Assetto Corsa on Three Screens

Derek Speare · Jul 22, 2012

UPDATE: Since the Tech Demo has been released, there is no question that AC will support three screens properly. My experience with the Tech Demo confirms that KS has nailed three screen support perfectly! TYVM, KS for implementing my request!

I have only one humble request for AC. I am sure it will be great in many aspects. However, I fear one area may not be like it should, and the recent screens don't augur well for my hope.

I would hope that AC does a perfect job at presenting the visual world across three screens like we see with iRacing and LFS. There the user has substantial control over the resolution of the display. NKP does, and the recent screens of AC across three screens look as if there is substantial warping of the display at the outer most edges.

Warping is common among Simbin's titles, and it's also existent in CARS. iRacing and LFS have no warp. I hope the future sees the same for AC.

Thank you,

Derek Speare

NB - if this is not the place for the post, please move it to where it should be posted

Aristotelis · Jul 23, 2012

Right now, three screen rendering (as seen in iR and LFS) is not yet in the code.
We are aware of the feature, we want to put it in, but before that we need to clean bugs and make sure the normal rendering works as intended, as well as finishing other features that have priority.

Can't say right now if this feature will make it in v1.0 but I can confirm we are very aware about it and definitely want to have it at some point.

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

Aristotelis said:
Right now, three screen rendering (as seen in iR and LFS) is not yet in the code.
We are aware of the feature, we want to put it in, but before that we need to clean bugs and make sure the normal rendering works as intended, as well as finishing other features that have priority.

Can't say right now if this feature will make it in v1.0 but I can confirm we are very aware about it and definitely want to have it at some point.

That gives me some hope, but some may infer that by not assigning high priority to three screens tips the hand as to the overall direction and scope of the title. I'll balance my remark against the emphasis on physics with my experiences from NKP, a great title, but unplayable across my three 28" screens for the edge warping.

Certainly, I appreciate the reply and thoughts

I can also say that there is an entire "faction" at iRacing who are looking towards AC is the "Racing Sim Messiah", and many of them are in the extreme category of sim racing enthusiasts. Those folks have three screens and want "reality without the reality" (so to speak).

Three screen users are a fast growing segment of the PC gaming world, and those making the upgrades will spend large sums of money to receive the best visual experience possible. They also demand the most from performance and are willing to pay for it.

For reference, I started the thread on AC at iRacing (mia culpa) which has seen 53,000+ views there:

http://members.iracing.com/jforum/posts/list/1834783.page

And I have also been running a poll asking iRacing members how many monitors they use. 23% (at least) of the poll respondents have 3 screens:

http://members.iracing.com/jforum/posts/list/1454326.page

It's my personal opinion that a racing sim is not if it does not support a three screen user in the way he would expect. I'd hope that KS place maximum emphasis on perfect three screen presentation as it's clear to see that AC may, indeed, be the One many have wished to see.

d

Hampus Andersson · Jul 23, 2012

Agree 100% for me this is a key feature in a new game due to my three 24 inch screens.

Aristotelis · Jul 23, 2012

I perfectly understand your point of view guys and as I said it is something we need to address. Nevertheless it has to go at a lower priority right now.

A simracing title like AC, needs thousands of sales in order to just survive and give us the possibility to continue working on it. When you need that many sales, it's obvious that things like stable gfx, good AI, good multi, good UI that help people navigate and configure whatever they need to do and of course top physics... all of those are top priorities in order to start selling.
3 screens rendering is a great future, but in all honesty and sympathy for the 200+ people out there that have it, it's not top priority for a small team like us. We may lose some hundred sales if we don't put it on v1.0, but we're gonna lose thousands of sales if the physics are not proper for example.

I repeat, it's not like we will not do it, but we will not start working before having the rest properly made.

Hope you understand our point of view, it's some hundreds against thousands.

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

Aristotelis said:
I perfectly understand your point of view guys and as I said it is something we need to address. Nevertheless it has to go at a lower priority right now.

A simracing title like AC, needs thousands of sales in order to just survive and give us the possibility to continue working on it. When you need that many sales, it's obvious that things like stable gfx, good AI, good multi, good UI that help people navigate and configure whatever they need to do and of course top physics... all of those are top priorities in order to start selling.
3 screens rendering is a great future, but in all honesty and sympathy for the 200+ people out there that have it, it's not top priority for a small team like us. We may lose some hundred sales if we don't put it on v1.0, but we're gonna lose thousands of sales if the physics are not proper for example.

I repeat, it's not like we will not do it, but we will not start working before having the rest properly made.

Hope you understand our point of view, it's some hundreds against thousands.

Hi Aristotelis,

I'm not being malicious when I make the comments I do. Understand that I do have many thousands of customers out there, many of whom will be customers of yours, and many of whom are customers of yours with NKP. I'm very close to the sim racing community and share my point of view with fairness and objectivity.

However, I do disagree completely that there are "200 users" with three screens. If you folks at KS estimate the three screen user base to be that marginal, I'd suggest you revisit your assumptions as they are not accurate in my opinion.

If you're considering the success of your title through dollars alone, you're undercutting the potential it may truly have. If you measure the "value" of it on the balance sheet alone, consider that if a customer purchases the title, installs it and then is disappointed. You got his money, but he'll tell everyone his thoughts proportional to the degree of his disappointment. If you disappoint a group you've considered to be smaller than they are, you'll find yourself feeling rather sheepishly.

I think your estimates may fueled by my poll. Keep in mind that polls are qualitative in nature and not quantitative. It's fair to extrapolate the numbers across the demographic base and estimate (within the margin of error) the number of users who use three screens.

I write as I do with sincerity. I've been messing around with racing sims since the first one. Many have come and gone. Some have been good. A precious few have been great. I've not seen the Ideal. AC could be Ideal for many. Time will tell.

Thank you for considering my thoughts.

d

Rupe Wilson · Jul 23, 2012

After reading another post about the fact you will need a PC with DX11 specs..

If at some point in the future we get it as a patch or dlc.. that would be great

i would think about a upgrade to see it in all its glory .
Ive not turned to the dark side yet

And this looks like the only Sim that i could justify the expense....

PS,,, please leave something in the pot for a surprise when it released.... i do like surprises...

nijeat · Jul 23, 2012

I think not that the number is in main issue. Because it will probably be anyway much less than those who think physics as a top priority. At the same point I don't think that even though nkp has a bad netcode so far, the nkp has become issue without good physics in sim world.

Anyway I can still expect it will be more easy to fix the 3 screen support than physics, of course not correct though.

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

It's my opinion that to have a quality racing sim it must offer the following:

- Accurate Physics
- Reliable Multiplayer
- Accurate Tracks
- Accurate Cars
- Accurate Graphics

Of course, we can debate it, but throw one of those elements out and see what you have left.

I'm looking forward to AC and Aristotelis' remarks are encouraging. However, I will admit that many of us in the sim racing world have been hearing "we'll have it" for a long time. I'd prefer to hear "we have it".

Ok - now I need to figure out how to get my logos slapped onto one of the billboards at Monza (my favorite track) in AC...???

Requiem84 · Jul 23, 2012

Derek, good to see you followed up on my suggestion to post your request here.

You make a valid point for the importance of accurate rendering on three screens. With the current GFX cards, the threen screen route is more and more accessible for simracers.

However, I completely understand Aris when he says priorities lie elsewhere. The core of this sim must and will be believable physics. Perfect three screen rendering without good physics, will be like eating mayonaise without french fries (well, you get my point).

Let's not forget how incredibly small this development team is. Two guys full time programming means that they have to prioritise some elements, and I fully understand they prioritise the basic features of the game first.

Second, I appreciate Aris being so candid and transparent about what is possible at the moment and what not. Your requested feature will be available at some point problaby. If it's not available straight away, you can just wait a few months longer

.

Kjell Eilertsen · Jul 23, 2012

While I hope for triple screen support as I'm planning to go that route myself, I completely understand and agree with the reasoning for not prioritizing it.

Bram Hengeveld · Jul 23, 2012

I am a single monitor user myself. Don't think ill ever go for three to be honest,

However your assumption Derek that a lot of people are using a triple screen setup is interesting. Can you please back it up with numbers?

We can also setup a poll for this at RD if you guys find it interesting.

Lars Brugman · Jul 23, 2012

I haven't even got space for three monitors lol.

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

Bram Hengeveld said:
I am a single monitor user myself. Don't think ill ever go for three to be honest,

However your assumption Derek that a lot of people are using a triple screen setup is interesting. Can you please back it up with numbers?

We can also setup a poll for this at RD if you guys find it interesting.

Certainly, Bram,

Please see my poll at iracing, and the link is mentioned up there in this thread. Twenty three percent of the respondents report that they use three screens, with another 12% claiming to make the upgrade. Even if we were to be very conservative as say that the margin of error was 50% of this small sample poll, I'd extrapolate the distribution of 3 screen users to be approx 1000 or more.

Keep in perspective that three screen users who are iRacing members may not represent the entire universe of 3 screen users, some of whom may become one day new sim racing enthusiasts. Overlooking the reality that three screens are becoming more popular is like thinking the sun won't come up tomorrow. I seriously don't think I need to defend my assumptions.

d

I say yes to a poll. I'd like to see what a broader audience has to say on this.

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

Requiem84 said:
Derek, good to see you followed up on my suggestion to post your request here.

You make a valid point for the importance of accurate rendering on three screens. With the current GFX cards, the threen screen route is more and more accessible for simracers.

However, I completely understand Aris when he says priorities lie elsewhere. The core of this sim must and will be believable physics. Perfect three screen rendering without good physics, will be like eating mayonaise without french fries (well, you get my point).

Let's not forget how incredibly small this development team is. Two guys full time programming means that they have to prioritise some elements, and I fully understand they prioritise the basic features of the game first.

Second, I appreciate Aris being so candid and transparent about what is possible at the moment and what not. Your requested feature will be available at some point problaby. If it's not available straight away, you can just wait a few months longer .

I agree that resources must be allocated where they must be considered to be the best used. My intention was that I had an opportunity to make a case and to be heard. I without doubt respect the decisions any business person would make. Although I disagree on the minor point of their assumed urgency of what I am claiming, my points being heard in reply, only they know what can be done now and then in the future.

Moreover, Aris' candid statements that they know the value of what I am asserting and that they will address it in the future is encouraging. I didn't set out here to convince KS to do it, and they know they should. I wished to uncover their point of view on it and to make my case.

That my appeal was heard tells me that KS isn't far from us "sim nuts" and wishes to know what we have to say. That's an encouraging bonus!

d

Hampus Andersson · Jul 23, 2012

Bram Hengeveld said:
I am a single monitor user myself. Don't think ill ever go for three to be honest,

Definitely missing out, it´s like a new world opens imo

Instead of watching the game you are more "in" the game

Bram Hengeveld · Jul 23, 2012

@Derek Speare the sim racing world is a bit bigger than just iracing. Those are high end product users probably but i doubt average joe runs triple screens, but lets find out. Very curious myself.

Poll time

Bram Hengeveld · Jul 23, 2012

Poll up: http://www.racedepartment.com/forum/threads/how-many-monitors-do-you-use-to-race.53906/

Its global in the sidebar so it will be visible on all the forums and threads. Lets see what the outcome will be

Derek Speare · Jul 23, 2012

Bram Hengeveld said:
@Derek Speare the sim racing world is a bit bigger than just iracing. Those are high end product users probably but i doubt average joe runs triple screens, but lets find out. Very curious myself.

Poll time

This is a fact I well know. COD took in 500 million in the latest release iirc. "Average Joe PC Gamer" may or may not use high end equipment, but the more "hardcore" the psychological inclination of the enthusiast, the more likely the tendency towards three screens.