I thought this thread was dead. Thanks to whoever the GTP Twitter admin is for bringing fresh attention to it
The chicane was likely changed because they needed to make the pit road or start/finish straight longer, and having a faster chicane would perhaps make the top speed too high by the time you reach turn 1.
There are plenty of characteristic corners and chicanes in GT Sport so I don’t think esports is having a negative impact on that.
Hi eran, good to see you around. I remember all the awesome custom course maker tracks you made back in GT6
The longer straight argument has been covered before (I know, it's a long thread
):
- You can extend the front and backstraights but still keep the old chicane profile (and no, it won't make the straight too fast - after all we race at La Sarthe and Nordschleife just fine).
- The pitlane length isn't an issue because pitstops in GTS aren't real time. You just enter the pits, and the cutscene cuts to you going into pitbox, and then you teleport to the pit exit.
- We've raced at tracks like Tsukuba, Streets of Willow and Goodwood in FIA which have much shorter main straights and pitlanes than old TM. Heck, Tokyo South's pit is literally just a 1 car length garage.
Basically, if you look at the new fictional tracks in GT Sport, all of them have some sort of corner complexes or chicanes that double back on itself. Why? Because they allow for constant side by side racing where no car gets an advantage (because the inside line becomes an outside line in the next corner). So it keeps the racing tight and it's good for the esports broadcasts. Unfortunately, it's at the expense of driving enjoyment and fast flowing tracks for us old fans.
I just wish they also included the old version (like they did with Fuji, Sarthe, Brands and Monza as I outlined in the OP). That way everyone's happy.
EDIT: Also made MASSIVE edits to the first post, to make it more structured and easier to read. No one likes to read a wall of text it seems