Generic Career Mode: Just how much more difficult is the console version

I've written a few previous posts about game balancing issues and here is some more analysis of the difference in the career races. I'm looking at the very first race series because that is where new players start their experience. No setups etc just jump in and go.

As usual I'll do the tl;dr first with a couple of images. Then I will add a side by side video that shows just how great the performance gap is. All settings were set to easiest levels (see below for screens).

First lets look at the PC version. Here I win the race in 8m17s with a 22 second lead over the E30 M3 in second place and a 37 second gap to Abarth Step 1. The fastest lap by the E30 M3 is a 1.42.3.


Now lets look at the console version on the Xbox One. Here the E30 M3 wins with a time of 8.08. I finish second with a total time of 8.15 about 2 seconds faster than my total lap time, not surprising as I completed this race 2nd. The closest Abarth Step 1 is 28 seconds behind, so about 2 seconds a lap faster than the PC equivalent. The good news is the cars feel as good as identical on both platforms.


When we dig into the lap times things get really interesting, the E30 M3 is lapping in 1.36.6, almost 6 seconds a lap faster than the pc version of the same car. With all settings at their easiest levels catching the E30 M3 on this challenge, while racing fairly, would be improbable. Remember this is on the easiest setting AC offers on console and is one of the first tier career races. The E30 is way over powered in this scenario. Running with fewer assists it is just about possible to beat the E30 M3 on this challenge but that is asking a lot of new players in my opinion.


Here are the settings screens to show I set the games up as closely matched as possible. I used auto gearbox and all assists to simulate as new a player as possible in accessibility terms and keep the console and pc games level. Driver skill becomes as minimised as possible. I did not use the dynamic line because I find it a distraction in its current static form.

PC difficulty settings:


Xbox One difficulty settings:


Side by side to show how that actually looks on both platforms. Left pc, Right xbox one. If I'm the player on the left I'm encouraged to keep playing at a more difficult level. If I'm the new player on the right I'm left thinking what is going on, this is the easy level. I can fully understand the frustration console players have reported.



All posted with the aim of helping KS create a fairer and more balanced game for console users. Thank you.

 

Well done. This should be their number one priority at the moment imo.

 

Thank you.

 

Absolutely fabulous job !! Now that's how you give constructive feedback !!
Many thanks for trying to help us console players !!

 

Thank you my friend, I hope this does indeed help create a better console game.

 

Wasn't the "Easy" preset on PC something like 92% instead of only 80%, and later 90% on some re balanced challenges?

 

Almost. According to the .ini files (special events, as career has the percentage slider, not 'tiers'), you'll find that most race events have: easy = 88%, medium = 92%, hard = 95% and alien = 98% (e.g. "Beat the Champions!")
A few events also have: easy = 88%, medium = 95%, hard = 98% and alien = 100%. (e.g. "Trackday challenge")

 

I think that this topic is kinda chewed up but still for me the biggest "issue"in the game.

When they said that the game
Shouldn't be easy they overreacted with that statement. Game is hard on "easy"level which on the end of the day is hard struggle and not fun at all. I mean, on hard and Alien they can do the trick and balanced it nice but when it's medium it's medium when it's easy then it's easy simple is that. I thing for me now Hard on few occasions was perfect were I won few races that's only bcoz I know the track like Monza or Spa, but in 99% Hard for me is unbeatable and that's not fun at all.


Pedal to the metal

 

Career mode in the PC version is exactly the same. It's garbage. It's totally pointless unless you like wasting your time for no reason. Nobody cares whether it's hard or easy because nobody plays it. It's not that kind of game.

Several people - myself included - strongly suggested revisiting the career mode when the console port was announced. We predicted... well, to be frank, we predicted you. And we were summarily ignored, which you should start preparing to be as well.

That may not be the answer you want, but it's the truth. I wouldn't waste too much more of my time on it if I were you. You play AC for the physics engine, or you don't play AC. It's very simple.

 

What an interesting response. This may not matter to you, it matters to others. I was here long ago just like you.

Once again we have a pc only gamer telling others how we 'should' play the game. Your view is far from any truth, you are another gamer with another view.

Go away, you are adding nothing constructive to a fact based thread. Your comments are clearly meant to inflame which I will ignore.

Edit: oh it turns out I was here long long before you so maybe I'm the one with the informed view as you pc only chaps seem to believe time on the forum makes your view more important.

Edit 2: oh no he's still here!

 

It isn't that simple though. I don't disagree with you that AC should be bought for the career mode only (it's clearly not the main focus), but as it stands on console we are extremely limited to how we can enjoy the game and Kunos needs to address thsee issues.

What OP pointed out is not just an issue in career mode, it's an issue that plagues all offline races against the AI on console regardless of game modes. I for one bought AC so I could set up my own custom race weekends with finely tuned AI competition. On PC you have the percent option for AI difficulty, and the ability to customize what the AI is driving. On console those two options alone have been dumbed down to poorly implemented toggles that do not work well.

The career mode may not be what you like, but that isn't an excuse for it to remain as it is on console. There may be some people that enjoy it and want to play it, but in its current state they can't enjoy it. This same difficulty transfers over to special events, quick races, and race weekends.

You may enjoy AC for its driving and driving alone, but there are many others that bought it on console myself included that were led to believe it would be just like the PC version and it's not. The physics and FFB may be there, but the game falls short in almost every other aspect and as a console player that wants this game to succeed that really sucks.

 

Which part of "Several people - myself included - strongly suggested revisiting career mode" leads you to that conclusion? Nothing could be further from the truth.

I think you guys failed to recognize that I am fundamentally agreeing with you. I don't play MP, ever, period. I expected a better SP experience too when I bought the game on Steam launch day. I didn't like what is laughably called career mode either. I thought it should be better too. I thought so even more after they announced the console port and that's when I (and others) spoke up about it. Our suggestions did not fall on receptive ears.

In my 2000+ hours of AC time since 1.0 it's become clear that the devs' primary focus is on the (exquisite) physics engine - understandably so, it's a simulator first - and all other concerns (i.e. the "game" component) are secondary. It's not *me* who's trying to "tell you how to play the game" - it's Kunos. I'm just the one who's been down this road before, and I'm suggesting that you take the still-underdeveloped career mode as a hint. I wouldn't hold your breath for meaningful change in the near term.

 

You're completely missing the point of OPs post. He is not advocating an entirely new career mode. He is advocating for the console difficulty of the AI to be balanced to what PC offers. For you to say it's garbage is your opinion that some will agree with and some will disgree. There is no right or wrong answer there. However, OP pointed out a valid issue with the console career in terms of its difficulty and it needs to be addressed by Kunos.

 

What leads me to the conclusion is the inflammatory tone and the we predicted you comments. On console career is provenly more difficult than pc with no explanation other than defensiveness from pc gamers. Multiplayer has only stuttering public destruction derby lobbies and yet you want us to see it another way?

How exactly do you know how I enjoy the game? KS do not condone a thing you say, it is your opinion.

As I said before please go back to the pc forum and enjoy your physics simulator.

 

Personally, Im getting on great with the career mode now, after that infamous E30 Step1 race, but great post mate. It really does need adjusting to be the same as the PC difficulty. I just hope when/if they patch it, we get the same difficulty slider bar as seen in the PC version.
That way I can keep playing on the same 'easy' difficulty im at now, or maybe increase it slightly each time I feel I get better. I just think the easy mode is too hard for complete beginners, and I want as many people as possible to be able to enjoy the game.
As a hobbiest game maker myself, I know what what they were going for by getting rid of the difficulty % bar(they went for simplicity of menus for console), but its bit them in the ***. Same goes for removal of many of the options.

 

The

Biggest head scratcher to me is how they thought console players would prefer a over simplified toggle system to a percent slider. I may not be the best at understanding how computers work, but I can handle a percent slider...

 

Just wait until you get to some of the later career races, the first proper single seater championship is ridiculous ( not sure of the level ) you're literally hanging on by the skin of your teeth trying to keep up with the leaders in the last few races.

I mean, I like a challenge but damn!

 

Yeah. If anything, its kind of patronizing really. What I liked about Project Cars is that they had the balls to keep most of the options from the PC version intact for console, and not dumb it down too much.
I appreciate the effort they put in to clean up and simplify the menus on console. They had the right idea there, and I do actually prefer them to the PC version.
But the removal of options and simplifying certain ones that are there(like the difficulty), was the wrong move to make.
I'm pretty sure they will sort this in a future patch though.

 

I had a REALLY difficult race today that i was stuck on for probably an hour or more. Sooooooo many restarts and getting knocked off the track until I got gold. Its one of those days where the more I make mistakes and fail, the more stressed I get, which in turn causes me to make more mistakes and fail more lol.
Had to give it a rest until tomorrow! Dreading those later championship series. Ive decided I'm fine with bronze and silvers from now on...

 

Agreed that is how I feel. I appreciate that they wanted to make the menus easier to navigate, that part I agree with. The part I do not agree with is over simplifying the actual options. I hope these issues are addressed in one of their first patches.