Why I think GT6 was liked by reviewers, but hated by (some) fans

[NUNOpt]

...I think the issue though is that its so nearly a great game & hence a disappointment because it came so close...Sure it looks good on face value to a reviewer because he spends a short time with the game so doesn't realise how hamstrung it is.

👍 most of the complainers are fans of the brand GT, we like this game so much that we care making suggestions to improve it. that's the only reason i suggest/complain, because i care for the brand, i don't hate it.
unlike most of the professional reviewers, i want to use GT more than 2 or 3 days so it matters way more to me when something in the game isn't as good as it could very well be.

...I have no problem with people supporting a product they love...but I do not support a similar attitude like "Meh they didn't give me what I paid for but that's ok because it's shiny"...

👍 agree, most of the complains aren't about the missing features but no, it's not normal to wait more than a few months for promised features. i paid the full price for a game that more than a year later is still not finished and is now, at least half the price as in release. (the silence from PD makes it even worst)

@Chameleon9000...The true GT fans are the ones who don't really complain, they play the game for what it is and find ways of really enjoying the game. ...

true fans, as you say, play GT as it is ... and make suggestions to improve it because they care. if we complain its only because we care and want to play GT more and better. don't you think our suggestions for GT have been very important to others developers? i do.

 

[Johnnypenso]

PD have promised a lot of features that the PS3 simply cannot cope with in a bid to stay on top and that is why many things are delayed and why we may never see them in GT6.

So when you buy something and the seller promises you certain content and you buy it in good faith thinking you'll receive what you paid for, then a year down the line you read in a post from you that so many things are delayed because the PS3 can't cope and we may never see them in the game we paid full price for a year ago, what do we do? Any normal person is going to be unhappy about that, and GTP is the place on the net to express that unhappiness. If they weren't coming here to complain, the GT6 portion of the site would be a ghost town.

Sure, GT6 has it's problems but when you compare it to any other racing game on the PS3 then it's by far the best. GRID 2 or Autosport, NFS titles etc. GT6 has more content, better graphics, better lighting, weather systems which other games, some on Next-Gen don't have yet (Forza 5) and yet GT is being slated

Most people compare the current GT game to the previous GT game, we all know that no other franchise on the PS3 can stand up graphically to PD. Do you see many people complaining about the graphics or weather or lighting? No because they are well done. What people complain about is the game wrapped around the lighting, graphics and weather and it's doesn't quite cut it for many of us. Worse, elements that many of us enjoyed in GT5 are either broken or removed for no explainable reason.

The true GT fans are the ones who don't really complain, they play the game for what it is and find ways of really enjoying the game. The multiplayer section of this forum is full of regular races where the true fans play and rarely complain as they enjoy it for what it is. It's only the throw-away fans who complain about games because they always want something new to keep their tiny minds occupied.

If people who have played multiple iterations of the franchise, many of us for 16 years, are considered "throw-away" fans, then I'm not sure what a true fan is. I'd argue the opposite. Anyone who just buries their head in the sand and can't discuss the flaws in GT6 without feeling some sort of personal insult, who just turns a blind eye to the way the game is developing, isn't a true fan at all.

You just have to try and pick apart everything i say don't you.

Ok then, express your opinions once, not multiple times. I am not blaming you specifically, but we have heard enough of it.

It is the nature of discussions to question things. If you can't stand your ideas being questioned, it's probably best not to bring them up in the first place.

This post is a long time coming from me so here it is... It's about time there was a '**** You' thread to all the constant whining bitchers on here. If the game is so bad then piss off to some other game and stop belittling people who do like the GT Franchise and bullying them into sharing the opinion of the minority. There are other sections to the forum, stay over there and praise those games... And yes, that is aimed at everyone who uses this forum to complain, belittle and bully to get your childish point across. I'm not flamebaiting or trolling here. Just a man who's fed up of not being able to have a good opinion of a game that he loves because of total dicks. 👍

What a horrible attitude:tdown:

 

[TurismoBad]

It's really boring to read this.

PCars doesn't interest me, I find it bad. Well, I don't go to forum of PCARS, I stay in the Gran Turismo section.

Moreover, you said than GT6 is your last GT so why you stay here?

Maybe because those people want a good GT game - like we all do. I'd say they want a good GT game much more than they want any other game to be good - hence the frequent posting from ex-users.

I agree that it's pointless to repeat the same things over and over though - just trying to figure out why they're doing it.

I can see all those guys/gals cautiously following GT7 hype-train in a handcar if the early showings indicate a substantial improvement, jumping on as the positive signals increase. (and I think they will)

 

[Aphelion]

I don't believe there's anything in the AUP saying we're only allowed to express an opinion once. Just because you're bothered by these opinions doesn't mean they're not allowed to be expressed. By that logic, you should only be allowed to post your positive comments about the game once, and then move on. For some of us, the "I love GT and **** anyone who doesn't because they're d**ks" posts are just as annoying as the "I hate GT and **** anyone who loves it because they're d**ks" posts.



This whole thread was bait, and you got what you wanted. 👍 To be clear, I could care less what your opinion of the game is but you (nor anyone else on here) do not have the right to tell others what to love or what to hate or what to post. If you want a forum free from criticism of Gran Turismo, go hang with ColouredBadger in his "GT Lovers Only" forum.

What? are you actually being serious?

To be clear, I could care less what your opinion of the game is but you (nor anyone else on here) do not have the right to tell others what to love or what to hate or what to post.

Hhen why did you come here? Why did you comment? Who said anyone cared what you think?

This whole thread was bait, and you got what you wanted.

I didn't want anything. In fact i would have been happy with a couple of likes to show some peoples agreement, and no comments whatsoever, seeing as people like you were always going to come here. I tried my hardest to make this thread as non-threatening as I possibly could. You should have seen the first draft.

If you want a forum free from criticism of Gran Turismo, go hang with ColouredBadger in his "GT Lovers Only" forum.

I would just repeat what i said a few comments ago, but you obviously don't care. Oh wait no, you literally quoted that post. Whyyyyyy? why would you quote the very post that disputes what you just said? Hell why are you here? What purpose did you feel that you would fulfill by coming here? Just answer that question first, please.

 

[BrandonW77]

Maybe because those people want a good GT game - like we all do. I'd say they want a good GT game much more than they want any other game to be good - hence the frequent posting from ex-users.

You got it. If GT6 had been more substantial, had better offline mode, no rabbit chasing, had all the features from GT5 that were removed, and fewer online stability issues, I'd still be playing it today and wouldn't have had to shell out $$$$ for a PC. When GT6 was released with the promise of features being added in the future I was optimistic that things would improve, after six months I was less optimistic, after 9 months I became pessimistic, and after 11 months I realized that my favorite features from GT5 were never going to be reintroduced, combined with the constant online stability problems that made the one useable part of the game virtually useless, I threw in the towel and bid farewell to the series. GT will always be part of my passion for this hobby and I cherish the fond memories I have with it, so I'm still allowed to post in a GT forum even if my views aren't all sunshine and roses. And if this forum was only full of praise for the game then PD would never get the feedback about things they need to fix.

What? are you actually being serious?


Hhen why did you come here? Why did you comment? Who said anyone cared what you think?


I didn't want anything. In fact i would have been happy with a couple of likes to show some peoples agreement, and no comments whatsoever, seeing as people like you were always going to come here. I tried my hardest to make this thread as non-threatening as I possibly could. You should have seen the first draft.

I would just repeat what i said a few comments ago, but you obviously don't care. Oh wait no, you literally quoted that post. Whyyyyyy? why would you quote the very post that disputes what you just said? Hell why are you here? What purpose did you feel that you would fulfill by coming here? Just answer that question first, please.

Yes, I'm serious. We're all allowed to express our opinions as many times as we want whether they be positive or negative. And yes, the overly positive posts can be just as annoying as the overly negative posts.

Why should I not come here? Is there a rule that says "No Brandon's allowed in this thread"? I didn't post because someone said they cared what I think or asked for my opinion, I posted to add to the discussion (that's what happens on a forum). Why did you create the thread? Who said anyone cares about what you think about what game reviewers think? Seeing as you're very focused on people who make negative posts, you damn well knew that this thread would turn into a sea of negative posts.

People like me? My original post wasn't even that negative, it simply listed a few reasons that caused some of us to be disappointed in the game which contradicted your original theory that people only hate the game because we don't have Bspec and the Course Maker. And, true to form, because my post wasn't a glowing, loving review of Gran Turismo, it was met with a flood of hatred. All along I've been saying we're all allowed to have our own opinions, it's you and others who seem convinced that only positive opinions are allowed. If my original post had been met with "Fair enough, those are valid reasons, but personally I still enjoy the game" you would have received a "like" from me and I would have been gone.

Here's a tip: Don't create any more new threads because there may be a few people on here who disagree with your opinion and that obviously causes feelings to be hurt.

 

[NixxxoN]

Regarding review scores, I agree. What's the score relative to? It's down to what the individual thinks, I've seen games that didn't get good scores go on to be cult classics and games with near max scores fall flat on their face.

Now about GT6, I'll be one of the first to tell you it's not perfect especially compared to its rivals, but that's not to say it's bad, quite the contrary really.

So yes, I'm one of many who still like GT6 but I won't overlook it's flaws which it has.

For me, something I call The 3 C's is the reason I keep coming back.

The Choice, The Challenge and The Collection. The choice of cars to buy and build, the challenge of going faster and faster and the collection of cars you want to establish.

Each and every driving/racing game has upsides and downsides.

 

[karelpipa]

atrocious "chase the rabbit" format used for races which basically forces you to get an overpowered car and blast by the rolling chicanes as fast as possible and doesn't let you enjoy door-to-door battles.

This and lack of quali and practice before every race got me out of love with GT. (+ hundreds other reasons)

 

[BrandonW77]

This and lack of quali and practice before every race got me out of love with GT. (+ hundreds other reasons)

That too. I've been playing RaceRoom Racing Experience lately, it doesn't have near the features or content of GT6 but it has practice -> qualifying -> race, and with excellent AI and I've been having an absolute blast with it. And the sounds on that game are absolute audio porn. That being said, GT has a lot of things that PC sims seem to fall flat on like changing your driver's outfit, painting your car, adding number plates to (some) cars, upgrading your wheels and other car parts, an excellent photo mode, a lot more options for online rooms, and honestly those are all things I miss.


^Look at that, I said something non-negative about Gran Turismo.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

While I am quite disappointed that we have not gotten the course creator [initial information indicated that we would probably not get it on release day but soon after]

My biggest complaint is the absence of leaderboards. This is a feature that was in GT5P, was said to be in GT5 and 6 and yet we still do not have it. It is absolutely necessary for an online racing game to have leaderboards and GT does not have them in any version other than GT5P.

They threw in the time trials and temp leaderboards for those but imo they do not count as actual leaderboards as they only allow for times to be posted during a 2 week period on a very limited selection of tracks and cars and then are removed after 30 days or so. You could play every event over the life of the game and may still not get even 1 chance to post a time in the car you want to drive on the track you want to post on and even if by chance you get lucky and they give you an event with that car on that track 30 days later poof like if never even happened.

I was shocked they were not in GT5 and kept waiting for them to be added and then I was so sure they would be in GT6 but no, still not there, still have to use a pen and paper to record lap times and there is absolutely no excuse for this type of shortcoming. If and when they decide to move past the 90s and give us a game with decent online features I will consider buying that version but until then I will not be buying any additional products from this series nor will I buy another PS.

 

[Aphelion]

While I am quite disappointed that we have not gotten the course creator [initial information indicated that we would probably not get it on release day but soon after]

My biggest complaint is the absence of leaderboards. This is a feature that was in GT5P, was said to be in GT5 and 6 and yet we still do not have it. It is absolutely necessary for an online racing game to have leaderboards and GT does not have them in any version other than GT5P.

They threw in the time trials and temp leaderboards for those but imo they do not count as actual leaderboards as they only allow for times to be posted during a 2 week period on a very limited selection of tracks and cars and then are removed after 30 days or so.

I was shocked they were not in GT5 and kept waiting for them to be added and then I was so sure they would be in GT6 but no, still not there, still have to use a pen and paper to record lap times and there is absolutely no excuse for this type of shortcoming. If and when they decide to move past the 90s and give us a game with decent online features I will consider buying that version but until then I will not be buying any additional products from this series nor will I buy another PS.

You see, this is a totally justified complaint. Its not that hard people.

 

[sems4arsenal]

Love how Constructive criticism of a game is labeled as complaining and unhealthy community, oh and by the way a Metacritic score of 81 isn't acceptable for a GT title.

Also what hype? compared to GT5, GT6's hype levels are way more modest.

 

[Johnnypenso]

I was shocked they were not in GT5 and kept waiting for them to be added and then I was so sure they would be in GT6 but no, still not there, still have to use a pen and paper to record lap times and there is absolutely no excuse for this type of shortcoming. If and when they decide to move past the 90s and give us a game with decent online features I will consider buying that version but until then I will not be buying any additional products from this series nor will I buy another PS.

I'm curious @Chameleon9000 why you would like a post that characterizes GT as "stuck in the 90s" and implies the game doesn't have "decent features", when you are so obviously bitter about @BrandonW77 's posts in the same vein. Did your finger slip?

It's really boring to read this.

PCars doesn't interest me, I find it bad. Well, I don't go to forum of PCARS, I stay in the Gran Turismo section.

Have you relayed your concerns about PCars directly on the members forum?. Not the GTP members forum, but the private PCars forum for early investors, which you must surely be a part of since you've concluded the game is bad. Surely you haven't made this conclusion based on early access Youtube videos right?

 

[Rubencho]

Most reviews are done on a short period, mostly as the game releases... full of bugs and stuff working bad... it takes a long term use to do a good review of anything whatsoever.

 

[BrandonW77]

You see, this is a totally justified complaint. Its not that hard people.

Yeah, why was his complaint about lack of leaderboards justified but me explaining that the removal of shuffle racing, endurance racing, rally racing, car trading, damage/fuel wear in arcade races, etc. led me to leave the series not justified?

(Don't bother answering, I already know why. )

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

I really did not care so much that the endurance racing was removed, was pretty boring running the same race for hours especially the Tsukuba events. Shuffle racing I did not use but I did like the idea and wish it was still in the game. Car trading was cool but a bit to much given the ability to duplicate the cars. A true trading system would be nice to have and a gifting system that you could gift a car and not be able to still have the car after a simple copy. That mode in GT5 made it far to easy to get every high priced car in the game without spending a single credit.

I have never been very interested in rally nor the offline arcade stuff so those don;t matter to me but still all valid reasons for those that do like them.

Another major shortcoming in the game is the painfully low payouts in the online races. For those who just want to run online it would take literally forever to earn enough credits to buy a few of the higher priced cars.

 

[BrandonW77]

I really did not care so much that the endurance racing was removed, was pretty boring running the same race for hours especially the Tsukuba events. Shuffle racing I did not use but I did like the idea and wish it was still in the game. Car trading was cool but a bit to much given the ability to duplicate the cars. A true trading system would be nice to have and a gifting system that you could gift a car and not be able to still have the car after a simple copy. That mode in GT5 made it far to easy to get every high priced car in the game without spending a single credit.

I have never been very interested in rally nor the offline arcade stuff so those don;t matter to me but still all valid reasons for those that do like them.

Another major shortcoming in the game is the painfully low payouts in the online races. For those who just want to run online it would take literally forever to earn enough credits to buy a few of the higher priced cars.

👍 And nobody ever said we all have to enjoy the same things about the game, or life for that matter. 👍 I was a series host and used the gift cars to give to the series winner, I found that a nice feature. And for the last 3-4 months of my GT5's life, rally racing was just about all I did. I had neglected it for a very long time and rediscovered it just as GT5 was nearing it's end and had a grand time with it! It was as close to proper rally as we had/have, co-driver and multiple stages (that were randomly generated every time), and AI/chase-the-rabbit wasn't an issue in this format. It was great fun for me so I was quite sad to see it removed.

 

[mister dog]

I found this to have been the best review of GT6 back when it was released, by 2 dudes that actually know their racing games 👍:

http://www.gamereactor.eu/articles/101974/Gran+Turismo+6:+One+Game,+Two+Verdicts/?page=1

 

[Alex Ojideagu]

Another major shortcoming in the game is the painfully low payouts in the online races. For those who just want to run online it would take literally forever to earn enough credits to buy a few of the higher priced cars.

I've only had the game since Christmas and earned about 40 million credits playing online quick matches and the seasonals. And won about 25 million worth of cars from the Christmas seasonals on top of that. Some of that is from offline but most online. You can get 400k winning a quick match, and 160k just for finishing one.

 

[karelpipa]

I found this to have been the best review of GT6 back when it was released, by 2 dudes that actually know their racing games 👍:

http://www.gamereactor.eu/articles/101974/Gran Turismo 6: One Game, Two Verdicts/?page=1

I must clap my hands to this review. Its on spot.

Features were only removed to be refined later. I see no problem in improvement, even if it takes a while

You seem you really believe it..still after all those years. Funny.

 

[Vic Reign93]

I must clap my hands to this review. Its on spot.



You seem you really believe it..still after all those years. Funny.

I noticed one thing in that review that for me, could make someone question its accuracy.

The part where he chooses his starting car is the part in question,

1: The Ford Feista isn't in the game.
2: As we know all too well, we HAD to pick the Jazz/Fit at the start.
3: the stats he brings up are also incorrect, the Jazz/Fit had a bigger engine (1.6 if I remember correctly) and had more power ( around 115hp).

Aside from that, it's a fair set of reviews with a few of the issues they brought up now sorted or slightly improved.

 

[Downhill Dino]

👍 And nobody ever said we all have to enjoy the same things about the game, or life for that matter. 👍 I was a series host and used the gift cars to give to the series winner, I found that a nice feature. And for the last 3-4 months of my GT5's life, rally racing was just about all I did. I had neglected it for a very long time and rediscovered it just as GT5 was nearing it's end and had a grand time with it! It was as close to proper rally as we had/have, co-driver and multiple stages (that were randomly generated every time), and AI/chase-the-rabbit wasn't an issue in this format. It was great fun for me so I was quite sad to see it removed.

I'm surprised you say this. Mainly because I found GT5's rally awful (it always has been really). Yeah it had the nice co-driver stuff and point to point but it was extremely disappointing to me. I love rallying but it was just not that fun.

 

[BrandonW77]

I'm surprised you say this. Mainly because I found GT5's rally awful (it always has been really). Yeah it had the nice co-driver stuff and point to point but it was extremely disappointing to me. I love rallying but it was just not that fun.

It didn't compare to the old days of Colin McRae, and the physics on dirt/snow surfaces were a bit wonky, but it was still better than chasing the rabbits, or than anything Dirt3 had to offer. Also, part of it was that I hadn't played the rally part of the game in a couple years, so it was fresh and not worn out like the other parts of the game. Despite what people think, I spent 4 years finding clever ways to enjoy GT5 and GT6, it's just that eventually they all wore out and with so much content being stripped for GT6 it accelerated the wearing out process.

 

[Downhill Dino]

Never have played the Colin McRae games so I have no comparison to give. DIRT 3 was only good for the 2-3 months online racing was active. I mean, the rallies were alright initially but I lost interest fast. I did however enjoy the snow rallies a bit. Wish there were more AI competitors though, as what was it like 4 just wasn't enough.

 

[HBR-Roadhog]

I've only had the game since Christmas and earned about 40 million credits playing online quick matches and the seasonals. And won about 25 million worth of cars from the Christmas seasonals on top of that. Some of that is from offline but most online. You can get 400k winning a quick match, and 160k just for finishing one.

The seasonals pay well but that is not online racing.

I have not bothered with the quick match stuff, they waited so long to actually add it to the game that I had pretty much quit playing the game by then as had all of my friends.

I think the biggest payday I have saw from winning an online race was less than 20k so you would need to run in and win over 1000 of those to get the Jag that took ~53 seconds to win in the seasonal.

If the quick matches do indeed pay over 100k then that is a big step in the right direction even if it is to late for most of us.

 

[BrandonW77]

Never have played the Colin McRae games so I have no comparison to give. DIRT 3 was only good for the 2-3 months online racing was active. I mean, the rallies were alright initially but I lost interest fast. I did however enjoy the snow rallies a bit. Wish there were more AI competitors though, as what was it like 4 just wasn't enough.

Back in the day Colin McRae was epic, not quite Richard Burns Rally epic but pretty dang good for the time, especially for a console. I tried Dirt for about a half hour, the physics/feeling/ffb were so bad that I just couldn't do it (I feel this way about all CodeMasters games from the last 5-6 years or so). I never felt connected to the car, more like I was giving vague commands to a virtual representation of a car that may or may not heed my commands.

I have not bothered with the quick match stuff, they waited so long to actually add it to the game that I had pretty much quit playing the game by then as had all of my friends.

This confirms something I've been suggesting for a long time, that it doesn't matter how great these features are if they're not released until after a lot of people have quit playing the game. Yes, the diehards here will play any GT every day until the next version is released, but for the casual gamer (which GT6 is clearly more geared towards, per Kaz himself) they will play a game for maybe two or three months and then move on to the next Call of Duty, or FarCry, or GTA, or whatever the newest thing is that their friends are playing. You think they're going to check back in on GT6 a year down the road to see if any new features have been added? I'd say, for the most part, not likely, especially not if they've already traded the game in on something new. It's a lot like a band taking the stage a month after the concert was supposed to happen, there will still be a few diehards camping out and waiting for the show but most people had to go back to work and left a long time ago.

 

[Downhill Dino]

Back in the day Colin McRae was epic, not quite Richard Burns Rally epic but pretty dang good for the time, especially for a console.

I've heard many good things about the game, and RBR, but never have gotten around to trying them out. They sound great.

I tried Dirt for about a half hour, the physics/feeling/ffb were so bad that I just couldn't do it (I feel this way about all CodeMasters games from the last 5-6 years or so). I never felt connected to the car, more like I was giving vague commands to a virtual representation of a car that may or may not heed my commands.

Reminds me of their awful steering wheel flicking left or right. I tried to complete DIRT 3 as I might as well but just couldn't bare to do it anymore.

 

[FS7]

It didn't compare to the old days of Colin McRae, and the physics on dirt/snow surfaces were a bit wonky, but it was still better than chasing the rabbits, or than anything Dirt3 had to offer. Also, part of it was that I hadn't played the rally part of the game in a couple years, so it was fresh and not worn out like the other parts of the game. Despite what people think, I spent 4 years finding clever ways to enjoy GT5 and GT6, it's just that eventually they all wore out and with so much content being stripped for GT6 it accelerated the wearing out process.

I played all WRC & CMR games on PS2, as well as Dirt1/3 & all WRC games on PS3.
I didn't like the dirt/snow physics in GT5, but I replayed the advanced tarmac rallies a few times with different cars. Randomly generated stages were a cool idea and gave replay value to that mode, I just wished PD had made it more like a real life rally, make the stages narrow, have hairpins, trees, cliffs, bumps, mechanical damage, and mixed surfaces.
The removal of rally mode, custom one-make races, and some arcade mode elements in GT6 felt like a step back.

 

[Imari]

The thing about a lot of the better reviews at the time were that they were pretty clear that GT6 had some major deficiencies. A lot of reviewers gave it a decent score, as is reflected in the Metacritic, because it's ultimately a fairly fun game. But a lot of them are also critical of the areas where GT6 continues to lack, which is why it only got scores in the low 80s instead of 95+.

GT6 is fine for what it is, a driving game with a lot of cars and tracks. Unfortunately, it doesn't live up to the quality of past games in the series. And more unfortunately, it didn't live up to the promises of the developers before release. No doubt some people who were satisfied with the game in the first couple of months are less so now, knowing that the game didn't progress as they were told that it would.

A Metacritic of 81 is not bad, but neither is it great. And that's what GT6 is. Taken at face value, it's not a bad game but neither is it great. It's just a car game. And that's kind of a shame, for those of us who have been playing GT when it was among the best in the genre for so many years.

Nobody finds it sad when Joe McRandom is unable to compete with the greatest racing drivers in the world. It's a little sad to see once great drivers like Raikkonen* who are no longer able to deliver at the level they once did. I think that's part of the problem, not that GT6 isn't decent in absolute terms, because it's fine. It's that it belongs to a series that was once damn near the best and brightest in the racing genre, and GT6 is a long way from that.

*(I know Raikkonen isn't a great example, his problems extend to his car as well, but just assume with me for a moment that his lack of pace is all down to himself. The guy is a former world champion.)

 

[BrandonW77]

^ The nail, it's been hit on the head. 👍

 

[Alex Ojideagu]

I have not bothered with the quick match stuff, they waited so long to actually add it to the game that I had pretty much quit playing the game by then as had all of my friends.

If the quick matches do indeed pay over 100k then that is a big step in the right direction even if it is to late for most of us.

That's pretty much how I built my money as soon as I got the game. Quick Matches are a licence to print money. 150k-400k for 4 minutes work even if you finish last. Keep doing that for a few hours and you see how fast it builds up. They can be like Whacky races and dirty as hell but you do get some good races too.

I have never had to struggle for money, I've barely played the game for 2 weeks and can get any cars I want
pretty much, apart from the 20 million ones I don't want to waste all that on one car.