It's official, I can't wait for Forza 3

In reply to confuZion3 and thedude:

TURN OFF TRACTION CONTROLL !!!! really....

No kidding. I had a ton of fun in an FD RX-7 w/ 428hp at a tiny cirquit. It was oversteer city man! My favorite racing game ever though has to be DiRT!

Volksroddin wrote: In reply to confuZion3 and thedude: TURN OFF TRACTION CONTROLL !!!! really....

I always do. You cannot do doughnuts in GT4. Even with all the driving assists off (all of them, really), a locked differential, and all the power in the world, you cannot get the car to go loopy in one place. It drives in circles instead. It looks like the physics engine WANTS it to go around, but then some additional code kicks in and the car goes back into it's stupid little circle. It's most annoying when you spin, find yourself backwards, and want to turn around quickly and get on with the race.

Go ahead. Try it.

Racer1ab wrote: I really hope this game lives up to the hype, but time will tell. There is even supposed to be an accurate model of tire deflection in this version!

Looks like tire deflection, but we'll see how it feels.

confuZion3 wrote:

Volksroddin wrote: In reply to confuZion3 and thedude: TURN OFF TRACTION CONTROLL !!!! really....

I always do. You cannot do doughnuts in GT4. Even with all the driving assists off (all of them, really), a locked differential, and all the power in the world, you cannot get the car to go loopy in one place. It drives in circles instead. It looks like the physics engine WANTS it to go around, but then some additional code kicks in and the car goes back into it's stupid little circle. It's most annoying when you spin, find yourself backwards, and want to turn around quickly and get on with the race. Go ahead. Try it.

I did when I owned the game before I traded all my PS2 stuff in when I got my 360. It was really annoying to spin and then take forever to get turned around. I already have FM3 on pre-order and a wheel I just need to build a setup that works. An HDTV would be good too.

DiRT 2 is coming out soon, too.

Has GRM ever done a racing video game article? If not, would you?

I'm not up on the xbox, PS2/3, Forza, GT3-4-5 etc, and would like to learn more. As my 5 year old son gets older, it would be a fun thing to do with him, but I'm clueless about systems, games, simulators, etc.

more images

Rusty_Rabbit84 wrote: im waiting for a racing game in which you have to buy a race shop, and buy a rig...

When I was a member of GTPlanet, I suggested that a minigame in GT5 with towing your car to the track would be more interesting than all that NASCAR crap they were considering doing. I suppose my suggestion fell on deaf ears..

Joe Gearin wrote:

jpod999 wrote:

Joe Gearin wrote: I had a chance to preview FM3 during my recent trip to L.A. The graphics are nearly photo-realistic, and the tracks are pretty impressive too. The car selection is pretty amazing. (from Diesel Audi racecars, to Miatas) We'll be getting a "fully baked" version of the game here soon to test, but so far, it looks pretty promising. I may have to break down and buy/ build a sim setup.

Is Infineon going to be in the lineup?

Yes, I believe it will be, although I'm not 100% positive. I'll have to check my notes. When I played the game, they had me on a few wicked "fictional" tracks.

Forza 2's fictional tracks drive me nuts. I still think FM2's a better game than GT4 (and I was an absolute GT addict!), but I've got to give it back to Polyphony Digital on the "fictional" tracks. They're much better than "Maple Leaf Valley", or any of those berkeleying Mickey-Mouse-Malibu-Grand-Prix abortions named after snakes. And if anyone's found a braking marker for New York City Reverse, please e-mail it to me. I either overslow, or taste concrete there. IIRC, running there in an S class car was the first time I decided to "hire" a driver. I just wanted to be done with the dang thing.

After finally being able to play FM2 for awhile, I find myself wishing I could run a Forza C or D class race on Grand Valley or Trial Mountain..

These screen shots look great, but who cares. Who ever really watches the replay of the race? I am just excited that they are going to have dashboards shown for the in car view. Any in car screen shots?

dyintorace wrote: Has GRM ever done a racing video game article? If not, would you?

IIRC they did an article about iRacing a while ago.

iRacing is the equivalent to a pyramid scheme for video games. "Well if you want to move up in the ladder you must buy this then sell this, then buy that, and so on."

Perhaps this will convince me to get an Xbox. I've been running PC and PS3 with my rig (built it myself for about $50 with stuff from Home Depot). Will Xbox accept a USB wheel? I've since upgraded to a 52" Sony flatscreen (nearly the full width of the platform that is currently pictured).

DirtyBird222 wrote: iRacing is the equivalent to a pyramid scheme for video games. "Well if you want to move up in the ladder you must buy this then sell this, then buy that, and so on."

Fair enough, I have no experience with and only recall reading the article. What little racing sim stuff I do is done in rFactor and I didn't really fancy the iRacing subscription model for three laps a month...

BoxheadTim wrote: What little racing sim stuff I do is done in rFactor and I didn't really fancy the iRacing subscription model for three laps a month...

I agree with you there. I tried it and just couldn't justify the cost (car projects, house projects, kids, etc, mean I'm an occasional/infrequent online racer). More companies should move to a micropayment system where you can pay by usage and control your spending. iRacing would be a good candidate for this kind of setup.

BoxheadTim wrote:

dyintorace wrote: Has GRM ever done a racing video game article? If not, would you?

IIRC they did an article about iRacing a while ago.

We've done a few video game articles in the past, way back in the Gran Turismo 2 / 3 era. We're going to have a review of FM3 when it comes out, but maybe it's time for a fresh feature on the subject of games / sims.

I like the iRacing software a lot, but it's a sim, not a game; it forces you to take it seriously and concentrate. iRacing isn't "fun" to pick up and play for 20 minutes, you need to commit some time to practice before a race. (Although I don't get why D-bird compares it to a pyramid scheme...)

Tom Heath wrote: We've done a few video game articles in the past, way back in the Gran Turismo 2 / 3 era. We're going to have a review of FM3 when it comes out, but maybe it's time for a fresh feature on the subject of games / sims.

That would be a neat article. I don't know enough to understand the nuances between games and sims but am interested in learning. I know some games allow multiplayer online options as well. It would be great to learn what gaming systems, with great racing options, are out there. Options for rigs would be nice too.

iRacing is local to us here in New England (about 45 minutes south of where I live) and they have given our local Porsche club some demonstrations in the past. The concept is great, the racing is decent (you can't just smash and go like in GT5P online). It does take time/dedication to master, and a good setup/fast connection/pc are some keys to positive experiences. But that is their intent - to make it feel like real racing.

IMHO if/when someone can come up with a cheap, in home motion simulation experience, these kind of games will jump to a whole new level. I've built a cheap aluminum frame, seat, wheel combo that works great - motion feedback (roll, pitch, yaw) for under $300 would make for an unbelievable package!!! Anyone know about actuators . . . ?

I would wait to the end of the year to see if GT5 ships as anticipated in early December. If it doesn't at that point run the FM3 review and chart GT5 as a no-show!

Tom Heath wrote: We've done a few video game articles in the past, way back in the Gran Turismo 2 / 3 era. We're going to have a review of FM3 when it comes out, but maybe it's time for a fresh feature on the subject of games / sims.

That would be grand.

Tom Heath wrote: I like the iRacing software a lot, but it's a sim, not a game; it forces you to take it seriously and concentrate. iRacing isn't "fun" to pick up and play for 20 minutes, you need to commit some time to practice before a race.

I'm not much into racing games myself and prefer the sim approach (rFactor is a sim, although probably not as "committed" as iRacing, but that's comparing software I have experience with with something I read about) so yes, you'll have to put more time into anything like that and can't just knock off a few laps around Laguna Seca between beers. OTOH it's a good approach to learn your way around a track that you haven't been to.

thedude wrote: I hate gran turismo. a while back a freind and i were playing it and made an 800 hp viper that couldnt break the rear end loose.....what?

Try playing Project Gotham 2, then... they have a number of cars where if you just mash the throttle, there is no way in hell you're going straight... damn hard to control... on most of the tracks, not a big deal... you just bounce off the walls... but on the 'Ring... forget it... dip a wheel into the grass under full throttle and you're going for a spin...

PG2 is good for being able to do donuts... of course, the whole game is geared around doing such antics...

Some day I'll get an X360... but I have other things I need to spend money on... like racing tires for the auto-x car! ... and my XBoxV1 was dirt cheap...

I compare it to a pyramid scheme because if you want to move up you have to pay more more more. Want a faster car? Shell out some cash, want to race a certain track $$$, etc.

My biggest gripe with Forza 2 is that they got rid of the most awesome track from the first game, Fujimi Kaido. Use to spend hours playing that track on forza 1. Blue Mountains Raceway was also awesome and i don't think it it was in Forza 2 either.

Hmmm I think I'm going to go play Forza 2.

Hey on a related note what is a good steering wheel setup for the 360?

rebelgtp wrote: Hmmm I think I'm going to go play Forza 2. Hey on a related note what is a good steering wheel setup for the 360?

That's the big sticking point for me. The Microsoft wheel isn't very good, and regular USB / Logitech wheels don't work. Fanatec makes a sweet looking wheel, but I haven't tried it yet.