Drivers and Their Pod Racers

When you start the game as a new player (by selecting one of the empty save game slots) or in Practice mode, you'll only be able to choose between six drivers (Anakin Skywalker, Ebe Endocott, Dud Bolt, Gasgano, Elan Mak and Ody Mandrell).

As you move along in the Tournament races, you'll unlock the other drivers (see the tables above). You can switch to a new driver at any time before you jump into a tournament race. It's important to note that when you switch drivers later on, once you have made upgrades to your pod, you will retain those upgrades. When you cycle through the driver list before a race, the bar charts that show you a pod racer's vital stats will reflect any tweaking or new equipment that you've already purchased.

While each pod racer offers up a unique combination of attributes, most begin fairly evenly balanced overall (before you factor in any upgrades). You will notice, however, that a few pod racers are simply lame (like Mawhonic) - don't waste your time driving them until you're much more experienced in the game and want a new challenge.

A stock pod racer, no matter which one, will not give you enough performance to win the later races, but continuing to upgrade your racer, and then selecting the best racer for the track (if your current driver isn't it), can be one of the keys to ultimate victory.

You will often find that a particular pod racer (often the favorite) always breaks to the front in a given race. Watch this driver carefully and try to pick up on any weaknesses he may have, and select a pod racer that counters that weakness well (as an example, Sebulba is amazingly fast in the final Galactic race, but his acceleration is weak - pick a pod with a high top speed and good acceleration, and you've just given yourself a leg up).

You'll find a table below that outlines the different drivers and their pods. The table points out the greatest strength and weakness of each driver's pod, as well as the length of the racer (remember, a longer pod racer sways out more on turns).

3D view

Before you enter into a race, you can select Inspect Vehicle from the main menu to go the a 3D view of your pod racer in the pit hanger just before the race. Use the control stick to move around your pod racer.

You can zoom in and out by tapping the up/down C buttons. Tap the left/right C buttons to move to a new "center subject." You can center your camera on: the pod racer, the cockpit, each engine, each pit droid and the pilot.

You can't get any useful information on the current state of your pod racer from this view, but if you push the A or B button here, you'll see the main menu superimposed over your 3D view.

Component View

By selecting Vehicle Upgrades from the superimposed Main Menu, you will see a visual representation of your main racer components on the right side of the screen. The current component will be highlighted (all others will be blacked out). The bar to the right of the component indicates its current level of operation.

You can also see the amount of "enhancement" given by each upgraded component on the bottom of the screen. The original performance level of your pod racer's selected component is indicated by the light blue bar. Any extra performance that you've upgraded will be indicated by a yellow bar.

When you move from component to component, the 3D view will also change to show you where on the pod racer the selected component is located.

Pushing the A button from this view will take you to Watto's shop, where you can browse his selection of available upgrades.

Pushing the B button from this view will take you to the Main Menu.

Pit Droids

When you begin a tournament, you're given a single pit droid to repair and maintain your pod racer between races. Watto has three other pit droids for sale for 1,000 truguts each. You should buy all three as soon as you can afford them. Once you have your full compliment of four pit droids, the Buy Pit Droids option will no longer appear on the Main Menu.

The pit droids will make repairs on your pod racer after each race. The repairs aren't based on time, but rather a set value of repair after each race (and they may not be able to fix all of the damage you've caused to your racer after just one race). You can check out the droids welding and working on your racer from the Inspect Vehicle view.

Damage

You'll be surprised at just how rugged a cobbled-together pod racer can be, but even the most burly of racers will suffer some damage after you've scraped a rock wall a few times at more than 500 mph.

Each time you cause damage to your racer (you can only damage the engines), the engine display will flicker on the bottom left of the screen. Each engine has three different damage areas, and the damage levels range from green to red. You'll often find the front of your engines taking the most damage. This is logical, since you're probably ramming more obstacles than sideswiping them.

If you damage an engine with a deep red damage area, you'll see "Warning" superimposed over the engine display. You'll also probably notice a serious degradation of performance - now is the time for some immediate repairs!

Below are a few more tips to minimize the damage to your pod racer:

• Keep thrusting when you lose an engine - you'll buy some extra time before you crash.
• You'll often find yourself banging up one engine of your pod racer more than another on any given course - keep your eyes on the damage display and if one engine is red, try to err on the opposite side.
• Your pod racer will take damage from any fall or jump - to minimize damage, and to increase your "hang time," pull back on your control stick as you take off on the jump. This will redirect some of your thrust downward and cushion your landing.
• Don't let yourself "ping pong" from one side of the course to another - this will chew up your engines faster than anything. If you find yourself banging back and forth, release the accelerator and try to regain control slowly.

Mid-Race Repairs

Each pod racer is equipped with an automatic repair unit (you can upgrade this unit - see below). If you find yourself with some serious engine damage, start the repair process by holding down the R button. Your pod racer will slow down during repairs, but it could be better than watching an engine blow up, sending you corkscrewing into a wall. Below are a few other tips on making the most out of your mid-race repairs:

• If possible, always try to do your repairs on a straightaway.
• Upgrade your repair unit ASAP - in later races, you'll pick up damage quickly and need to be able to count on a quick repair.
• If you see the warning light flashing on your engine display, but you're neck-and-neck with another racer and don't want to give up any ground, a quick hold of the R button might just fix the problem enough to restore control and shut off the engine warning.
• Try to pick a few areas on a course where you need to slow down - instead of hitting the breaks, make a habit of turning on the repair unit instead. This "regular maintenance" serves a double-duty of slowing you down and keeping your engines in top shape.
• There are times when crashing is better (it takes less time) than repairs - especially if you don't have a heavily upgraded repair unit. If that's the case, then be sure to smash into something hard so you'll be sure to blow up.

Engine Fires

The jet engines that power a pod racer run hot - that flame belching out of the rear of the engines isn't just for show! In the engine damage display, there is a colored outline surrounding each engine. The color of this outline indicates the current level of engine heat. If your engine gets too hot, you'll find yourself trying to race through the belching black smoke of an engine fire.

A red heat outline means that your engines are getting hot - any additional stresses might just push them over the edge (so don't thrust!).

You can set one of your engines ablaze by thrusting beyond the warning beeper, flying through flames or flying over lava. If you find yourself with a torch instead of an engine, quickly hold down the R key to get your repair unit on the job. Putting out an engine fire takes longer than a normal repair, so you might find it a better tactic to just ram your pod racer into a nearby wall and respawn.

All trademarks herein are acknowledged as the property of their respective owners. Star Wars is a registered trademark of © Lucasfilm Ltd.
Tie Fighter™, X-wing™, X-wing™ vs. Tie Fighter™, Balance of Power™, X-Wing™: Alliance™, Rebel Assault™, Rebel Assault II - The Hidden Empire™, Rogue Squadron™, Dark Forces™, Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II™, Jedi Knight: Mysteries of the Sith™, Jedi Knight™ II: Jedi Outcast™, Jedi Knight™ : Jedi Academy™, Shadows of the Empire™, Rebellion™, Force Commander™, The Phantom Menace™, Episode 1: Racer™, Battle for Naboo™, Galactic Battlegrounds™, Galactic Battlegrounds™: Clone Campaigns™, Starfighter™, Knights of the Old Republic™, Battlefront™, Galaxies ™, Galaxies: Jump to Lightspeed™
Are all registered trademarks of © LucasArts Entertainment Company LEC. © Lucasfilm Ltd. & TM or ® as indicated.
Website Established November 1999
Webpage Design 1999 by Tony Denton.