Thoughts about the intro events...

[brambos]

After reading a lot of the 'criticism' on this game from the very vocal detractors, it struck me that SMS are doing themselves a serious disservice with the way the game is currently set up at the beginning.

Many GT5 players get in, expecting a walk in the park like in GT5 (where basically the only true challenge is the Vettel challenge. "If you want a challenge you can provide it for yourself!" <-- often heard comment) and are confronted with a game with an actual learning curve, providing a 'game-like' challenge arc.

In Shift, when first sat in the GT-R (a car that is bordering on unrealistically well handling in GT5*) in its soft, wobbly default setup, driving with the loose default controller setting, the first impression people get from this game is far from the best you can get. (These settings also emphasize the steering lag and make it seem much worse than it actually is).

SMS should adjust the controller settings quite a bit out of the box, and also give people a well-tuned GT-R in the opening events, because the loud-and-lazy will at that point already have made up their minds and go back to GT (and start badmouthing the game in the GT forums as a result).

In this age, it's all about the first impression. And beyond its current first impression there's a true gem of game in Shift 2. 👍

* PD actually worked with Nissan on the development of the GT-R in real life and hence have an obvious and unhealthy affection for it.

 

[MagpieRacer]

You are right, they did shoot themselves in the foot. But in terms of coming here then buying the game. I like many, knew the first 2 races would suck.

Still strikes me as odd that people would read these pages, and still complain about the handling based on the first 2 races. Personally I have not played GT5 since Shift 2's release.

F1 2010 on the other hand..

 

[OLDSKOOLACURA]

very well said.....and correct.

now time for me to play SHIFT 2

 

[JackC8]

After reading a lot of the 'criticism' on this game from the very vocal detractors, it struck me that SMS are doing themselves a serious disservice with the way the game is currently set up at the beginning.

Many GT5 players get in, expecting a walk in the park like in GT5 (where basically the only true challenge is the Vettel challenge. "If you want a challenge you can provide it for yourself!" <-- often heard comment) and are confronted with a game with an actual learning curve, providing a 'game-like' challenge arc.

In Shift, when first sat in the GT-R (a car that is bordering on unrealistically well handling in GT5*) in its soft, wobbly default setup, driving with the loose default controller setting, the first impression people get from this game is far from the best you can get. (These settings also emphasize the steering lag and make it seem much worse than it actually is).

SMS should adjust the controller settings quite a bit out of the box, and also give people a well-tuned GT-R in the opening events, because the loud-and-lazy will at that point already have made up their minds and go back to GT (and start badmouthing the game in the GT forums as a result).

In this age, it's all about the first impression. And beyond its current first impression there's a true gem of game in Shift 2. 👍

* PD actually worked with Nissan on the development of the GT-R in real life and hence have an obvious and unhealthy affection for it.

Totally agree. I played GT5 for two months - breezed through the career winning about 80% of the events on my first try just by putting soft racing tires on each car (with all assists turned off, yadda yadda yadda). Boring as hell. And you can't make a racing game out of it by artificially handicapping yourself with a slow car - you just pass the AI in the corners and they pass you back on the straights - that doesn't come close to resembling racing. And then there's the little problem with the AI cars being utterly oblivious to your presence on the track and trying to drive straight through you at every opportunity.

In Shift 2, I actually notice myself tensing up all my arm muscles as I try to control a GT3 car on tight corners while surrounded by AI cars that I'm actually racing against. I have to take a little break afterwards because my nerves are fried LOL. That's something you'll never ever get from GT5.

 

[spapadillion]

Totally agree. I played GT5 for two months - breezed through the career winning about 80% of the events on my first try just by putting soft racing tires on each car (with all assists turned off, yadda yadda yadda). Boring as hell. And you can't make a racing game out of it by artificially handicapping yourself with a slow car - you just pass the AI in the corners and they pass you back on the straights - that doesn't come close to resembling racing. And then there's the little problem with the AI cars being utterly oblivious to your presence on the track and trying to drive straight through you at every opportunity.

In Shift 2, I actually notice myself tensing up all my arm muscles as I try to control a GT3 car on tight corners while surrounded by AI cars that I'm actually racing against. I have to take a little break afterwards because my nerves are fried LOL. That's something you'll never ever get from GT5.

Of course it's going to be boring w/ racing softs on every car, of course you're going to win and it should be equally obvious that you'll easily outcorner the AI using those tires as the best I've ever seen them on is race hard. Two whole months w/ the game and you never learned about the different tire types?

Also, if you run even remotely close to the same pace as the AI in GT5 they absolutely will drive with you instead of thru you and, should you make a mistake, if it's within the laws of physics to avoid you, they will. They'll even steer clear of where you're going to be in the case of you making that mistake. I've literally NEVER been rammed when I wasn't at fault and I don't know what else you could have been expecting or ask for.

And while I too have to take the occasional break from racing in GT5, it's because I've reached MY limits, not those of the terrible controls in S2U: A point to which Ian Bell himself has conceded on these very forums and will hopefully be fixed in the first patch released for the game.

I'm glad you're enjoying yourself in Shift 2 and I'm sorry to hear that you didn't get as much enjoyment out of GT5 as I have been, but please try to avoid making such blatantly biased and ignorant statements in the future.

 

[spapadillion]

As for the OP: While I agree that the game could certainly have done w/ better default controller and car setups, as a loyal GT fanboy, I take mild offense to the implication that I'm not up for a challenge. In fact, if there was one to be had in the first 20% of S2U*, aside from overcoming the often mentioned input lag, I certainly never found it.

And in stark contrast to your depiction of events, I thought the R35 Special from the opening races was an excellent car, based on that initial impression, and bought one at the first given opportunity.

Furthermore, it is my opinion that alot of this talk about tuning and tweaking making the game better devalues the role that the human element plays in adapting to the challenges presented by the deeply flawed controls in S2U.

The post does go on to make another couple mostly solid points, with which I do not entirely disagree, but sadly they're cheapened by more bias and anti-GT rhetoric.


*elite handling, hard difficulty, no driving aids

 

[Imari]

As for the OP: While I agree that the game could certainly have done w/ better default controller and car setups, as a loyal GT fanboy, I take mild offense to the implication that I'm not up for a challenge. In fact, if there was one to be had in the first 20% of S2U*, aside from overcoming the often mentioned input lag, I certainly never found it.

If you're 20% in then you almost certainly have access to the A class Invitational. Pretty much everyone I've talked to has had serious problems completing that because the difficulty is a step above everything else. It's not Mission 34 levels of hard, but it's a tough one.

If you somehow breezed through that the first time, you got lucky. Go back and do it again, and it's odds on that you get creamed.

More hard events:
-Pretty much all the time trials.
-GT3 and GT1 are no joke.
-Endurance isn't easy either, particularly the "boss" battle.

Any of the later series you may win a couple of events, and then the AI "matchmaking" algorithm kicks in and bumps the degree of difficulty up. I think I got first in my first two endurance races, struggled mightly for third in the next, and then got creamed in the next couple. That's how it works, you keep winning, it just keeps getting harder. If you're good, the AI might take a while to catch up to you, but it will.

I do have a sneaking suspicion that the lower level events are designed to be less challenging though. Which isn't entirely unexpected from a design perspective. You want to provide a challenge, but you don't want to be smashing people's faces in from the word go. You've got to build up to it.

 

[boomee]

brambos i think your coments should be here https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=199491 with the rest of the rants and raves maybe im wrong i dont know

 

[brambos]

brambos i think your coments should be here https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=199491 with the rest of the rants and raves maybe im wrong i dont know

Well... it's not exactly a rant nor a rave. More an observation that - had SMS set up the controls and first events differently, the first impression of the game might have been a lot better, leading to less complainers and people who don't give the game a fair chance.

 

[deftonesmx17]

Agree 110%

The first couple of events were indeed wonky. I felt like something wasn't right. The first few races with the car I bought, I was hitting walls and in general not driving worth a darn (this was only at Pro settings). Once out of Modern D though, I was driving like a champ and switched to Elite mode. The deeper I get into the game the more and more fun I am having.

That is in direct contrast to how I felt about GT5. My initial reaction to GT5 was, wow, this is awesome. However, that quickly turned into, I really can't stand this game.

 

[sorg]

The funny thing is that GT3 and GT1 events in shift 2 were easiest for me.
Most hard events are Singles competition (Bottom line of chapter where GT3 and Works events) and Endurances on Nurburgring because of stupid bumper-car AI.

 

[spapadillion]

Correction, I'm at 40% completion. An honest mistake considering I don't put much stock in such things and that it's been over a week since the game saw any action in my PS3.

Imari, I had yet to attempt the A Class Invitational as I'd previously been completing each section of events in their entirety before moving on to the next.

At your request, I have now attempted it three times.

The first was a dismal failure at 8th place with a time of 7:41, the second was a much more encouraging 7:30 finish in 3rd place and the final attempt saw me making yet more positive progress until an overcorrection on the second section of the Pflanzgarten landed me well back in the pack, seeing red and cursing both myself and the game in nearly equal amounts.

And this is why I refuse to play the game until it's patched. In its current state, I find myself almost completely lacking any motivation to play and am either unable or unwillling to distinguish between where the game's faults end and mine begin.

S2U is now back in it's case, where it is likely to stay until it receives a patch that corrects the issues I have w/ the controls or gets sold on eBay.