Automobilista

[Northstar]

I know it's well within their rights, but it's not like Reiza is selling an AAA game in millions of copies.

The problem they would run into if they didn't go after Reiza is that there would be little they could do if a big developer decided to do something similar.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

True, but if people are turning to this, among other games, instead of the licensed F1 games, to their minds that affects their returns on investment. Of course, if Codemsaters would get their 🤬 together and make the game they're capable of making it wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue. It seems to me that whenever I hear about stuff like this, it's when the instigator has had something end poorly, or at least not as well as they wanted, and with CM's F1 games apparently getting worse with each version, even devoted CM fans will look elsewhere, and if someone compares AMS to F1 2015 directly, someone's gonna investigate.

Not likely. Both games are pandering to very different people. Codies appeals to simcade and graphics. AMS appeals to hardcore sim racers (and it has a whole host of other content). Hardcore F1 fans will likely buy both so they are not losing out on anything. I doubt Codies has anything to do with these whole saga. Their games have been selling poorly, but it has been consistent like that for the last few years so why start killing the competition now?

The problem they would run into if they didn't go after Reiza is that there would be little they could do if a big developer decided to do something similar.

Problem is other devs have done the same and FOM have turned a blind eye:
- GT had lots of look alike F1 back in GT3, and of course Formula GT up to GT6
- Sector 3/Simbin had Formula Raceroom
- SMS had Formula A in PCARS
- Forza has numerous fake and look alike liveries created for the Lotus F1
- Hundreds of F1 mods (some with identical liveries) created for various ISImotor sims throughout the years

So you see, they are not being consistent at all. If it's really an issue they should have gone after every single F1 content out there. This seems to me just like a scare tactic to go after AMS, and not for any actual gain or damage limitation to the brand. I say leave us alone, because we are not harming anyone. Seriously, AMS has peak player of around 100 on Steam. It is not significant by any means.

If FIA is any smart they will give the F1 license for free to Reiza instead of Codies. Won't happen though.

 

[Northstar]

- GT had lots of look alike F1 back in GT3, and of course Formula GT up to GT6
- Sector 3/Simbin had Formula Raceroom
- SMS had Formula A in PCARS

Those all also have liveries that look nothing like the real versions and use different "formula" names. There isn't much F1 could do in any of those cases anyways as FOM doesn't have the rights to open wheel cars in general

Reiza on the other hand appears to have made cars that look like F1 cars in both design and paint schemes. Even than they probably could have gotten away with it had they not been stupid enough to actually call them "F1" cars.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Those all also have liveries that look nothing like the real versions and use different "formula" names. There isn't much F1 could do in any of those cases anyways as FOM doesn't have the rights to open wheel cars in general

Reiza on the other hand appears to have made cars that look like F1 cars in both design and paint schemes. Even than they probably could have gotten away with it had they not been stupid enough to actually call them "F1" cars.

The design is generic F1 like all the above games. None of the cars are explicitly called F1. They are Formula Extreme/Reiza/V10/V12/Classic/Retro.

So really, the only point of contention is look alike liveries. And as I mentioned there are heaps of other mods created throughout the years, with exact same liveries and brands, that doesn't get taken down. So why AMS specifically? Be consistent, or don't bother at all is my point.

FYI, I'd be happy to see AMS come back with the liveries removed. But if they have to remove the cars as well that would be 🤬

 

[Northstar]

The design is generic F1 like all the above games. None of the cars are explicitly called F1. They are Formula Extreme/Reiza/V10/V12/Classic/Retro.

Admittedly I haven't played it so I was going by what I saw on Google.

So why AMS specifically? Be consistent, or don't bother at all is my point.

Reiza is a for profit company, modders for the most part are not.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Admittedly I haven't played it so I was going by what I saw on Google.

Yeah no worries. There's a list of cars on the first post of this thread if you want to have a look 👍

Reiza is a for profit company, modders for the most part are not.

That is true as well.

Anyway, I hope this will all be resolved soon. As I said I hope they can just take out the offending liveries and still keep the cars. Moving forwards, hopefully Reiza will be more careful with their fictional content. And piss off FOM, you have enough problem with qualifying debacle in F1 as it is.

 

[Kitten]

Automobilista EA v0.8.9r RELEASED
April 12 - Reiza Studios
Automobilista Steam Store page is back on and with it another fresh Early Access update!

• 
  Build v0.8.9r Changelog:
• Added new controller / FFB recovery mechanism in attempt to rectify occasional loss of functionality in between sessions
  
• Added extra information & reprofiled dashboard displays to better represent real counterparts (for Lancer Cup, Marcas, F-Extreme, Metalmoro MR18 - remaining cars to be updated in the following update)
  
• Repainted skins for several fictional series
  
• Goiania: Updated AI
  
• Marcas: Updated external sounds

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Good to see it's back. As I thought, all they changed was just the liveries. No doubt the old liveries will pop up for download sooner or later, and this whole debacle will have achieved exactly nothing.

Quote from Renato Simoni over at Reiza forums (http://forum.reizastudios.com/threads/automobilista-store-page-on-steam-now-reinstated-updated.284/):

As previously reported, Valve & Reiza had received a DMCA notice for Automobilista, which resulted in the game being taken down from Steam for a couple of weeks according to the regulated standard procedure. The matter was discussed and clarified with the complaining party who withdrew the complaint, shortly before it was due to elapse.

We have in any case elected to modify several of the fictional cars in the game to feature different designs, and will continue to update them as a preventive measure to avoid similar confusion about whether part of the content in the game presented & branded as fictional / unofficial is indeed so. Many of these changes have already been introduced in the latest v0.8.9 update.

While current US jurisprudence regarding application of copyright / trademark law in videogames indicates the legal validity of such claims may be debatable, ultimately it shouldn´t really matter as we feel the inherent value of Automobilista does not relate to the visual accuracy (or lack thereof) of some of its unofficial cars, but rather to the quality and realism of the racing experience that it provides and which we produce.

With this hopefully established, we´d like to thank everyone for your continuing support - rest assured we have been and continue pushing hard towards getting Automobilista ready for full release!

Some tidbits regarding DMCA complaints, from RaceDepartment (http://www.racedepartment.com/threads/automobilista-back-on-steam.120493/):

As is the rules with any such DMCA claim if the claiming party fail to escalate the claim to the courts within two weeks of the initial notice (i.e. no actual legal motion against what has been claimed to be in breach of copyright) then the subject of said claim can return to its original position and resume sale.

Sounds like the one submitting the complaint wasn't FOM after all. Why would they withdraw it otherwise (unless Reiza have really good lawyers)? I wouldn't be surprised if it's the idiots running PRC.net, as those guys always do nothing but stir trouble (if there isn't news, they'll make one). A shame that because of this we lose the liveries, but I think it's better to lose it now than incur an actual complaint from FOM later.

 

[KoshaPashkin]

 

[Kitten]

Quite an anticlimactic montage

 

[LeGeNd-1]

I cannot believe how forgotten this game is. Amidst all the GT Sport hype last week, Reiza released the Boxer Cup and VIR.

Full changelog:

Content:

• New track: Added Virginia International Raceway (3 layouts)
  
• New series: Added Boxer Cup series

(hotfix to address team names will come up shortly)

Features & Fixes:

• Fixed a bug with LCD displays that could cause the game to crash after loading a session in certain conditions
  
• Added a Series .SRS auto-sort function - SRS files no longer need to be named "REIZAXX", and the game will automatically sort their main menu listing in alphabetical order, with original series coming first - slots REIZA01-28 & REIZA99 are reserved for Reiza original content, mods can use REIZA29 up to 99 OR any other name of the modder´s preference; New REIZAXX must be in upper-case
  
• Added a reset sound event to mute replay sounds at the end of the replay
  
• Added an extra state to virtual mirror cycle to display the in-car mirrors, but not the virtual mirrors
  
• Added option for mapping multiple commands to the same key / button
  
• Increased maximum race lap limit from 100 to 500
  
• Added extra custom AI physics values to improve AI stability & re-callibrated AI performance for various series
  
• Revised Portuguese, french & Spanish localization (work still in progress)
  
• Added parameter to define engine layout & orientation, and set cars with transverse engines (Marcas, Mini, Lancers, Karts) accordingly
  
• Revised aeromap for several cars
  
• Fixed bug with windshields of various cars becoming transparent at night
  
• Reprofiled LCD displays for Superkart, SuperV8, StockV8, F-V12, F-Classic
  
• Updated font alpha in all Motec-style displays & added a function to light up background when headlights are switched on
  
• Updated sky textures & added 2 new packs
  
• DynHUD: Fixed reading Config.ini with UTF-16 (This also fixes the "editor starting with white screen" bug); fixed editor to access the correct data folder; Improved viewport detection and change reaction; Renders on top of big monitor now; MapWidget now renders item positions correctly again; Improved on-track detection for MapWidget; Fixed textures to be properly updated after configuration loaded
  
• Curitiba: Smoothed out section near 200m board in the main straight
  
• Supertruck: revised tire physics
  
• F-Vee: Fixed rollbar LOD distance
  
• Opala: Fixed championship scoring not computing

 

[FOSSILMOTO]

This sim has pretty much made my decision to upgrade my computer instead of buying a PS4. Night and day difference in the driving experience. I'll keep the PS3 for a DVD player.

 

[Kitten]

This sim has pretty much made my decision to upgrade my computer instead of buying a PS4. Night and day difference in the driving experience. I'll keep the PS3 for a DVD player.

Basically what I did to my PS3 DVD Player + Netflix.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

I finally got round to installing AMS. I was planning on holding out a few more months until it's out of Early Access, but I just can't wait

- The new UI takes a while to get used to, but once you do it's much more slick than the old one. Menu music is amazing too
- Graphically I don't notice much difference, maybe reflections are a bit better but that's it.
- Physics wise it's similar, but FFB feels a lot more refined (the higher refresh rate no doubt helps). Also they tweaked the Formula cars which were my main complaint with GSCE (being too light). It's perfect out of the box now 👍
- The new HUD looks good as well. It can get a bit crowded but it's definitely helps to be able to see tyre/brake temp in one go rather than having to switch modes. I like that they packaged the old HUD and gave it a refresh as well. The more choice the better 👍
- Auto wheel rotation finally works for me (it didn't work in GSCE for some reason) Also displaying track map doesn't nuke my FPS anymore like in GSCE
- New cars are great. F1 V10 sounds amazing as expected, even though I've heard it numerous times on YT The Rallycross Evo is a lot of fun. I'm surprised how good the off road physics feels. It's a lot more natural than LFS' rallycross. I wonder how it compares to Dirt Rally? The Supertrucks are a lot of fun but it's so hard to land the jumps right The Boxer Cup drives and sounds amazing too (OTT gearwhine though ).
- There's 2 new rallycross tracks (Foz and Tikki) plus VIR. The rallycross are a lot of fun, Tikki especially has a full road version that you can practically drift the whole lap VIR seems a bit sparse for some reason, IIRC it's a lot more "foresty" in Ferrari Challenge. Also I was expecting all 6 layouts and they only have 3 Hopefully they will add more in the future.

Overall, you can really tell AMS is a huge leap from GSCE in all areas. It's definitely worth the upgrade and I can't wait what Reiza has in store for the rest of the year. It's a real shame that it's gonna have such a short shelf life though, with Reiza2017 coming next year. You're probably looking at the final evolution of the ISImotor engine here. What a way to end an era of sim racing 👍

PS: Forgot to mention, the only downer for me (even though expected) is the recoloured Formula cars' liveries. I still haven't deleted my GSCE install, so does anyone know if you can just copy the skins from GSCE to AMS and will they work? I'm not planning to race online so file mismatches are the least of my worries.

 

[Huks]

(OTT gearwhine though )

If anything, it's not loud enough!

 

[mister dog]

I've been playing around with the sweetFX file to get the graphics to my liking as on default it's all a bit too dark and slightly over saturated IMO. Used the mod made by Heroflex on RD as a starting point, but he uses bleech effect which makes everything look whitish and i found it a tad under saturated also, so i corrected that.

Install and overwrite the SFXOn file in your root folder of AMS and bingo (make sure you make a copy of the default file first in case you don't like mine so you can revert easily).

 

[super_gt]

 

[Ak1504]

Automobilista | Race with AI | Super V8 @ Virginia International Raceway

 

[mister dog]

^ Love that track.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Some more news from Reiza (http://steamcommunity.com/games/431600/announcements/detail/950638141963310714).

Summary:
- V1.0 release incoming next month.
- Formula Vintage (60s F1 car) will be added for 1.0 release.
- Copa Montana & Mendig Flugplatz (fictional airfield playground) in beta testing.
- Virtual Experience portal (kinda like community hub in GT) is now up (http://vxbeta.reizastudios.com/leaderboards/f-extreme/montreal-gp/1).
- First DLC will be "Brit Pack" containing 3 tracks (Brands, Cadwell, Oulton) and 3 cars (Ultima GTR, Caterham, MCR 2000). Price $20 for whole pack (can purchase each content separately).
- Membership pack will get you all DLCs in the future at only $25. This will be increased to $30 at V1.0 release so if you're considering it get it now!!!

 

[mister dog]

The box is back playing AMS:

 

[mister dog]

And ISM too :

 

[Ak1504]

Automobilista | Singleplayer | Copa Montana Series @ Road Atlanta

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Just tried the latest update (full changelog here: http://steamcommunity.com/games/431600/announcements/detail/979914390916033570). I never thought it's possible, but they have improved the FFB again! The pneumatic trail variable makes the tyres feel more "rubbery" now. It's almost as good as LFS without losing the usual ISImotor FFB goodness. Also the FFB Low Force Boost (works like the Minimum Force setting in AC) means I can now dial down FFB in Formula cars to reduce clipping, without making the wheel too light in the center. Perfect! Dare I say it but AMS is better than AC in the FFB department. Reiza is doing some black magic with this aging engine

Also tried the Copa Montana, Mendig track and Speedland kart track. Good stuff, though not as good as Boxer Cup and VIR obviously. I'm really looking forward to Formula Vintage and the first British Pack DLC.

 

[mister dog]

Just tried the latest update (full changelog here: http://steamcommunity.com/games/431600/announcements/detail/979914390916033570). I never thought it's possible, but they have improved the FFB again! The pneumatic trail variable makes the tyres feel more "rubbery" now. It's almost as good as LFS without losing the usual ISImotor FFB goodness. Also the FFB Low Force Boost (works like the Minimum Force setting in AC) means I can now dial down FFB in Formula cars to reduce clipping, without making the wheel too light in the center. Perfect! Dare I say it but AMS is better than AC in the FFB department. Reiza is doing some black magic with this aging engine

Must be the work of sorcerer Niels.

 

[LeGeNd-1]

Must be the work of sorcerer Niels.

I would love to see a livestream of Niels and Aris from AC having coffee and just talking about cars, physics and how to implement it in sims. Apparently they are quite good friends IRL too from way back in rFactor days so it's not beyond impossible.

Turn 10 money + GT graphics artist + those 2 on physics = perfect driving game

 

[mister dog]

I would love to see a livestream of Niels and Aris from AC having coffee and just talking about cars, physics and how to implement it in sims. Apparently they are quite good friends IRL too from way back in rFactor days so it's not beyond impossible.

Turn 10 money + GT graphics artist + those 2 on physics = perfect driving game

One out of two good enough? :

https://www.youtube.com/user/niels007007/videos

 

[LeGeNd-1]

One out of two good enough? :

https://www.youtube.com/user/niels007007/videos

Haha I have been following Niels channel for quite some time now. His tech talks are very interesting on their own 👍 That's why it would be even more entertaining to watch those two bright minds come together and discuss their different takes on translating reality into virtual.

 

[mister dog]

DEV July update from Renato:

This month´s dev update is coming out a bit late - we have indeed been running a bit later than planned, and as a result v1.0 release isn´t quite behind us yet as we´d hoped for in our June Development update.

The good news is that the extra time has been put to good use, as even though a couple features have demanded a bit more time than we had anticipated, we have also used it to throw in some extra goodies into the v1.0 mix. Overall we have made some great progress again this month as you´ll hopefully notice as you read through this update, bringing us very close to v1.0 release and also to what´s coming beyond

Here are the main highlights from this past month:

V0.9.8 Release

A couple of weeks back we released AMS EA v0.9.8, which introduced some very nice FFB updates, along with the cool new indoor / outdoor Speedland kart circuit:

We are very pleased with these recent FFB developments, and believe they have provided a significant all-around step forward to the sim. If you haven´t tried AMS lately we strongly recommend you give it a go - your old favorites should feel better than ever, and it might even be worth checking out the cars you were not too fond of before, as the latest developments might help change that perception

V1.0 release coming up

We´ll be dropping out of our usual EA release schedule by not releasing a new EA update this friday, as all efforts are now concentrated towards wrapping v1.0 for an early august release. In the changelog attatched to this post you can see the latest changelog for the v0.9.9 build which is hitting Beta this friday. We are pushing to add to this list by introducing a couple of extra features along with some further polishing before wrap-up time.

On the content side, our biggest addition will be the F-Vintage, our own "GPL" celebration of that heroic era in motorsports.

As it had been outlined in our AMS dev roadmap, the original plan was to do a single car based off a 1967 spec, V12 powered GP car, however we couldn´t resist spicing things up a bit by adding some diversity to the field, so we created an alternative version of the car by bolting a DFV V8 engine in place of the V12. Below you can check both variants in all its glorious details:

The late 1960s was of course also a very significant time in racing due to the "discovery" of downforce - we decided to explore that too by creating a low-winged, "1969" season of F-Vintages:

We are specially pleased with how the F-Vintage is turning out and fully expect the free addition of these beasts to be one of the main highlights in the upcoming v1.0 release. As usual campaign backers and Reiza members will be able to enjoy an advance peek of the Vintages along with the other developments set to hit AMS Beta this friday.

On the track front, the biggest additions in v1.0 will be the inclusion of several extra layouts to existing tracks, the biggest one being the "long" 7km version of Mendig, which exits the airport to travel through the nearby village roads:

On the physics front, we´re working on the development of a brand new ECU model as conceived by @Niels Heusinkveld, which should provide a lot of important enhancements. So far, we've made considerable improvements to the way engine torque is generated as you 'roll on' the throttle, simulating the more advanced "throttle mapping" techniques from modern ECUs. Most noticeable in modern high powered cars, basically this will translate into more control when powering out of turns, as it will be easier to find the throttle position where you get the best acceleration without lighting up the tires in wheelspin. Your throttle 'technique' may need some adjusting though as the engine responds more directly at smaller throttle inputs.

The new model also allows us to do a few modern computerized engine control tricks such as changing power levels and engine braking for each gear. With the Formula Extreme up to v0.9.8 for example it is very tricky putting 900hp to the ground in 1st and 2nd gear, as you can very easily be turning half of that into white smoke. By limiting the engine power, it will be easier to optimize power delivery.

Engine braking can also have quite a disturbing effect on the balance of the car - this is specially so as you go down the gears, because the gearing amplifies the engine braking the more you downshift. The new model allows us to reduce engine braking in low gears so the rear end is less likely to lock as you're downshifting and entering a turn.

This is all 'passive', not traction control so naturally you´ll still spin the tires by giving it too much throttle, but it may only happen at 70% throttle instead of 35% throttle which should be a big driveability improvement for the more powerful cars - a case of the sim becoming easier as models are developed to be more realistic.

We are pushing to have at least the throttle mapping side of the new ECU mode ready in time for v1.0 release.

There has also been some solid development to the VX Portal, and we´re hoping @Dave Stephenson will manage to deploy a new build for it this friday, including multiplayer Lobby integration, which beyond the ease of use of being able to launch multiplayer sessions from your browser should open some interesting possibilities

DLC Development

Things continue to progress nicely in the DLC front - Brands Hatch is now nearly complete and the team is well advanced with Cadwell Park.

During our Cadwell recon trip @Alex Sawczuk trialed a new method of surveying race tracks for increased accuracy. We used a digital level to take camber and elevation measurements at set points around the trace track and then using that data calculate the elevation changes. This allows us to get an accurate profile for the track, as well as its camber changes. We have also been using a laser measure along with good old basic tape to make all the key measurements, which coupled with Alex´s usual meticulous precision have led to some pretty hard to fault road modelling:

@Joradson Rodrigues has also been doing some quality work in texture development for Cadwell as you can see in the preview below:

The cars are also coming along nicely - our audio man @Domagoj Lovric has added the soul to the Ultima GTR with yet another lovely sound set of its throaty Chevy LS7 V8 - check out an in-game preview:



Along with the road version of the Ultima GTR, we are also developing its race-prepped version of the Ultima GTR, here is a preview of its cockpit (will feature both right and left-hand options):

The MCR Sports 2000 is also well on its way, with modelling now nearly complete:

Both Ultima GTR and MCR Sports 2000 will soon be joined by a variety of Caterham models which had also been previously confirmed to be part of the Brit Pack - unlike previously announced though the Brit Pack won´t be restricted to these 3 new classes of vehicles, as another bonus car has been added to the list - watch this space!

We´re pushing to have these initial items of the Brit Pack available before the end of august, with beta a couple of weeks earlier.

Imola confirmed!

We´re very happy to confirm official licensing of the legendary Enzo & Dino Ferrari race track , which will be coming as its own premium DLC pack for Automobilista.

Legendary tracks become such after decades of rich racing heritage - we believe that in order for a sim to capture the history of corners such as Tosa, Tamburello and Rivazza it´s fundamental to reproduce those famous bits of terrain through the times, and race them with machines that belong to those eras.

Hence Imola will be the first of our "Legendary Race Tracks" line of DLCs, and will feature no less than four unique versions of the track: from early 70s, late 80s and early 00s, along of course the modern version of the track. This pack is estimated to sell for US$ 6.99, with release expected to be towards the end of october.

Worth remembering that those who took part in our crowdfunding campaign last year or bought into our membership pack have already secured all these upcoming DLCs at no extra charge. Those interested in securing all this content and also a chance to give the new stuff an early go should look into our membership packs from our forum store.

Automobilista base and the membership pack (both all-inclusive and ugprade options) remain with their promotional Early Access pricing in our forum store, selling for US$ 29.99 / US$ 54.99 / US$ 24.99 respectively - upon v1.0 release these prices will be upgraded to US$ 39.99 for AMS Base, US$ 59.99 for all-inclusive and US$ 29.99 for membership upgrade, so if you´re interested in AMS or in the DLCs at all you won´t want to miss out on these current offerings.

We´ll be offering a similar "Season Pass" for all DLCs through Steam upon v1.0 release along with options for the individual items and packs as they become available - the best deal however still is to acquire the membership packs which not only includes the Season Pass for all DLCs, it also grants a key to AMS Beta and access to Reiza51.

This covers it for our July Dev update. We´ll catch up again in august, this time most definitely with AMS v1.0 release already behind us

 

[mister dog]

AMS Miniville mod released!:

http://www.racedepartment.com/downloads/ams-miniville.11236/