Just for a month
First impressions where good, with the interface etc. I like the way everything is controlled through a web page, never really saw that done before.
The first car I took out was the Legends Ford on Lime Rock. Initialy it was running at 1600x1200 60hz...nasty, had to fix that. Loaded up again, lovely:). First impressions of the physics are good. The tracks seem to have a lot of character, much more detailed surfaces than LFS. The ffb going over curbs and bumps is very nice.
I tried a couple more tracks and then had a go of the Solstice, which I think I prefer for getting used to the "newness". Had a few laps around Summit Point, which is a great track. Reminds me of a grassy Fernbay . There is some thing very satisifing about being able to drive on real tracks, although Leguna Seca is the only one Im familiar with from TV. And as Clarkson once pointed out, TV really doesnt do the hills justice :D, seems like quite a tough track.
Graphically, Im not blown away. But the use of 3.0 Pixel shading, high quality shadows and lighting (shadows moving around the inside of the Legend look very nice) plus the much higher res textures on everything do stack up in its favor against LFS, which after playing this makes me think Scawen could through a little more candy our way.
Sound, its good. I keep hearing about how LFS sounds are better because they are generated in real time based on physical events in the game, be it from the engine, exhaust or tyres. Fair enough but its doesnt really sound like a race car does it? I dont know about you guys but I feel that every one knows the sound system in lfs is not good (Auraly not technically) and we're waiting the patch where its updated and sounds propper. But im starting to wonder if it can ever work properly. I dont know how the sound is generated in iRacing but it sounds pretty damn good....and like a race car.
So after a whole 2 hours :) playing with it my verdict is.....it's too bloody expensive and I can't see myself dishing out that much money for any game. What I would also much rather do than practice, or start a competitive championship, is casual race with some friends...you guys. But we cant do that yet can we ? :( If this sim had the same license style as LFS Scawen et al would be in big trouble, but as it stands I dont think so.
So now on to noobie questions :doh:
1. whats the difference between the Normal and Rookie versions of the cars?
2. Auto clutch seems to be on, how can I turn it off?
3. Is there any way to configure the options like Graphics and sound or are they only Auto Detect?
4. Im sure there will be more :norty:
Quote from: Seany;245651Nice report, pretty well sums it up.
Quote from: Seany;245651So now on to noobie questions :doh:
1. whats the difference between the Normal and Rookie versions of the cars?
2. Auto clutch seems to be on, how can I turn it off?
3. Is there any way to configure the options like Graphics and sound or are they only Auto Detect?
4. Im sure there will be more :norty:
1: You can alter the setups in the Advaced
2: Don't bother, it doesn't work! :eyebrow:
3: At the bottom of the options page there is a tab for graphics etc.
Thanks for posting, it was nice to read your views. To summarise my findings this far:
- driving alone: iRacing beats LFS 6-1 :blink:
- racing against others: dMr beats anything else 7-1 :boxing:
- still: iRacing is a far more detailed and modern sim in most importact factors. it just needs a form of closed racing where I do not need to race with full field of strangers.
nice review seany, the game is a grower, i started off not liking it very much, just pointing out all the faults due to the fact that its costing $20 a month and i was expecting the mother of all racing sims (as per the hype), but to be honest its a very good sim in its early stages, give it a few weeks of play and you will know what i mean. but the simple fact is that it is way to expensive for what it is. the graphics are sharp but bland (about 10 polygons per car, lol) tracks are ok but i have seen better graphics and played better games so its not the next super sim yet.
what i think would make a near perfect sim
1, graphics as good as grand turismo ps3
2, FFB and car handling like netKar pro
3, online racing like LFS (with all the mods skins ect)
4, inter changeable weather like GP4 (wet, to dry line, to dry)
5, model engine like Grid (ego) parts of cars stay on track ect ect
would make a classic?:g:
I think the LFS sound system is great, but it has few down sides too. I think the thing what people complain is that many of the cars sound bit 'tame'.
+ potentially can adapt to all kind of situation changes (like cylinder blown), which could be bit tricky with samples.
+ Way more flexible and easier to add new cars. In a sample based system you would need to sample engine sound with many rev counts (like 1000,2000,...), because it is not just increasing pitch (all kind of snap, crackle and pop changes with the revs)
- If the sample system is done accurately, does it sound better (don't have to figure out all the snaps, crackles and pops)?
- can all the small details which make the car sound be even calculated?
- uses more cpu power
EDIT: In iRacing I hate not just the licensing system, but the copy of the American justice system: If something happens, it doesn't matter if the guilty person is punished just as long as someone is punished...or maybe just send all to Guan...erm...I mean substract everybody's points.
Paavo, have you tried Gill's new sounds as mentioned somewhere else in these forums. Must say they don't sound as 'lame'.
You've made me ask myself how much notice do I take of sounds. :g: I change gear by the sound of the engine, I can hear if I've fubared my engine (popcorn) so, given that many effects can be catered for as and when the situation arises. i.e. rear axle failure.......et cetera, LFS sounds have, or will have, the advantage.
The safety rating, I must admit, is starting to get me down a bit. I tried being philosophical about it but I'm now pretty negative, except it does make others a little less gung ho. I understand the idea behind it and applaud their efforts but if they were a bit more like dMr peeps there wouldn't be a need for it.
You can tell my initial enthusiasm has worn off and I'm having less and less to do with it. :sad: Hey ho! It's only money! :D
Good points about the sound Paavo. There is a lot of potential there, though I just think back to last overhall the sound system had a while ago, and in fairness nothing really changed that much. I think it has gotten to the point for me where I would prefer technically incorrect but accurate sounding engines over engines that don't really sound like engines but are rendered as realistically as possible. Who knows, maybe the sound is at the bottom of the list before going to beta and we will se some major improvments, but I'm starting to wonder. :g:
The safety rating does seem interesting and I am curious as to how it will be when I do some racing. I'll be very paranoid about whats in my rear view mirror no doubt :D
thanks for the comments / help guys
So how many of you guys are iRacing subscribers? I've been thinking about it, but the prices are putting me off it. :( Monthly fees I can handle, but I'm more worried about having to pay for cars and tracks. I'm afraid it could easily get out of hand if I get hooked..
I signd up for a month, thought it was an unfinished/unpolished product and decided to try it again when it had had more time to mature.
Quote from: Gnomie;246500So how many of you guys are iRacing subscribers? I've been thinking about it, but the prices are putting me off it. :( Monthly fees I can handle, but I'm more worried about having to pay for cars and tracks. I'm afraid it could easily get out of hand if I get hooked..
It has turned out a huge disappointment for me after buying everything on offer. I don't want to talk about it. :sad:
Quote from: Doorman;246511It has turned out a huge disappointment for me after buying everything on offer. I don't want to talk about it. :sad:
It's quite an evil marketing trick, really.. once you're hooked you have to keep paying!
Thanks for your advice. I might reconsider if/when I buy a new PC. :)
I'm still in there. LFS is really awkward after iRacing. There is as Oldie says much that is not up to LFS/rFactor/GTR standards, but the "drive" is superb. Maybe not so much the Solstice, but the other cars is a blast.
Maybe NetKar will be a compromize, I dont know. Currently NetKar stinks.
But I just ordered a new computer that will forever make my Netkar problems a thing of the past. (Q9550, Vista 64).
The really good thinks with iRacing is that if we keep paying it will constantly improove. New content and new features will be added. They have people and money behind them to make success.
I'm not sure what happened to Doorman, he used to like iRacing.
For my self I can say that the races in iRacing are *much* more exhausting and realistic than anything else. So if you want *racing* iRacing is it.
My enthusiasm knew no bounds! Unfortunately it evaporated, it must be said, due in some part to my own fault. I bought everything that could be bought in the mistaken idea that I would be able to use(not just test) these cars/track online. I also didn't realise that it would be so...American. Silverstone through me. :doh: In hindsight I should only have bought the bits I needed but they offered discounts the more you bought. :sideways:
At first I loved the Safety Rating system, no two ways about it. Now it iRritates the hell out of me! I know all the arguments, but being hit up the rear AND being punished for it has worn a bit thin. :flirty: Going off track and being punished is constricting. When it comes to congratulating oneself for not losing SR points have I been racing?
My view is that iRacing membership has peaked already in as much as most sim racers have got it or tried it already.
Lovely tracks though.
Yeah, it's weird that they didn't fix the SR system.. it seems to be badly broken, from what I can tell. The idea of having such a system is great, but the implementation leaves a lot to be desired.
What's really putting me off, besides the price and the SR system, is the variety of cars. I tend to prefer tin-tops, and I can't stand ovals and that. Boooooring.
If they fix the SR system, reduce the price and introduce some new cars, I will have a hard time resisting the temptation..!
at first i was not a fan of iracing, to be honest you have to stick with it, i did give it some time and i have come to like it alot, just a shame about the cost of the thing, hopefully the price will drop and that will encourage more people to the game.:g:
Quote from: Gnomie;246572Yeah, it's weird that they didn't fix the SR system.. it seems to be badly broken, from what I can tell.
Please explain what wrong with it. Is it that it does not take "whos fault it was" in to account?
If somebody crashes in real life, either on track or on the road. Both cars get hurt. Its as simple as that.
Think of SR as your budget to buy parts for. If you have SR 4.99+ its no problem, you can afford it. If it is 2.5 you need to drive carefully, because you cant afford to crash.
Quote from: vobler;246587Please explain what wrong with it. Is it that it does not take "whos fault it was" in to account?
If somebody crashes in real life, either on track or on the road. Both cars get hurt. Its as simple as that.
Think of SR as your budget to buy parts for. If you have SR 4.99+ its no problem, you can afford it. If it is 2.5 you need to drive carefully, because you cant afford to crash.
I don't know which way it is ment to be, but I don't like either. If I buy something I want to play it. I don't want that my reputation/bank balance/whatever to suffer because some a-hole hit my bumper. Automated detection who's fault a crash is never going to work, but the current system is a bad imho. It needs a human to check...something which seems to be hard even for FIA.
I'm with Mr. Cat ( ^_^) on this one. In 90% of all collisions where a guy crashes into someone's bum it's the guy behind's fault, the only exception being if the one in front blocks deliberately or strays wildly from the raceline or something like that. I'm used to driving in the CTRA, and they have this to say about overtaking:
QuoteOvertaking: Drivers must achieve significant overlap with the car on the outside, in order to gain rights to a corner. Significant overlap is defined as the bumper/wing of the inside car being level with or ahead of the driver's head on the outside. The measurement is taken at the corner's normal turn-in point.
So, the guy in front gets to choose his line through the corner, which means that it's the guy behind who has to be careful to avoid contact. If the guy in front gets punished for the overtaker's error, it's just silly IMO.
You really need to try iRacing to know how SR works for you. If someone touches you once in a race and if you drive out once or twice without crashing bad, it does not cost you almost anything. When you do clean races one after another, you will soon step to a higher SR level, and those who cannot race clean are left behind to race at their own level. When I was at level 2 I saw some fast guys who had done a lot of races, but had their Incidents per race ratio near to 10. I have it around 2 and could quickly get to higher level to race with cleaner racers.
I'd like to add also, that I think only those who cannot stay on track and whose awareness on track is poor need to worry about SR. Others can just enjoy racing like in any other sim.
Quote from: romus;246610I'd like to add also, that I think only those who cannot stay on track and whose awareness on track is poor need to worry about SR. Others can just enjoy racing like in any other sim.
I agree with Romus. The only ones that need to worry about the SR is the ones you don't want to race in the first place. (Plonkers) It is the same rating that Doorman wanted to add to dMr at one time, just that this is only on safety not speed. Maybe it's too difficult but it is a good system.
What people tend to do is that they overdrive their abilities and go off. And then complain about SR. My suggestion is to find a speed where you are safe and can race clean. Do a few races at that speed and your iRating will drop to that level, but your iRating will give you opponents of your skill in every race.
I am now at my max comfortable iRating (2100) so I will probably drop it slightly to have some breathing room. My SR is 4.9 give or take a tenth. I can now push very hard and if need be sacrifice some SR for a position. Lets say I can take a turn 2 tenths faster by taking 1x SR point. If I need that time I will use the SR to get it. Its no big deal. I touched a car yesterday going side by side through T1 at Summit Point. Who is to blame when nobody is first? We both lost 4x. It was no big deal to me nor to him. It was a race incident.
And there we have it. This is one of those 'we beg to differ' arguments. All I'm saying is that those constant, it seemed to me, 'nags' for one infringement or another, irritated me and if you're doing something that irritates you---stop it!
Like they say in the iRacing forums to anyone who criticises, "If you don't like it, leave."
So I choose to leave.
If, at some time I did want to add the SR to LFS it was because I thought it was a good idea. I've already admitted I thought it was good, but I say again, it irritates me now.
I don't think I would like it either to be honest. I would be counting up what points I'm gaining or loosing instead of having fun and concentrating on the race.
I have my own safety rating already It's called my conscience:D
I say sorry for rubbing up against Doorman and Oldy too many times and continue on my merry way:roflmao: It was the brake setting honest:devil:
So I've taken the plunge too now. :D One month subscription.
EDIT: What a long post.. :blink:I'll try to break it into pieces. Paragraphs FTW! :flirty:
Tech stuff
I was curious to see whether it would run on my PC or not. Bottom line so far is that it does indeed work, but I have to disable FreeTrack. It's the same thing as with LFS and Ventrilo -- since my computer is so weak I have to put the sim on "high priority" in Windows for it to work properly without any stuttering. In LFS I can still use FreeTrack even with LFS on high priority. iRacing however seems to be even harder on the CPU, so I can't even run FreeTrack.
It's not too big of an issue -- I mean, most people don't have headtracking -- but as Doorz put it some time ago, driving without it feels like someone clamped my head in a vise. I'll get used to it I'm sure, but it's annoying to drive without. I've gotten so used to looking "through" the corner and see the apex and such that it feels very weird to race without it. I keep yawing my head from side to side and nothing happens.. :lmfao:
What I think of iRacing so far
Short version: it feels really really great! This week's track (with the Rookie Solstice) is Summit Point Short. A quite twisty little course with plenty of challenges (well, for me at least :narnar:) Some high speed corners, and some slow corners. I joined a few practice settings around noon today and picked up a few tips and tricks. People were more than happy to help a new guy out!
Then when my level of confidence had increased somewhat I jumped in a quali session and did a few laps. I had no clue whether the times I achieved were good or bad, but they must have been decent, 'cause when I joined my first race I was given position #4 or 5 on the grid! It was a very fun race indeed with lots of action. Some guys pulled away at the start, but some of them spun off. I was able to pull off a podium finish in my first race! :D That boosted my confidence a lot, and soon after I joined my second race, where I finished 4th after a great battle that lasted nearly the whole race through. I think we passed each other at least a couple of times.
I've heard people saying the level of racing on the rookie servers can be pretty bad. However I was actually pretty impressed. Of course some people drive off sometimes, but there was no ramming or anything like that from what I could see. It seemed as if people tried to be respectful and play nice.
I'm not going to care at all about safety ratings and irating and all that stuff. I'm going to try to ignore the messages flashing on the screen whenever something happens. Fun, clean racing is all I care about!
Finding time for it all..
Lately I've had a hard time finding out which sim to focus on. And this certainly hasn't made things any easier! It's going to be hard to keep doing both LFS, nKP and iRacing. For the time being I think I'll put LFS on the shelf and concentrate on the latter two. Probably I'll do iRacing primarily in the weekends, 'cause judging by today's experience there's a lot of people on in the morning. I'll definitely do the Wednesday races in nKP, so expect to see me on the server on weekday evenings as per usual! :)
Quote from: Gnomie;260337So I've taken the plunge too now. :D One month subscription.
:)
Well done Gnomie! :yahoo:
As this is a week between seasons, there are only a couple official series. The Solstice probably the only road series you can do. (You can do the Laguna seca part of the unofficial Targa Transamerica in the Radical if you buy the car) But if you get your SR over 3.00 and you do two races as you probably have, I think you will be promoted to class D by the end of the week. Then you have the possibility to do a complete season of Skippy racing witch you would love.... :rolleyes:
This week we also will get a new build with quite a few new things, One being open practise servers. We also get the new class A cars. The Nascar COT (car of tomorrow) and the DP (daytona prototype) Pontiac Riley.
Anyway, good luck with iRacing and hope to see you on track. I will promptly add you to my friends list.
Thanks! :) Yeah, I've read about the new stuff that's coming. Looks like there's a lot of development going on at the moment!
What does open practice servers mean? What's the difference between a practice server and a practice session?
Quote from: Gnomie;260370What does open practice servers mean? What's the difference between a practice server and a practice session?
I'm not sure there is a difference. But after what I have read it allows people so see who is in a session and then join after it started.
It should make it much easier for friends to practice together.
Cool! :)
Today's track was Lowe's Infield. Kinda reminded me of a hilly version of Kyoto National, with the oval section and all. Anyway, it seems that this track is a LOT less taxing on my PC! I was able to run a 19 car grid with 2xAA and 4xAF with no significant framerate drops! :yahoo: Seems like the trees were the culprits on Summit Point.
I'm really starting to like the Solstice. I hear people say it's not a good representation of the FFB in iRacing, but if that's the case then the other cars must be bleemin' amazing, because the FFB in the Solstice is definitely among the best I've felt in any sim. I also love how you can "toss" the car around a little bit. It's heavy, but you can use the inertia to your advantage. I find that giving it a little jerk just before the turn can induce a very nice, controllable oversteery slip through the corner. Feels terrific!
Well, would you look at that! I got an e-mail from iRacing today. Here's what it said:
(http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9379/utennavntm5.png) (http://imageshack.us)
(http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/utennavntm5.png/1/w877.png) (http://g.imageshack.us/img99/utennavntm5.png/1/)
:yahoo:
Quote from: Gnomie;261789Well, would you look at that! I got an e-mail from iRacing today. Here's what it said:
:yahoo:
Gratulerer!
Print it and frame it, Soon you will have a whole wall.
I think you can request a first win award too. Just mail the rewards section (Tim) and tell him the session number fro your first win and he will make one for you.
Nice one Gnomie :)