade shock absorbers on the Havac (it's hovering!). Tires upgrades: Track Masters (Start), Road Warriors (30,000$), Super Mudwhumpers (50,000$), Atlas Power Claws (70,000$) Handling's the game. With better tires, you'll slip and slide less. Watch out: when you upgrade tires, your car's handling will improve noticeably, so loosen your driving a tad in the first few races (i.e. let the car slip a little further - your new tires will compensate) to get used. The first upgrade you should get if you don't have Cornering. Note that you can only upgrade tires on the Marauder, the Dirt Devil, and the Air Blade. The Battle Trak has perfect handling, and the Havac hovers. ************************ 5) GET YOUR MOTOR RUNNING (The Races) The two twins of the bad hairdo, Rip and Shred, follow you from planet to planet. Rip's car is gray and Shred's is brown - but both drive last year's model and aren't too sharp. The fourth competitor is planet-specific, and usually much better than Rip and Shred. That guy has the latest car (colored deep purple - get it?) and isn't afraid to use its "gadgets"... When you start on a new planet, you'll be in Division B. To get past the rugged Captain Braddock and into Division A (which slightly increases the level of difficulty and sometimes changes one of the twin's cars to the current model), you need to amass a certain amount of points. Points and prize money are awarded to the first three drivers to finish a race as such: First place nets you 400 points and 10,000$ Second place nets you 200 points and 7,000$ Third place nets you 100 points and 4,000$ (There are other ways to get cash. If you blow up a "fellow" competitor with weapons or K.O. Scatterpack mines, you'll get 1000$. Picking up the gold ingots laying about the track by driving over them will net you 1000$ for each one. Finally, if you're in first place and pass the driver in last place, you'll get a lapping bonus worth 5000$!) Once you get enough points in Division A (same amount as you needed for Division B) you can move on to the next planet. Sit down, strap in, and watch the animation. I suggest you finish all the races you can to amass as much dough as possible. Cash = cool rides and upgrades. Don't forget it! The following is a list of the planets, local drivers and their cars, and info about the races. On Rookie level, you'll get to race on planets 1 to 3. On Veteran, it's 1-5, and only Warriors can compete on all 6 planets. 1- Chem VI Local Driver: Viper MacKay (Marauder) # of races per Division: 8 Points needed to advance to Division A/Move to the next planet: 1600 Viper isn't too dangerous. He knows how to use his Plasma Rifles, though. The tracks here are quite simple and don't have any obstacles. Basically, if you have trouble here, read the FAQ and you should get better. 2 - Drakonis Local Driver: Grinder X19 (Air Blade) # of races: 10 Points needed: 2000 Grinder X19 is Cyberhawk's arch-nemesis. If you don't have an Air Blade yet, Grinder will take the lead with his Nitros. Drakonis' races are a bit more twisty and feature the first true puddle, the infamous green slime that will slow you down to a crawl. Puddles never change places (unlike power-ups), so learn where they are - and learn to avoid them. You'll also encounter the first red arrow, which gives you a super speed boost if you drive on it. Until you get to Inferno, use them! 3 - Bogmire Local Driver: Ragewortt (Battle Trak) # of races: 12 Points needed: 2900 He's a threat in his Battle Trak. Let him ahead and then blast him to bits! I like the tracks on Bogmire: not too complicated and with plenty of speed. Blue noxious puddles will cause you to slip and wipe-out. 4- New Mojave Local Driver: Roadkill Kelly (Battle Trak) # of races: 14 Points needed: 3200 Roadkill is a lot like Ragewortt, only insane. The tracks here are intricate at times, but I love them! (Especially the cross, you'll know it when you see it.) Black oil causes you to slip, exactly like on Bogmire. 5 - NHO Local driver: Butcher Icebone (Havac) # of races: 14 Points needed: 3200 Butcher is one of the most frustrating drivers out there. He starts out with the Havac and its homing Sundog Beam... Better get a Havac of your own to compete. One piece of advice: stay put until he runs out of ammo. Banks of snow replace puddles here, but they serve the exact same purpose as the green slime on Drakonis: slow you the hell down. Tracks here become real mazes. Don't feel ashamed if you get screwed the first time you race them. 6 - Inferno (I haven't had time to reach Inferno ) Local driver: (yet, working on it, but I don't have) # of races: (the codes with me... And I prefer to) Points needed: (go through the whole Warrior level. ) (Note: you can get to Inferno in VS mode by using the same trick you use to get Olaf: when you're at the planet selection screen, just hold down L,R, and Select, and then scroll to the end of the list. Inferno will appear.) ************************ 6) EVERY WOMAN I MEET GOES AWAY SATISFIED (Racing Tips) 1 - The Late Start (Veteran and Warrior) Many beginners just hit the throttle as soon as the race starts. Instead, wait a split second for the others to take a small lead - one length of a car, no more. Then, hit the gas, and fire your weapons! If you have enough shots, you'll blow up a car (netting you a cool 1000$) and basically take one competitor out of the race for a while. There's also a chance the two others will waste their weapons on each other so that you can pass them safely. If they don't, just tail them for a lap and repeat the above process, or use your mines. 2 - Mines Mines are nifty little gadgets. They lack the simplicity of weapons but can shake those bothersome drivers sticking to your six. BF's Slipsauce will cause them to, well, *slip* out of control, if you have good aim. The second downside to Slipsauce is that it stays on the track, meaning you'll have to deal with it too in one lap - so be smart and use only what you absolutely need. Bear Claw Mines drop down and explode when someone runs over them, and like Slipsauce, you need to aim well. They also stay on the track if no one comes in contact with them, but are overall easier to avoid. If you have someone right behind you, Bear Claws will give them a nice jolt, causing a slight loss of control - although blowing up someone with those gives you no attack bonus. Finally, KO Scatterpacks, when let loose, expand into a mine field right behind you, which means you can be a little less careful about aiming. Extremely powerful when someone is tailing you, but they don't remain on the track for long - which, in a way, is a plus, because you won't have to deal with them next lap. (If you're quick, you've already understood that during the last lap you should use *all* your mines: since the race will be over soon, you won't have to avoid them, and let's not waste anything, right?) Sometimes you run out of weapons when the guy just in front of you is smoking... Time to use them mines! (Of course, this trick only applies to Bear Claws and Scatterpacks). Cut the next corner short to get in front of him, and hit A... Boom! One less competitor to worry about, and an attack bonus if you used K.O. Scatterpacks. 3 - Nitros Nitro owns you. Bursts of Nitros increase your top speed for a while, but, more importantly, they make you accelerate *real* fast. Use them after blowing up to get back in the race, after you screwed up a corner, or after you stepped in some Slipsauce. Use them when coming out of turns to get back to top speed. Contrary to popular opinion, using a Nitro burst just *before* a corner will make it easier to turn! Something about aerodynamics and drag, I believe. But for the love of Jesus, don't use them when there are bumps and climbs! Aim straight or you'll fly right off the track! It's definitely worth it to get more than 1 Nitro. In fact, for my Battle Trak, I stop at level three upgrades (for engine, body, and shocks) and then get only Nitros. If you can get an Air Blade on Chem VI, you'll see the difference they make. 4 - The Shortest Way There are two ways to turn 90 degrees corners. The first is for people with little handling (bad tires or okay tires with no Cornering ability). Follow the center of the track, and when the turn is almost on you, turn hard so that you'll slip the rest of the way, but facing the new direction. This works best with drivers who have Acceleration +1. If you have good handling (good tires or okay tires + Cornering), then use the pro method: stick a little more to the outside, and cut the corner at about a 45 degrees angle. Once you've passed the turn resume direct course. These two methods assume there are no obstacles in your way or power-ups you want to grab. 5 - How To Upgrade Your Ride (Veteran and Warrior) So, you want to make it a killer racing machine - in that order? Sure. Start with getting the Rhino Skin upgrade for 24,000$ so you'll be able to actually survive for more than ten seconds. Remember, you can ram opponents to cause damage, and the bonus to your own car's resistance is excellent. Next get Road Warriors tires for 30,000$, it's handling you dearly need, especially if you don't have Cornering. You now have a choice: get one weapon upgrade or the War Hammer engine for 40,000$. You don't need more than 1 Jump Jet, but you can get a few more Nitros and mines too (2-3). If you can get Nitro, consider getting one extra charge before getting the War Hammer. If you got Scatterpacks, you can get as many as 4-5. Alternate with weapon upgrades and other ones, depending on your needs and the track. Get Hydrosprings last of all, and possibly not until you get the Super Mudwhumpers tires. Shocks aren't useless, but they're not as good as the other upgrades. As I said above, if you have Jumping +1, completely ignore shocks. If you're upgrading your Marauder/DD or an Air Blade, you should start saving money at some point for your next car (I suggest after getting the first upgrade for tires, engine, body, and one weapon). If it's a Battle Trak or a Hovercraft, you can further customize it for deadly power - with the Atlas Engine and Top Speed +1, you'll be the fastest thing on wheels (or air cushion)! ************************ 6) Conclusion Well, that's it! Thanks for reading. I hope this FAQ helped you a bit. If you have further questions THAT ARE NOT COVERED IN THIS FAQ (read it first), or just want to drop me a line to thank me, then you can email me at korasoff@hushmail.com. Also, if you have any information or tips you want to submit, feel free. Check out the codes on gamefaqs.com before you submit any to me, though. Just go to the Rock N' Roll Racing section where you found this and click on Cheats and Codes. They have many interesting passwords I didn't include in this FAQ. ************************ Legal mumb-jumbo: All original material in this FAQ is copyrighted to me, Korasoff. The name Rock N' Roll Racing and the names of games, characters, vehicles, locations, etc... I used are copyrighted to Silicon and Synapse/Blizzard Entertainment. This FAQ can be distributed freely and in its entirety without my expressed consent but only for personal, non-profit purposes. All other distributions are prohibited.