Discuss rFactor2

Correct me if I'm wrong...but, I thought that rFactor 2 was supposed to have this absolutely out of this world realistic tire model. When I was still carrying my GT6 Rookie Class card in my pocket, I remember watching a video of the tires deforming in slow-motion and all sorts of other gratuitous slow-mo shots. It was quite some time after that - I believe this was rF2 - I watched a video where they showed the realtime heat coloring of the vehicle tires as the car went around the track. Have I been hallucinating again? Oh, and also...doesn't rFactor 2 supposedly have roads that "realistically" develop rubber wear as a race/session goes on? You'd think that this was the greatest sim ever! Why weren't these things enough to draw all the cool kids?

 

No official content...

 

Yes, but it's parameterized in a way that nobody has raw data for. Like instead of saying "what's the peak slip angle, and how much grip." it says "define the exact thickness of the carcass all the way around, and the material properties of the rubber". So it's kinda uselessly complex for people without access to the physical tire they want to model, instead of making up 1 number they have to make up 1000 numbers and hope it gets the same end result. And ultimately if you want to simulate a real-world tire, you have to fudge the numbers somewhere to get the model to match your realworld telemetry, because no model's perfect - this just makes it way more mysterious which numbers you have to do it for.

 

Wow. Yeah...I'm glad I went with Assetto Corsa when I was deciding on a PC Sim.

 

With some decent licences I don't see any reason why an RFactor based sim couldn't be a success.

Who has the BTCC licence these days? You could do some of the undercard as well, Ginetta GT4s, Porsche Carerra Cup, Renault Clio Cup, Formula 4...

Edit.........

That sounds a lot like TOCA race driver on reflection...

 

I think the TOCA-series became GRID.

 

Remember first TOCA... it was really good

 

No one has the TOCA licence due to the cost of the licence, they want silly money for it. One paddock guy I know spoke to me about it when I saw him at Brands Hatch this year. Apparently a developer (who shall remain nameless) enquired about the licence costs and it was a large six figure sum (in pounds).

 

Wouldnt it be better for them to sell it for a cost that someone actually bought it for? Not only free money, it would bring attention to the series aswell and merchandize and tickets.

 

Yes, and Codemaster still owns the license and everything.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TOCA_Touring_Car_series

 

Could maybe do something about the license then. From what Ive read F1 2016 is a good game and people enjoy DiRT Rally so theres hope for Codemasters!

 

Regarding the RF1 tire model backward compatibility thingy, I feel most people's logic goes like this:
It is easy to mod for AC; It is easy to convert RF mod to AC -> AC is successful at the moment.
It is hard to mod for RF2; It is hard to convert mod to RF2 -> RF2 is not as successful at the moment.
Therefore, making modding for RF2 easier will solve the problem, and RF2 will succeed and beat AC.

I really don't quite agree on that. AC, along with AMS, R3E, even PCars, is more successful/popular at the moment than RF2 is NOT because modding is easier than RF2. At least not entirely because of that.
The real appeal of contents in AC, AMS, etc, I think, comes mostly from the many quality 1st party contents made by developers themselves. I read in the interviews that the team working on RF2 contents are now at Studio397, and many more people are involved in making contents. So I really don't see a necessity/urgency to introduce RF1 tire model in order to make modding easier. As long as Studio397 can make decent number of quality official tracks and cars at decent pace, content-wise RF2 will be successful already.

I want to end up with my copy of RF2 that can continue to and always advertise itself as "the racing sim that has the most detailed physics modeling and complex tire models", instead of a copy of RF2 that still have mods that have quality all over the place: it will turn from "there are not many quality mods because people don't understand how to mod for RF2" to "there are not many quality mods because people are just rushing, ripping, converting, and throwing in everything", which I think it's not good.

Anyways I really wish that if RF tire model is eventually introduced to RF2, people who know how to mod can really put their talent to full extent and really make good contents for RF2.

Just my 2 cents.

 

I love rf2. And after playing rf2 I go to Ac. And then to DirtRally. ... .... and then I fire up Raceroom. And sometimes Gtr2 and GP4 and RBR.

...there you go.... haha. Rf2 is amazing when played with good fluid fps and without lag. That is its single selling point at the moment.

 

How dare you enjoy more than one sim?

 

No it's not (IMHO). Have fluid fps and no lag. Tried demo and was again dissapointed

 

I do like pC - you say simcade, for me is much better than rf2 in many aspects

 

First post here, so hi all.

Not that I am new to rF2 or AC, but just a few points that I would like to mention, especialy after reading some comments here that seemd a bit uninformed. I think it is no secret, that rF2 doesn't have the best visuals in the business, but they do the job and it looks far from being ugly or 90's. I play rF1 on a regular base aswell and trust me: rF1 does not look as good as rF2, equal how hard you try it and that's from 2005. There are for sure some points that I would like to see adressed, especialy the points listed by Empty Box in his video, but I still enjoy GTR2, GTL and rF1 and they have the same problems, e.g. problems with night lightning etc. But guess what: there are moments when rF2 looks fantastic and when it does look bland and that's no different from how I experience it in real life. There are days when I look up to the sky and say wow, and some days I just don't care. Driving on Poznan or Croft into the sunset on a wet track is an incredible experience especialy with those incredible physics. For sure, rF2 will strike you not at first glance, when the visuals are the first thing you are looking for. But throughout the journey with it, you will get surprised a few times. It's quite dynamic, so it will never drive, look or feel the same. But patience is required and you need to invest more than a week to explore even a fraction of what it actually offers. So starting the demo and playing it for five minutes will tell you nothing, if you are just put off by the visuals.

Regarding content: I find it pretty interesting what some people listed here as their desired content and that they miss it in rF2. For example stuff like the NSX, Corvette, Le Mans by VLM, Renault Clio Cup etc. That stuff is there guys. Why don't you use it? I enjoy stuff in AC that is only available in AC, so I look for it and use it. Lotus 72 on Zandvoort or the Lotus 25 at Brands are fantastic. Every sim has something to offer in the content selection. Stuff like the Karts is easily overlooked rF2 and you have a nice selection of tracks and track versions for it - something that you won't find anywhere else. And with NOLA around the corner you will get even more in that regard. Anyway, it offers a nice selection of everything. Want Historics? Brabham Bt20, Bramhab BT44, Lola T70 Spyder, Howsten G4 and G6 (Lola T70 versions), Lola T280, AC Cobra, Historic F2 and F3 cars, Historic F1 cars from 68 in different configs, Matra from 68, a historic Stock Car and four historic tracks. Is that nothing or not enough? Carrera released his complete F1 88 mod for rF2 not too long ago. ASR has some really nice historic F1 cars aswell.

Regarding performance: Phenom II X4 955 @ 3.2 GHz, 4Gb ram, Win 7 64 bit and a Radeon 4890 on a single screen and the game runs okish. The Radeon 4890 is an replacement for my Radeon 6870 that died few weeks ago, but with that card I had no issues to run it on medium settings. So if you have a system that runs AC on full settings without any problems, it should run rF2 just fine. If it does not, there seems to be something terribly wrong if my old system can handle it. I find AC even more demanding, especialy when using AI.

To put it simple: there is something in every sim to enjoy, you just have to dig deep enough. I started playing racing games with F1 Racing Simulation far back and Race Driver Grid few years later btw, so just to give you an idea where I am coming from. Why doesn't any of our current sims have tyres limited per race week end and a great career mode with team management btw?

 

First of all, welcome

Everyone has their own experiences. Some people experience the graphics as good enough, others like PP-effects and detailed models. I, personally, don't like the washed out look rFactor 2 seems to have, and the sometimes grossly lacking models. If the graphics on my system would look like they do in the promo screenshots, I'd be content. I'm perfectly happy with the graphics and models in games like Automobilista or Assetto Corsa. They have vibrant colors and look alive. I like that.

Some like the content, others don't. I, personally (again), don't find a lot that I like, especially regarding tracks. Some are well made, but just don't interest me much. Most of the good mod tracks (#NotAll) are rips from other games, and I don't like that very much in any Sim. What bugs me immensly, is the quality inconsistencies between cars and tracks. Some (#NotAll) Older cars never got updated to the new CPM, but I have no idea which cars that are because the game doesn't tell me - at least I never found any information on that in-game.

Many people praise the physics and the FFB, but I, personally, cannot feel what the car is doing through my wheel. My G25 seems to be incapable of communicating rF2's FFB to me in a way that lets me know what my car is up to, especially the rear end. I tried to configure and fine tune it, and believe you me, I've tried hard. The other Sims I play tell me which direction my rear tires want to go, so I can account for that.

I've dug around in rF2 for 63 hours according to my Steam library, but I still don't find it appealing. And honestly, it's a shame, because I know what rF2 could have been. There is a great foundation there, and hopefully Luminis can build something on that foundation that I, personally, and many others, can like. I would really like to like rF2.

//Edit: words.

 

You must be playing a different RF2 than I am. Shame.... RF2 physics are pretty awesome and FFB stands up to anything out there. That plus probably the best AI in sim racing make it a very worthy purchase if you have the time or inclination for more than one sim.

That doesn't mean AC isn't awesome too of course.

Sent from my SM-T813 using Tapatalk

 

Great post.

A lot to agree with. One thing about graphics. Yes RF2 is a bit behind, but people praising AC's graphics as great need to take another look. Compared with Pcars it is flat and sterile. And that is without mentioning the horrible issues with shadows. If I run single screen and turn up all the eye candy, it still doesnt hold a candle to what I am seeing on triples in Pcars. So to those saying they dont play RF2 due to the graphics, do yourself a favour and check out Pcars.

The irony of it all. Best to worst physics/FFB of the three. RF2, AC, Pcars. best to worst graphics. Pcars, AC, RF2. So maybe Ac is popular because it is the jack of all trades, master of none?