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Alex
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Brasil
Mar 1999
time: 02:35
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(Note: it's a bit long, but I promise it'll be interesting to read) 
A few days ago I decided to install GP3 again and play with it just for some quick fun. I have GP4, but it doesn't run well in my old computer, so I had uninstalled it a long time ago. Recently I bought F1 Championship Season 2000 in a bargain bin, but was not really happy with its playability, and this is why I decided to reinstall GP3.
No mods or add-ons, just the original patched game and my old keyboard, and there I was in the cockpit of a Benetton ready to start my training session at Albert Park. Hm, ok, the graphics are not that nice, but that's ok. Hey, this car actually is fun to drive!
Now let's go for the qualifying session. Oh, it's raining. Cool. (Wet weather is one of the things done right in GP3, and no other F1 game has beaten it yet in this feature - except, of course, GP4). It was raining when the session started. There I go, best time. It's going to be easy. Ha! The rain stops, the track starts to dry. Other drivers are doing much better times. Time to leave the pits again. Uh-oh, I spin and break my front wing. Back to the boxes. There we go again, another spin, my lap time is ruined. Ok, one more time. Ha! Best time again. I'm invincible.
Hm, I think I left the pits too soon. The track keeps getting better and better... Now Hakkinen has the best time, and Schummy, and Irvine, and... damn, it's time to teach them a lesson. Too late. I used 11 of my 12 allowed laps. End of story, I'm in 12th. 
Racing day. A nice and beautiful sunny day.  I chose 100% race length. Let's go! First turn, I'm in fifth. Ha! This is going to be easy. Irvine is ahead, I only have to chase him and choose the best moment to attack. I chose the wrong moment, he blocked me, I had to drive over the curbs and my car spins. I lose four positions. Ok, here we go again.
Time for the pitstops. Other drivers are pitting, I'm suddenly back in the points. My time to pit, nice work by the team, I'm back in 6th. Then the drama begins. Irvine is once again ahead of me, but I can't catch him, he is on new tyres too. Finally, after lots of perfect laps, I have my chance to pass him and I do things right this time. A classic passing manoeuvre, using the speed in the main straight and braking later for Turn 1. After some drivers leave the race thanks to mechanical problems, I'm in 2nd. Now I only have to catch the leader and... Uh-oh, Coulthard is 30 seconds ahead. 20 laps to go.
I simply couldn't do it, no matter how hard I tried. He was consistently fast, and not even the backmarkers seemed to slow him down.
The race ends, 1h33min after it had begun. I didn't win, but I don't remember having that much fun in a long time...
Good games never die.
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07-04-2004 01:05
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