I just have a question regarding updates to the physics of some of the 'older' cars (older meaning from an update perspective). Basically I am new to this sim, but not new to sim racing (I'm from the Papyrus / GPL era and league racing). I am a sim racer at heart (wheel, pedals, shifter, chassis, etc), but I also sometimes love to race with friends by just using an Xbox controller when I don't want to spend the time to get the rig out. I know that is probably blasphemous to some. Anyway, I had given this sim a go many years ago, but honestly did not care for it. That was using a wheel as well as trying with a gamepad (gamepad handling was terrible in my opinion, but I chalked it up to that not being an important feature for true sim fans). Fortunately enough for me, I recently tried it again and was really blown away by it. Either my memory of this game is skewed, or this game has made great strides over the past several years. In any event, it was a no-brainer to grab the premium pack, because I could tell I would be spending quite a bit of time in this game. So, back to my question. I have been poking around the forums lately to see if there was something like a road map for the game. I see that it was announced earlier this year that there would be several updates coming to the game. One of those updates is to bring some of the older cars up-to-date with new physics. More specifically, the classic touring cars and older DTM cars. I have been enjoying the heck out of those cars and really like the close racing that can be had with them. I will certainly admit that the physics seem to lean more towards the easy-mode side of things, but they are incredibly fun to drive (which is the point as far as I am concerned). I am able to just use my Xbox One controller and still have a blast. So basically my concern is really how much of a physics update are we talking about here? Will it dramatically hinder using a controller with these older vehicles, or should be expect something more subtle? I'm just hoping to avoid the feeling like you are on black ice even when trying to drive in a straight line that some sims have had. I don't expect the devs to cater to the arcade audience by any means, I just wouldn't want to see the excellent work that was done with the gamepad controls be lost in the mix either. Just curious. Thanks
Welcome @ProdigyXP some here consider me the official gamepad guy by now so I guess it's up to me to answer your question. Let me assure you that I'm always making sure that gamepad compatibility and usability don't get forgotten. Quite on the contrary, the devs are listening to the feedback I collected from other gamepad/joystick users and they are working on improvements to further maximise the game's compatibility with "arcade" hardware. Regarding the upcoming physics updates I can't really go into any details right now, but what I can share is that you don't need to worry about the concerns you've voiced. The physics changes will be dramatic (and I use this word advisedly) and during testing the latest updates I found that with my gamepad (Logitech Rumblepad 2) and my settings they can even be 'felt' when using a gamepad. The cars feel much more alive and like an actual, physical machine. Yet I also found that at the same time the updates even improved the manageability and predictability of the cars as well as their plausibility (from a realism pov) while avoiding the pitfalls you already mentioned (over-complex, icy feeling). I wouldn't say this if I wasn't convinced about it; these updates are sth to look forward to, also as a gamepad user.
Having never driven with a controller, I can't answer that specific question. But if you've got the Premium Pack, here's what I'd do. Take the WTCC13 out for a spin, then do the TCR19. The '13s are on about the same physics as the DTM92s, and the '19s are on the newest physics. Obviously it doesn't compare to how the DTM92s will feel, but it'll give you a good feel for the differences to come.
Well, you've already heard from "the gamepad guy" who has far more experience and information than I ever will. However, I do have some experience of using a gamepad with R3E when I've been injured and unable use my full chair/wheel/VR setup. Personally, I think the gamepad controls in R3E are very, very good. Normally I detest any kind of racing on a pad, especially in a sim, but I think R3E nails it. With a bit of time and tweaking I've gotten it so that I can actually post some pretty respectable lap times on a pad, and even to the point where I wouldn't be too concerned about racing in my club online with one if I had to. Of course some classes lend themselves more easily to controllers than others. I find high-power classes very difficult because I can't be precise enough with the throttle unless it has TC. But I've found anything from the GTR 3's down to be a lot of fun, not too difficult, and that's regardless of the physics version they're on. Just the other day I was racing the WTCR 19s and the handling was fine. So yeah, I don't think you have anything to worry about with regards to the future physics updates.
Thanks for the replies, gentlemen. Much appreciated! @ Christian Göpfert, you have made me a very happy guy with your assurance. It's great to know that extra care is being taken for the gamepad users when it is typically just a bullet point in many other sims at best. Your comments are actually making me look forward to the updates now, rather than hoping for endless technical delays that would prevent it. @ CheerfullyInsane, that's not a bad idea at all. I will try this out just to try and get a feel. Thanks for the suggestion. @ Goffik. I couldn't agree more about the gamepad support. Like I mentioned earlier, when I tried this back when it originally came out, I was not a fan at all. Then coming back to it these years later, I was blown away by how much better it is. I don't imagine good gamepad support comes easy in a sim. Really great work by the team.