iRacing: Audi RS3 LMS TCR Preview

[Paul Jeffrey]

iRacing have revealed a new preview trailer of the upcoming Audi RS3 LMS TCR car set to join the simulation this September.

Having been in the works for a little while, including the odd teaser mention in recent videos and news snippets from the studio, we now finally have some official details about the upcoming RS3 LMS TCR... it's coming to iRacing this September.

Yes, touring car racing is set to take centre stage in iRacing once again next month. The highly competitive TCR specification RS3 LMS is set to be made available to players as part of the 2019 Season 4 update, expected to be deployed to the simulation in the next few weeks.

Touring car racing has taken something of a back seat in iRacing these past few years, so the arrival of a modern TCR specification car is a nice move from the American developers, and is something I'm highly interested to try out for myself when it becomes available in the near future.

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[Sharpy Bonfire]

Getting my hopes up... most likely will get burned... Looking so much fun with all that sliding, but I am still afraid it will still be snap-spin like most of them. But either way, looking forward to this, it has so great potential to generate awesome races in iracing.

 

[Eckhart von Glan]

I'm a big fan of iRacing but i've learned to not buy cars that only race in one series. When they add more TCR's i'll take a look.

at their rate, you're in for a longish wait

 

[Eckhart von Glan]

btw, most civilized iRacing related thread in years, people are actually discussing the game/service, kudos to all participants so far

 

[Sharpy Bonfire]

at their rate, you're in for a longish wait

I would expect that if and when TCR proves popular, it will get couple more cars like rallycross which now have three cars already. Would bet that second one will be Golf as they some contacts to Volkswagen already.

 

[RCHeliguy]

So far I'm pretty happy with the graphics and their VR performance. I get a solid 120fps with super sampling on my Valve Index. Everything looks crisp and clean. The user customized livery options look good. The user definable positioning of the black box areas works well.

The only thing that feels missing after seeing it in other titles is having the driver's arm reach over to switch gears. Also you can't stand up in VR and walk around outside the car like you can in some other titles. However in a race I'm not thinking about these things.

They do seem to constantly be working on enhancements like the new wreckage model, and the temperature model etc.

 

[BrunoBæ]

It's based on the engine from NR2003, which itself was based on the engine from NASCAR Racing 4. IIRC it even had its roots in the engine used for GPL but I might be mistaken on that.
It's not surprising it's not looking too modern. I'd say they'd done a great job incrementally improving it,
() even if they are lacking all the bells and whistles.
I'm debating giving it another chance, but both times I've tried it I didn't like the physics/FFB.

You are somewhat right about the relationship.
But only somewhat.
NASCAR 4 (2000) was build on Grand Prix Legends (1998) and was later evolutioned to NASCAR 2002 Season (2002).
But NASCAR Racing 2003 Season (2003) was at least after Papyrus and Kaemmers own hype so great a change that it could be considered a dev revolution against its ancestors.
Graphically NR2003 offered only DX8 while the later FIRST sim that became iRacing originally transfered the NR2003 code to DX9.

Hehe while I agree with your disgust for iRacings physics I still consider iRacings maybe a bit dated graphics as having a strange rather more "realistic" look compared to the more graphically advanced racing games like ACC and pCars2.

 

[cupra_abf]

So stoked for this car. In my opinion TCR is perfect for iR, better than BTCC for example. Lots of brands, customer racing, basically a similar situation like with GT3. That should mean getting data shouldn't be too hard and hopefully over time it'll become a multi-make series.

I've driven race cars somewhat similar to the Jetta and the Kia, the two FWD cars so far. And they both felt really, really good, it was so easy to get used to them because it felt so natural. The TCR should be a bunch of fun...

The Audi is not my favorite, but it's a start. Hopefully we'll get more, so many cool options. Options would help participation, they are relatively easy to drive and TCR suits both sprint and endurance racing. If they do it right, I think it could become rather popular (and way more popular than the other two FWD cars ever were).

Getting my hopes up... most likely will get burned... Looking so much fun with all that sliding, but I am still afraid it will still be snap-spin like most of them. But either way, looking forward to this, it has so great potential to generate awesome races in iracing.

It should and it shouldn't snap spin. FWD cars snap much more violently than RWD cars depending on your throttle usage. Don't lift in the wrong moment or you're gone. BUT...its also way, way easier to catch absolutely massive slides.

As long as a FWD car has enough power, you can pull out of insane drift angles. The Jetta was a bit low on power for that, but with the Kia I've caught slides going nearly 90 degrees sideways. If things go sideways, just remember...full lock countersteer and mash the throttle.

...just be careful when jumping back into a RWD car, haha.

 

[TR_S]

To my understanding, at no point did they completely re-write the graphics engine, it's all been incremental changes. That's the point here; when you update something incrementally you always have some legacy code in there. There may no longer be any code from the original incarnation of the engine, but the incremental approach always means it's behind the times because you build in steps, which takes longer and usually requires some kind of workaround to make some newer things work with some older things, even if only temporarily.

They haven't started over from scratch, and it shows. That's what I was getting at.

It's not a slight, by any means, either. It's still a pretty good looking game, all things considered, and the incremental approach was a smart move from them for exactly the reasons you mentioned; it's easier to keep the whole player base on the same level that way than it would be if they introduced an entirely new engine that left behind the older machines.

Still uses the same format .dat .mip .lp files they used as far back as 1999 with GPL and the older IndyCar 2 and Nascar 3 / Legends.

I believe you are correct that there has not been a 'complete re-write'. That's why there are still hard coded limits to cars in a series / session.

I also do not care for all their fake series with the unrealistic salad of old cars and non-existent cars. Their IMSA series is pathetic. Non-existent C7 DP, no LMP2 / DPi, no Acura GT3, no Lexus GT3 and very few of the tracks. The LeMans series is missing tracks, the LMP cars are dated, no Bentley, no Aston, no M6, no 650 or 720, no C7 GTE and they substitute a bunch of dated or non-existent content for this as well.

Some of the most complete and best multi-class fields are in rF2 and RRE at the moment.

The physics / tire are horribly botched. Doesn't really drive realistically and there doesn't seem to be proper tire cycles. They go from cold grip to hot and slippery (backwards). Real tires cycle in and grip up as they warm then cycle through different phases of grip as they wear. Not their thing.

The ffb has seemed to have gotten better over the last couple years but it's still meh comparitvely...

The new damage system looks interesting. Whether they implement it in a useful way remains to be seen. I don't think most on the service would be able to drive the cars with the new damage as shown so far, and finish any session.

The system and mmo environment is great but everything else is lacking.

My 2nd least favorite sim next to AC. Can you tell?

* Edit *
https://postimg.cc/Wtpq2j7V
You can see in the hex of a .dat file, the .3do .mip .stp .ptf .lp and whatever other stuff. All the same file formats they've used for nearly 25 years.

 

[Jordan Dion]

But they already have the best FFB and tire model of all sims...

I guess you never played AC and ACC and Raceroom and Rfactor 2...

 

[cupra_abf]

I guess you never played AC and ACC and Raceroom and Rfactor 2...

I assumed his comment was sarcasm. And I see, you really seem to like iR.

 

[Cote Dazur]

Is A.I. still coming to IRacing?

 

[2112]

It's based on the engine from NR2003, which itself was based on the engine from NASCAR Racing 4. IIRC it even had its roots in the engine used for GPL but I might be mistaken on that.

It's not surprising it's not looking too modern. I'd say they'd done a great job incrementally improving it, though, and to my (colour blind) eyes they have the best colour balance of any sim out there right now, even if they are lacking all the bells and whistles.

I'm debating giving it another chance, but both times I've tried it I didn't like the physics/FFB.

Frankly, I could not give much care about the GFX as long as they are competent enough for me to race effectively. While dated the iRacing GFX are enough for me. Heck, my two favorite sims have dated GFX: R3E and rF2.

Physics and FFB are another animal altogether. I had the very same issues you seem to have with iRacing the two prior times I used it: The tires felt like glass and the physics seemed...slow or wallowy(?).

Unfortunately, my league, which went from PC2 to rFactor 2, fizzled because many of the guys who participated could not make the adjustment to the physics or rF2 after a few years with PC1 and 2. I could because I could finally feel the road, but...others could not.

We chose to go to iRacing so against my better judgement I re-upped.

I will be honest: While still lacking in physics and tire model the sim is much better. I can feel the road much better, I have more confidence in the tire model and I am actually enjoying the sim.

I was told that only the skippy tire model was improved but I feel that the sim as a whole is much better than it was even four months ago. Perhaps it is my better rig ( I went from a G27 to a Fanatec CSL with a Formula V2 wheel) but I am satisfied with what iRacing has had to offer me lately.

Yeah, the subscription sucks and so do the prices, but if you are judicious with what you buy you can find a car, or cars, you are happy with and have fun in the sim.

 

[Naliport Halulam]

Watched the trailer, This sim is looking graphically pretty dated now?

Can you be more precise ?

A part from the bizarre cloud illumination, IMO it look way more natural than ACC or PC2 especially during daylight hours.

 

[RichardHessels]

PLEASE UPDATE FFB AND TIRES IRACING!!!!

Yes.. the DEV's of iRacing check RD every day to see who has some fresh ideas.

 

[Troy Barman]

I'm a big fan of iRacing but i've learned to not buy cars that only race in one series. When they add more TCR's i'll take a look.

Well apart from the booming popularity of GT3 I doubt you’ll see a second one. IRacing typically is just one and done from a series...

 

[MarcG]

No AI = No Buy

 

[Jordan Dion]

I assumed his comment was sarcasm. And I see, you really seem to like iR.

I like Iracing.. Many aspect are good but i dont understand the FFB at all...

 

[cupra_abf]

Is A.I. still coming to IRacing?

Yes. 'Soon'.

Apparently, some of the trailers already use the AI.

Well apart from the booming popularity of GT3 I doubt you’ll see a second one. IRacing typically is just one and done from a series...

I mean, there is also 2 LMP1 & 2 GT1 (and multiple GTE I believe?). So especially with somewhat popular tin tops, 2 or more are actually not that unusual. If we now consider that TCR is kind of the GT3 formula of touring cars, I don't think a second make is too unlikely.

I like Iracing.. Many aspect are good but i dont understand the FFB at all...

I get that. I personally like it, a lot, but it feels very different from quite a lot of sims. The easiest to jump back and forth in between are rF2 and iR if you drive a lot of iR IMO.

You really don't get that much feedback in some cars in iR. FFB varies wildly between cars, more than in other sims I'd say. I do believe to a degree that is realistic though. I've tracked quite a few cars, and how much of your feedback comes from the steering varies massively. Some wheels barely self-center at all, some snap back pretty heavily. Same goes for cars on iR.

And the ones with a very light, low feedback steering do not give you any confidence at all. In a way, the same happens IRL, but there the steering feedback is replaced by all the other feedback you get. In the sim it gets replaced by...nothing.

In a lot of other sims, I feel like there is always a minimum amount of self centering for example, and every steering feels as heavy and snaps back like an IndyCar. Not quite, but you get the idea. You sometimes end up with a FFB that makes it relatively easy to drive, but doesn't really fit how the car would feel IRL. Just steering wise, not in any other way by the way.

IMO iR captures 'real' FFB a lot better than it gets credit for. But that doesn't mean it's the best in giving steering feedback in a sim that lacks all the other types of feedback. There is different ways to approach FFB, and not everyone likes every approach.

 

[DonZmeuheu]

Can't wait hope that in the Future we will also get the GT4 Class. I need the Cayman GT4 Clubsport in IRacing. Both the TCR and GT4 Class are both perfect to launch new great Race Series. Both classes are also great in Multiclass Race Events like VLN or 24h Nürburgring

 

[Eckhart von Glan]

It's nice, actually, to see them do something new on the road side, most of the development the last year was on dirt or even more so dirt oval. Seems to be quite a hit in the US, but for most Europeans it remains - quaint.