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PC Racing Sims Thread

TJP

Member
Does Raceroom have a dynamic track like iRacing or Automobilista yet?
It did, with ever increasing rubber marbles, however it was deemed to be too heavy on resources at the time and has been shelved for the time being. No idea just how dynamic the road surface is in other sims is - rF2 also has a dynamic track.

Who knows what Sector 3 have in store if/when they move to UE4.
 

Mascot

Member
Oh, I didn't mean just the curved screen, I meant the curved screen combined with the incredible 32:10 aspect ratio... sadly only a few hundred were ever made (at $6000ish each!).

I'd like to know why completely bezel-free monitors aren't a thing by now. The tech has existed for years (see video walls with wafer-thin display gaps) so why hasn't it trickled down to home use? I reckon I'd jump to PC and triples if a good solution existed (first-gen VR isn't as appealing as i thought it would be - maybe gen 2 or 3 will be less of a compromise with FoV and resolution).

Edit: Clever buggers use mirrors

flower_glass.jpg
 

DD

Member
Ah, I just looked. It's a fair saving, but if you can afford it DD, I'd definitely go with AMS.

On this sale AMS is costing R$ 82,49, with 20% off from R$ 109,99. F1 2016, a 60 dollar game is on pre-order by R$ 105,99 for comparison. So Reiza isn't being exactly nice with fellow Brazilians. ;P
And SCE is currently 50%, from R$ 59,99 for R$ 29,99.


Sorry dude, couldn't resist! Sucks that you weren't able to sort it out.
Hahaha, you sons of good ladies. I wasn't mad, btw. ;)
 

Mascot

Member
Bezel width is stopping you from moving to PC? C'mon man...

There are many <1cm bezel monitors available. It's really not a problem - even fairly chunky bezels aren't that bad if they're well-calibrated.

You said it for me. I don't really want to spend £2.5k+ on things that are 'not really a problem' or 'aren't that bad'. I thought VR would be what triggered my migration, but gen 1 HMDs have too many compromises, so I'll wait to see what future gens offer. In the absence of good VR I'd want triple monitors as the next-best thing, but current offerings aren't enough of an incentive because of the vertical bezels. If bezel-free monitors were a reality then it could be enough to tip me over the edge. Sorry if our opinions differ, but it's my money..! :p
 
You said it for me. I don't really want to spend £2.5k+ on things that are 'not really a problem' or 'aren't that bad'. I thought VR would be what triggered my migration, but gen 1 HMDs have too many compromises, so I'll wait to see what future gens offer. In the absence of good VR I'd want triple monitors as the next-best thing, but current offerings aren't enough of an incentive because of the vertical bezels. If bezel-free monitors were a reality then it could be enough to tip me over the edge. Sorry if our opinions differ, but it's my money..! :p
It is impossible to achieve a seamless transition from one flat display to another at a different angle. I reckon if you could create something like the image you posted, but with angled monitors at the sides, it would be more distracting than having a frame there, because you'd be constantly forgetting about it, and then noticing it again, as your eye panned across the scene. By having a physical gap, you can't 'lose' where it is, so it can be easily ignored (our brains are very good at filling gaps). The bezel is a good thing, disguising the unavoidable flaw in the join.
 
Perhaps LG's bendy-screens will one day fill 180 degrees of our vision without any pesky bezels? Sadly, not only will these paper thin screens be horrendously expensive, I'm going to assume the latency will be too high for sim-racing.

WKD0jIi.jpg

4vGRO7z.jpg
 

Mascot

Member
It is impossible to achieve a seamless transition from one flat display to another at a different angle. I reckon if you could create something like the image you posted, but with angled monitors at the sides, it would be more distracting than having a frame there, because you'd be constantly forgetting about it, and then noticing it again, as your eye panned across the scene. By having a physical gap, you can't 'lose' where it is, so it can be easily ignored (our brains are very good at filling gaps). The bezel is a good thing, disguising the unavoidable flaw in the join.

Interesting stuff. I'll wait for good VR then.
 
Perhaps LG's bendy-screens will one day fill 180 degrees of our vision without any pesky bezels? Sadly, not only will these paper thin screens be horrendously expensive, I'm going to assume the latency will be too high for sim-racing.
Would be an awesome setup, but I think the gains over triple screens would be extremely insignificant compared to difference in price.

Interesting stuff. I'll wait for good VR then.
I'd say good VR is here already, but 2nd gen could be worth waiting for. The predictions are pretty varied on when that's coming however. It could be next year... or as long as three years!

I just noticed that you may have misread my earlier post. I said bezels are 'really not a problem', rather than 'not really a problem'. Very different emphasis :)
 

TJP

Member
Empty Box looks at AMS CART mod version 1.1:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gj-GlfwKAU0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rk6O1UxdFDc

Might be of interest to 'GAF users who are still on the fence about AMS versus GSCE.

Empty Box also said the following about AMS on VirtualR:
- More polished and well done content than what rF2 has
- More variety in content
- More cars and tracks ready to go on the modding front once things settle down development wise as it's an easier conversion and update to AMS spec than a decent rF2 spec
- Some offline racing features like championships
- Full seasons of V8 Stock Cars
- The V8 Stock Cars themselves
- CART Extreme
- The fact a sim racer can never have too many sims in their library
- Tire pickup
- With the updates to the physics and FFB refresh rate it doesn't drive as "boxy" and "wooden" as SCE/rF1 do, granted not as liquid and flexible as rF2, but certainly different in a better way from rF1.

At "worst" it's the best version of rF1, at "best" it's the most rounded sim on the market out of the box despite it's "age" graphically.
 

Makikou

Member
What's the consensus on that guy here? I like him, but he sure is opinionated... all without that 'such nice guy' attitude.

I like him for what he is. He has no need to be neutral about anything and as a person he can be as opinionated as he wants.
I guess what I am trying to say is, he is not a game journalist/reviewer and I don't think he makes himself come across like that. It's just his thoughts on stuff.
I watch his video's because I enjoy his presentation and I feel there are not too many people doing as high quality content as he does.
 

TJP

Member
What's the consensus on that guy here? I like him, but he sure is opinionated... all without that 'such nice guy' attitude.
I don't agree with Matt 100% of the time and like all people he has his favourites and biases however he's not a paid mouth so we we here from him is his bullsh*t free opinion. Another aspect I like is he drives the cars at a higher & more consistent level than most people I've seen on YouTube.

I view his opinions as carrying as much weight as anyone else on YT be it TeamVVV, ISR, GamerMuscle, SimPit (RIP), Sim Racing Garage or anyone else with an opinion channel.
 

TJP

Member
Highlights:

Added garage phase to Multiplayer. This is a 60-second phase before race to allow players to change their car setup and fuel.
Changed login flow and integrated with Steam Web API. New players will no longer have to register an account with e-mail. The game will create accounts with the Steam ID and existing users will automatically authenticate with Steam details.

Full details here: https://forum.sector3studios.com/index.php?threads/30-06-2016-raceroom-has-been-updated.5846/
 

TJP

Member
Yay! Another short oval for rF2..


bsimracing said:
Bristol Motor Speedway, formerly known as Bristol International Raceway and Bristol Raceway, is a NASCAR short track circuit located in Bristol, Tennessee USA. The 0.858 km long Bristol track is among the most popular tracks on the NASCAR schedule because of its distinct features, which include extraordinarily steep 30° banking, an all concrete surface, two pit roads, and stadium-like seating. The track can also be used as a temporary clay Dirt Oval.

Full story info: http://www.bsimracing.com/rfactor-2-new-fallston-motor-speedway-previews/
 

TJP

Member
I thought they said they weren't from photo mode! And curse you for getting tester access, I missed out :(

PS. I love that because of this sim, Geelong is getting global coverage in the simracing community. Pretty fucking weird.
It's been a while (6 weeks) since I looked at this sim due to a lack of time however the initial impressions I had was that KK looked much like pCARS graphically but not a whole lot like the released screenshots (unless I did something wrong with my settings). Perhaps they cranked up the post processing?
 

Mascot

Member
I'd say good VR is here already, but 2nd gen could be worth waiting for. The predictions are pretty varied on when that's coming however. It could be next year... or as long as three years!

Yeah, it's one of those situations (like upgrading GPU cards) where you just have to draw a line in the sand and say yep, better things are coming, but this is good enough for me right now. Gen 1 VR doesn't give me those feels. I thought it would, but I need to trust my instincts as the overall investment (including a scratch PC build) will be significant.

I just noticed that you may have misread my earlier post. I said bezels are 'really not a problem', rather than 'not really a problem'. Very different emphasis :)

Indeed - good spot, and apologies. I must have read it with confirmation bias. :p
 

GHG

Member

Watevaman

Member
Lovely.

I also see that all of the raceroom experience's DLC is currently discounted. Why is it not all available on steam? Is it better to go with the non-steam version?

Also, what are the must have packs?

Group 5 is a must-have to me and most people. I think.

Speaking of R3E, I had some time to play last night. Took the Mistral LMP2 car around the Nord and had a lot of fun. I don't have a lot of practice time for racing sims so most of my time is just "fire up and go" instead of taking time to practice the tracks and such. I think besides my first little off-track mess ups, I like this lap. Here's two camera angles of the practice lap, too bad I couldn't have a better battle with the Daytona Prototype:

Onboard
Wheel cam
 
Might not be the best place to ask, but what's a good non-sim, arcade-style racing game for the PC? I want to play something like Ridge Racer/Outrun/Wipeout/FZero with a controller (don't have a wheel).
 
Might not be the best place to ask, but what's a good non-sim, arcade-style racing game for the PC? I want to play something like Ridge Racer/Outrun/Wipeout/FZero with a controller (don't have a wheel).
NFS: Hot Pursuit (Criterion) and NFS: Most Wanted (Criterion) might give you an Outrun vibe
Blur is real cars with Wipeout-style pickups
GRID: Autosport has a leaning towards sim but still drives best on a gamepad, if you want something a bit more realistic
Radial-G is similar to F-Zero
Driver: San Francisco is one of the greatest games of all time

Interesting Steam Early Access stuff:
GRIP is spiritual successor to Rollcage.
Distance shares some similarities with FZero.
Formula Fusion is spiritual successor to Wipeout.

I can't think of anything that is like Ridge Racer however (in terms of that particular lock-into-drift handling).
 
Thanks! Lots to check out.
I got the Criterion NFS Most Wanted for free 3 months ago. It was the Origin free game back then, maybe it will be given away for free again, you can setup an alarm on CheapShark.com for example (maybe on Origin too, but I don't know).

Radial G
that BettaLines mentioned and Grip as well as Distance looked promising (heard something not very nice about Formula Fusion), but personally I'd probably go Trackmania Stadium or even back to Burnout Paradise for the arcade racing kick on PC, can't recommend The Crew but I know people who liked it.

Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed is kinda neat too... same goes for Tabletop Racing World Tour

If you're up for something even more top-down view style arcadyness take a look at Absolute Drift(!), Death Rally or Speed Kills (though not sure if that was shut down because it directly ripped stuff from Rock'n Roll Racing; edit: checked, still exists, but supposedly bad, so strike that).
 

DD

Member
Bang Bang Racing is a cool little top down racer. There's also Mini Motor Racing EVO on that genre.

Gas Guzzlers Extreme if you like combat racers. Split/Second is a cool combat racer too. And there's Skydrift, a combat racing game with airplanes.

Dirt Showdown and Ridge Racer Unbounded if you're into crashing.
 

Shaneus

Member
So I bought pCARS in the Steam sale, figured it was worth the $20ish dollars for something to keep me going for a while. Really don't like how it feels though, at least with the default settings. The kart, out of the box feels super loose and wonky compared to the one in Automobilista :(
 

TJP

Member
So I bought pCARS in the Steam sale, figured it was worth the $20ish dollars for something to keep me going for a while. Really don't like how it feels though, at least with the default settings. The kart, out of the box feels super loose and wonky compared to the one in Automobilista :(
What you've described with the carts is something you'll find across pCARS - some cars really gel (e.g. many of the race cars) and others simply don't (e.g. many of the road cars). As for the karts - didn't care for them at all in pCARS even with fettled wheel settings. For me, rF2 and AMS provide a much better carting experience.

That said, how are you playing pCARS? Wheel and pedals (if so which make and model) or controller?
 

Shaneus

Member
That said, how are you playing pCARS? Wheel and pedals (if so which make and model) or controller?
G27, with the GTONE brake spring.

It was only one race (that I kept retrying) but I just expected that if I can jump into AMS, literally not adjust anything and have it feel amazing, then the same should happen for a more heavily-funded/supported game like pCARS.

Or maybe I need to adjust the Logitech control panel settings or something, I dunno. But then that would mess with my AMS/AC wheel feedback.

Edit: Found this thread. Don't know how in the hell setting up a wheel became so complicated, considering the game itself is meant to appeal to a more mainstream audience. Annoying.
 

TJP

Member
G27, with the GTONE brake spring.

It was only one race (that I kept retrying) but I just expected that if I can jump into AMS, literally not adjust anything and have it feel amazing, then the same should happen for a more heavily-funded/supported game like pCARS.

Or maybe I need to adjust the Logitech control panel settings or something, I dunno. But then that would mess with my AMS/AC wheel feedback.

Edit: Found this thread. Don't know how in the hell setting up a wheel became so complicated, considering the game itself is meant to appeal to a more mainstream audience. Annoying.
Pretty much the same setup as me.

I used this guide - http://forum.projectcarsgame.com/sh...-FFB-values-Linear-FFB-Google-sheet-Universal and never touched the tweaker files again.
 

DD

Member
You don't know the horror that is trying to play PCars with a pad, Shans.

And have fun dealing with the tons of bugs this game has. :p
 

Shaneus

Member
Oh god :( Part of the reason I bought it was that I thought it'd be relatively plug-and-play. And after reading all that stuff on FFB and wheel setup, I feel my head is about to explode!
 
I don't think there is that much to be gained tbh. The main reason why PCARS is gonna feel weird compared to Automobilista is due to the physics, rather than the FFB. I would suggest sticking with the default calibration for your G27 for a few hours, on a variety of different cars (karts are weird and won't tell the whole story) to just get used to the overall physics of the sim.
 
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