Friday, November 21, 2014

The Crew talks about Hands on wheel

Check out what the crew is offering. I myself can't wait to play this on PC with my Sim Rig setup!


HANDS ON THE WHEEL!

11/21/2014 12:00
Greetings drivers,
10 days are separating you from the launch and having access to the entire game, and today we’d like to take some time to shed more light on an essential topic, the handling.
The Crew being a racing game, it’s natural to compare it to other games of the same genre, but The Crew is also an RPG and until today, most of you have seen only the 10 first levels so let’s see a little more.
The Crew’s driving modes: 
As many of you already know it, the game offers from the start three types of driving: All Driving help, Sport and Hardcore.
  


Using a game Pad
All Driving Help
Sport Mode
Hardcore Mode
Steering Speed Help
On
On
On
Counter Steering Help
On
On
Off
ABS
On
On
On
Traction Control
On
Off
Off

Using a Steering wheel
All Driving Help
Sport Mode
Hardcore Mode
Steering Speed Help
Off
Off
Off
Counter Steering Help
Off
Off
Off
ABS
On
On
On
Traction Control
On
Off
Off

So if you have been trying to drift in a “Full Help” mode, you will be having difficulties to do so as this mode is made to help you keep the most stable driving.

Naturally, we understand that some players were used to a certain type of handling in other racing game.
Because of that, everyone will be able to adjust several options in the “Controls” menu to find the exact feeling they used to have on other games.


You’ll find the “Controls” menu in the main “Options” menu and here is what you can tune:
  • The gearbox (Automatic / Manual).
  • Vibration.
  • Steering sensitivity.
  • Steering linearity.
  • Steering speed factor.
  • Steering dead zone.
  • Throttle linearity.
  • Brake linearity.
  • Cockpit camera animation.
 
The evolution of the cars and the handling:
As explained before, The Crew is an RPG, which means that you will be able to upgrade your car by getting more experience and superior parts.

As you know, there are 11 parts that impacts your performances.



Among those parts, there are four main ones that have a direct impact on your handling, and here they are:
    

  • The weight reduction.
  • The tires.
  • The suspensions.
  • The differential.

During all of our betas, all the testers were capped at the Player Level 10, and a Car Level that could hardly reach more than 200.
Once the game is out, all players will be able to reach the Player level 50 and a Car level max of 1299, and here is how it will impact your parts and thus the handling.

Keep in mind that the car level isn’t linked to these 4 parts only, but those are the one that have the main impact on the handling.
Now that you have this in mind, let’s tackle the other aspects of the game that will impact your car behaviour, and allow you to personalize the global performance of your vehicle.
The Perks
The perks act like “Talents” and allow you to personalize your global experience. Each time a player levels up he earns a Perk point which can be used to unlock Perks.
Among those are some that will impact your car performances and here are some examples.
Like a Glove” Increase your car’s handling
Each NPC has a range of Perks available to purchase and some of them will help you get a performance boost. On the 2nd of December, you will be able to find out about the others!
The Bonus Parts First, let’s get a reminder regarding the “Car Parts”.
Each time a player succeeds in a “Skill challenge” or a “Mission” he will be rewarded with a Car Part (one of the 11 mentioned at the beginning of the news) with a rarity that will vary from “Bronze”, “Silver” to “Gold” and “Platinum” (at level 50 only for Platinum).

On top of these parts, we wanted to add some bonus that will allow every player to get a specialization.
These bonuses will accompany the parts: “Silver”, "Gold" and “Platinum” and here are they:
  • Acceleration
  • Top Speed
  • Grip
  • Braking






What does it mean in the end? This means that several players can have the exact 11 same Silver,Gold orPlatinum parts but with different bonuses. One picking a full “Acceleration” bonus for all his parts, another choosing only the “Braking” bonus, or maybe going for a mix of the different bonuses.
In the end, each player will be able to customize and personalize his car in every single aspect!
We hope you now have all the knowledge to get the best out of your cars!
See you very soon on the roads.
#NeverDriveAlone
The Crew Team

The Crew Open Beta on PS4 & Xbox One Coming Again

Looks like another chance to play the beta for The Crew! I played the first round of the beta and it was pretty exciting to play so I'm looking forward to playing it again.


Today, we’d like to announce that the Open Beta will take place from November 25 to November 27 for Xbox One and PS4 players. The Open Beta will allow players to explore the entire United States and complete challenges in two of the five regions available in the game, the Midwest and East Coast. The PvP lobbies in these regions will also be accessible for players who want to prove their competitive skills. For those who like to customize and fine-tune their ride, two of the five spec classes, Street and Dirt, will be available. The Open Beta will be accessible to all Xbox Live and PlayStation Plus members. For the Xbox One, some online features will require an Xbox Live Gold subscription. Instructions to hop into the Open Beta will be posted sometime next week so stay tune to learn how you can play The Crew in the Open Beta.




The Crew and The Crew Season Pass will be available December 2 for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, and PC platforms.

#NeverDriveAlone
The Crew Team

RFactor 2 Brings Corvetter C6 Road Cars



RFactor 2 has some brand new steeds to play with. It's a much welcomed addition and they are free downloads to boot. Check out RFactor 2 new Corvette in there article below or collect the direct link to their page. RFACTOR 2 CORVETTE




The Corvette C6 was first introduced in 2006 and has three road car variants including the Grand Sport, Z06 and ZR1. Racing variants include the C6.R.




Our C6 cars come in four different packages, each with upgrades affecting visuals or physics

  • C6 Coupe / Grand Sport – no physics tuning options available, only visuals.
  • Z06 – additional Z07 physics package.
  • ZR1 – additional PDE physics package, as well as slight weight/aero tweaks for the cars with lights on the roof.

C6 Coupe

A good all-rounder, very capable with a good balance, light weight, it’s everything you would expect from a sports car. The C6 Coupe really can compete on all fronts with its European rivals. It symbolizes what Corvette is all about, surely one of America’s finest.


Grand Sport

Taking performance one step further, the Grand Sport brings in a better suspension package, brakes, and tires. The car is a little heavier than the Coupe, but the road holding capability of this car is without question. It is the easiest to handle in the Corvette range, with excellent tires and sufficient power.



Z06

Without question one of the most symbolic cars in Corvettes history. The Z06 is a significant player, with 505hp on tap, significant weight reduction modifications and other refinements, the Z06 is quick, very quick. The weight distribution is also near 50/50, providing excellent handling, but the ride is somewhat harsh in this one, and as performance increases, your reflexes need to as well.

The available Z07 performance package in our download takes things a step further, providing carbon brakes and semi-slick Michelin Cup tires. Such a combination results in a car that capable of beating the ZR1 PDE on some of the twistier circuits.


ZR1

In order to surpass the Z06, something drastic had to be done. With the integration of a super-charger to their 6.2L engine, the engineers managed to squeeze out an almost mind boggling 638hp. In doing so, the engine is a little heavier than the Z06 and this additional weight is directly over the front wheels, resulting in a car that is a lot trickier to get the most out of.

The ceramic brakes are standard, and are certainly capable of arresting the car when needed. Upgraded tires are also equipped as standard to ensure the car is capable of adequately gripping the road, allowing you to deliver most of that power. The ZR1 is also fitted with a new variable ratio steering rack. Finally, with the PDE performance package, this car is capable of stunning lap times on the race track.





Our Corvette road cars are a free addon for our racing simulation rFactor2. Download the cars here (there are four separate car downloads).These cars require build 880.


Thank you to Siim Annuk for his collaboration on building this car.

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

DTM Experence 2014 out now!



Looks like the new DTM Experence is out with all the new 2014 rules, tire changes and a huge list of updates to DTM Experence 2013 as well.

DTM Experence

Here is the list and check out the game.

What’s New (Summary)
- DTM Experience 2014.
- Added new packs, DTM 2013, DTM 2014, European Track pack.
- Moscow Raceway, Brands Hatch and Norisring now available in RRE.
- Pit Stops (DTM 2014 Single Player only for now, it will be added to MP and other experiences later)
- We changed the way we handle Experiences. E.g. DTM 2013 owners get all DTM 2013 content unlocked in RRE. (Some licence restriction may apply e.g. DTM 2014 cars will not be available in RRE right away)
- Added Store cart system. You can now buy the exact amount of required vRP’s instead of buying vRP packs.
- Portimao is now free for everyone.
- Added new liveries to Saleen. All Saleen liveries are now free.
- All tracks updated to latest standards with new shaders and RoadFeel


Game
- Added different tyre visuals. Two sets of tyres. Dtm 2014 only.
- Fixed an issue where you would get duplicate liveries in Single Player.
- Fixed an issue where the game was using wrong driving model when launching LBC/Competition through portal before entering an experience (main green orb).
- Changed so that we can now have different race length types (laps and minutes) depending on an experience.
- Fixed an issue where the game was not pausing when alt tabbing.
- Updated localization.
- Fixed so the cut track overlay is a warning instead of a penalty.
- Fixed so the invalid lap overlay is a warning instead of a penalty.
- Implemented support for different moods per track layout instead of global moods.
- Updated localization.
- Added new HUD element for car status.
- Fixed an issue where special characters weren’t displayed correctly in the game.
- We now allow up to 32 contact shadows in settings instead of 8.
- Fixed an issue where the engine vibration setting wouldn’t save.
- Fixed Return Multiplier defaulting to 0.1 and not saving if you changed it to 0.
- Fixed: RedBull Ring audio during camera Fly By cutting off
- Fixed: Game crashing if you start a single race after failing to join MP session
- Fixed: Crash in AI adaptation when leaving event if no player was present.
- Fixed: Not being able to load DTM Championships.
- Fixed an issue with FFB lost at race start.
- Fixed starting lights overlapping with the results if you retire before the race starts
- Fixed an issue where the default camera is becomes cockpit cam when you play a session that starts in garage.
- Fixed issue where Escape wasn’t working if AI had crossed the finish line first and player had to cross the line too to finish the race.
- Fixed a gamepad rumble issue when you quit a race or get DQd
- Fixed so the hood is replaced when repairing aerodynamics.
- Updated default controlsets. Added DRS and pit menu bindings to all profiles and removed unused lines.
- Fixed an issue with Data Display showing lap 1 as lap 0.
- Increased max FFB vertical value to 400%
- Fixed data display split times.
- Removed countdown from data display and position bar.
- Fixed so that the free cam uses player volume multiplier.
- Enabled cut track rules setting in all experiences.


Art
- Monza - Fixed various art issues.
- Brands_hatch – Various art fixes and higher resolution garage interiors.
- Hockenheim – Various art fixes.
- Hungaroring - Various art fixes.
- Norisring – Various art fixes
- Nurburgring - Various art fixes.
- Lausitzring – Various art fixes
- Redbull Ring - Various art fixes.
- Zandvoort - Various art fixes.
- Laguna Seca – Various art fixes.
- Changed global fog settings.
- Tweaked global lighting settings.
- Improved road shader.
- Updated WTCC 2013 cars with various fixes.
- Updated RaceRoom Hillclimb with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Lakeview Hillclimb with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Indianapolis with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Laguna Seca with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Bathurst with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Zolder with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb
- Updated Portimao with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb.
- Updated Moscow Raceway with new road shader, optimizations for performance and ffb


Audio & AI & Physics & Camera
- Fixed an issue where player would get unfair stop and go penalty on the last turn of Raceroom Raceway.
- Updated Audi Quattro GTO physics for less understeer and improved AI for certain types of turns.
- Fixed an issue with Radical SR9 Turbo logic to fix rolling start issues.
- Increased force feedback multiplier on all cars.
- Made AI not try to overtake cars in pit entry lane, unless really slow.
- Norisring: Added more DRS activation points for AI.
- Zandvoort: Added more DRS activation points for AI.
- Hockenheim: Added more DRS activation points for AI.
- Hungaroring: Added more DRS activation points for AI.
- Moscow: Added DRS activation points for AI, improved Get Real AI behaviour.

Portal
- Added shopping cart system. You no longer need to buy VRP packages and can purchase the exact needed VRP.
- Changed the way we treat Experiences aka Experience 2.0. We no longer treat experiences as separate addons. An experience is now similar to a content that can be part of a pack.
- Newsfeed improvements. Added more feeds to the newsfeed in player profile such as, news from subscribed fan page, competitions, discounts in store, friend activities.
- Changed to new stats system. All stats prior to September 2014 have been wiped (sorry ).
- Fixed an issue with store text not appearing complete in browsers.