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

[HardRock]

can we still use all cars on all tracks ?

I believe the answer to this was yes, except for the kart tracks, where you can only drive the kart (only one this time around it seems, no 250cc kart has been announced yet for pCARS 2). During the development of pCARS 1 this restriction didn't always exist and while driving an F1 car on a narrow kart circuit was hilarious, I would bet good money it's not an experience that most people would be looking for.

 

[jake2013guy]

Having a look at the fantasy Touring Cars, are they Super 2000 spec or TCR?

 

[warp9engage]

Having a look at the fantasy Touring Cars, are they Super 2000 spec or TCR?

I'm going to say Super 2000, because of the third picture currently on the PCARS instagram. Remember, maximum of 4 classes per race. There we have GT3, GT4, Clio Cup, and Touring Cars (BMW 320 included), which leads me to think those are all Super 2000, with the Astra being alone for the moment in its own class.

 

[jake2013guy]

I'm going to say Super 2000, because of the third picture currently on the PCARS instagram. Remember, maximum of 4 classes per race. There we have GT3, GT4, Clio Cup, and Touring Cars (BMW 320 included), which leads me to think those are all Super 2000, with the Astra being alone for the moment in its own class.

Personally, I hope that is the case. But the year on the website is 2016 and there are no new Super 2000 cars being developed or raced at a high level which makes me think they're TCR spec and my concern is that they've combined TCR and Super 2000.

 

[GTP Ziggy]

Any details on Career Mode?

 

[jake2013guy]

Any details on Career Mode?

Not yet.

 

[Scuderia Paul]

I believe the answer to this was yes, except for the kart tracks, where you can only drive the kart (only one this time around it seems, no 250cc kart has been announced yet for pCARS 2). During the development of pCARS 1 this restriction didn't always exist and while driving an F1 car on a narrow kart circuit was hilarious, I would bet good money it's not an experience that most people would be looking for.

Kart tracks with regular cars could be great fun. I tried so many others on the tracks with some terrifying combinations. The TS040-HYBRID on the tight twisty kart tracks was insane.

It is a pity that there will be no Superkart in PCars2. That was huge fun.

 

[PJTierney]

Ian has already said there will not be a demo.

SMS already get feedback from the WMD boys- extending that by including a public beta would just add more to an overworked team. It would also just push back the release date even further out. What would be the point when they can release patches anyway and fix those things once the game hits.

A rarity these days, somebody (me) using the search button

Those aren't the answers I'd have preferred but they are answers nonetheless.

I'm not prepared to buy the game without playing it first, so I'll have to wait for some other opportunity.



@IanBell @The_American
Will Bandai Namco have Project CARS 2 on their booth at MCM Comic Con London in October?

 

[jake2013guy]

Seeing the Caper Monterey isn't in game, what are the reasons for this?

 

[notanexpert]

Maybe they are trying to get away from fake cars? Who knows, could be a planned replacement in the future

 

[GTP Ziggy]

Maybe they are trying to get away from fake cars? Who knows, could be a planned replacement in the future

Speaking of fictional cars looks like they are only making and keeping (and updating) fictional cars in categories that have quick changing regulations (like F1 and WEC). Those cars become obsolete very quickly in real life. I like that they added the Ligier, which was the most raced P2 throughout 2015 and 2016 with different engines and different versions of the Ligier JS P2 chassis to fit a certain engine. Also noticed that the Oreca 03 was used by many teams up until 2015 in ELMS and could have been used in 2016, but now with regulation changes for 2017, it's become more so a battle of the chassis than the engines and chassis and open cockpits are not permitted along with the added power increase in class. Adding the Oreca 05 would have been nice, but it was only really used in 2016 and with the quick regulation changes the car can't race anymore. The Gibson P2 same story and in addition its open cockpit. The Ligier is tried, tested, and more successful under the 3 years it raced.

Question about the Formula A: @IanBell what was the decision to keep the 2011 spec car without an update? That Formula X looks cool by the way.

 

[jake2013guy]

Maybe they are trying to get away from fake cars? Who knows, could be a planned replacement in the future

Either are the points I've been thinking but more the latter I'd say as it's the same case with the Formula B/Formula Renault 3.5.

 

[Wolfe]

I believe the answer to this was yes, except for the kart tracks, where you can only drive the kart (only one this time around it seems, no 250cc kart has been announced yet for pCARS 2). During the development of pCARS 1 this restriction didn't always exist and while driving an F1 car on a narrow kart circuit was hilarious, I would bet good money it's not an experience that most people would be looking for.

That was never eliminated from PCARS1, just hidden. All you had to do was select one of the karts to make the kart tracks visible, then switch to a car after selecting the kart track. 👍

I hope PCARS2 doesn't get rid of that trick! I would like to drift around Greenwood with the new physics, or set up some snow on one of the kart tracks and go for a spin in a rallycross car, if possible.

 

[HardRock]

Hah, I didn't know that.

 

[Andy404]

That was never eliminated from PCARS1, just hidden. All you had to do was select one of the karts to make the kart tracks visible, then switch to a car after selecting the kart track. 👍

I hope PCARS2 doesn't get rid of that trick! I would like to drift around Greenwood with the new physics, or set up some snow on one of the kart tracks and go for a spin in a rallycross car, if possible.

Agreed. For me it was taking one of the Caterhams out for a spin. They suited the kart tracks so well. Can only hope that the little trick will still work, but from what I've read in this thread it is likely we wont be able to.

 

[jake2013guy]

That was never eliminated from PCARS1, just hidden. All you had to do was select one of the karts to make the kart tracks visible, then switch to a car after selecting the kart track. 👍

I hope PCARS2 doesn't get rid of that trick! I would like to drift around Greenwood with the new physics, or set up some snow on one of the kart tracks and go for a spin in a rallycross car, if possible.

I'm going to take a Bentley to Glencairn on PS4 to see if it works. Maybe it was intentional.

EDIT: Dammit. Didn't work.

EDIT2: Oh right. I tried a Race with it. Yeah. It works.

 

[Johnnypenso]

Kart tracks with regular cars could be great fun. I tried so many others on the tracks with some terrifying combinations. The TS040-HYBRID on the tight twisty kart tracks was insane.

It is a pity that there will be no Superkart in PCars2. That was huge fun.

I am disappointed not to see a 250cc Superkart or a 125cc shifter in there. I'm guessing Rotax and most kart manufacturers would probably love to be in this game as well. The Rotax DD2 Class with 32hp and a 2 speed gearbox would be a lot of fun.

 

[breyzipp]

I am disappointed not to see a 250cc Superkart or a 125cc shifter in there. I'm guessing Rotax and most kart manufacturers would probably love to be in this game as well. The Rotax DD2 Class with 32hp and a 2 speed gearbox would be a lot of fun.

Hmmm maybe DLC later? Could also be one of the reasons the super kart was canned, because a replacement is on the way.

 

[HardRock]

I keep wondering, do we know if our driver rating will be affected in any way in races against AI or in solo time trial events (here safety rating only of course)?

I would assume yes in the first case, since AI can be used to fill out online lobbies IIRC, but how would the rating changes be calculated against an AI who may not have a rating at all?

 

[eruvadhor]

I keep wondering, do we know if our driver rating will be affected in any way in races against AI or in solo time trial events (here safety rating only of course)?

I would assume yes in the first case, since AI can be used to fill out online lobbies IIRC, but how would the rating changes be calculated against an AI who may not have a rating at all?

Is this fact now ??? also for online championships with AI ? this would be so nice !! i am 90% in singleplayer.

 

[HardRock]

Is this fact now ??? also for online championships with AI ? this would be so nice !! i am 90% in singleplayer.

Your forgot to highlight the "IIRC" part of my post.

I could very well be misremembering things, but couldn't find the original quotes talking about what will be possible online, so no, it's far from a confirmed fact. At the very least my first question still stands though, as I couldn't find an answer to that either.

 

[JulesDennis]

I keep wondering, do we know if our driver rating will be affected in any way in races against AI or in solo time trial events (here safety rating only of course)?

I would assume yes in the first case, since AI can be used to fill out online lobbies IIRC, but how would the rating changes be calculated against an AI who may not have a rating at all?

Since the "rating" system is all about online racing,I would make a guess and say that offline part of the game will not affect it.
If it does,then it would be simple:you race "dirty" against AI,you get "negative" points.

EDIT:Solo time trials is not an "online" race but still the system should be able to understand if you are driving in the track or you are cutting corners to gain 1-2 sec per lap (example) and should be able to give you a rating according to that.

 

[FuriousDemon]

This rating system seems like an area where things could go wrong or bugs can crawl in real easily. If anything, this would have me slightly concerned before release. Didn't hear much feedback about it from WMD so far and it would be hard to test it properly with a smaller tester base this time around.

 

[HardRock]

Since the "rating" system is all about online racing,I would make a guess and say that offline part of the game will not affect it.
If it does,then it would be simple:you race "dirty" against AI,you get "negative" points.

I can see how the safety rating could work against the AI, with fixed point deductions for various violations in racing etiquette, and increases for clean passes in tight situations for example. Track cut penalties could even affect the safety rating in solo time trial sessions, similarly how they do in iRacing.

Skill rating is more complicated however and gains or losses are often calculated in regards to the other drivers in the field (you lose more if you lose a race with a higher rating than others and win more if you win and your rating was lower), which is why I was wondering if it would be in effect against AI. I can see many ways this could go, hence my questions.

The rating system is very important to me (probably more than any other announced new feature) as it could easily compel me to race online again, even in public lobbies.

 

[doblocruiser]

Thanks for the reply guys. Cheers. Hopefully Ian or TA can give a definitive answer.

After a bit more of research I found that Charles Pozzi ran 2 365 GTB's. One with 39 and the other with number 75. De livery in PCARS2 is correct with the correct drivers on the door. Both ran in the Le Mans 24 houres in 1972.

 

[warp9engage]

Since the question didn't get a reply and this is the more appropriate thread for it anyway, I'm reposting here:

@The_American @IanBell Thank you very much for the response. I have another question, it's about how the AI selects their cars. If you pick a night race on a poorly illuminated track, will the AI still pick cars with no headlights?

 

[ozwheels]

@IanBell @The_American Is there an option to select weather patterns for the random pool. That way you could avoid getting heavy fog or any other weather pattern you dont like, but it would still be random within the patters you select.

 

[DesertPenguin09]

@IanBell @The_American Is there an option to select weather patterns for the random pool. That way you could avoid getting heavy fog or any other weather pattern you dont like, but it would still be random within the patters you select.

Like in Super Smash Bros. how you can select which items spawn? Hehe That would be great to select every option that doesn't include rain and let it fly

 

[RomKnight]

Le mans 2017, the year without rain... every other year, it's there at some point.

Fuji, can be stopped due to monsoon's even.

Spa... rain at some point.

Anything UK, rain and everything in between

Nords.. do I even need to say something?

No rain? That's only for hardcore sims /sarcasm

 

[bleeder]

@IanBell @The_American Is there an option to select weather patterns for the random pool. That way you could avoid getting heavy fog or any other weather pattern you dont like, but it would still be random within the patters you select.

That's a great idea