TrackIR and head tracking discussion

It will be great to have TrackIR supported in ACC. I use TrackIR nearly since it came out and I considerer it a much improved and immersive experience to simracing.
I tried to jump to VR but, contrary to the often expressed opinion that the low resolution of the screens used is not an issue, I find it to be precisely to be the main issue I have, therefore, currently, I continue to opt for using a high resolution monitor and TrackIR.

@6S.Manu , I may be reading it wrongly, but I believe you meant: "That does not mean it will not be supported in the next builds, but 100% safe it will not there on day one"

 

I don't feel TrackIR is useless in sim racing. Pressing buttons to glance to sides is way more unnatural for me. In a steep hairpin, you can't even necessarily find the buttons when wheel is not straight at all, and you've moved your hands from normal grip and suddenly need to see to your side. Trying to poke for the right button and accidentally change brake balance or whatever. With good sensitivity curve, you can keep TrackIR steady (dead zone) and still look anywhere when necessary.

Future may be VR, but the resolution of VR is so bad, that TrackIR won't be totally obsolete until the resolution gets better (so VR will work in flight sims etc. too). Also TrackIR is way cheaper and common since it's old tech and many people have those. Combined with something like ultrawide or other large screen, you will get very good sense of the car and surrounding, without the crap resolution of VR.

I've used it with triples too, mainly in games that have only stretched triple image. I just place all screens in a straight line, instead of angled side screens... and use TrackIR for complete side awareness. Definitely would use it in Wreckfest that way for example, if it had support. Perhaps a bit unorthodox, but I've never understood why triples always *have to* be in angled position. I've changed it many time between straight/angled, depending on game and if I use my old TrackIR with them or not

 

I am not about natural and unnatural handling. All computer sim handling is unnatural, sometimes more, sometimes less. I am about the viewing axis diverting from the driving axis - with me needing to bring that together again while watching just that tiny small windows into the virtual world that a monitor is. I turn the head slightly to the left to have a quick glance into the mirror - and my head immediately wants to compensate a "left turning" of the car - that in fact does not happen at all. Then I look straight ahead, and the same effect takes place, this time in opposite direction. That you always have a distorted perspective on a monitor does not make it easier. Thus, i often went offtrack or into a car when using trackIR just becasue I had a quick glance ot the sides and back on centreline, always with the movement itself that trackIR comes with. So, I found button presses and immediate spit-second glance to the side and immediately back to straight forward much easier to handle, it did not fool my brain and I kept on rolling into the direction my steering wheel was last set to.

In VR this is not a problem since you have your head far more inside the game world and automatically have a much greater perception and situational awareness. TrackIR works great for dogfighting in plances, and complex cockpit simulators. In cars it gives me only one thing: a stiff neck, not to move the viewing field on the monitor and getting fooled into turning the wheel where no wheel turning is needed.

 

Could you explain that last sentence, Skybird ... as I don't understand clearly what you mean there.

 

With TrackIR in cars I try NOT to move the head too much, becasue the movement of the viewing angle on screen casues me to err and my brain gets fooled into doping needless "compensations" which are not needed. Its a reflex.

Actually I know from the past 15 years that quite many people do not like TrackIr in race sims that much, while liking i8t inother games. I am a bit suroprised that I must explain it here and people seem to not understand what I mean. Its an often heard experience.

The feel in a flight sim is completely different. There I would not fly without TrackIR.

Anyway. Jedem Tierchen sein Pläsierchen.

 

I understand what you mean Skybird, but what I'm trying to say here... is that people are different, you can get used to stuff (unlearn a reflex), and I have no problem staying on track with TrackIR.

I had to fiddle with the sens curve quite a lot until it felt right. And when used with triple screen in the way I described, I can always see where I'm going, I just use it to adjust the area I'm seeing a bit, with overall low sensitivity (not 1:1 match, but not large multiplier either). I can turn my head in real car too to check the scenery without turning my wheel, haven't crashed yet.

Pressing buttons also diverts view angle from driving angle. In addition it diverts your hand off the wheel, to blindly poke for some button. I'm already running out of buttons in T500 (for some cars), there's no room for view buttons. If I had sequential shifter, then I might bind the T500 paddles to glance left/right as they are big enough to hit consistently in the heat of things, but other buttons... doesn't really work for me. Brake balance or TC is easy to adjust (relatively easy, still takes some focusing) when there's not lot going on in the race. But when you need to check your side, there usually is

In short, people are different

 

I also understand now what you mean ....
But I must say that the problem you mention happens for me more with button use than with TrackIR. Why ? .... I don't know

Now, maybe the settings chosen for TrackIR, different for everyone, might have their importance to avoid the problem you mention ... and also the way we use it.
Turning the head too much left or right ... enhances for sure the phenomenon you describe .... ( same as a too high % of "look to apex" in some other sims or buttons in my case ).

In fact, I feel I'm turning the head less but tilt it a little sideways at the same time. .... this reduces the mentioned effect and allows me to see better the entry point and apex of the coming curve.
With only one monitor ( even a 21/9 ), a correct FOV .... without TrackIR .... you'd nearly have to set the seat forward at the max to get nearly the same view of the track .... but in this case, your monitor is just a windshield nearly ... what I did before driving with a TrackIR.

Of course, I'd prefer 3 monitors or VR .... but for 1st option, no place enough .... and for the 2nd, some view problems and moreover still too expensive ( hardware included ) for a still not perfect result.
So .... for single monitor option, TrackIR remains useful.

I'm not quicker with TrackIR, but it makes the driving more comfortable.... and surely help to keep consistance, endurance and clean driving.

As ShredatorFIN concluded just above, people are different.

 

@Skybird
So you have issues with track IR
But the rest of us who know how to set it up properly,
and use it with every race sim successfully,
would like to know from the DEVS if it will be available in ACC.
Thanks

 

Hey, you asked for this detailed info, guys . Originally I just said that the future belongs to VR, and that for certain reasons I do not consider TrackIR necessary in race sims. My point, which maybe did not become clear, is that I think it is not at the top of their list with priorities.

 

I totally missed all the answers after the 3rd !!!!

Thanks for your honest answers Manu,

As someone mentioned VR is the future but is not 100% yet there (it will require massive 8K displays per eye to match a 1080p monitor pixels-per-degree density, or foveated tricks), TrackIR is a decent alternative meanwhile, please consider it in future builds.

 

I do think that a certain degree of view rotation by the use of trackir or facetracknoir is the simplest/cheapest/less dissturbig way of having a bettere situational awareness in simracing: for example I play Project Cars 2 with Facetracknoir and I could not do without
I really hope developers will make acc support trackir/facetracknoir; I am an ACC first day purchaser , I appreciated Assetto Corsa and my expectations about ACC are very high, but I absolutely dislike VR because is too innatural IMHO.
I also think I am not alone... please Kunos........ ;-)

 

My first impression of ACC is good. I think it can be a really good sim in the future except for the lack of TrackIR support. This point forces me to stop playing ACC, because it's horrible for me to drive with a static cockpit camera. I'd like to see a TrackIR implementation too. I am driving with TIR since years and being totally adapted to it in simracing. So i'm very disappointed it is not working at the moment. I just can't drive properly without it. Wheel to wheel action through corners is impossible for me to do without TIR.

 

I certainly hope TrackIR will be working at some point in ACC. It`s essential for me in AC, and I`m sure as hell missing it right now on the track in ACC.

 

VR is not TrackIR ... but they surely have something in common.
That's why I hope both might be possible ... but only in Release 2 as foreseen in the Roadmap.

So let's wait .... and we'll see. ( maybe ? )

 

TrackIR seems to be turning into the niche within a niche. Vr, triples, and now super wide screens, are basically competition to TrackIR, so the people that may have used TrackIR in the past are choosing one of those other options, meaning TrackIR becomes more and more niche. I'd start seriously looking into an alternative way. Not what you want to hear but it may be the way things are going.

I'd agree that those look left and right buttons are way to jarring to use, I never use them.

 

No they are not imo. I'm with you in the case of triples but not the super wide screens. With a super wide screen i would still use TIR. Beside that, not everyone has the space for a triple setup.

 

And moreover as long as Nvidia has no real concurrence and asks exagerated prices for their material .... TrackIR still has a place for those who don't...
- have enough money to spend for their GPU
- haven't enough place for a triple screen ( also asking a better GPU )
- haven't the possibility to have VR for view problems or glasses needed .... ( and moreover asking a still better GPU )

The real problem is there. ....
I have a 21/9 screen ( 29" )... but it doesn't help much as when using a +- realistic FOV .... left and right view is not really much better ....
The meaning is more a better view of the coming curve and apex than .... looking left or right in the side mirrors.

And I'm nearly sure this is minimum the half of simracing games buyers.

But I know you're surely right, Turk, ...but in an utopic reality or in a better world.

 

I disagree that triple screens or super wide screens are direct competitors to TrackIR. However I agree about VR competition but still not direct substitution of TrackIR.

Triple screens are an option far from new and coexist with TrackIR for quite some time, years in fact.
The choice of triple screens is limited by the available space to mount the monitors and required stand, wife, personal preference, wife, GPU to cope with triples, wife, cost of using 3 screens plus the required monitor stand, wife .
Wide screens can actually be an added reason to use TrackIR due to giving the possibility to use a near 1:1 FOV to the RL without narrowing the view so much that, even with TrackIR, the visible image is so limited that is still necessary to use a higher FOV than would like.
VR is in fact a direct competitor to TrackIR but, currently, VR as several limitations (GPU required, screen resolution, head-mount use) making TrackIR an option yet with several advantages to VR. In (hopefully close) future I have no doubts that VR will completely relegate TrackIR to the shelf but not yet.

 

I love head tracking in my simracing. Hope it will make it to ACC. If anybody is on the fence with headteacking try EDTRACKER, basically an Arduino nano that you strap to your headset for very little money.

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