Track life and atmosphere

[SmokedBump]

..Maybe something PD need to learn from the likes of EA?? I mean the track atmosphere in shift 2 was amazing...Surely most of you get where I'm coming from here. Although gt5 is a great game, the track life just seems so boring and plain. Just saying - Your thoughts?

 

[lazywolfe]

I agree, it needs more life. I think it would be cool if audience attendance was variable. The better you race, the more people show up in the stands to watch, and the sounds/cheering is much more audible when you pass the grandstands.

I always thought it was funny to see packed grandstands at some simple Sunday Cup race watching a bunch of Vitzs.

 

[lbpomg95]

Agreed. A stock supercar challenge on Daytona gets exactly the same number of people attending as an actual NASCAR race? Umm...

No doubt it'd probably be difficult to implement, but I'd like to see something like that, as well as more of a track ambience - being able to hear the crowd more etc.

 

[Pilitev]

Is it possible to hear the crowd when you're inside a racecar?

 

[lazywolfe]

I'm not 100% positive, but I could've swore Fernando Alonso and Kamui Kobayashi said they could hear the crowd. Also, from a ferrari.com article:

"Then, on lap 34, a bit of luck came his way, as Vettel had to retire the Red Bull at the side of the track with a technical problem. You did not have to be watching the race to know what had happened as a cheer loud enough to blot out the engine noise came up from the partisan Spanish crowd. "

Also, this is an area I don't mind being played up for effect, even if it's not totally realistic.

Edit: Also, just remembered there's small crowd noise on one of the rally races anyway, so the idea is there.

 

[Tenacious D]

No doubt it'd probably be difficult to implement

It really shouldn't be that hard, or to have the crowd react to a cool pass or a wreck. I've asked for this very thing in the past. Along with that, I'd like to see race displays that match how the cars are performing on the field. Racecar numbers and heir positions on scoreboards and all that, maybe racer names too.

 

[Earth]

You can hear the crowd above the engines

Listen to the roar at 4:44



You can hear the crowd going nuts here starting around 1:15 and the commentators even mention the crowd noise at 2:32

 

[Pilitev]

It really shouldn't be that hard, or to have the crowd react to a cool pass or a wreck. I've asked for this very thing in the past. Along with that, I'd like to see race displays that match how the cars are performing on the field. Racecar numbers and heir positions on scoreboards and all that, maybe racer names too.

If they make the crowd react then they must throw in some randomness. There are many games in which whole groups makes exactly the same movements in perfect unison. This actually looks very stupid.

If you're talking about real atmosphere I like the campings and bbq's along the nürburgring, makes me hungry every time I drive past it.

 

[LVracerGT]

All for this. Tracks having "life" and an atmosphere to them completely changes the perception. Anyone who's been involved in racing can tell you from a practice session to the race is like an entirely different place.

I'd like to see track and event evolution. People walking around the garage/pits. The ability to start from the garage and drive through the paddock. Having the track start out green and rubber in, marbles off the racing line, dry line that forms from the wet, standing water on low elevation and more grip on higher elevation where the water runs off.

If Codemasters can achieve this after only a few years, PD has no excuse.

 

[05XR8]

I remember playing a moto gp game in the past. You could practically smell the food cooking as you passed several of the food areas at Jerez. Plus you could see emergency vehicles move along the inner roadways of the circuit. The air horns and crowd noise got louder upon approach.

More flags covering the crowds, camera flash and helicopters would help.

 

[SmokedBump]

All for this. Tracks having "life" and an atmosphere to them completely changes the perception. Anyone who's been involved in racing can tell you from a practice session to the race is like an entirely different place.

I'd like to see track and event evolution. People walking around the garage/pits. The ability to start from the garage and drive through the paddock. Having the track start out green and rubber in, marbles off the racing line, dry line that forms from the wet, standing water on low elevation and more grip on higher elevation where the water runs off.

If Codemasters can achieve this after only a few years, PD has no excuse.

This 👍

 

[FiftyBelowZero]

Well, listen. Jenkins, the GT cat, is literally around 3,067.9 times more detailed than the 2D pixelated characters who do nothing but pimp their fists. It's so boring! Why make a mere easter egg a million times more detailed than the people who resemble our audience.

Again, Kaz and PD logic...

 

[IceMan PJN]

I agree, it needs more life. I think it would be cool if audience attendance was variable. The better you race, the more people show up in the stands to watch, and the sounds/cheering is much more audible when you pass the grandstands.

That isn't something that should be up to just how "you" race. Crowds aren't there just to watch you. There are several other cars there with you that, realistically, would be of equal interest to a crowd.

You can hear the crowd above the engines

Listen to the roar at 4:44

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0orHQo57S9Q">YouTube Link</a>

You can hear the crowd going nuts here starting around 1:15 and the commentators even mention the crowd noise at 2:32

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmX08S5Pc2c">YouTube Link</a>

Those aren't onboard shots, at least not in the first video; never bothered with the second. We don't care if a cameraman can hear the crowd over an engine down on the track, but rather if the driver can hear a more distant crowd over an engine two feet from him.

 

[LVracerGT]

...I don't care if a cameraman can hear the crowd over an engine down on the track, but rather if the driver can hear a more distant crowd over an engine two feet from him.

Fixed.

Who cares if it's not super realistic? Crowd noise would still add dimension and character to the game. Not to mention it would invoke emotion for crowd reaction based on what's happening on the track. Plus lazywolfe already mentioned an interview with F1 drivers saying they could hear the crowd in their cars during the race.

I don't think something that would be a good addition to GT should be nitpicked.

 

[research]

How about:

Cautions during races. Full Course and Local.
Track Marshalls and safety workers.
Adjustable Flag Rules.
Pace cars. (that you can choose from your garage)
Tow Trucks, Cleanup crews.
Option to control the car during pitting.
Crash Retirements. Mechanical retirements of all kinds.

More damage to the environment. Even some slight geo-mod.
Tracks in the mud. Mud, Dirt, Grass, Gravel kicked onto the track.
Dynamic track surface- mainly rubber collecting.
Water accumulation/drying on the track.
Major work on the debris/particles. Dirt, mud, dust, rocks, snow, water. Better spray from tires. It&#8217;s not created and dissipated vertically enough- right now it looks like a smoke bomb puffing away...

Victory Cinema clips- paddock, celebration, podium, interview shots from afar (no sound needed, just play music).
Aircraft in the air- Military flybys, banner-towing small planes, blimps and helicopters with cameras.

Sparce crowds on track days and practices. Huge, roaring crowds at high level world class races, and appropriate variation for everything in between.

👍

 

[SlowInFastOut]

All of the aforementioned above requires more RAM, which in turn requires PS4 power.

 

[LVracerGT]

All of the aforementioned above requires more RAM, which in turn requires PS4 power.

Not necessarily true. F1 2012 has evolving tracks that rubber in, get marbles off the racing line, and the standing and running water etc. That game is on PS3. I own it. It's up to PD to stop putting graphics at such a high priority that it uses up most of the RAM. Not to mention the way they model the premium cars takes a stupid long time. If they built great looking models without laser scanning like you know, almost every other racing game, they would have more RAM to include more content and features.

GT6 is going to be a big title for PD. It's either going to show that they learned to adjust the way they make a game to keep up with everyone else and please the fans, or it's going to be a slightly better GT5. If the latter becomes true, it's not going to be a good result for them.

 

[PepeMickey]

That would be awesome, Shift's 2 Drifting Events anyone? If you don't know what I'm talking about and have a Shift 2 copy lying around, do it, do it now. Shift 2 also had your team crew giving the final touches to your car and event hostesses. I mean c'mon, GT doesn't have to be so serious all the time.

 

[research]

It's up to PD to stop putting graphics at such a high priority that it uses up most of the RAM. Not to mention the way they model the premium cars takes a stupid long time. If they built great looking models without laser scanning like you know, almost every other racing game, they would have more RAM to include more content and features.

GT6 is going to be a big title for PD. It's either going to show that they learned to adjust the way they make a game to keep up with everyone else and please the fans, or it's going to be a slightly better GT5. If the latter becomes true, it's not going to be a good result for them.

Post of the year. Spot on.

 

[SlowInFastOut]

It's up to PD to stop putting graphics at such a high priority that it uses up most of the RAM.

We all know they will never sacrifice graphics, therefore if GT6 IS a PS3 game it will be disastrous.

 

[lazywolfe]

That isn't something that should be up to just how "you" race. Crowds aren't there just to watch you. There are several other cars there with you that, realistically, would be of equal interest to a crowd.

Obviously. My overall point is still the same.

 

[PletdeKoe]

Post of the year. Spot on.

No it is not. I love the fact GT is the standard for graphics. Yes other games have more dynamic tracks and rubber in etc, but these games are not better then Gt5.

Gt6 should be better then 5, yes but it should lso stay true to the GT series.

 

[LVracerGT]

No it is not. I love the fact GT is the standard for graphics. Yes other games have more dynamic tracks and rubber in etc, but these games are not better then Gt5.

Gt6 should be better then 5, yes but it should lso stay true to the GT series.

You're one of the only people that think this way then. It's a matter of opinion in the end, but most people want these things. GT is supposed to be "The Real Driving Simulator" and graphics do little in comparison to what dynamic tracks can do. Having to adjust to the track rubbering in, marbles developing off the racing line, etc adds immensely to the realism.

If PD modeled cars to look fantastic without laser scanning the same way Forza, pCARS, etc is doing to save RAM the cars would still look amazing and they would be able to add more features. Win/win.

If PD were to "stay true to the series" they're going to fall even further behind everyone else. I'm already looking forward to pCARS more than GT6 now that's its been announced they're bringing pCARS to PS4, and I've been a huge GT fan since the first game. Played every one and used a wheel from GT3 onward. But GT is being left in the dust with what it's competitors are bringing to the table. It's time for GT to evolve or die.

 

[C_Raccoon23]

I also agree with LVRacerGT. I think everyone deserves a second chance, but if PD shows they didn't learn from the GT5 fiasco, then I'm done with the series.

 

[PepeMickey]

How about:

Cautions during races. Full Course and Local.
Track Marshalls and safety workers.
Adjustable Flag Rules.
Pace cars. (that you can choose from your garage)
Tow Trucks, Cleanup crews.
Option to control the car during pitting.
Crash Retirements. Mechanical retirements of all kinds.

More damage to the environment. Even some slight geo-mod.
Tracks in the mud. Mud, Dirt, Grass, Gravel kicked onto the track.
Dynamic track surface- mainly rubber collecting.
Water accumulation/drying on the track.
Major work on the debris/particles. Dirt, mud, dust, rocks, snow, water. Better spray from tires. It&rsquo;s not created and dissipated vertically enough- right now it looks like a smoke bomb puffing away...

Victory Cinema clips- paddock, celebration, podium, interview shots from afar (no sound needed, just play music).
Aircraft in the air- Military flybys, banner-towing small planes, blimps and helicopters with cameras.

Sparce crowds on track days and practices. Huge, roaring crowds at high level world class races, and appropriate variation for everything in between.

👍

Realistically, none of that is going to happen because GT is not a game that focuses on the sport of racing, it's more like testing cars and maybe having some trackdays. Gt's car list is made of road cars and not particularly fast ones, so tell me how Pace cars, Flags, Podiums, etc would work in a 5 lap 10 Miatas race.

If you really want all of that, then you should be looking somewhere else. I'm not saying all
of that shouldn't be added but GT's main focus has never been racing so I find it really difficult for PD to do that.

GT should be all about grabbing a car, choosing a track, do as many laps you want and exit, done, plain and simple, if you want customize cars => Forza, if you want to race => Codies F1 games, if you want an open world => TDU, Horizon, NFS, if you want to crash => Burnout. See? Simple as that.

No need for PD to work their ass off trying to meet our unrealistic and sometimes stupid expectations because no matter how hard PD try, there will always be somebody moaning so **** that.

 

[LVracerGT]

Realistically, none of that is going to happen because GT is not a game that focuses on the sport of racing, it's more like testing cars and maybe having some trackdays. Gt's car list is made of road cars and not particularly fast ones, so tell me how Pace cars, Flags, Podiums, etc would work in a 5 lap 10 Miatas race.

If you really want all of that, then you should be looking somewhere else. I'm not saying all
of that shouldn't be added but GT's main focus has never been racing so I find it really difficult for PD to do that.

GT should be all about grabbing a car, choosing a track, do as many laps you want and exit, done, plain and simple, if you want customize cars => Forza, if you want to race => Codies F1 games, if you want an open world => TDU, Horizon, NFS, if you want to crash => Burnout. See? Simple as that.

No need for PD to work their ass off trying to meet our unrealistic and sometimes stupid expectations because no matter how hard PD try, there will always be somebody moaning so **** that.

Really?... GT doesn't focus on the sport of racing, yet Kaz races the Nurburgring 24 Hours and GT Academy puts gamers in real race cars. Yeah, GT doesn't focus on the sport of racing at all

If you REALLY need an explanation on how flags, a pace car, and podiums would work on a 10 lap Miata race, YouTube a Skip Barber National MX-5 race. I worked at Skip Barber, trust me it will show you exactly how.

By saying "go play such and such a game if you want that stuff" is EXACTLY why GT is in trouble. The games like Forza, F1, pCARS that have this stuff are GT's direct competitors. People WILL go play those games instead if PD doesn't wake up. That's the point! You've obviously not gotten what GT does, because racing IS what PD does.

GT is a RACING game. Besides graphics, GT has always boasted the most realistic physics of any racing game on console. What we're talking about here is additions to the racing to make it more realistic. If GT was just collecting cars and driving them around with no way to tell the difference between cars or racing them against each other no one would play GT. By your account, GT wouldn't even need an online mode if all people wanted to do was "grab a car go on track and do as many laps as you want."

The best part of your post is "our unrealistic and stupid expectations." Unrealistic? No, not even close. If smaller studios that have far less development time than GT can accomplish these features, PD has no excuse. Stupid? Yeah, wanting more realistic immersion and features that will better and advance the game is stupid...

 

[PepeMickey]

Really?... GT doesn't focus on the sport of racing, yet Kaz races the Nurburgring 24 Hours and GT Academy puts gamers in real race cars. Yeah, GT doesn't focus on the sport of racing at all

If you REALLY need an explanation on how flags, a pace car, and podiums would work on a 10 lap Miata race, YouTube a Skip Barber National MX-5 race. I worked at Skip Barber, trust me it will show you exactly how.

By saying "go play such and such a game if you want that stuff" is EXACTLY why GT is in trouble. The games like Forza, F1, pCARS that have this stuff are GT's direct competitors. People WILL go play those games instead if PD doesn't wake up. That's the point! You've obviously not gotten what GT does, because racing IS what PD does.

GT is a RACING game. Besides graphics, GT has always boasted the most realistic physics of any racing game on console. What we're talking about here is additions to the racing to make it more realistic. If GT was just collecting cars and driving them around with no way to tell the difference between cars or racing them against each other no one would play GT. By your account, GT wouldn't even need an online mode if all people wanted to do was "grab a car go on track and do as many laps as you want."

The best part of your post is "our unrealistic and stupid expectations." Unrealistic? No, not even close. If smaller studios that have far less development time than GT can accomplish these features, PD has no excuse. Stupid? Yeah, wanting more realistic immersion and features that will better and advance the game is stupid...

First off, GT is not in trouble, it may not be as good as others but as long as it keeps outselling everybody else, PD/Sony won't see a problem with it, maybe Kaz does but he is just a man, he doesn't represent the entire corporation's thoughts.

Second, so GT is focused on racing because 2 things completely outside of the game do so, even when there's no such thing in the actual game. Really? GT Academy is an event hosted by Nissan at Silverstone, participants don't necesarilly have to be GT players at all.

Kaz has been a special guest at the N24 race, he's not even an amateur. He does not do that for a living. He's just in a social position that let's him do this kind of stuff, he's basically a celebrity, no different from Tom Cruise who flies jets. Tom Cruise might even know more about that than Kaz knows about racing.

In a nutshell, none of those things have to do with the actual game, maybe at a marketing level but that's as deep as it goes.

 

[LVracerGT]

GT Academy is an event hosted by Nissan at Silverstone, participants don't necesarilly have to be GT players at all.

This, right here, proves you have NO IDEA what you're talking about. The ONLY way to get to GT Academy is through GT. Hence "GT" Academy

 

[MOTORTRENDmitch]

Second, so GT is focused on racing because 2 things completely outside of the game do so, even when there's no such thing in the actual game. Really? GT Academy is an event hosted by Nissan at Silverstone, participants don't necesarilly have to be GT players at all.

 

[PepeMickey]

This, right here, proves you have NO IDEA what you're talking about. The ONLY way to get to GT Academy is through GT. Hence "GT" Academy

Did you know that GT Academy was a downloadable demo? and did you know that some finalists were FM players and never ever owned a PS3? What's next? You are gonna tell me that GT5 or the GT Academy demo trained those guys, right?

They got all their knowledge and skill from sitting on a couch with a piece of software in front of them, right? While you are at it, go ahead and tell me that GT5 is simulator, I wan't to laugh a little bit please.