Q&A with Slightly Mad Studios: Ian Bell [Read OP]

[ozwheels]

This part in the latest dev stream should answer your question I think:



Basically, when doing Time Trials, you can select ghosts from all people who uploaded one, including your own ones. With the filtering options, you should be able to quickly check in this menu what is your best lap time on the selected track in a given class or car.

The problem is most people don't test cars in Time Trial mode.

 

[05XR8]

The problem is most people don't test cars in Time Trial mode.

That's a point I'd like addressed. I want to run AI cars in Practice Mode(not Solo Mode) without doing a race weekend. This way, I can have an offline track day to test.

 

[Satco1066]

All you have to do is open a 24h practice in weekend mode

 

[05XR8]

All you have to do is open a 24h practice in weekend mode

Are we able to switch cars while in Practice?

 

[RomKnight]

no. you'll have to leave pratice, select another and start a new session

 

[05XR8]

no. you'll have to leave pratice, select another and start a new session

All you have to do is open a 24h practice in weekend mode

i don't have a problem with anything, but that makes Practice Mode redundant. I f I can selct one car in Practice, test, set my fastest time in the weekend, why have a separate Practice/TT Mode? Sure, I don't have to use Practice/TT Mode, but then why can I select cars on track during a weekend and not in Practice/TT Mode?

 

[JockeP22]

Is there a way to edit the title of the thread? Being a stickler for spelling I can't help but constantly notice the missing 'ly' where it says "Slight Mad Studios".

 

[Cluck]

i don't have a problem with anything, but that makes Practice Mode redundant. I f I can selct one car in Practice, test, set my fastest time in the weekend, why have a separate Practice/TT Mode? Sure, I don't have to use Practice/TT Mode, but then why can I select cars on track during a weekend and not in Practice/TT Mode?

It's really a case of understanding what each mode's primary purpose is for.

Weekend Mode is the equivalent of pCARS 1's Quick Race Weekend, giving you a playground to race against the AI.

Private Practice is just that. It's a track and car of your choosing, using a date/time/weather you want to practice in by yourself. The idea is to get used to a car and maybe dial in a setup without interference from other cars.

Time Trial sets up a level playing field of sorts. The conditions are more fixed, leaving it as simply you against the track. Car setups are open.

That you can create a 'race' with 0 AI is just one of those things that the game allowed you to do. It's not really the main purpose of the race weekend feature though.

 

[nrosko]

Does it keep our lap times for practice? I know these would not class as fastest tt laps but i really hope its not like the first game where there are no records of our practice lap times.

 

[RomKnight]

wrt to leaderboards only TT is valid to submit laptimes.

So every record seen is done in TT.

Like in pC1 and that's the point on restricting TT to level the field.

 

[TommySalami]

Time Trial sets up a level playing field of sorts. The conditions are more fixed, leaving it as simply you against the track. Car setups are open.

That you can create a 'race' with 0 AI is just one of those things that the game allowed you to do. It's not really the main purpose of the race weekend feature though.

Lame. Perhaps in the future these can be split into an open setup leaderboard and a fixed setup leaderboard

 

[RomKnight]

@TommySalami
There are limitations wrt to leaderboards on consoles (it's a fact, not bashing or anything, seriously).

Or there was in pC1 so... don't quote me on that.
/edit
And just so I'm not misunderstood, it's a sony/ms thing. There no such restriction in PC world. Well.. there are because they need to work on consoles

@ozwheels

Maybe they should use TT if, for example, they want to setup a car as it's the only place where you can have always the same exact conditions wrt to weather/temps and track rubber.

Granted, now that you can access setup in other sessions (say private testing) and using fixed time and weather MAY be an options but I still think that, wind can change, a.e....

wrt to rubber though, it'll keep increasing and you'll start with cold tyres in a lot of cars which means at least 2 or 3 laps to get them to work properly and this is time consuming.

So yeah... TT which also has the advantage to keep competitive levels high, thus having fun

I for one know that i won't be on the top of the LB but i can always try to beat the guy in front. Just like in a race... as long as I can be in a fight I don't care if i'm last

It's a mindset thing

 

[ozwheels]

@TommySalami
There are limitations wrt to leaderboards on consoles (it's a fact, not bashing or anything, seriously).

Or there was in pC1 so... don't quote me on that.
/edit
And just so I'm not misunderstood, it's a sony/ms thing. There no such restriction in PC world. Well.. there are because they need to work on consoles

@ozwheels

Maybe they should use TT if, for example, they want to setup a car as it's the only place where you can have always the same exact conditions wrt to weather/temps and track rubber.

Granted, now that you can access setup in other sessions (say private testing) and using fixed time and weather MAY be an options but I still think that, wind can change, a.e....

wrt to rubber though, it'll keep increasing and you'll start with cold tyres in a lot of cars which means at least 2 or 3 laps to get them to work properly and this is time consuming.

So yeah... TT which also has the advantage to keep competitive levels high, thus having fun

I for one know that i won't be on the top of the LB but i can always try to beat the guy in front. Just like in a race... as long as I can be in a fight I don't care if i'm last

It's a mindset thing

Can you edit your setup while in TT mode this time though? Otherwise it's kind of pointless to test if you can't change anything.

Also, is private testing on a completely green track with zero rubber? It was in pCars 1 and the lack of rubber was very noticeable. On that topic are all modes preset with a certain amount of rubber as a baseline or is it just TT?

 

[Bealdor]

Can you edit your setup while in TT mode this time though? Otherwise it's kind of pointless to test if you can't change anything.

Also, is private testing on a completely green track with zero rubber? It was in pCars 1 and the lack of rubber was very noticeable. On that topic are all modes preset with a certain amount of rubber as a baseline or is it just TT?

Yes, all the setup changes are done "in-session" now and not in the menu.

TT conditions should be fixed. Private Testing starts relatively green AFAIK but you should be able to lay down some rubber, although it shouldn't change much for one car.
Multi session events take over conditions from session to session. Rain can lead to an again green track though.

 

[nrosko]

wrt to leaderboards only TT is valid to submit laptimes.

So every record seen is done in TT.

Like in pC1 and that's the point on restricting TT to level the field.

Yes but does it save the practice lap times? for our own use.

 

[fasj6418]

wrt to leaderboards only TT is valid to submit laptimes.

So every record seen is done in TT.

Like in pC1 and that's the point on restricting TT to level the field.

I understand, but to make sure everyone is in the same page you could have stock settings enforced.

In a different approach time trials with real life settings would be awesome too, to show the variations of track conditions and stuff.

For the community events they could do this, changing up a bit the same old drawing up perfect laps in a perfect track with pristine conditions. It´s always a good thing when you try to mimic real life situations.

What about time trials with limited number of tires and no restarts? I´d be all over this, and it would be a nice change of pace for some fun events.

 

[RomKnight]

@nrosko
I'd doesn't as far as I can tell and it shouldn't like I mention.

Wrt to TT settings it's about to make the most out of the car with everything else being equal. So setups should and imo must be allowed.

The default enforce is just a leaderboard filter to chose times with defaults really... But like I said...

 

[ozwheels]

Yes, all the setup changes are done "in-session" now and not in the menu.

TT conditions should be fixed. Private Testing starts relatively green AFAIK but you should be able to lay down some rubber, although it shouldn't change much for one car.
Multi session events take over conditions from session to session. Rain can lead to an again green track though.

Does his mean weather conditions won't reset at the end of each session now?

Regarding defaults setup Time Trials. Doesn't pCars 1 have default setups for the SMS-R events? I'm almost positive they do.

 

[RomKnight]

Yes. It means track conditions move to the next session.

Enforcing setups on line is an option (or was in pc1. Don't remember)

But for TT they're not

 

[bleeder]

I for one wouldn't like default setups enforced for TT mode. I mean, why would I struggle to push myself lap after lap with, for example, a stock setup with potentially the wrong gear ratios/final drive? Don't get why you'd wanna smash in lap after lap but not hit top gear in the right place, or hit the rev limiter too early.. doesn't make sense to me. And it's unlikely a car is nicely geared up for every track.

Getting the most out of the car is part of the fun, and you need at least some tuning to achieve that IMO.

 

[nrosko]

@nrosko
I'd doesn't as far as I can tell and it shouldn't like I mention.

Wrt to TT settings it's about to make the most out of the car with everything else being equal. So setups should and imo must be allowed.

The default enforce is just a leaderboard filter to chose times with defaults really... But like I said...

What do you mean it shouldn't, I don't understand? How can you practice without it saving the time? How do you compare wet weather setups in practice?
TT is about fastest laps in equal conditions, practice is about testing different setups & racing lines. I don't don't understand why you reference practice with TT its a completely separate thing.

 

[Bealdor]

Does his mean weather conditions won't reset at the end of each session now?

Regarding defaults setup Time Trials. Doesn't pCars 1 have default setups for the SMS-R events? I'm almost positive they do.

You can now set the weather conditions for every session separately.

 

[ozwheels]

What do you mean it shouldn't, I don't understand? How can you practice without it saving the time? How do you compare wet weather setups in practice?
TT is about fastest laps in equal conditions, practice is about testing different setups & racing lines. I don't don't understand why you reference practice with TT its a completely separate thing.

Do you mean save lap times in the current session or save them to a leaderboard? They are saved in your current session just like other racing games. RomKnight is saying he doesn't think practice times are are saved to a database or leaderboard like TT times.

You can now set the weather conditions for every session separately.

Is it no longer possible to set a weather pattern for a room and have it progress through each session on its own? In pCars 1 if qualifying went from clear to light rain it would reset to clear and then the light rain pattern would repeat in the race instead of continuing with light rain at the beginning of the race.

 

[TommySalami]

@nrosko
I'd doesn't as far as I can tell and it shouldn't like I mention.

Wrt to TT settings it's about to make the most out of the car with everything else being equal. So setups should and imo must be allowed.

The default enforce is just a leaderboard filter to chose times with defaults really... But like I said...

Yeah I understand that. Everyone gets different things out of the sim. For me, I like to take setups out of the equation, so if I'm slow, I know it's because of my driving only and not because that guy has a better setup than me

 

[Bealdor]

Is it no longer possible to set a weather pattern for a room and have it progress through each session on its own? In pCars 1 if qualifying went from clear to light rain it would reset to clear and then the light rain pattern would repeat in the race instead of continuing with light rain at the beginning of the race.

You do know that what you're describing was most likely a bug in PCARS 1 that was introduced with a patch?

But I don't see why this shouldn't be possible anymore. You can set up your weather slots just like you want to.

 

[HardRock]

The problem is most people don't test cars in Time Trial mode.

Well, he was talking about comparing lap times between cars, which I took as comparing them while driving on the edge. TT is the only reliable place to do comparisons like that, since you have tons of confounding factors anywhere else (other drivers possibly, changing environmental conditions, etc.). That said, since in TT your setup is adjustable and that includes fuel load (at least it did in PC1), you can test the handling of cars in more race like conditions, although I personally always used qualifying sessions on quick race weekends or practice sessions for that in the past.

Lame. Perhaps in the future these can be split into an open setup leaderboard and a fixed setup leaderboard

There shouldn't be a need for that. You can clearly see which times were done with a custom setup. I much prefer a single leaderboard with extensive filtering instead of multiple ones. If you mean this would be for separate ranking for each in official events, I wholeheartedly agree however.

 

[ozwheels]

You do know that what you're describing was most likely a bug in PCARS 1 that was introduced with a patch?

But I don't see why this shouldn't be possible anymore. You can set up your weather slots just like you want to.

Yes I know it was most likely a bug, I think you made the post I read that in a while back. Basically I was asking if that bug is gone.

 

[notanexpert]

So just to be crystal clear, I can do some offline time trials in the ford gt gte at the nordschleife, have a time saved somewhere in the ui, then jump into the corvette c7r and do the same lap same conditions, and then compare? Thats really all I care about. I dont care if I need to click on "Practice" or "time Trial" to get that.

 

[Tank621]

So just to be crystal clear, I can do some offline time trials in the ford gt gte at the nordschleife, have a time saved somewhere in the ui, then jump into the corvette c7r and do the same lap same conditions, and then compare? Thats really all I care about. I dont care if I need to click on "Practice" or "time Trial" to get that.

I think what you are looking for is a pen and paper Haha

 

[Satco1066]

So just to be crystal clear, I can do some offline time trials in the ford gt gte at the nordschleife, have a time saved somewhere in the ui, then jump into the corvette c7r and do the same lap same conditions, and then compare? Thats really all I care about. I dont care if I need to click on "Practice" or "time Trial" to get that.

what you want is a real Trackday mode. This is not implemented as i know.
But could be done for PCs on dedidicated servers by help of LUA scripting and realtime posting to a website.