1999: no milestones for RAS?

As a lover of road & race track driving sims I have to say 1999 has been something of a dead loss in terms of new developments. To be honest it is trying the SOS demo that has prompted me to write this. Its seldom I feel inclined to rant on RAS but this is one such time: Well it all starts with GPL (doesn't it always). Its approaching two years since the demo was launched - and showed us just what advancements had been made with physics models, graphics engines etc. It set the standards for the competition to aim at. We all know the history of GPL sales and the potential lack of appeal of 1967 to the public at large. Therefore, for me a similar project - but even more historical - 1937 has to be damned good to succeed. Somehow it has to be the new GPL with more marketing appeal to be a success. Instead the physics model in the demo is total crap, the graphics engine destined to give you a headache after 2 laps. I really can't believe the hype on their web site, though I guess they are relying on the general public having never tried a Papy sim or SCGT. Which brings me back to my subject. My best sim is still GPL. Even with the 1.1 patch it is still pretty much the 98 model. GPL introduced me to on-line racing - nothing has surpassed GPL in terms of on-line capability. GPL has the best physics, I find the AI very good. The graphics are fine - I prefer the slightly dull colours to the overly bright alternatives. Sure all could be improved - and I wish they were. Instead we have a number of decent products - SCGT - good variety, plus career mode but lacking that physics model. N3 - personally I think the physics model is fine for ovals - ***for road courses but then thats a small percentage of the game. I don't enjoy oval racing so its out for me - still a decent product. NL - much the same. Probably more frustrating for a non oval specialist as the tyres get shot much easier. DTR looks quite good - but its oval (ok the odd figure of 8) racing again and not really my cup of tea. Driver/Midtown madness had a lot of appeal - just I want more of a driving sensation. There still appears to be a lack of decent rally sim. So is that it? Nothing on the horizon to finish the decade on a high note? When GPL was talked about 2 years ago the capability to input the parameters of pretty much any car to model accurately got me believing we would have had a few GPL engined variations by now. Sports cars, Champ cars, winged F1 from various eras, saloon cars and so on. Instead it feels that the GPL engine has been cast aside - unless you know different. Sorry to go on - I'm just very impatient about the development of racing sims - and my perception that developers' potentials are not being utilised to improve my life makes me cross! Rant over :) Tony

can there be..... dare i hope....... that the gpl engine used for the original Can-Am.... 1966-1973... oh well.....

Rally Championship will be the finest driving simulation of all time, including the future. sincerely, David G. Fis . . . WAIT--cancel that ! Damn this channelling crap, damn this halloween! DK

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> can there be..... dare i hope....... that the gpl engine used for the > original Can-Am.... 1966-1973... oh well..... > > As a lover of road & race track driving sims I have to say 1999 has been > > something of a dead loss in terms of new developments. > > To be honest it is trying the SOS demo that has prompted me to write

this. > > Its seldom I feel inclined to rant on RAS but this is one such time: > > Well it all starts with GPL (doesn't it always). Its approaching two years

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> > since the demo was launched - and showed us just what advancements had > been > > made with physics models, graphics engines etc. It set the standards for > the > > competition to aim at. > > We all know the history of GPL sales and the potential lack of appeal of > > 1967 to the public at large. Therefore, for me a similar project - but > even > > more historical - 1937 has to be damned good to succeed. Somehow it has

to

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> > be the new GPL with more marketing appeal to be a success. > > Instead the physics model in the demo is total crap, the graphics engine > > destined to give you a headache after 2 laps. I really can't believe the > > hype on their web site, though I guess they are relying on the general > > public having never tried a Papy sim or SCGT. > > Which brings me back to my subject. My best sim is still GPL. Even with > the > > 1.1 patch it is still pretty much the 98 model. GPL introduced me to > on-line > > racing - nothing has surpassed GPL in terms of on-line capability. GPL

has

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> > the best physics, I find the AI very good. The graphics are fine - I > prefer > > the slightly dull colours to the overly bright alternatives. Sure all > could > > be improved - and I wish they were. > > Instead we have a number of decent products - SCGT - good variety, plus > > career mode but lacking that physics model. N3 - personally I think the > > physics model is fine for ovals - ***for road courses but then thats a > > small percentage of the game. I don't enjoy oval racing so its out for > me - > > still a decent product. NL - much the same. Probably more frustrating

for > a > > non oval specialist as the tyres get shot much easier. DTR looks quite > > good - but its oval (ok the odd figure of 8) racing again and not really > my > > cup of tea. Driver/Midtown madness had a lot of appeal - just I want more > of > > a driving sensation. > > There still appears to be a lack of decent rally sim. > > So is that it? Nothing on the horizon to finish the decade on a high note? > > When GPL was talked about 2 years ago the capability to input the > parameters > > of pretty much any car to model accurately got me believing we would have > > had a few GPL engined variations by now. > > Sports cars, Champ cars, winged F1 from various eras, saloon cars and so > on. > > Instead it feels that the GPL engine has been cast aside - unless you know

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> > different. > > Sorry to go on - I'm just very impatient about the development of racing > > sims - and my perception that developers' potentials are not being > utilised > > to improve my life makes me cross! > > Rant over :) > > Tony

I thought that this sim was going to be released after the current Can-Am sim due out later this year. Joel Willstein

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> > can there be..... dare i hope....... that the gpl engine used for the > > original Can-Am.... 1966-1973... oh well..... > I thought that this sim was going to be released after the current > Can-Am sim due out later this year. > Joel Willstein

That is a mixing of sims. Motorsims, which is producing AMA Superbike, and next year SCCA Can Am, hopes to add a historical pak to the Can Am program. That would include McClarens, Chapparells, Lolas, and the infamous Porche. The above poster was "dreaming" of the GPL engine coded by Papyrus being used for a historical Can Am sim. My take on that....follow a financial disaster(GPL) based on a 30 year old product (1967 F1) with another series that collapsed under it's own failure to capture the public.(Can Am 66-73) I would absolutely LOVE to see a decent historical sim about Can Am. The high wings, the Orange Mclarens, the vacum Chapparalls, the Stewart Lola with a wing 3 feet in front of the car...I could go on and on. But I just don't see any larger audience than the GPL crowd. No way Europe would buy a Can Am Sim. No way a modern Nascar fan would buy that product, no way an arcade Need For Speeder would want that. I would, and about 12k others, but thats chicken feed. Take a look at the Flight sim market. Serious sims that rival GPL for complexity/realism etc are a dying breed(A10 Warthog, cancelled) Eidos bought a really complex Apache Helo sim, and killed it.. Most of the upcomming products are mass market(F-22 III){USAF} multiplayer airborne conversions of Quake.... I think you will see the racing sim market similarly castrated. Realism costs big bucks to acheive and the payback is getting smaller and smaller. Papy should take that marvelous GPL engine and should be cranking out sim after sim, making money in little bits instead of big bucks. Origin lost tons of cash on it's first big budget flight sim, Strike Commander, but they used that engine in Privateer and a world war i and II flight sim. I look at the variety of SCGT and just dream of getting the online play of GPL married to a flexible/designable/expandable sim that could cover any era. (rant mode disengaged!) dave henrie