PC2 v PC1PS4

[slthree]

It is no secret that I love and vehemently defend Project Cars 2. I am amazed at its depth, considering the limitations of a console.

I've worn it out offline for 2 years. I've also improved my racecraft enough to race with a great group of guys online, when my schedule allows for it.

Because I'm working longer days and can't play with the guys online that I normally like to, I decided, out of boredom perhaps, to purchase Project Cars 1. If nothing else, I was happy to support the developer as they prepare project cars revolution for us.

Having played it for a few days, I've made an observation and I don't know if it's accurate. it might be a placebo effect because it's a new game to me but the cars seem to be more planted. I'm not slipping and sliding off track easily and when I go over the curb a little bit and pick up a little grass I'm not automatically spun out. There have been occasions where I can gear down quickly and get back on track.

The other thing I believe I'm noticing is that the sounds of the cars are also better in Project Cars 1

While I have two years under my belt with PC2, most of you probably have two years under your belt with PC2 and another two years with PC1.

Are my observations simply a placebo effect from playing a new game?

 

[IfAndOr]

Are my observations simply a placebo effect from playing a new game?

No I wouldn't say so.

PC1's car handling model and track surface simulation aren't quite as sophisticated as PC2's so the cars do feel more planted and less lively. It wasn't at all bad and some perhaps prefer the extra grip. Once I'd found my way through the FFB settings I myself quite liked it and indeed still play it on occasions but I do prefer the advances they made with PC2.

And the sound. Yes it was much louder and beefier in PC1, which many miss (cue Sick and his rumble effects ). It was less directional though - for those with surround sound systems.


Try the Aerials, they were some of my favourites - they didn't make it to PC2.

 

[Sick Cylinder]

The other thing I believe I'm noticing is that the sounds of the cars are also better in Project Cars 1

Are my observations simply a placebo effect from playing a new game?

Yes - the sounds are better in PC1 - the volume is louder and the mix is better. Results with tactile transducers are infinitely superior in PC1.

Some cars have a better default setup in the new game e.g. the 1952 Merc 300 SL is absolutely brilliant in the new game, but completely dead in the old game. Also the Lotus 25 (1.5 litre F1) is great in PC2. Sadly the Lotus 51 (Formula Ford) which was one of the stars of PC1 is dreadful in the new game.

Hopefully SMS can be more consistent with lively, enjoyable, but controllable default setups in the next version of the game.

 

[speedy10]

Are my observations simply a placebo effect from playing a new game?

Some months ago I put PC1 on my Ps4 Std - Having spent many hours on PC2.
Agree with you in all points mentioned, I can add that graphics are much better.
As @IfAndOr said, PC2 has sophisticated track surface and a new tire model that can be assigned to grip issues.

Are you running the game on std console or PC? If you´re on console, I suggest you to try a race with less than 12 cars, turning off some visuals on the hud. I can confirm that a full HUD could generate fps drops on console version - ps4 std at least.

 

[Corsa]

I had completed PC1 on ps4 years ago but never got to try it on pc.
Well aware of how good 2 looks on pc so I thought why not give sms another buy.

With everything on ultra and some Nvidia tweaking it’s pretty incredible, and extremely well optimized. This is what my PC is running with everything on ultra...

I had also forgotten that 1 has probably one of the best intro movies in sim racing to date (ACC is very good) and the UI audio tracks are still my favorite. Steven Baystead and his wife really excel at creating beautiful rock infused melodies.

Anyway now I have some driving to do if I plan to knock out all these steam achievements before AMS 2 arrives.

 

[Yap018]

You are absolutely right mate. They feel very different, sometimes better, sometimes worse. It depends on what you drive and where you drive it. Please, look at this comment I wrote a couple of months ago in another similar thread.

 

[doblocruiser]

I've picked up the GOTY edition of PC1 since it was on promotion. Played it before but couldn't really get into it. Picked up PC2 , I think a year ago but it is collecting dust. Reason for it, is the terrible drivingmodel. Physics maybe ok but the driving itself is a sheer frustrating proces of endless fiddling, iceskating and finding out if brakes work, don't or simply have no feel to it. Graphicswise it is a flickering mess on my PS4 and allthough I love the classic content, it can't hold my interest long enough to get some true enjoyment out of it. There is a beauty of a game below all its ongoing problems and little annoying issues.

That aside I thought, let's pick up the GOTY of PC1 and immediately one thing becomes clear and that is that PC1 is far superiour to PC2. The cars have weight, feel planted, take curbs, got a lovely grunty sound and handle (for the most part) fantastic. Graphics seem from another world on PS4 and even the AI doesn't need endless finetuning to get a good race. The driivingphysics may not be as refined as PC2 but they are a lot more convincing when you actually race the car on track.

I think PC2 wants to do too much so nothing really stands out while PC1 hasn't got livetrack, it surely is impressive on many fronts. Makes you wonder then what on earth went wrong with PC2?

I am going for a career in PC1 and I think this time around I actually can appreciate a lot more how good PC1 indeed is!

One last thing: in PC1 I feel in control of the car and can actually trust it. This is rarely the case in PC2!

 

[AerodyManiac]

I’ll echo what people have said in this thread and say that cars in PCARS 1 are a lot more planted. In PCARS 2 I can barely control the car and not have it spinning out of control before completing a lap, while driving the same car on the same track with the same assists under the same weather conditions in PCARS 1 is far more enjoyable. Yes, the car can still lose control if you are too aggressive, but you are a lot more confident turning into corners in PCARS 1, whereas you can’t even turn slightly when applying the brakes without having to do some countersteering in PCARS 2. This problem is probably even more serious in other cars, as I am already testing it on Spa in a V8 Vantage GT4, which is probably one of the tamer cars in the game. In fact, I was looking at this part of the forums considering if I should seek advice from other more experienced players by asking here, but now that I’ve seen all the comments in this thread, I think it’s probably a problem that cannot be remedied.

However, I do have a problem with the braking on the road cars in PCARS 2, the hypercars in particular, that I would like to ask for suggestions. I’ve been testing the 918 Spyder on Nurburgring GP in the OEM setup. I’m not sure if it’s the car accelerating too quickly or it’s the brakes being too weak, but I have to brake earlier than normal just to get the car entering the corner at the right speed, and I mean a lot earlier. In fact, I’m exerting so much force on the brake pedal the bar showing the force applied on the braking pedal is peaking and the wheels are locking up. I’ve tried turning the brake pressure up, but it just worsens the locking-up problem. So is there another way to fix this problem?

Another thing that I want to mention is the graphics seem more realistic in PCARS 1 than 2. When driving at night, the rear of the car in PCARS 2 will always be dimly-illuminated despite there being no sources of illumination nearby other than my tailights, whereas it’s pitch black in PCARS 1 under the same conditions, and you can only make out the silhouette of your own car with its headlights in chase cam, which seemed more realistic to me.

 

[Speedster911]

It is no secret that I love and vehemently defend Project Cars 2. I am amazed at its depth, considering the limitations of a console.

I've worn it out offline for 2 years. I've also improved my racecraft enough to race with a great group of guys online, when my schedule allows for it.

Because I'm working longer days and can't play with the guys online that I normally like to, I decided, out of boredom perhaps, to purchase Project Cars 1. If nothing else, I was happy to support the developer as they prepare project cars revolution for us.

Having played it for a few days, I've made an observation and I don't know if it's accurate. it might be a placebo effect because it's a new game to me but the cars seem to be more planted. I'm not slipping and sliding off track easily and when I go over the curb a little bit and pick up a little grass I'm not automatically spun out. There have been occasions where I can gear down quickly and get back on track.

The other thing I believe I'm noticing is that the sounds of the cars are also better in Project Cars 1

While I have two years under my belt with PC2, most of you probably have two years under your belt with PC2 and another two years with PC1.

Are my observations simply a placebo effect from playing a new game?

I did a very similar experiment on my One-X recently and installed PCARS1 just for the heck of it. To my surprise, the cars did seem to be better planted and have a better sense of weight to them. Some of them even sound better, I agree. It's a gem, really, I love both games - but do feel that CARS1 did some things better.

 

[Bealdor]

I’ll echo what people have said in this thread and say that cars in PCARS 1 are a lot more planted. In PCARS 2 I can barely control the car and not have it spinning out of control before completing a lap, while driving the same car on the same track with the same assists under the same weather conditions in PCARS 1 is far more enjoyable. Yes, the car can still lose control if you are too aggressive, but you are a lot more confident turning into corners in PCARS 1, whereas you can’t even turn slightly when applying the brakes without having to do some countersteering in PCARS 2. This problem is probably even more serious in other cars, as I am already testing it on Spa in a V8 Vantage GT4, which is probably one of the tamer cars in the game. In fact, I was looking at this part of the forums considering if I should seek advice from other more experienced players by asking here, but now that I’ve seen all the comments in this thread, I think it’s probably a problem that cannot be remedied.

Go to car setup and set the "Engine Braking" value in the Engine tab to max. This should solve most of your spinning under braking issues.

 

[coltsjugg]

However, I do have a problem with the braking on the road cars in PCARS 2, the hypercars in particular, that I would like to ask for suggestions. I’ve been testing the 918 Spyder on Nurburgring GP in the OEM setup. I’m not sure if it’s the car accelerating too quickly or it’s the brakes being too weak, but I have to brake earlier than normal just to get the car entering the corner at the right speed, and I mean a lot earlier. In fact, I’m exerting so much force on the brake pedal the bar showing the force applied on the braking pedal is peaking and the wheels are locking up. I’ve tried turning the brake pressure up, but it just worsens the locking-up problem. So is there another way to fix this problem?

Turn the brake pressure down?

 

[jake2013guy]

I prefer PCARS2 in pretty much every way. It's just content I prefer PCARS1 in.

Cars such as the Formula B, Formula Gulf and the Caper Monterey were fun. Although I didn't like the DTM in PCARS1, I think an update would have warmed me towards that car.

That and the 55 car grids. Would have been awesome to have those car counts at Le Mans, Daytona and Watkins Glen to name a few.

 

[doblocruiser]

Even though graphics of PC2 don't match PC1, I got PC2 closer to PC1 in terms of handling. I still think PC1 feels better and cars are more planted. However if you use the 'stable setup' there is surely less floatyness and cars feel a bit more planted. Also got the braking better. The catch oversteer is what PC2 does a lot better.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

There all on sale for xbox atm.
Real cheap aswell, especially if you have gold.

Project cars GOTYE £9.99 (£5.99 with gold)
Project cars 2 DE £18.74 (11.24 with gold)
Assetto corsa UE £15.99 (11.19 with gold)

PSN store deals uk price
Project cars GOTYE £9.49
Project cars 2 DE £15.99
Assetto corsa UE £7.99

 

[AerodyManiac]

Turn the brake pressure down?

Well, yes, but I think that will make the problem of the already weak brakes on the 918 even worse.

 

[gregc]

However, I do have a problem with the braking on the road cars in PCARS 2, the hypercars in particular, that I would like to ask for suggestions. I’ve been testing the 918 Spyder on Nurburgring GP in the OEM setup. I’m not sure if it’s the car accelerating too quickly or it’s the brakes being too weak, but I have to brake earlier than normal just to get the car entering the corner at the right speed, and I mean a lot earlier. In fact, I’m exerting so much force on the brake pedal the bar showing the force applied on the braking pedal is peaking and the wheels are locking up. I’ve tried turning the brake pressure up, but it just worsens the locking-up problem. So is there another way to fix this problem?

If you are locking the wheels then the brakes are not the problem, it's the tyres. If there is enough pressure going through the brakes to exceed the tyres grip then the brakes are fine. Maybe you're expecting too much from road tyres - the OEM setup should include tyres that are roughly equivalent to what the real car has, and they will be some form of road tyre, not a racing slick.

Edit - just had a look in game, and the tyre the OEM setup gives you is Pirelli P-Zero Corsa, which is the medium - you could try changing to the Trofeo R which is the softest but this is still a road tyre; the game won't let you put slicks on a road car.

 

[MrCrynox]

There all on sale for xbox atm.
Real cheap aswell, especially if you have gold.

Project cars GOTYE £9.99 (£5.99 with gold)
Project cars 2 DE £18.74 (11.24 with gold)
Assetto corsa UE £15.99 (11.19 with gold)

PSN store deals uk price
Project cars GOTYE £9.49
Project cars 2 DE £15.99
Assetto corsa UE £7.99

The PC1 price is so tempting but Im a controller player, does this make it not worth it ? How bad is it ?

 

[Mr Grumpy]

The PC1 price is so tempting but Im a controller player, does this make it not worth it ? How bad is it ?

Don't know, I only played my brothers ps4 version for a bit (not enough time to fiddle), then I bought a 1x & pc2.

From what I've read on the web it wasn't great (or took a bit of time to sort out) but then again I use 0 damping on my controller setup with pc2 so I'll probably not have a problem with it.

 

[gregc]

The PC1 price is so tempting but Im a controller player, does this make it not worth it ? How bad is it ?

I spent a lot of time in PC1 with a controller and while I eventually settled on settings that worked ok (provided on the official forum by Casey Ringley) I was never really happy with it. Now, with so much time in PC2, I can't go back to it.

 

[UKMikey]

I thought PC1 was great fun to drive and don't remember any problems with the way the controller responded. I just picked up PC2 in a sale and am already starting to regret it after reading this thread. I was kind of hoping for a graphics upgrade, not a downgrade or sidegrade.

Hopefully playing the game will put all these doubts to rest.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

I thought PC1 was great fun to drive and don't remember any problems with the way the controller responded. I just picked up PC2 in a sale and am already starting to regret it after reading this thread. I was kind of hoping for a graphics upgrade, not a downgrade or sidegrade.

Hopefully playing the game will put all these doubts to rest.

Depends on your priorities, I think it looks good on my 1X, pc1 didn't receive a enhanced patch so to me they may look the same if I tried it.
If you had no problems with the controller on the 1st one then 2 shouldn't bother you, it doesn't bother me.
Tracks, tracks & more tracks, this is what your getting above all else loads of em.

 

[UKMikey]

Tracks, tracks & more tracks, this is what your getting above all else loads of em.

Thanks, this is what I like to hear, especially with the LiveTrack tech providing even further variety.

 

[IfAndOr]

I just picked up PC2 in a sale and am already starting to regret it after reading this thread.

Stop reading start playing.

 

[Organ-Donor]

I thought PC1 was great fun to drive and don't remember any problems with the way the controller responded. I just picked up PC2 in a sale and am already starting to regret it after reading this thread. I was kind of hoping for a graphics upgrade, not a downgrade or sidegrade.

Hopefully playing the game will put all these doubts to rest.

I just got PC2 and GTSport around Thanksgiving. I'm absolutely loving PC2, it's hard to go back to play GTSport because it's a step back in almost all aspects compared to PC2. Once you tweak and find the right settings for a controller if your using one then it's great.

 

[doblocruiser]

It gives eyesore though on PS4. Plain ugly. Just got back running both. PC1 is crisp and more fluently. The AntiAliasing is also a whole lot better in PC1. Difference is night and day. Even outside the replay, there are jaggies everywhere. Resolution seems variable and when in cockpit you can clearly see the low res textures.

Can't say anything about controller though. Content is more varied in 2. More tracks and cars.

 

[Organ-Donor]

It gives eyesore though on PS4. Plain ugly. Just got back running both. PC1 is crisp and more fluently. The AntiAliasing is also a whole lot better in PC1. Difference is night and day. Even outside the replay, there are jaggies everywhere. Resolution seems variable and when in cockpit you can clearly see the low res textures.

Can't say anything about controller though. Content is more varied in 2. More tracks and cars.

Honestly I dont really notice anymore. Yes the anti aliasing could be better and there are some jaggies but after playing a while I quit noticing. The content > graphics all day in my opinion. The dynamic weather and time change is amazing in this game so minor graphical issues dont bother me at all. Graphics seem fine to me, even good especially when the rays of sunlight come straight at you almost blinding you, its especially impressive as the sun peaks through the clouds after rain or the transition from night into sunrise, I just look in awe. And the glare from the sun on wet road after rain.

I've seen video comparisons between PC2, GTSport, Forza 7, and Assetto Corsa and besides some anti aliasing and jaggies PC2 performed better in some areas (resolution - clarity when zoomed in), etc. It's far from an eyesore in my opinion, and alot of times it looks really good. Yes some jaggies are present and occasional screen tearing (when running full 31 AI cars and rain) but for the most part I'm satisfied with graphics. And like I said previously content/gameplay > graphics. The lack of cars and features in GTSport is sad, it feels like half an unfinished game, but atleast the cars graphics look nice , and the lighting is very good.

 

[Wolfe]

It's a videogame. I could not care less that there are pixels.

 

[UKMikey]

Deleting this post as I probably misunderstood the post I replied to.

 

[Speedster911]

The PC1 price is so tempting but Im a controller player, does this make it not worth it ? How bad is it ?

Don't listen to anyone telling you it's not playable on controller. It's an absolute breeze. PM me and I'll share my Xbox One pad settings. Or I can just leave em' here if you like. Your call.

I spent a lot of time in PC1 with a controller and while I eventually settled on settings that worked ok (provided on the official forum by Casey Ringley) I was never really happy with it. Now, with so much time in PC2, I can't go back to it.

That's the thing - you have to experiment with a lot with different cars on different tracks, on a variety of tunes. It's time consuming for sure but really worth it. I pactically drive my cars around as if driving with a wheel. Let me know and I'll share my pad settings.

I just got PC2 and GTSport around Thanksgiving. I'm absolutely loving PC2, it's hard to go back to play GTSport because it's a step back in almost all aspects compared to PC2. Once you tweak and find the right settings for a controller if your using one then it's great.

That's the song I've been singing too! It took me a fair bit of experimentation - but I've tuned control on a pad to the point that my cars are behaving exactly how I want. No assists here - just pure and raw driving thrill.

It's a videogame. I could not care less that there are pixels.

Precisely how I approach racing games - doesn't matter if it's 4k or1080p or even slightly lower than that - as long as the simulation is good with great car sounds, and the graphics are convincing - I'm all in.

 

[UKMikey]

Don't listen to anyone telling you it's not playable on controller. It's an absolute breeze. PM me and I'll share my Xbox One pad settings. Or I can just leave em' here if you like. Your call.

Please leave them here. @Wolfe's ones just didn't work for me. (PC1's defaults worked fine in that game.)