Grand Prix Legends

Papyrus · released 1998 · discussed in 63,773 posts, 1996-2018 · overall tone positive

Posts per month

Timeline

1996-10-03 CNET reported, and Papyrus producer Matt Sentell confirmed, that Papyrus was developing a mid-1960s Grand Prix sim. post post
1996-12-18 Papyrus's Jim Sokoloff said he was working on NASCAR 3, and Sierra confirmed a historical F1 sim was in development. thread post
1997-02-28 PC Gamer printed the first screenshots of Papyrus's 1960s Formula One sim and SODA Off-Road Racing. post post
1997-03-27 Sierra posted the first screenshots and a feature description of Grand Prix Legends. Jim Sokoloff said the game was more than a year from release. post thread
1997-06-12 Sierra's InterAction magazine reported that Grand Prix Legends had been delayed to spring 1998. post
1997-11-22 Eric Busch posted a hands-on report of Grand Prix Legends after visiting Papyrus. thread
1997-11-26 Papyrus released a pre-alpha video of Grand Prix Legends on GameSpot, showing Dave Kaemmer and Matt Sentell lapping Monza. thread post
1998-04-06 Papyrus released the Grand Prix Legends demo, with Watkins Glen in practice mode. thread post post
1998-04-12 Papyrus confirmed the first eight Grand Prix Legends tracks and 14 licensed drivers. post
1998-04-15 Sierra Sports announced it had licensed the original Nurburgring Nordschleife for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
1998-05-29 At E3, Papyrus showed an alpha of Grand Prix Legends with Spa and the Nurburgring, plus an early NASCAR Racing 3. post post
1998-06-26 Grand Prix Legends slipped to late summer, and Monaco was confirmed as a track. post post
1998-08-28 A Grand Prix Legends demo build featuring Monza appeared on a magazine cover CD, and its track files were shared online. thread post
1998-09-08 A leaked beta of Grand Prix Legends circulated on warez sites before release. thread post
1998-09-30 Grand Prix Legends shipped to North American retailers and went on sale. thread post post
1998-10-09 Grand Prix Legends was released in the UK and Europe. post post
1998-10-16 VROC, a fan-built web service for finding and hosting online GPL races, went live. post post
1998-10-23 Papyrus posted beta OpenGL drivers for Grand Prix Legends, adding support for TNT and other non-3dfx cards, alongside a new Windows 98-compatible demo. thread post post
1998-10-26 Adrenaline Vault's 2.5-star GPL review provoked a backlash. The site re-reviewed the game at 4 stars on 6 November. thread post post
1999-01-10 Papyrus released a beta OpenGL patch for Grand Prix Legends. post post
1999-03-24 The Pits released Dave Noonan's converter for turning NASCAR Racing 2, NASCAR Racing 1999 and IndyCar Racing II tracks into Grand Prix Legends tracks. thread post
1999-04-05 GPL Spy Boy 1.0 was released as a native Windows client for VROC. Its popularity briefly overloaded the VROC server. post post
1999-06-17 Dave Noonan released an add-on Brands Hatch track for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
1999-07-09 Papyrus released the Grand Prix Legends 1.1 patch, which added force feedback, dedicated server options and a new 3dfx rasterizer. thread post post
1999-07-09 VROC 2.0 was released with support for GPL 1.1. post post
1999-08-12 A PC Gamer column reported that Grand Prix Legends had sold only about 36,000 copies through May 1999, which set off long debates about why it undersold. post thread thread
1999-09-16 Greger Huttu won the first GPL Champions League, ahead of Wolfgang Woeger and Ian Lake. thread post
1999-09-29 The German GPL 1.2 patch was released, and a time-limited beta of the US version leaked. The official GPL 1.2 patch, which fixed the 1.1 slowdown bug, appeared on Papyrus's site on 5 November. post post thread
1999-12-09 WinVROC replaced GPL Spy Boy as the client for VROC online racing. post post
1999-12-26 Dave Noonan's latest converter brought NASCAR Racing 3 ovals such as Atlanta, Bristol and Talladega to Grand Prix Legends. post
2000-01-31 Dave Noonan released his Osterreichring add-on track for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
2000-02-10 Papyrus cut Grand Prix Legends to $19.99, and later in February the game was reissued at budget price on the Sierra Originals label in the UK. post post post
2000-03-17 The GPLEA released its Snetterton add-on track for Grand Prix Legends and followed it on 9 April with an update that added AI. thread thread
2000-03-22 Dave Noonan's commercial converter went on sale. It brought IndyCar Racing II and NASCAR tracks into Grand Prix Legends. thread post post
2000-04-13 Papyrus stated that no further updates, including shifter support, would be made for Grand Prix Legends. post
2000-05-31 Papyrus released a beta patch for Grand Prix Legends that greatly reduced multiplayer disconnects. thread post
2000-06-03 GPLRank, Uwe Schuerkamp's online ranking site for Grand Prix Legends, went public, and it passed 2,000 members by late September. thread post post
2000-06-23 Papyrus released an unsupported beta Direct3D rasterizer for Grand Prix Legends, written by Grant Reeve in his spare time. thread post
2000-07-11 David Noonan released a 1960s-style Imola track for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
2000-07-14 An unfinished build of David Noonan's Suzuka track for GPL was posted without permission on the French Pits site, which led to a copyright row. The site went offline on 17 July. thread thread post
2000-08-07 The Solitude add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released. thread post
2000-12-08 A Grand Prix Legends engine-swap utility by Paul Thurston and Ricardo Nunnini was released. It caused cheating fears, Schubi's lap-time site shut down and GPLRank polled users on suspending itself. thread thread post
2001-01-15 The Bremgarten add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released by SRCB. post thread
2001-01-17 The full version of Grand Prix Legends was given away on the cover CD of German magazine PC Action 02/2001. post thread
2001-01-26 The Anderstorp add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released. post thread
2001-02-16 The GPLEA published its track-creation guide and tools for Grand Prix Legends, opening add-on track building to the community. thread post
2001-02-22 The Keimola add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released by OPA Suominen, Greger Huttu and Jussi Kaskia. post thread
2001-04-11 Papyrus's Randy Cassidy confirmed that he and Dave Kaemmer, GPL's main engineers, were still at Papyrus, while Adam Levesque and John Wheeler had left to form Blue Fang Games. post thread
2001-04-23 The Pits and Dave Noonan released converters that brought Grand Prix Legends tracks to NASCAR Racing 3 and NASCAR Legends. post post
2001-05-16 Papyrus's Grant Reeve confirmed that Grand Prix Legends would not run on CPUs of about 1.7GHz and faster because of a timing bug. post thread thread
2001-05-23 Papyrus released an unsupported beta patch fixing Grand Prix Legends on 1.7GHz and faster CPUs, to widespread thanks from the community. post thread
2001-05-30 The 1967 Le Mans (Sarthe) add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released by Roland Ehnström's team. thread post
2001-06-03 The Pits posted preview videos of a NASCAR Racing 4 car driving a converted GPL Monaco, starting a long wait for a GPL-to-N4 track converter. thread post
2001-06-13 Papyrus released an updated Direct3D renderer for Grand Prix Legends with anisotropic filtering, GeForce3 support and a fix for wrong flag colors. post thread
2001-10-31 The Mont-Tremblant (St. Jovite) add-on track for Grand Prix Legends was released via The Pits. post thread
2001-11-15 GPL Replay Analyser 5.0 was released with a traction-circle viewer and GPLRank integration. thread post
2002-01-22 Magnus T launched the online GPL Track Database, with ratings and a track set changer. thread post
2002-03-14 Race Sim Central published a long interview with Papyrus's Alison Hine about the development of Grand Prix Legends, and started a letter campaign asking Vivendi to let Papyrus make GPL2. thread post
2002-04-18 An online petition calling for Grand Prix Legends 2 was launched and gathered thousands of signatures. thread
2002-05-01 Dave Noonan's team at The US Pits released a converter that brought GPL road courses into NASCAR Racing 2002 Season. thread post
2002-05-13 The GPL community passed 200 add-on tracks. post
2002-08-04 A community OpenGL renderer for Grand Prix Legends became available. post
2003-01-22 The GPL Rally 2 online event began; more than 600 drivers signed up, and Paul Wintrip won when it ended in May. post post post
2003-02-03 The Pits' preview showed that Papyrus had removed the track-length limit from NASCAR Racing 2003 Season, which allowed long GPL tracks such as the Nordschleife to be converted. thread post
2003-07-13 Jim Pearson released a highly detailed Isle of Man TT circuit for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
2004-02-11 David Sabre released a new 1967 Brands Hatch track for Grand Prix Legends. thread post
2004-02-28 RaceSimCentral came partly back online after a week down; 138 GPL tracks lost in the subsite crash were later rehosted. post post
2004-04-30 The 1965 season mod for Grand Prix Legends was released with the GEM+ manager and the iGOR online system. thread post
2004-05-31 Fans released the 'GPL 2004 Demo', the original Grand Prix Legends demo pre-patched to run on modern systems. thread post post
2005-12-13 The GPL 1969 mod was released. post
2006-05-06 The GPL 1969 Part II mod was released. post
2006-11-06 The Grand Prix Legends Preservation Society was formed to catalogue and preserve GPL resources. post
2006-12-04 A demo of the GPL-to-rFactor '67 mod was pulled after a dispute over converted GPLEA content, and its author quit. post
2007-04-23 GPLPS released a Grand Prix Legends installer by Bernd Nowak with updated GPLEA cars and track updates. post
2007-08-20 Version 1.1 of the F1 Legends GPL conversion mod for rFactor was released. thread post
2007-09-25 The F2 MiniMod for Grand Prix Legends was released as-is after two years of development. Its author was then banned from RaceSimCentral. post post
2007-12-26 The GPL 1966 mod was released. post
2008-05-08 Nigel Pattinson and Bernd Nowak released new 32-bit Direct3D and OpenGL rasterizers for Grand Prix Legends. post post
2008-07-08 GPLRank administrator Don Scurlock died in a motorcycle accident. post
2009-03-02 The RaceSimCentral forum went down, and its GPL troubleshooting FAQ was mirrored at Sim Racing Mirror Zone. post
2010-05-10 A Lancia Stratos mod for Grand Prix Legends was released. post
2010-11-17 The GPL 1967 Sports Car mod was released. post
2010-11-19 The GPLRank site went down because of hardware problems. post
2011-12-25 A 1967 F2 mod for Grand Prix Legends was released. post
2012-09-14 IGOR had largely replaced VROC as the matchmaking service for Grand Prix Legends online racing. post

Key threads

Dave Noonan's ICR2/N2 to GPL track converter goes on sale 2000-03-22 · 96 posts
Dave Noonan's commercial converter for bringing ICR2 and NASCAR tracks such as Riverside, Laguna Seca and Indianapolis into GPL went on sale for 15 pounds via sim-garage.co.uk, with AI for oval tracks. Most posters welcomed it and defended the price, and ordering glitches and VAT were discussed. The thread drifted into capital punishment politics and later congratulated Greger Huttu on a 7:49.50 Nurburgring lap.
Papyrus releases beta Direct3D rasterizer for GPL 2000-06-23 · 60 posts
Papyrus's Eric Busch announced an unsupported beta Direct3D rasterizer for GPL, and Rich Yasi credited engineer Grant Reeve, who wrote it in his spare time. Users with nVidia cards reported large frame-rate gains and high-resolution mirrors, and Busch gave advice on drivers and core.ini settings. A side argument broke out when David G Fisher said D3D and force feedback should have been there at release, while others defended Papyrus's original Glide and Rendition choice.
Papyrus releases unsupported GPL patch for 1.7GHz+ CPUs 2001-05-23 · 53 posts
Papyrus's Eric Busch announced an unsupported beta patch fixing CPU speed detection problems in Grand Prix Legends on 1.7GHz and faster machines, in six regional versions requiring the 1.2 patch. The community responded with an outpouring of thanks for supporting a three-year-old, poor-selling title, and Tom Faiano of Papyrus confirmed the patch adds no content and is not needed by those without problems. One user confirmed it worked.
Jim Sokoloff explains why Papyrus chose a 1960s F1 sim 1997-03-28 · 40 posts
Asked why Papyrus was making a sim of 1960s cars rather than a modern series, Jim Sokoloff explained that the 1967-era Formula One cars, with huge power and little grip or downforce, made an unusually demanding and rewarding subject for Papyrus's new physics model. Most posters were enthusiastic, hoping for tracks such as the old Nürburgring and Spa, while a few preferred current-season sims. Sokoloff said the game was over a year from release, so system requirements could not be given, and the thread drifted into F1 engine revs and a possible motorcycle sim.
Papyrus releases beta GPL patch to reduce disconnects 2000-05-31 · 35 posts
Papyrus's Randy Cassidy announced a beta patch for Grand Prix Legends that should greatly reduce multiplayer disconnects. Members thanked Papyrus for still supporting a two-year-old title, joked about wanting a CART sim, and swapped installation tips. Dave Henrie suggested that the fix came from recent NASCAR 3 multiplayer work.
Papyrus announces the Grand Prix Legends demo 1998-04-03 · 34 posts
Papyrus's Mike Lescault announced a playable Grand Prix Legends demo for April 6, featuring Watkins Glen in practice mode to showcase the new physics engine, with native Rendition and 3Dfx support. He explained the exclusive release on OGR and plans for mirrors. Users reported it ran well on modest machines such as a P133 with a 3D card.
Vivendi closes Papyrus Racing Games 2004-05-08 · 34 posts
Pez reported that Vivendi Universal Games had closed Papyrus, with Eroc Busch saying VUG had shut both its remaining East Coast studios, Papyrus and Impressions. Members mourned the end of an era, blamed Sierra and Vivendi, and speculated about Dave Kaemmer's future and whether a GPL2 or an open-source community sim could follow. Some suggested petitioning for the GPL source code to be released.
GPL engine, historic racing and GPL's commercial failure 2001-07-05 · 246 posts
A suggestion to reuse the GPL engine for classic Trans-Am, Can-Am and Group B sims led to a long debate over whether GPL was a commercial failure, with Tim O and ymenard trading arguments about sales. Mark Jeangerard later argued GPL's physics and visual cues were inferior to GP3, prompting extended discussion of field of view, frame rates, tyre grip modelling and immersion. The thread ran to more than 240 posts.
Are GPL fans rude and intolerant? 2000-06-26 · 205 posts
Jochen Heistermann complained that GPL fans attacked him for calling the D3D patch crap, and David G Fisher and Tracey Miller agreed that some of the GPL crowd dismissed every other sim. Others replied that the patch was a free spare-time beta and that 'crap' invited a reaction, debated whether GPL should have supported D3D from the start, and noted praise given to NFS Porsche and others. Later posts quoted a David Kaemmer interview and discussed driving the BRM at the Ring.
Tom Pabst's 'timing bug' post sparks hotlapper flame war 2001-11-01 · 158 posts
Tom Pabst reported a real-time versus physics-clock bug in the Rally Trophy demo and claimed a similar bug was being exploited by GPL's 'alien' hotlappers, whom he also called poor, crash-prone racers. Top GPL drivers and their friends reacted furiously, with personal abuse, challenges and threats to boycott BRD hardware, which Pabst was associated with; he later said the GPL claim was a deliberate troll. The long thread then turned into a debate over talent versus practice and whether obsessive hotlapping is healthy.
Jim Pearson's Isle of Man circuit for GPL 2003-07-13 · 154 posts
Steve Smith announced Jim Pearson's highly detailed Isle of Man TT circuit for Grand Prix Legends, which was widely praised as a masterpiece; Bruce Kennewell called it brilliantly conceived. The long thread also debated whether GPL was obsolete next to NR2003's tyre model, with Steve Smith recalling Dave Kaemmer calling GPL's tyre model primitive. Converting the track to NR2003 would require the author's permission.
Mass thank-you to GPL's creators and add-on makers 1999-12-13 · 142 posts
John Moore started a thread thanking Papyrus and the volunteers who kept Grand Prix Legends alive with patches, tracks, utilities and VROC servers. Well over a hundred posters added their thanks and stories of how GPL changed their hobby, naming Randy Cassidy, David Kaemmer, Alison Hine and others. Some regretted that the game had sold poorly, and the thread continued into March 2000.
Tom Pabst: hotlapping is not racing 2001-08-18 · 126 posts
Tom Pabst wrote a long post arguing that sim racers should call hotlapping testing rather than racing, to win respect from real-world motorsport. Many disagreed, arguing that hotlapping is a legitimate skill like qualifying and that online racing is real competition, while others discussed whether sim racing could become a televised sport. The discussion ran to 126 posts.
GPL lacks TNT support; Papyrus releases beta OpenGL drivers 1998-10-12 · 125 posts
A question about running GPL on an nVidia TNT card started a long argument over Papyrus supporting only 3dfx Glide and Rendition rather than Direct3D or OpenGL. Critics called it a business mistake and complained the box misstated requirements, while defenders said buyers should choose hardware for their software and that D3D was poor during development. The debate ended when Papyrus posted beta OpenGL drivers for GPL, and Eric Busch of Papyrus said the patch had been in the works and they would look at Permedia2 issues.
Papyrus updates GPL D3D patch; DGF row follows 2001-06-13 · 112 posts
Marc Collins reported an updated GPL Direct3D patch (1.0.0.1) on Papyrus's site that fixed the wrong flag colors, added GeForce 3 support and anisotropic filtering, and cured the distorted trees and vanishing fences; users with GeForce and Radeon cards reported much better image quality, though some menu items failed to display. The thread then turned into a long argument with David G Fisher over GPL devotees, F1RC and F1 TV viewing figures.
GP3 disappointment sparks GPL grip realism debate 2000-10-31 · 98 posts
Arto Wikla said Grand Prix 3 lacked the feel of a powerful car, and a defender claimed GP3 had superior physics and that GPL cars slid too easily at low speed. Kevin Gavitt reported controlled measurements showing GPL lateral grip matched real 1967 cars, and Ron Ayton noted Jackie Stewart's broader comments on GPL. The thread went on to cover TOCA 2, VROC, controllers and speed sensations.
Ideas for a GPL sequel and why GPL sold poorly 1999-10-04 · 97 posts
Posters proposed seasons for a GPL2, with Papyrus's Alison Hine favouring 1971 or 1972 and describing a dropped career structure that would have started players in the trainer cars. A long debate followed over whether GPL's poor sales came from its difficulty, its 1967 subject matter or the US market, with Joe McGinn arguing for accessibility options. Later posts discussed whether wings could be modelled realistically.
Arguing over whether GPL is undriveable or realistic 1998-04-10 · 96 posts
Charles Mak claimed the GPL demo was undriveable and unlike real 1960s F1, while most replied the cars genuinely drifted and that he needed practice or better controller settings. Real racers such as Matthew Knutsen and a father who raced in the 1960s endorsed the feel. Doug Milliken discussed force feedback and Jim Sokoloff suggested better drivers were simply faster.
Is GPL too difficult or simply realistic? 1998-11-08 · 93 posts
Lawrence Edwards argued GPL was harder than real 1960s racing given limited practice in that era and asked for easier options. John Wallace and others said difficulty reflects the reality of racing cars, and John Klemantaski, who raced a 1967 F3 car, offered first-hand comparisons. Christer Andersson questioned some aspects of realism, and tips on adjusting AI strength were shared.
Schumacher's simultaneous throttle and brake technique and GPL realism 2003-08-31 · 90 posts
Joachim Trensz posted a German article on Michael Schumacher using throttle and brake together, reopening the question of whether the GPL hotlapper technique is realistic. Trensz argued it was a subtle, legitimate method, while Gerry Aitken and Ed Solheim insisted it would not work in a 1967 Lotus 49. Others discussed left-foot braking in karting, rallying and modern F1, clutch wear, and Allstarnz translated the article.
Racing instructor's article ranking sim realism 2003-01-31 · 88 posts
David G Fisher linked an article by racing instructor Malcolm Edeson (Maxx) arguing that GPL and GTR2002 had unrealistic quirks and that Nascar Heat with mods was a better training tool. Maxx joined in at length, explaining that his criteria were about driver training and that simpler physics did not mean less realistic. Others debated tire squeal, high-speed handling and physics rates, and Maxx later posted more specific details at readers' request.
Maxx's racing-school guide to going faster in GPL 2000-09-28 · 85 posts
Maxx, a former real-life racing instructor, published a package of text notes and replays on smooth driving technique for GPL, covering braking, turn-in, the racing groove and throttle control. Many readers reported immediate gains, notably Simon Brown, who set personal bests and won his first AI race. Later posts discussed reference points, pedal modifications and replay analysis, and the material became the GPLEGS guide.
Copyright row over converted GPL tracks on French Pits 2000-07-15 · 83 posts
A link to the French Pits site's GPL tracks led David Noonan to state that the Suzuka and converted tracks breached his copyright. A long argument followed over whether converted Papyrus tracks could be his copyright, whether he had a licence to sell his converter, and whether third-party track makers need permission from real circuit owners, with ymenard raising the latter point. The site was reported taken down by its ISP during the thread, and some exchanges became abusive.
Why GPL dominates the newsgroup 2000-03-23 · 82 posts
David Karr opened a discussion on whether GPL fans had hijacked the newsgroup and dismissed other sims. Many replied that GPL dominated simply because nothing had matched its immersion, physics and online racing. David G Fisher argued that GPL fans were boorish and demanded quotes from real F1 drivers praising it.
How fast drivers brake later and harder 2004-01-25 · 82 posts
Haqsau asked why some online drivers can brake much shorter than others. Advice covered better pedals such as ECCI and Microsoft wheel pedals, progressive brake application, threshold and trail braking, engine braking and downshifting, and squash-ball brake pedal mods. Goy Larsen said his biggest gain came from getting back on the throttle before turn-in.
New 1967 Brands Hatch track released for GPL 2004-02-11 · 81 posts
Steve Smith announced David Sabre's new 1967 Brands Hatch for GPL and praised it highly. The thread became a long debate over whether NR2003's physics had made GPL obsolete, with Ed Solheim saying GPL now felt wrong and Jan Verschueren and Tony Rickard defending it and criticising stock-car limits in the Trans-Am mods. Steve Smith also discussed elevation errors in Papyrus versions of tracks such as Mosport and Mid-Ohio.
Do racing slicks squeal before losing grip? 2004-05-13 · 79 posts
Mitch_A said he heard slicks squeal on TV, reviving an old argument; others clarified the dispute was whether slicks squeal before grip is lost, as Papyrus sims portray. Racers such as Maxx said slicks generally do not squeal in normal hard cornering, only when locked, spinning or sliding, while Joachim Trensz and jbodin argued tyre sounds are a valid substitute for missing seat-of-the-pants cues. The thread also covered GTR demo tyre-sound volumes and became personal between Haqsau, Byron Forbes and jbodin before drifting to EldredP's struggles in NR2003.
Is NASCAR Racing 3 just a rehash of NASCAR 2? 1999-09-21 · 77 posts
A rant that NASCAR Racing 3 looked silly next to Grand Prix Legends set off a long, insult-laden argument between GPL fans and NASCAR fans. Critics said N3 was an N2 engine with better graphics and unrealistic physics, while defenders said it was the best NASCAR sim available and offered better online racing. The thread wandered into store return policies and Sierra's cancellation of several titles.
Eric Busch's hands-on report of Grand Prix Legends 1997-11-22 · 75 posts
After visiting Papyrus, Eric Busch reported that Grand Prix Legends was amazing and ground-breaking, ran smoothly in Rendition mode on a P200, and had far better graphics than NASCAR 2. He criticised CART Precision Racing in comparison, sparking accusations of bias. The thread also argued over whether 3Dfx or Papyrus was producing the NASCAR 2 Glide patch, and noted that Papyrus would sponsor a Toyota Atlantic car.
Does rec.autos.simulators represent typical sim racers? 2000-07-19 · 74 posts
Posters argued over whether the newsgroup's GPL-focused regulars were out of step with most sim players, citing a High Gear poll showing strong interest in GP3. Jan Verschueren argued that GP3 should be judged on its physics and feared commercial pressure would kill pure simulations, while Jo Helsen argued that AI, weather and atmosphere matter to most buyers and that Crammond was not targeting the hardcore crowd. The debate was long but mostly civil.
GameSpot's history of Papyrus racing games 2004-07-25 · 73 posts
Jason Moyer linked GameSpot's feature on the history of Papyrus, prompting memories of wrecking AI in Indy 500, including Dave Kaemmer's own admission. Magnulus argued Papyrus self-destructed and that EA's more approachable games and career modes had merit, which drew strong replies that online racing was the heart of hardcore simming. Members then shared their histories in long-running leagues such as the Screamers GPL league and TPTCC.
Online petition asking Sierra for GPL2 2002-04-19 · 70 posts
Andre Warringa posted a link to an online petition for Grand Prix Legends 2, which gathered about 2,800 signatures within a few days. Some doubted that Sierra would be swayed and joked about paying $1000 each, while others hoped for a Papyrus CART sim instead. The thread drifted into Goy Larsen sharing 1994 Bathurst footage and debates about video compression and newsreaders.
Avault gives Grand Prix Legends 2.5 stars 1998-10-26 · 69 posts
News that Avault had rated GPL two and a half stars provoked a letter-writing campaign and ridicule of reviewer Craig Miller, who admitted a passage on music was pasted from his Red Baron 3D review and said Sierra had not sent him the Four Wheel Drift manual. Some posters agreed the review fairly warned general gamers about GPL's difficulty, while others said it misjudged the target audience and ignored the trainer cars and aids. The thread later drifted into a long argument over whether flying a fighter is easier than driving a 1967 F1 car.
Was GPL's realism or its accessibility the sales problem? 1999-05-17 · 69 posts
A poster said he lost interest in GPL for lack of instant lap-time feedback, prompting defenders to say period accuracy was the point. The debate widened into why GPL undersold: strict realism, the obscure 1967 setting, demanding hardware, poor software rendering, and missing novice options such as an AI difficulty slider. Jack Rambo said his GPaL utility aimed to address accessibility, and a Papyrus interview explaining why NASCAR 2000 would not use the GPL engine was quoted and dismissed by some as marketing.
Sim racers share their real race car experience 2002-05-09 · 66 posts
A poster asked whether RAS regulars had ever driven a real race car, and many replied with experience ranging from karts, autocross and track days to SCCA, Formula Ford and endurance racing. Steve Smith, former Car and Driver editor and author of the GPL strategy guide, described testing 1960s race cars. Most with real experience felt Grand Prix Legends came closest to reality, with the missing seat-of-the-pants feel as the main gap. The thread later drifted into a long Corvette Z06 versus Viper, Porsche and superbike argument.
Rumour of Papyrus 'GPL 1972' after NASCAR 5 2001-11-08 · 66 posts
Alex Cameron relayed a report from simactu.com, attributed to Sierra France, that Papyrus would release NASCAR 5 in March 2002 and 'Grand Prix Legends 72' in September 2002. Posters debated whether 1972 was a credible choice and how well GPL had sold, with Steve Smith saying its initial sales were meagre. The thread drifted into wishes for Can-Am and touring-car sims, and John Bodin promoted his free 1930s grand prix mod for NASCAR Heat.
Late braking technique and racing etiquette in GPL 1999-02-16 · 63 posts
A driver asked for help with late and trail braking in GPL; advice covered brake bias, braking earlier but less to carry exit speed, and separate brake and throttle axes. The thread broadened into first-lap pile-ups on VROC, the aggressive AI Surtees, blue-flag etiquette for lapped cars, and the clean-racing Pro Racing Club.
Would rFactor exist without GPL, and is rFactor modding healthy? 2005-09-29 · 63 posts
Byron Forbes questioned whether third-party rFactor mods would be accepted as authentic, prompting debate on GPL's legacy and the state of online sim racing. Some argued rFactor would not exist without GPL and that modders were more active than ever, while ymenard argued multiplayer rooms were empty and the scene was fragmenting across NR2003 mods and many sims. A long side discussion covered GPL driving style, slip angles and GPLRank benchmark times, plus joking about Snow White nicknames and coffee.
First Racing (iRacing) screenshots and Papyrus physics debate 2006-02-16 · 61 posts
The first screenshots of the former Papyrus team's new sim drew mixed reactions, with some calling the graphics dated and others praising Papyrus's natural art style. Discussion covered its planned subscription model and resentment over the company's legal treatment of modders. A debate followed on whether GPL and NR2003 physics had been accurate, citing Dave Kaemmer's later admission about GPL grip and Dale Earnhardt Jr's view of NR2003.
Debate over GPL car handling, AI lines and difficulty 1998-10-02 · 61 posts
David G Fisher questioned why human hotlaps in GPL looked wild and sideways while the AI drove smoothly at similar times. Respondents argued hotlaps differ from race driving, pointed to Dave Mansell's smooth Spa hotlap as proof that clean fast driving was possible, and debated whether GPL confused difficulty with realism. The thread degenerated when Jay Wolf declared the cars too twitchy and traded insults with several regulars, though he later conceded his skills were improving.

Busiest threads

Are GPL fans rude and intolerant? (95 posts about it)
Mass thank-you to GPL's creators and add-on makers (88 posts about it)
Is netKar the new GPL? (84 posts about it)
GPL engine, historic racing and GPL's commercial failure (84 posts about it)
Second NASCAR 4 screenshot hints at new engine (78 posts about it)
Has GPL spoiled players for other sims (59 posts about it)
Will Grand Prix Legends sell to the mass market? (58 posts about it)
Early Grand Prix Legends video and 1967 authenticity (54 posts about it)
GPL lacks TNT support; Papyrus releases beta OpenGL drivers (53 posts about it)
NASCAR Racing 3 physics compared with GPL (52 posts about it)
Tom Pabst's 'timing bug' post sparks hotlapper flame war (50 posts about it)
What would make players give up GPL? (50 posts about it)
Is GPL too difficult or simply realistic? (49 posts about it)
Papyrus updates GPL D3D patch; DGF row follows (48 posts about it)
Arguing over whether GPL is undriveable or realistic (48 posts about it)

Sentiment by year

Each post that discussed the sim was rated from −2 (very negative) to +2 (very positive).

Year	Posts	Positive	Negative	Tone
1996	5	1	1	mixed (+0.20)
1997	355	153	16	positive (+0.54)
1998	9,286	3,376	575	positive (+0.43)
1999	16,608	5,360	846	positive (+0.39)
2000	17,004	5,929	411	positive (+0.44)
2001	9,480	2,867	263	positive (+0.36)
2002	5,257	1,722	174	positive (+0.40)
2003	2,845	813	84	positive (+0.35)
2004	1,471	461	47	positive (+0.38)
2005	715	301	28	positive (+0.52)
2006	298	108	16	positive (+0.44)
2007	120	47	4	positive (+0.48)
2008	169	75	14	positive (+0.44)
2009	93	40	0	positive (+0.57)
2010	37	14	1	positive (+0.46)
2011	12	6	1	very positive (+0.75)
2012	13	8	0	very positive (+1.00)
2013	2	1	0	very positive (+1.00)
2014	1	0	0	mixed (+0.00)
2018	2	2	0	very positive (+1.00)