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rFactor 2 Beta Thread: Which will crash more often; it or us?

mclaren777

Member
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ISI is structuring this open beta much like Notch did with MineCraft. Participation requires purchase of the full game ($43.99 US) and it includes 18 months of online multiplayer. The content in the beta is still roughly 6 months from final release so don't be surprised by any issues or imperfections you may find. Furthermore, you're highly encouraged to give feedback on the official ISI forums so the dev team can make meaningful changes throughout the beta period.


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rFactor 2 is the successor to one of the most popular and prolific racing sims of all time. The heart of any good rFactor game is the physics engine and ISI has made some significant improvements for rFactor 2 (see below). This sim also promises to revolutionize the way community mods are handled, which should greatly enhance the multiplayer experience for everybody. rFactor 2 will surely have one of the most accurate driving models on the market so it's worth buying if you enjoy racing cars in a realistic environment.


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rFactor 2 isn't terribly hardware-intensive so most gaming PCs should run it just fine.

You can download everything at the link below.



MINIMUM
CPU: 2.4GHz Core 2 or 2.4GHz Athlon x2
GPU: nVidia 8600 GT or ATI 3850
OS: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Memory: 2GB of RAM
Storage: 4GB

RECOMMENDED
CPU: 3.0GHz Core 2 Duo or 3.0GHz Athlon II x2
GPU: nVidia 250 GTS or ATI 4870
OS: Vista 64-bit or Windows 7 64-bit
Memory: 4GB of RAM
Storage: 4GB


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rFactor 2 has many great improvements over the original game:
• Dynamic surface conditions with marble build-up
• New tire model with deformation and flatspotting
• Improved FFB using a separate thread for physics
• Support for 3D gaming if you have nVidia hardware
• Post-processing effects like HDR, SSAO, and bloom
• Advanced weather system with fogging and raindrops
• New content management system for mods and add-ons

The new tire model is one of the most important features of rFactor 2 because it interacts with the new weather and track surface models. Real racing drivers deal with constantly-changing conditions and they can easily find themselves arriving at a corner with more or less grip than they felt on the previous lap. The tire, track, and weather model should allow users to experience many of these changes for the first time. The tire is now considered to be a separate simulated body to the rim, and the contact patch has a huge increase in simulation processing, which allows for constantly changing levels of heat and wear all across the tire. Tires will hold a history of what you've done to them and all these factors will give a constantly changing experience in terms of grip, handling, and even pit strategy.


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In addition to getting regular updates and new content as it becomes available, the open beta includes: Single Player, Multiplayer, Developer Mode, Development Tools, Rain plus Wet/Dry Transitions, Dynamic Track Elements (Groove/Marbles), New Tire Model, New Physics Model, New Collision Model, and HDR (with other Post FX to come). All of these systems are in various states of readiness and they will all get further refinement before the final release.

At launch, the beta includes five different cars and five tracks, including both historic and modern content.

Historic
• 1966 Brabham BT20
• Numerous Formula 2 cars
• Numerous Formula 3 cars
• Spa-Francorchamps '66
• Monte Carlo '66
• Monza '66

Modern
• FIA Formula Two
• Renault Clio Cup
• Nissan 370Z GT4
• Nissan GT-R GT1
• Formula Renault 3.5
• ISI Formula Masters
• Renault Megane Trophy
• Mills Metropark (3 of 6 layouts)
• Sepang International (2 of 3 layouts)
• Autódromo do Estoril (1 of 2 layouts)
• Palm Beach International Raceway

Tracks that will be released during the beta:
• Mountain Peak Speedway (oval with infield road course and 2 kart tracks)
• Quebec SuperKarting (3 layouts)

Scott Juliano said:
Beyond that, we are at varying stages of licensing deals and will have a WIDE range of new racing series and tracks to go with. Plus, as you all have seen, we're keen to get point-to-point working with proper ladder-type scoring. We're still eager to expand dirt racing as well. All of this will help rF2 continue to grow and expand in many new directions long after release.

Between the time we release the beta and the final "Gold" release, we will be updating not only the series you'll soon see, but adding new series as they reach a more finished state. We have many close to this stage -- rF Trainers, Formula ISI, Clios, go-karts, as well as a few others. There will be a lot coming to keep you busy.

Though as a matter of general principal, no feature in the beta should be considered "finished" until we release the final "Gold" version. And even then we intend to continue refining systems and content. Also, you should expect features to change slightly from one beta build to the next, or even get temporarily turned off while new systems are in development. Likewise, some features may go away completely if general feedback tells us they aren't needed. It's all part of a typical beta process.


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Youtube – Two laps of Spa-Francorchamps in 1966

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Nobody knows for sure (not even the development team), but ISI did release the following vehicle render back in June 2011.

I will continue to update this post with more information as we get closer to the official launch.

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If so, I can help you with that. :)

 

mclaren777

Member
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It would be great if we could regularly get together for races.

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Relevant server information will be posted here when the time comes.

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To install these, simply place the .rfcmp or .rfmod files in your Packages folders, then select Manage Mods from the rFactor 2 launcher. Finally, right-click on each mod and select Install.

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Cars
• Maserati Trofeo – Download
• rTrainer (unofficial) – Download

Tracks
• Croft – Download
• Infineon – Download
• Mid-Ohio – Download
• Putnum Park (Alex) – Download
• Putnum Park (feels3) – Download
• Sebring – Download
• Snetterton – Download

Sometimes you'll need to swap between the basic and detailed lists to install a mod.

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Helllls yeah! My rig can totally handle this game. Don't feel so down about not being able to upgrade for another few months. Thanks for the OP Mclaren. Great stuff as always.
 

Covfan

Member
Don't get too excited guys just yet. Can't connect to the purchase server to "buy" the game.

EDIT// Can now but it is very slow and unreliable at the minute.
 

Sethos

Banned
Trying to create an account through the launcher, "invalid email address"

... Guess they don't want my money?
 

ss_lemonade

Member
Never tried rfactor before, but is this game for the truly sim-hardcore crowd? I don't really play racing games that much, but I do enjoy random bouts of stuff like forza/gt. My gf got me a driving force gt last xmas and I'm looking for pc games to use it on.
 

mclaren777

Member
Never tried rfactor before, but is this game for the truly sim-hardcore crowd? I don't really play racing games that much, but I do enjoy random bouts of stuff like forza/gt. My gf got me a driving force gt last xmas and I'm looking for pc games to use it on.

Try the beta for rFactor 1 before jumping into rFactor 2. If it's not your cup of tea, you've just saved yourself $44.

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=408045
 

Arucardo

Member
I'm so getting in on this on friday. New potentiometer for the G25 pedals arrived too so I can get rid of the minor spiking on the throttle.
 
GOD this day at work can't end fast enough!

Never tried rfactor before, but is this game for the truly sim-hardcore crowd? I don't really play racing games that much, but I do enjoy random bouts of stuff like forza/gt. My gf got me a driving force gt last xmas and I'm looking for pc games to use it on.

Yes.
 

Dilly

Banned
The Force Feedback is amazing. Blazing through Spa Francorchamps feeling every bump in the road forcing you to make simple corrections all the time. When the car starts to slide it'll be noticeable in the wheel directly so you can make corrections on feeling instead of what you're seeing.

The handling model is interesting, cold tires are quite uneasy to handle so you'll have to be careful during those first laps, it gets better after that. The flatspotting is handled quite amazing, with the flatspots becoming visible after locking the wheels.

Wet Weather is obviously still very much work in progress, so I'm not going to comment too much on that.

The graphics aren't like pCARS or something, but the amount of details on the track are quite nice to look at. The circuits feel crowded, lots of houses around Francorchamps with crowds, cars next to the track and more.
 
The Force Feedback is amazing. Blazing through Spa Francorchamps feeling every bump in the road forcing you to make simple corrections all the time. When the car starts to slide it'll be noticeable in the wheel directly so you can make corrections on feeling instead of what you're seeing.

The handling model is interesting, cold tires are quite uneasy to handle so you'll have to be careful during those first laps, it gets better after that. The flatspotting is handled quite amazing, with the flatspots becoming visible after locking the wheels.

Wet Weather is obviously still very much work in progress, so I'm not going to comment too much on that.

The graphics aren't like pCARS or something, but the amount of details on the track are quite nice to look at. The circuits feel crowded, lots of houses around Francorchamps with crowds, cars next to the track and more.

Have you played Forza? Is it any similar to it?

IMO the force feedback in Forza is probably the best I've seen so far, the one in GTR Evolution was dissapointing.
 

Three60

Member
The Force Feedback is amazing. Blazing through Spa Francorchamps feeling every bump in the road forcing you to make simple corrections all the time. When the car starts to slide it'll be noticeable in the wheel directly so you can make corrections on feeling instead of what you're seeing.

The handling model is interesting, cold tires are quite uneasy to handle so you'll have to be careful during those first laps, it gets better after that. The flatspotting is handled quite amazing, with the flatspots becoming visible after locking the wheels.

Wet Weather is obviously still very much work in progress, so I'm not going to comment too much on that.

The graphics aren't like pCARS or something, but the amount of details on the track are quite nice to look at. The circuits feel crowded, lots of houses around Francorchamps with crowds, cars next to the track and more.

What wheel do you use?
 

1-D_FTW

Member
If my memory isn't too faulty, he has a G25/27.

EDIT: Referring to Dilly. Never really heard anyone rave about the FF in Forza. So won't comment on the other guy.
 

mclaren777

Member
I'm surprised that people are so fond of the old F1 cars. I've had the beta for five days now and I haven't even loaded those cars once.
 

dubc35

Member
Looks nice. I've been watching the stream for a bit. My laptop is under the min for GPU and CPU so I'm going to pass. It's been having issues running GT Legends (unmodded) lately, lol.
 
I actively dislike modern Monza so you and I couldn't be more different. ;)

I just want to relive the mayhem of going into Curve Grande with the old F1 cars with 16+ players online from a standing start. So memorable.

Grr, I am so daft. I downloaded all of the packages the other night but somehow accidentally deleted them while doing some PC clean up. Download faster Historic F1 cars!
 

mclaren777

Member
Any impressions to share?
The good, the bad, the wip.

I haven't touched Monaco, Spa, Estoril, or Sepang yet. In fact, I haven't drive anything but the Megane Trophy around Mills. Over and over and over. For days.

I think this beta is worth it for that car/track combo alone, though I'm excited to get Toban and the rTrainer in the near future.

Speaking of which, I just remembered that I made another GIF last night...

(AI is driving and I toggled the wet track surface mid-corner)
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Forza 4's ffb is really rather good, it's missing decent enviroment effects but the feeling of the car and what it is doing is great.

I like it because it tells you exactly when you are on the edge of grip, and you know exactly how much countersteer is needed when sliding. If rFactor 2's ffb is any similar to it, I will love this game.

In GTR Evo you basically had to guess how much grip you had left, and pick a random angle of countersteer, and hope for the best... Shame because I loved that game.
 
Oh man, the historic F1 cars are brilliant. Died so hard at Masta on my first lap at Spa. Just like the old days. Hahaha.

Same. The run up to it is scary in itself! I ended up upside down with some horses further down the road at Stavelot too. It's like a fully polygonal GPL - it's great.

Have you found the reset button yet? Is there one?
 
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