Online game mode to solve the wrecking problem

An email I sent to AC:

Dear AC,

I love your game but unfortunately the online racing part is quite problematic due to the amount of wrecking going on caused by people not taking due care as well as high ping players causing latency issues.

A game mode that would solve this problem would be where all the players are ghosts and unable to have contact with each other. I would imagine this mode would feature:

- All players would start on the same spot which means there would be no need for qualifying.
- Other players are invisible until 0.5 seconds ahead or behind, exactly the same as the current ghost car system.

Suddenly there would be absolutely no disputes over accidents, no latency issues and a completely fair race. Grid sizes could also become really big since there is no wrecking. A rating system could also be easily implemented which I think would be a big hit since players love feeling like they progressing.

I know AC is a simulation, but this is not taking away from the core simulation aspect of the handling, just a fun mode. Also AC has already made concession to some un-simlike aspects including 3rd person driver views, time attack mode etc so I don't think it goes against the grain of the game.

I would love to hear that one of the devs has at least read my suggestion.

thanks and regards

 

Are you on drugs ?

 

Please expand what you find crazy about this idea. Trackmania, a very popular online game uses something like this and it works very well. Yes I know trackmania is a super arcade game, but what's wrong with borrowing elements that make other games successful?

 

Well for a start this is a sim.. So driving through other is arcade.. On top of that being able to drive through people would remove dvery ounce of the word 'race' from any game you join and would just become a hotlap server with others.. Exactly what trackmania is..

There is no cure for wreckers.. Even iracing has wreckers.. Its nothing thats going to stop.

What i suggest you do is find some people who race on a private server or just put up with it and hope the server is moderated well enough to keep the wreckers at bay.

 

Of course I'm not saying remove race servers, I'm just suggesting an addition to the game that some people might enjoy. You say it removes every ounce of the word 'race', I would say absolutely not, you are still seeing your competitors and trying to drive faster than them, it's still racing, just without contact.

Finding private servers requires scheduling and time commitments, something that is not easy for many people. This would cater to the crowd that has 30 minutes spare and wants a quick online racing experience without being wrecked in turn 1.

 

Instead of finding more and more absurd solutions to racing with people who don't give a crap, why not become one of those that does give a crap and join a club or league?
There are many open 24/7 where you'll always find a race.

Yes I know, you can't be bothered, takes too much effort.
Probably exactly what Kunos thinks of sorting out public servers as well.

 

What you are asking for is called 'collisions off' servers. It would be great as another option to choose from when setting up a server, but because of the backlash of naysayers crying 'arcade' simply because of its inclusion, I doubt Kunos finds the time to set aside to make it happen.

I wouldn't use the feature any more than I currently use chase cam, but I don't mind things like that being there for those that want to play that way.

 

Either join a known server where there are decent admins or race offline..

There are other options but they take time and effort which you look as you dont have..

The best way to reduce wreckers is do that of iracing... But that isnt going to happen.

 

I would have no issues with a sort of MP hotlapping where everyone else are ghost cars in real time. Would be a rather cool feature.

However. Its true that today people seem more keen to get solutions to not have to practice and get good. I see it everywhere how people want everything to be easier. I dont know about these people but personally i play games and sims because i want a challenge. I never understood trainers and cheats, and not cause im some high and mighty better person than everyone else, but because i enjoy challenges. This is what make up the entertainment for me. So practice until i get good enough to beat a game is where i get my fun from. To feel and see progress when i get better and better. There is entertainment and fun in getting one step further thanks to practice. For some reason a lot if people today are not of the same idea. They want to bypass and take the cream lane to being masters instantly.

OP: Im not having a go at you here. Just my feelings regarding the want to make everything effortless. It happens in many games that try to be challenging but get whining from people that cant or will not start out as a "noob" and train their way into being skilled.

Sent from TapTalk.

 

When I started reading first post I had the idea that he was talking about Trackmania. I guessed it right

 

I get what you saying Alex. Actually I do most of my online racing on Iracing to be able to race against like minded people and I do practice a lot there. I'm coming from a place of comparing the enjoyment I get from Iracing online vs the enjoyment I get from AC online and how badly AC falls short. So my suggestion is all about increasing fun level. I mean have you ever seen a field get through turn 1 of Spa without a major pileup?

 

Yep. I've seen it. Doesn't happen too much though.

 

people are so negative. How would it bother you if some people had fun on one of those servers? Is it because the guys that play other sim racing games would have another worthless argument against you why assetto corsa isnt a simulator in the "my sim is more sim than yours"-discussion?

As OP already said, this doesnt mean that kunos would take away the REAL racing servers but this could be an addition and it would probably take away some of the people that crash the first turn on the regular ones..

This might be a thing that Kunos wont do for that simple reason that they dont want that reputation to being arcade though.

 

I think this kind of gamemode is whats required for a lot of players...

 

It's a solution but it probably won't be a popular one. You'd need to clearly state that its a ghost car server, and most likely they won't be popular, because the fast drivers want to rub paint and play the entire simulation which includes damage, and the wreckers want to destroy. Being the vast majority of servers are empty most of the time I think any ghost car server would be one of those. Sure, I imagine there could be one tops in the list of the most populated, but is it really worth the development time?

 

Motor racing is all about fighting for position. Overtaking. Going along side and taking the inside of the next corner. Defending on the limits of what is reasonable.
It is not about time trial with ghost cars. That would be basically the same as qualify.
Single player is to be blamed, as in single player mode you are rewarded for being overly aggressive at the start.
Many players just leave the server after being rammed. You can still finish in the top positions after being rammed. The most important is a good and fair fight.

 

The last game I played with collisions off was GRID, it was quite popular with some. It could be used for training for those who don't want to ruin other peoples races but still want to race amongst other real people. They could also learn braking points and racing lines etc from others without the fear of causing crashes.
It's not something I would use personally but I can understand why people might want it.

 

It's not AC "falling short", it's the clients (us). I wouldn't mind such a mode, but wouldn't use it. Would be happy for people that likes it. The answer now is to do leagues or team up with "good" people you know, or get to know. As always. What was Kunos response (if any)?