Tutorial: Campaign

The following is a tutorial meant to aid new players when clearing the Campaign for the first time.

# Campaign

The campaign is 10 tracks long, and puts you on multiple different character combinations. You should be able to finish it in 30-60 minutes.

## Outskirts of the Village, in Front of Korindo

After some dialogue, you’ll start off in a single player race on Mari-Circuit, with Reimu and Marisa as your characters.

This is designed to get you comfortable with the controls and mechanics of the game. Since there aren’t any opponents, feel free to go at your own pace.

The main takeaways from this are the following:

* Going through a boost ring increases your speed for a short period of time.
* Drifting changes the angle at which you turn.
* Switching characters temporarily takes away your ability to turn, but it gives you a small speed boost.
* Your driving stats are different based on which character is on the bottom (yes, it’s the bottom character whose stats are used).

Now that you have a basic understanding of the fundamental mechanics, it’s time to move on to the next race.

## The Forest of Magic

Now you have an actual opponent. You will want to make use of the startup boost. During the countdown, start holding the accelerate button right after the 1 appears. This will give you the maximum speed right when the race starts.

But don’t worry if you mess it up; they are pretty slow, and as long as you hit most of the boost rings and don’t bump into too many walls, you should be fine.

The tricky part with this one is the cave section, where you can go up on the walls and even upside down. Try to follow the boost rings to make sure you don’t get stuck bumping into the exit’s ceiling or some stray mushrooms.

To go into more detail, the second boost ring that you hit in the cave should be the one positioned in between your options for the first one. So, if you enter the cave and hit the ring on the right, move back to the left to hit the second ring, or if you hit the one on the left as you entered, move back to the right. This should align you well for the rest of the cave.

## The Human Village

Now you play as Suwako and Sanae. This combo is particularly friendly to beginners as both of these characters have very high drift stats, making it easy to turn and maneuver.

This track is still fairly friendly, with almost no places to fall off and the boost rings guiding you around all the turns. You may notice that there might be some alternate paths that you can take, which we will get into later when going over each track specifically. For now, you should easily be able to beat the CPU by taking the same route as them.

## Scarlet Devil Manor

In this track, you might be intimidated by the complexity of the minimap. Indeed, this will be the first big step up in difficulty, especially as there will now be places to fall off. There’s also another racer in the room, but that won’t affect you too much.

You play as Koishi and Kokoro on this track. Koishi has very high drift, while Kokoro has almost none. As such, you may find it easier to just stick with Koishi on the bottom for the whole race, especially with how many sharp turns this course has. That being said, Kokoro has high speed, so if you want to switch to use her, the long straightaways are the best spots.

After the big air section, you will see the track split into two paths. The CPUs take the right route. This is easier, although it is slightly slower. If you take the left route, there is a section with no walls, so you may fall off. I recommend taking the right route for beginners.

There are several other shortcuts you may notice, like a small corridor that cuts off the very last turn. Even if you don’t take advantage of these, you should be able to beat the CPUs so long as you don’t bump into too many walls.

## Bamboo Forest of the Lost

Now you play as Remilia and Sakuya. Similar to the previous combo, there is one character that is fast and another that is good at turning. In this case, Sakuya is the one that is good at turning, so you may just want to stick with her on the bottom the whole time, especially as there are not very many long straightaways.

If you look at the minimap you will notice right away that this track contains some alternate paths. The CPUs do not take these paths, but you will be able to save some time if you can take advantage of them. Take care not to bump into the wall when veering to the left.

While the first small cut that contains a bunch of boost rings is fairly simple, the second, bigger alternate path is more complicated, and it will involve you shooting up over a gap. From there, you would either be able to go left, returning to the regular route, or continue straight, which is faster.

You can also take the second half of the alternate path in spite of starting in the regular route, given that the paths intersect. While this is still faster, be careful when making the turn as not only does the thicket make it hard to see, but there are also small bumps and walls in the terrain that may give you a hard time.

## Partway Up Yokai Mountain

A fairly simple and straightforward map. At the beginning, be careful not to fall off the left side, as there is nothing stopping you. This is true of the last curve as well.

The tricky part is the factory section, especially with how dark it gets, it can be difficult to see which way to go. Following the CPUs and boost rings is key here.

One other thing to note is that unlike all the previous tracks, this one is only 2 laps instead of 3. (We’re ignoring the fact that Mari-Circuit was also 2 laps in the campaign because it’s normally 3).

## Seirensen

*Completing this track unlocks Youmu and Reisen.*

We have returned to the Moriya combo of Suwako and Sanae. You also have one more opponent, with a total of 4 racers in the room.

But what you’re probably more worried about is how convoluted the minimap looks. Don’t worry, it just has a bunch of alternate paths, and there’s nowhere to fall off in this course (or if you do, it’s a bug).

At the very beginning, you will want to take the right path, as all the CPUs do. The left path, while it may be easier, is a bit slower.

Slightly later, the track will split again. The CPUs will go right here as well, but you actually want to go left. They may seem to take about the same amount of time, but it is actually slightly faster to go left. Plus, you won’t have to deal with the CPUs throwing bombs or amulets for a bit.

The rest of the track is simply following the boost rings. This is the longest track in the game by far, so don’t worry if you fall behind as you’ll have plenty of time to catch up.

## The Sky Above Hakugyokuro

*Completing this track unlocks Nue and Futo.*

*It also unlocks Hakugyokuro.*

The first time you see this map, you’re probably concerned about one of two things: either the tangled mess in the middle of the minimap, or how you’re ever going to pronounce the name of the track.

Well don’t worry about either of those, at least not the former. This is a one-lap track, and in spite of all the twists and turns, there aren’t really any places you can fall off (only the entrances and exits to the shortcuts, but we won’t go over those yet).

This time you are racing in a room of 5, and you are playing as Futo and Nue. Of these two, Nue is better at turning, so keeping her on the bottom is recommended.

This is one of the shortest tracks in the game, so if you get hit by an opponent’s spell, it might be hard for you to catch up.

## Embers of Blazing Hell

*Completing this track unlocks Embers of Blazing Hell.*

If this game had a Bowser’s Castle, this would be it. This is a hard track, and you will fall off many times.

With 6 racers now, you are playing the Reisen and Youmu combo. I recommend right away to keep Reisen, the better drifter, on the bottom the whole race, as there are so many tight turns you need to make throughout the whole course.

Most of the track’s layout you will end up learning by trial and error, but there is one section in particular that is unlike anything seen before: the ending lava section.

The simplest thing to do is to go to the right ramp, then to the middle ramp, then the middle again with the boost ring right on it. However, this can be difficult if the cycle is set to currently shoot out lava from the right side, which will block the second ramp.

In this case, you can either try and weave in behind the lava, touching the ramp enough to get the height boost, or you can just plunge downwards and respawn. If the place where you fall is further than the second ramp, then you will respawn after the lava section, and you can go on to the finish.

If you are unsure, just avoid the second ramp entirely and make sure you go past it. Then you will get the good respawn the majority of the time. If you try to go for the second ramp, but you don’t make it and fall down in front of it, you will respawn back at the beginning of the ramp section, making you have to do it over again.

A point of solace is that the CPUs are not that good at this track either, so if you can get a run without falling off too many times, that should be all you need to proceed.

## Misty Lake

*Completing this track unlocks Cirno, Seija, Suika, Kasen, Tenshi, and Yukari.*

*It also unlocks Misty Lake, Old Capital, Mari-Circuit 2, The Outside World, and Voile Library.*

Remember how hard the last track was? Well, this one is even harder. With a full lobby, you’re back to the protagonist duo of Reimu and Marisa. If you want to make those tight turns well, keeping Reimu on the bottom is the way to go.

This track does a few mean things to you. Right after the loop-de-loop in the beginning, you’ll see a giant block of ice with a boost ring on either side of it. But instead of splitting paths like in previous courses, the track is just directly behind the ice block, meaning you will have to go right back after you pass the ring.

Right after the castle section with the hairpin turn, you’ll come across a series of floating platforms. Whenever they split and give you a choice, take the left platforms. The first one is faster, and the second one makes it much easier to get back onto the road because it’s at a higher elevation.

The rest of the track isn’t actually so bad. It has a few particularly sharp turns that you may fall off on, but you should be able to handle them without problem once you get a feel for it.

Like on the previous track, the CPUs also are bad, so you should be able to clear the course without too much hassle.

~

And with that, you’re done with the campaign. Enjoy the credits and eurobeat. You’ve also unlocked all the characters and courses that you’ve encountered. That’s everything, right?

Well…

# Campaign Part 2

What if I told you there’s another campaign? That’s right. There’s even more characters and courses to be unlocked. There’s not really any indication of this anywhere, you just need to select Campaign again on the main menu and it will take you to the second part.

Unlike the first campaign, you remain on the same combination of Seija and Cirno the whole time. Cirno is very fast and has medium drift, while Seija is much slower and has high drift.

This campaign is slightly shorter than the first, at 9 tracks. You should be able to finish it in 20-40 minutes.

## The Human Village

You’re in Human Village having a 1v1 with Youmu/Sakuya. There really isn’t much else to say here.

It’s basically a warmup. You should be able to clear this with no problem.

## Partway Up Yokai Mountain

You are back on Youkai Mountain now. For the first time, we see Tenshi (although technically we already unlocked her after beating the first campaign).

Just like the last track, there is nothing new to say. Beat it and move on.

## Voile Library

The first new track of this campaign. This one features lots of turns, so sticking with Seija on the bottom will make it much easier.

The track starts off by splitting into paths between the left and the right. The CPUs take the right route, which is slightly slower. Trying to go left on lap 1 may be difficult as the swarm of CPUs will push you out of the way, but going there on the remaining laps should be easily feasible.

After the paths converge, you’ll come across a section with a strafing bridge. I recommend avoiding this bridge entirely unless you are sure you can get the right timing to go across it. Sometimes you will fall off the track and the bridge will push you against the wall, making you stuck until the bridge moves away again. This results in a huge time loss.

Right after the bridge is another split, where you can go on either of two corkscrews of bookshelves. Especially if you did not take the moving bridge, it is easier to go on the left corkscrew, as your view gets somewhat obstructed near the end of the right side’s path. Do note, however, that if you fall off at any point during the corkscrew section, you will respawn on the right path.

The remainder of the track is filled with sharp turns and plane changes. It will be difficult at first as there will be a few times where you go up a wall and have to immediately turn, but the layout of the track is not so difficult once you get used to it.

## Outskirts of the Village, in Front of Korindo

Now you are on Mari-Circuit 2. It shares some features with the first one, but is quite different in that you go underground instead of up in the air.

The difficult part is in the underground section, as it can be difficult to tell which way to turn next. There also is a hairpin turn right after the wooden path, where you should definitely switch to having Seija on the bottom.

Aside from this, the track is fairly straightforward, and there are no sections where you can fall off.

## Old Capital

You now get to face Suika and Kasen, though like Tenshi, they are already unlocked at this point.

This track has many tight turns and corridors that could give you some trouble. In particular, there is a zigzag section right after the first hairpin that can make it easy for you to bonk. Timing the drifts is key here.

Right after this, you will go indoors, and the path has a hole open up in the floor. You can either descend or stay on the top floor. Going down is faster as there are more boost rings, but staying above makes it easier to fly across the big gap. If you fell down and are not confident about making the jump, then go around the hole on the right side.

After the big hole, you go up a clockwise spiral into the most dreaded part of the track: the houses section. At the end of the ascent you will see three houses lined up, and after them there are four houses, staggered against the first three. Past that there are five houses, again staggered. At the end of the houses there are two paths, the left one leading up and over while the right one lets directly out.

The trick to getting through the houses is to maintain a consistent angle of approach. Let’s say you want to take the right path. You should aim to be on the left side of the roof of each of the rightmost houses. Alternatively, if you want to go left, stay on the right side of the roof for each of the leftmost houses. Both of these strategies will get you through each of the boost rings, and you should be able to make it across safely without falling off.

The point of most danger is between the set of four houses and the set of five houses, as there is not much elevation difference between them. Be careful not to turn too much while going through this section. You only want to turn just enough so that you start at the lowest point of each roof and leave at the highest point. This will make it easiest to get to the next set of houses.

Directly after the turn to the right are more houses. If you took the left path that sends you up in the air, this section will not be too difficult as you can easily see the houses and weave between them. If you took the right path, you will have to make some quick maneuvers to go right around the first one and left around the second one.

Finally, the rest of the track is more of the corridors. While it can definitely be frustrating, a good run without falling off should be enough to get you to the next level.

## Underground City

Now we have a completely new track. Note that the name of this track is Under*world* City Depths, not Under*ground*.

In any case, it’s another lava track, though it’s not as bad as Embers. There are many places that you can fall off, but the track itself is not so difficult. It mostly features lots of blocky corners that you can cut off with smooth turns. Just remember though, no matter how much time you can save from grazing the edges, it’s not worth falling off.

In the ending section, there are turns where you can either go inside, closer to the edge, or further out, where there are boost rings. In these cases, it is faster to go inside. Don’t worry about the different texture of the ground, as offroad isn’t really a thing in this game.

## The Outside World

To start off is a big air section. It is best to just follow the boost rings, and aim to land on a ramp or section of the track that is there, rather than just flying freely where you may end up falling off.

After the initial air section, you’ll go up a wall and encounter some S curves. But at the end of these lies a bigger obstacle. There is a small gap, in which spins a giant wall. Sometimes it will be there, and sometimes you can pass through freely. This doesn’t mean you have to stop and wait for it if it’s blocking your path. Just think of what you do at the beginning of Misty Lake, where you go around the ice block. In this case, it’s a moving example, so you have to make a quick judgement as to which side you have to go around it.

Directly after the spinning wheel are two split paths. While you mostly cannot fall off the paths, you can hop from one path two another when they intersect. Staying on whichever path is on the left is the fastest, but it should not matter too much in this race.

After that is a very long straightaway with many boost rings. Following this is a curve and some jump ramps, kind of like the ending to Embers, but less scary. Before each ramp is the roof of a building, so you should have an easier time not falling off. Taking the ramps on the right side is faster here.

## Moonlight Bamboo Thicket

Moonlit Thicket, probably every beginner’s least favorite track. You might be able to tell why as soon as you see the minimap. The whole track is nothing but turns and places where you can easily bonk against the wall.

The easiest way to approach this track is to do as the CPUs do, start with the right path, then alternate on every turn. This will set you up to take the easiest lines (although certainly not the fastest).

If you can get through this track without bonking too many times, you should be able to clear it. It is also the shortest track in the game, despite being 3 laps.

## Sea of Tranquility

*Completing this track unlocks Clownpiece and Flandre. It also unlocks Sea of Tranquility, Moonlit Thicket, and Underworld City Depths.*

Here it is, the final track. Perhaps you may consider this the equivalent to a Rainbow Road, with it being in space and having brightly colored track. In actuality, this track is not so hard, but there are a few things you need to be careful of.

From the very start, you can see the path split into two. They both take about the same amount of time. The left one is slightly faster, but the right one gives you an easier angle to take the next turn.

After this are some fairly normal twists and turns, at the end of which lies the red boost ring that sends you to the surface. Again you will see a split path. The right one is faster here.

After going up and doing a U-turn, you’ll enter a big spiral tube. Be careful not to go up the walls, as the gravity can get wonky if you do, and you might get stuck trying to drive straight into the floor. As long as you stay on the arrow path, you will be fine.

After you exit you’ll see a big curve, at the end of which is a purple track section. You will want to take this track right in the middle, as it elevates early and saves you some time.

~

And roll the credits. They’re the exact same as the first campaign, but now you’re done. You’ve unlocked everything this game has to offer (excluding skins). Congratulations!

Selecting Campaign from the main menu will bring you back to the first campaign again.