Project CARS 2 Reviews

[AKps3]

He is. We have a media team and his came through as the first online video review.

Anyway, leave me alone Kaz, I'm stressed enough here.

(The above was a joke)

He is not the only one
http://www.hobbyconsolas.com/reviews/analisis-project-cars-2-ps4-xbox-one-pc-165332
https://mspoweruser.com/review-project-cars-2-improvements-many-levels/

 

[Anomalistics]

Is the flickering an ai movement only on consoles or do we have to deal with that on PC as well?

 

[Ian Bell]

Quote from that vlogger on neogaf:

Wait what?
Bandai informed me 12:01 am est
Both in written form and in email form. And then the PR company I contacted right before posting and they also backed up 12:01am EST

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=249198376&postcount=2037

Nope, 3pm CEST. Ask yourself why only one video is out there for hours now...

 

[Scaff]

He is not the only one
http://www.hobbyconsolas.com/reviews/analisis-project-cars-2-ps4-xbox-one-pc-165332
https://mspoweruser.com/review-project-cars-2-improvements-many-levels/

First online video review, that's a print review and was also posted after the video one.

Now can we please calm things down in here.

 

[Ian Bell]

He is not the only one
http://www.hobbyconsolas.com/reviews/analisis-project-cars-2-ps4-xbox-one-pc-165332
https://mspoweruser.com/review-project-cars-2-improvements-many-levels/

Those aren't online video blogs. Regardless, we'll take an embargo burst if it's positive

 

[blowfishrulez]

Nope, 3pm CEST. Ask yourself why only one video is out there for hours now...

No doubt you know exactly when the embargo is supposed to lift. There might be communications people working for BN that think they know better.

 

[AKps3]

Those aren't online video blogs. Regardless, we'll take an embargo burst if it's positive

First online video review, that's a print review and was also posted after the video one.

Now can we please calm things down in here.

A review is a review in my opinon and we are all calm down We just are discussing

 

[Ian Bell]

No doubt you know exactly when the embargo is supposed to lift. There might be communications people working for BN that think they know better.

I'd never argue against that.

 

[Anomalistics]

Also, having had a look at that review, we're seeing an insane amount of flickering with the lod. Surely that's patched, right?

 

[MaLDoX]

Look I don't mean to be salty in any way here but the 'respected vlogger' above broke the agreed embargo, set by Bandai Namco so that all reviewers could ship their opinions at the same time, to get hits. Valid issues he points out aside, that taints him him my book. The agreed embargo end time is 3pm CEST today.

Inside snippet. They normally don't go full retard on anyone posting after 9am on the agreed day.

He posted a picture of the agreement and it seems that he has fulfilled the agreement:




About the problem with the shadows, was clearly visible in every footage before the review. It's visible not only in replays. The same problem happens in gameplay. I naively thought that you would not dare to launch the game with that problem, it was too evident how much it ruins the graphics. I guess I was wrong.

I'm thinking about some possible workarounds to the problem. Maybe, for replay cameras without too much movement you can decouple the camera position from the point where the shadows are calculated. I mean, decoupling the two points, you could move to the distance and see the low res far away shadow map ring and is not redrawn. This way you will avoid flickering.

Another workaround could be to "stamp" the last shadow map as static over the geometry. Usually replay shots don't last long enough to show dynamic changes in time of day. I mean, if every shot/short traveling had a static representation of the geometry shadow map, you will avoid those problems too.

 

[Ian Bell]

He posted a picture of the agreement and it seems that he has fulfilled the agreement:




About the problem with the shadows, was clearly visible in every footage before the review. It's visible not only in replays. The same problem happens in gameplay. I naively thought that you would not dare to launch the game with that problem, it was too evident how much it ruins the graphics. I guess I was wrong.

I'm thinking about some possible workarounds to the problem. Maybe, for replay cameras without too much movement you can decouple the camera position from the point where the shadows are calculated. I mean, decoupling the two points, you could move to the distance and see the low res far away shadow map ring and is not redrawn. This way you will avoid flickering.

Another workaround could be to "stamp" the last shadow map as static over the geometry. Usually replay shots don't last long enough to show dynamic changes in time of day. I mean, if every shot/short traveling had a static representation of the geometry shadow map, you will avoid those problems too.

I have no absolute certainty that one area of BN weren't telling another area of BN what they'd told some people. But I will say that that imgur image wouldn't get far in court

 

[thuGG]

I have no absolute certainty that one area of BN weren't telling another area of BN what they'd told some people. But I will say that that imgur image wouldn't get far in court

Of course, but for now he is not in court. It's obvious he wouldn't share his emails in some more advanced way than screenshot or transcript.

 

[Anomalistics]

You seem to be ignoring the shadow question, which I would consider a fundemental part of the game?

 

[MaLDoX]

I have no absolute certainty that one area of BN weren't telling another area of BN what they'd told some people. But I will say that that imgur image wouldn't get far in court

if you are implying that he has falsified a document and put the fake in a forum just to be the first to have an online video, when other publications have also released their reviews at the same time, I do not know what else to say.

in the meantime you tiptoe on the subject of graphic problems and movements of AI cars.

 

[Ian Bell]

You seem to be ignoring the shadow question, which I would consider a fundemental part of the game?

There is no flickering to speak of in gameplay. In replays we reposition the shadow frustums to 'focus on the action' leading to some shadow issues away from the action. It's already improved for the next patch though.

 

[BaldBastard]

There is no flickering to speak of in gameplay. In replays we reposition the shadow frustums to 'focus on the action' leading to some shadow issues. It's already improved for the next patch though.

Speaking of patches, when can we expect to see that patch?

 

[Anomalistics]

There is no flickering to speak of in gameplay. In replays we reposition the shadow frustums to 'focus on the action' leading to some shadow issues. It's already improved for the next patch though.

What about the AI movements during replay?

 

[Ian Bell]

What about the AI movements during replay?

They are generally excellent. We do cut the acuity for memory purposes as we allow you to save a full race. Again, during live racing they look much more 'organic'.

 

[HardRock]

I naively thought that you would not dare to launch the game with that problem, it was too evident how much it ruins the graphics.

It think that is a bit of a hyperbole, both as your naivety goes and the issue ruining the graphics.

There are solutions to this exact problem, but due to their performance hit they may not be feasible on consoles. Using higher resolution shadow maps by themselves could alleviate the problem slightly on the PC.

As for the static shadow map idea you have, it wouldn't work, unless the shadows were actually baked into the base textures, which won't happen on a a cut-to-cut basis during replays (not to mention that if you are not watching trackside cams there won't be any cuts). The problem is that the shimmering will be visible if the camera moves, even if the shadow map is stationary.

 

[CHEN255]

Yes, gameplay and immersion are the most important, but I do love my replays and am a bit disappointed, especially because they also suffered in the first title.
Anyway, it's great to see reviews and the latest videos starting to release now so that I can make an informed buying decision.
What I read and see over the next few days will help me decide whether PC2 is worth preordering or not.

 

[PzR Slim]

You sound a bit salty

If it was D-Day for something you had spent the past few years of your life working on I'm pretty sure you would by feeling pretty stressed as well. Sometimes I think we forget that these are real people who are incredibly stressed at such a time.

 

[AKps3]

If it was D-Day for something you had spent the past few years of your life working on I'm pretty sure you would by feeling pretty stressed as well. Sometimes I think we forget that these are real people who are incredibly stressed at such a time.

I think he get payed well so he can/should handle some critics

 

[CHEN255]

I'm very impressed & appreciative that Ian Bell is on our forum. I hope he sticks around GT Planet when the official Project Cars 2 forums open.

 

[Masscot]

I have no absolute certainty that one area of BN weren't telling another area of BN what they'd told some people. But I will say that that imgur image wouldn't get far in court

Ian, this is undoubtedly down to a BN comms issue (and not the first, right?). I don't doubt at all that Karak (and others) was working to a genuine embargo provided to him by BN. He's done nothing wrong.

 

[Ian Bell]

Ian, this is undoubtedly down to a BN comms issue (and not the first, right?). I don't doubt at all that Karak (and others) was working to a genuine embargo provided to him by BN. He's done nothing wrong.

I'm not hearing that from official channels right now.

 

[Masscot]

I'm not hearing that from official channels right now.

Different BN offices providing different deadlines, perhaps?

 

[Ian Bell]

if you are implying that he has falsified a document and put the fake in a forum just to be the first to have an online video, when other publications have also released their reviews at the same time, I do not know what else to say.

in the meantime you tiptoe on the subject of graphic problems and movements of AI cars.

Accepting, agreeing and explaining why isn't tiptoe'ing. All above.

 

[05XR8]

I'm not hearing that from official channels right now.

Exactly this. Unless someone here is in the "office" next to Ian and hearing otherwise, I'll stick to what Ian is posting.

 

[blowfishrulez]

vandal.net review in spanish. Can't confirm myself, but supposedly very positive.

 

[MaLDoX]

Accepting, agreeing and explaining why isn't tiptoe'ing. All above.

I mean that you agree about the shadows problem in the replays but deny that the problem exists during gameplay, but it clearly is there exactly the same than replays: