Dakar 18 – Navigation Tips

by Falagar / Articles, Misc. Guides / 29 Sep 2018

1. Learn your symbols! The briefing provides a glossary of all the terms, abbreviations, and symbols. Some are rare to find, but others are crucial, like knowing the difference between on and off-road arrows and anticipating how dangerous the path is before you take it at full speed. You have no idea how much it helps to be able to read symbol patterns and recognize the type of road you will encounter in seconds. With practice, it can become second nature.

2. Don’t rely on the CAP alone! The Cap number is your compass, but when you start a stage, you need to identify where are the four cardinal points about the environment. This isn’t strictly necessary, but it provides additional references (like the Sun) when looking for a specific direction. Remember that…

North (N): 0° = 360°

Northeast (NE), 45°

East (E): 90°

Southeast (SE), 135°

South (S): 180°

Southwest (SW), 225°

West (W): 270°

Northwest (NW), 315°

3. Don’t be afraid to scroll the book manually! While the game does help you by scrolling to the next note automatically, as soon as you reach the previous one, you can scroll back and forth for reviewing or anticipation. If you’re driving in a straight, open course, checking a few panels ahead can give you an idea of when to turn and how fast, saving you precious seconds. If you’re lost, you can review previous notes to return to a point you remember passing. You are in control.

5. You can scroll the odometer, too! Just as you can scroll pages of the roadbook, you can also scroll the kilometer counter via key bindings assigned in the controls menu. This is useful when returning to a previous waypoint since it resets the KM number to the one referenced in the note, allowing you to rework your route from scratch.

6. Be quick, but also be patient! This won’t be easy at first, and you’ll get better with practice, but it’s better to go slow and steady with a good sense of where you are going than smashing the gas hoping for the best. Don’t forget: When in doubt, stop, take a look around, review your course, confirm your direction, and off you go.

7. DON’T WITHDRAW! Don’t be a quitter. The penalty for returning to the last waypoint automatically is insane. Believe it or not, returning to it by yourself and restarting from there can take you 5-10 minutes, in contrast to the 20 you get. Again, take a breath, return and start over.

Falagar

He is the founder and editor of Magic Game World. He loved gaming from the moment he got a PlayStation 1 with Gran Turismo on his 7th birthday.
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