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PC Racing Sims Thread

iRacing and rFactor2 both have first party DW12s. rFactor 2 is also getting a remake of the popular CART Factor rF1 mod.

@marvel Great lists you've made (rF2+AC). I'll add them both to the OP, which I need to do an all around update to.

I think for rFactor2 in the OP you should also add the delta timing (Delta Best) plugin you mentioned earlier. That thing is invaluable.
 

TJP

Member
São Paulo for rFactor 2 is odd in that the ISI track artists used Reiza's own data from GSCE. It should look sublime yet it manages not to, more so when compared to the GSCE version. I wonder about the HDR and other graphical effects ISI employ at times as some tracks can look really washed out and others look fantastic.

Shadows have always been a source of headaches for ISI too - not surprised to see the pop-in on BT's gif.

Anyway, here are the cars and tracks sorted by release date, hopefully we can avoid a situation whereby the graphics aren't as good as they could be:

Cars sorted by release date - http://rfactor.net/web/rf2/cars/#date

Tracks sorted by release date - http://rfactor.net/web/rf2/tracks/#date
 

mrsmr2

Member
Mills has really odd shadows. I turn them off altogether for that track.

A shame as I think that track looks fantastic otherwise.
 
Sorry, spent my time last night trying to fix my shadows and got nowhere.

It can be minimized by running in the middle of the day (ugly), or we can scrap the combo all together. I liked my combo, goddamn it! I went looking for a new one that I thought would work well for the group, and showcased rF2 a bit better, but I was too grumpy to like anything ;-)

If someone would like to make a suggestion or two, I'd welcome it. Just a few requirements; Got to be free content, got to be reasonable to drive for everyone, preferably keep the lap time down to keep the tries per hour up.
 

Megasoum

Banned
Sorry, spend my time last night trying fix my shadows and got nowhere.

It can be minimized by running in the middle of the day (ugly), or we can scrap the combo all together. I liked my combo, goddamn it! I went looking for a new one that I thought would work well for the group, and showcased rF2 a bit better, but I was too grumpy to like anything ;-)

If someone would like to make a suggestion or two, I'd welcome it. Just a few requirements; Got to be free content, got to be reasonable to drive for everyone, preferably keep the lap time down to keep the tries per hour up.

Haven't tried it myself and I'm stuck at work right now but how about the Skippy at Lime Rock?
 
My suggestions would be:

A) Skippy at Lime Rock No Chicanes (oldie but a goodie)
B) Skippy at Lock Drummond Short Layout
C) Junior Kart 125cc at Quebec, Round 2 (we need to do karts at some point)
D) Celica GTO at Lester (not official content, but a great rF2 showcase)
preferably keep the lap time down to keep the tries per hour up.
Very much agreed. Getting 40 tries per hour is far more satisfying than 30.
 
I'm not sure if I even knew there was a Drummond Short. That sounds promising. I'll see if I can find a video.

Skip - regional (road tires) or national (cut slicks)? Preference? I'd say the national config is quite a bit friendlier, if anyone cares about such a thing.

The Celica is great fun too. I'm not a huge fan of it's light steering however. If I can get the ffb boosted to something I like, I'll seriously consider it. It's badass looking that's for sure!
 
I thought it was an interesting combo, does it really need to be changed due to visuals? It can be done at midday, even though it looks crap...

I'm not objecting to the other suggestions though!
 
I'm not sure if I even knew there was a Drummond Short. That sounds promising. I'll see if I can find a video.
Here's one I made last year
Skip - regional (road tires) or national (cut slicks)? Preference? I'd say the national config is quite a bit friendlier, if anyone cares about such a thing.
I much prefer the challenge of the regional, but I think we should use the national for the purpose of hot laps.
The Celica is great fun too. I'm not a huge fan of it's light steering however. If I can get the ffb boosted to something I like, I'll seriously consider it. It's badass looking that's for sure!
After rewatching some laps of Lester, I think it may be too much of a challenge. There are so many easy errors to make.
Is there a good Mosport or Mont Tremblant for rf2? That could be great.
Not that I've found.
 

Spookie

Member
Well we've had a GT, a prototype so we should now have an open wheel car challenge as well! :D

Not that I'd bother entering, I'm too fucking slow. :( Maybe we could Hotlap Clios or M3s next time and I might have a chance!
 

mrsmr2

Member
I thought it was a good combo. Don't change it for shadows - you pretty much forget about them when concentrating anyway.

Or, just turn them off altogether.
 
Thanks for the feedback, dudes.

I'm going to keep the original choice. It pushed all the right buttons when I chose it originally. If most of you don't mind living with noontime lighting, then we'll just deal with it.

I certainly don't care what it looks like. I just wanted to make sure everyone was happy, and outsiders looking in would see something worth purchasing.

Love the choices given up though. Second time around, we'll do one of those. Plus I heard Betta's seriously considering changing his first name to Skip. No softball pitches for that guy!

Cool?

Off the top of my head:

rFactor 2
Spark F2 #22 @ Mills Metro, inner loop C
12 noon
"default weather" (which should lock RealRoad to green)
tire wear off? Help
can't remember the fuel options... off? Help

I'll get a proper post with a gif and video up later on, or just edit this post.
 
Hmm, possible small issue with hot lapping in rFactor 2: Real Road.

We could either set it so Naturally Progressing 15x, which would make the track rubber in and get faster over time, which is a little unfair maybe? The alternative would be to set it to Green and Static, meaning we'll all be driving on the same surface, albeit incredibly slippy. Any other ideas how we could solve this?

Also, I'm unsure what the default track temp and weather settings are. Clear skies and 25C maybe?

rFactor2's greatest asset (dynamism and variability) doesn't lend itself too well to fair hot lapping.

rFactor 2
Spark F2 #22 @ Mills Metro, inner loop C
12 noon
"default weather" (which should lock RealRoad to green)
tire wear off? Help
can't remember the fuel options... off? Help
Sadly default weather means Real Road is set to Natural Progressing. At least for me.

I suppose we could do:

Combo: Spark F2 #22 @ Mills Metro, inner loop C
Start time: 12 noon
Simple weather: scripted
Sky: Clear
Temp: 29
Humidity: 30
Wind Speed: 0 (although I don't think this is working at the moment)
Real Road: Green
Real Road Time Scale: Static
Tire Wear: Off
Fuel usage: Off
Car setup: Default

It'll be very slippy though, so watch out! :)
 
Nice, it looks like you've got it open in front of you.

Yeah, "static" was the key option. There were maybe a couple of choices of weather that locked RealRoad to green. Slippery, but at least it'll be consistent.

Those settings look perfect. That's what we'll do.

Thanks!
 
Nice, it looks like you've got it open in front of you.
The beauty of dual screens.
You should be able to load a saved, rubbered-in, real road state... if everyone used the same one, perhaps that would work?
Probably? Does anyone know where the Real Road file is? There's a file located in \rFactor2\UserData\player\Settings\*whatever the track is* called AutoSave.rrbin, maybe that's it?
 
Mega - no.

Betta - I think the data is shareable, so it should be possible to save a rubbered state, and then we can hand it out from here. That would be preferable, so if it's possible/easy enough to do then maybe we should. I personally can't do it until later on however, but if no one else has by the time I get home, I'll do it and report back.

That's it, MH. You can actually name the file yourself, so run 10 laps with AI, save the rrbin through the game as GAF hotlap or whatever.
 
If anyone wants the true rFactor experience, this week's hot lap challenge is it. So many hoops to jump through lol

Go to: \rFactor2\UserData\player\Settings\Mills_Innerloopc

And drop in this Real Road file. There's a lot of rubber down, perhaps too much (so many marbles), but it's better than a green track.

Next, start rFactor 2 and use these settings:

Combo: Spark F2 #22 @ Mills Metro, inner loop C
Start time: 12 noon
Real Road: User: GAF
Real Road Time Scale: Static
Fuel usage: Off
Tire Wear: Off
AI drivers: 0
Simple weather: scripted
Sky: Clear
Temp: 29
Humidity: 30
Wind Speed: 0 (although I don't think this is working at the moment)
Car setup: Default
 
Looks like rubber's back on the menu, boys! Cool, that should be much better. I'm glad that's all figured out. Thanks.

Let's have at it!
 

Atrophis

Member
So I watched Betta's GSC set up video and realised I didn't have stearing lock setup correctly. Also had traction control on by accident and remembered to turn off tire wear and fuel. Car actually feels alive now goddamn. Improved to 1.16.2 but I still suck at simracing.

Don't have rfactor 2 so I'll stick with this challenge for a bit.
 

TJP

Member
rFactor2 news ;)‏

From @rFactor2
Super GT... In-sim... Finally... :) These two WIP images show the Nissan GT500, coming to @rFactor2 soon!

B-oL5StVIAA4f1Y.jpg
B-oL5WPUcAA0fpK.jpg


@rFactor2
1966 Brabham has a physics update, bringing chassis flex and superior wet weather tires in a VERY near update!
B-o7jNiUIAAphxs.jpg
 
So I watched Betta's GSC set up video and realised I didn't have stearing lock setup correctly. Also had traction control on by accident and remembered to turn off tire wear and fuel. Car actually feels alive now goddamn. Improved to 1.16.2 but I still suck at simracing.

Don't have rfactor 2 so I'll stick with this challenge for a bit.

Yeah, beware of the assist hotkeys. I zero them out. I don't know what I'm mistaking it for, but I've turned on steering assist by accident on several occasions. It's like the "oh shit, I think my steering wheel is broken" button. It's maddening!

Nice improvement on your lap. Keep the times coming. They're all up to date, and in post #2 for easy finding.

----------

Sexy rF2 shots/info!
 

Megasoum

Banned
Hah turns out I was set to green static for my previous hotlaps challenges....

I just tried with the gaf file and instantly dropped 2 seconds haha. 1:18.306 right now. Still lot to improve though.


What software are you guys using to edit your Shadowplay movies?
 
rFactor 2, Spark F2 #22 (no wings)@ Mills Metro, inner loop C

2015-02-2420_14_31ttui8.gif


1. 1:15.454 - Betta Lines (video)
2. 1:15.606 - Big Takeover (video)
3. 1.16.347 - marvelharvey (pic)
4. 1:18.306 - Megasoum
5. 1:18.459 - RaceManIak (pic)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Delta Timer - Delta Best plugin

Directions\Rules:

Go to: \rFactor2\UserData\player\Settings\Mills_Innerloopc

And drop in this Real Road file. There's a lot of rubber down, perhaps too much (so many marbles), but it's better than a green track.

Next, start rFactor 2 and use these settings:

Combo: Spark F2 #22 @ Mills Metro, inner loop C
Start time: 12 noon
Real Road: User: GAF
Real Road Time Scale: Static
Fuel usage: Off
Tire Wear: Off
AI drivers: 0
Simple weather: scripted
Sky: Clear
Temp: 29
Humidity: 30
Wind Speed: 0 (although I don't think this is working at the moment)
Car setup: Default
 

TJP

Member
@ReizaStudios
Pssst... Game Petrobras de Marcas is coming to steam! For Free! And it's coming to Game Stock Car, for free too!! Ready for touring car fun?
 

TJP

Member
@rFactor2
We don't post many previews of core (software) changes, but here: In-engine images of upcoming lighting advancement

B-paCnYUEAE5mKW.jpg:large


@rFactor2
ps: upcoming lighting advancement gets rid of cockpit overexposure. :)
 
I wanted to at least get a time and video up tonight, so I set an ugly one (lol last corner). Obviously lots of time left to be had.

@ Mega, Ha! That's a good time actually. Also Sony Vegas,

Lovely looking lighting in that shot.
 

Mr.Green

Member
As someone who can't possibly go back to monitors after sim-racing with a DK2, I'd like to know if there's been word on possible VR support for the top sims like RFactor2, GSC, etc...?

I'm hooked on iRacing but dayum! If I want to compete in class D it'll cost me about $150 on tracks for a full season.
 
I think Oculus are dropping support for DX9, meaning that while their VR will work in GSCE and RF2, it may suffer from input lag or something (sorry, not been following the news that closely). I've a feeling that we'll see DX12 in RF2 sometime in the future though, after they finish the new tyre model and fix rain.
 
As someone who can't possibly go back to monitors after sim-racing with a DK2, I'd like to know if there's been word on possible VR support for the top sims like RFactor2, GSC, etc...?
It appears they're both wary of dedicating too much time to supporting the current SDK when DX9 is about to be dropped. There will be workarounds, but workarounds require more work, so we've just got to be patient.

I'm hooked on iRacing but dayum! If I want to compete in class D it'll cost me about $150 on tracks for a full season.
I think it's not necessary to buy all the tracks for a full season. The popular Class D series like the SRF and Skippy series typically include 2-4 free tracks in each rotation. Looking at the current SRF schedule for example, assuming you only had the base content, you would have only needed to buy Oulton, Bathurst, Watkins and Road Atlanta (about $54?) in order to challenge for this season's championship (it allows for 4 dropped weeks). It means you'll need to find something else to race in those weeks where you don't own the track, but I used to do that - going back to the Mazda Cup regularly.

I'd suggest buying the Skippy if you don't already, as sometimes they can be using one of your owned tracks in a week where you can't race the SRF, or vice versa. It makes sense to buy as many as you can at once, for the volume discount, but not always necessary. If you want to be extra careful about the tracks you pick, you can look at the sticky threads in the SRF and Skip forums that discuss track rotation - that way you can pick tracks that are due to be used again the next season.

It depends how 'hooked' you are of course! When I started out I was unsure about staying with iRacing for the long term, so I stuck to really minimal content for as long as possible, buying a track here and track there, squeezing the most 'value' out of it as I could. But if you're pretty sure that you'd like to keep going, then there's no harm in buying every track for the season - they'll all appear in future rotations at some point (although some are much more popular than others - I still haven't felt the need to buy Motegi or Oran Park, for example).
 

Lach

Member
I've been skipping iracing the last few weeks, when Skip Barber was on tracks that don't particularly interest me (though Road America looked like a fun track on some videos I saw). Will buy Interlagos for the last round of the season (next week)...

Had a personal general sim racing enlightenment this week, comparing youtube videos to recording of my laps. I realised that I generally turn in too late into corners...In pCars that made me imediatly 1-3s faster per lap depending on the track. Hope this carries over into iRacing :)

And while probably not considered Sim Racing, I'm planning to make a F1 2011-2014 playthrough (hardest difficulties / no assists). Would have started with 2010 but that one doesn't recognize my wheel...
 

Mr.Green

Member
It appears they're both wary of dedicating too much time to supporting the current SDK when DX9 is about to be dropped. There will be workarounds, but workarounds require more work, so we've just got to be patient.
Oh they're DX9 games... Didn't think of that. Makes sense.

IRacing is DX9 as well though. Hopefully they're not left in the dust. Especially if I'm to drop that much money on it.

But with the sudden flood of VR headsets announced, or at least rumored, I'm not too worried.

Thanks for the tips! You're the guy who made those cool "through the lens" DK2 videos right?
 
I just got a PC in December and I really need to get with the program and hook up my racing setup with it. I got a Fanatec CSR with shifter and the elite pedals all mounted on my playseat. I love sim racers, I need to get on the ball asap.
 
I've been skipping iracing the last few weeks, when Skip Barber was on tracks that don't particularly interest me (though Road America looked like a fun track on some videos I saw). Will buy Interlagos for the last round of the season (next week)...
Road America is a bit hit and miss really - it is incredibly draft-heavy, so can produce either very exciting racing, or very boring racing, depending on your perspective or who your competitors are. It's so easy to stay in a pack, but any 'battles' seem almost like a waste of time, swapping places for no reason. But in that sense it can become very tactical, so that can be interesting in itself. There are also plenty of disasters - usually caused by people getting caught out by the overspeed of a draft (not adjusting their braking point).
And while probably not considered Sim Racing, I'm planning to make a F1 2011-2014 playthrough (hardest difficulties / no assists). Would have started with 2010 but that one doesn't recognize my wheel...
Quite an undertaking, good luck!

Oh they're DX9 games... Didn't think of that. Makes sense.

IRacing is DX9 as well though. Hopefully they're not left in the dust. Especially if I'm to drop that much money on it.

But with the sudden flood of VR headsets announced, or at least rumored, I'm not too worried.

Thanks for the tips! You're the guy who made those cool "through the lens" DK2 videos right?
iRacing's implementation is already pretty unusual though - it has quirks that I've not seen in any other DK2 application. They're already doing some unique things to get it working, so it'll probably continue in this fashion. Hopefully their DX11 upgrade happens sooner than Soon™. It's definitely in their best interests to give a lot of attention to VR support, so I'm not really concerned either.

And yup, that's me! I really should make more of those...
 
Pretty much BT's lap, but without the final corner wiggle: 1.16.347

8xwwIK6.jpg


Same here - but what is everyone playing at the moment?!
The core titles we all seem to play are: Assetto Corsa, Stock Car Extreme and rFactor 2 (+occasionally Race Room, as it's free). We're right in the midst of an rFactor 2 hot lap challenge.
 
Nice lap, Marv!

I'm looking forward to getting a cleaner one in later, and trying a couple different lines. I'm thinking my shorter distance method on one of the later corners was a mistake.

Hell yeah you should! :)

You think a VR iRacing league would work? That could be pretty fun.

There was at least one group that popped up on the forums that (I think) did a few Rift-only races. I think the problem is that, ultimately, there's no difference in racing people with VR headsets vs. monitors. I'm sure once the retail version comes out people will group together for camaraderie, if nothing else.
 
There was at least one group that popped up on the forums that (I think) did a few Rift-only races. I think the problem is that, ultimately, there's no difference in racing people with VR headsets vs. monitors. I'm sure once the retail version comes out people will group together for camaraderie, if nothing else.
For now there isn't... but one day I expect to be able to do this:


and this:

 

TJP

Member
I see WRC 5 developers Kylotonn have employed one of the devs responsible for vehicle physics from Sector 3/SimBin..which got me hoping that WRC 5 might be a solid release.
 
1:15.454

Monza! The awkward combo of Liverpool FC, NASCAR and Monza banking is quite amusing! It's not one of my favourites either, but as you say, a comprehensive job as usual and no doubt will be used on almost every series for the next few seasons, so probably worth it!
 
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