Reiza please consider editable files

[morsify]

Reiza,
this is definitely the best incarnation of GSC so far, but I must ask you again, please let us edit some of the files.
Many of us enjoy the fact that the AI are very good to race offline, perhaps the best I have seen.

I am not an expert by any means but I have learnt a fair bit about editing the Gmotor files over the years, and with access to hdv & engine files, I can build a season where the racing is extremely close, the tyre wear and fuel usage closely match mine, the field behaves realistically, there are mechanical failures in line with the racing era, and the pit stops become an important part of the strategy.

You know far more than I do, and you therefore know that it is difficult, with these files locked away, to really enjoy any more than short sprint races. So while it works ok for the Stocks and the Minis, the discrepancies are too noticeable on a 70 lap formula 1 race. There is no way to adjust these discrepancies and keep the racing close for the entire race.

You know what I am asking. I respect your work completely, but I do not understand why this tweaking is discouraged. It is surely what the GMotor engine was designed for, to allow the user to access and control the race experience.
It would give your brilliant game a much wider appeal and longevity.

The same applies to the race calendar. First, there is no way of knowing what the next race is until you actually go there, which seems strange. Secondly, we should be able to edit and choose the order of races, to alter the season. Again, more longevity for the game. Let's not fool ourselves, I know that you know, that we use other tracks. But even your team members have produced some superb addon tracks, so for instance we cannot even include Alex's tracks in a custom season. This is surely a must have option in current race sims, to be able to alter the season from year to year.

I am not moaning about the quality of your game, I think it is excellent, and also great value. But please consider what I have asked. Many of us enjoy offline racing only.
Thank you if you have read any of this.

regards
Keith

 

[Chronus]

If I have at some time insulted you I apologise, but I am really not sure what I ever did to incur your insults.

That is enough, sir.

Put into writing right now my "insults".

 

[morsify]

You say it is easy to see I don't know, simply because I gave you only one example. But I was not aware it was an exam of some kind. So yes, it seemed insulting to me.

EDIT: apologies to all, getting childish, no more from me.

 

[Jyri Kettunen]

I don't see why Keith's friendly request for the possibility of minor edits warrants a lecture of the history of modding and general high horseness.

 

[Chronus]

You say it is easy to see I don't know, simply because I gave you only one example[..] So yes, it seemed insulting to me.

You said to me "you appear to have a higher than average knowledge" and "with your apparent knowledge" (no big deal, right...? ), but by saying it's easy to see you are correct in admitting to not knowing all the parameters, you conveniently decided I "insulted you".

Ok...

---

Anyway:

GSC2012 is, together with rF1, a good sim. As a modding platform, encryption aside, perhaps as good as rF1 (or SIMBIN sims).

The market moves on, though. Sector3 is protecting their content, SRW too, SMS has been doing the same for years. It's not surprising to see RS follow in their footsteps. Opening a few "parameters" for modification here and there is enough for some, for others it's not. Perhaps what some are saying is that they fear the day will come when what makes RS different from other development studios is simply gone. Which is probably the root cause of the discussions surrounding pCARS (itself the great "community-based project") - that ultimately, the route towards "arcade-ism" is inescapable (save for ISI and probably Kunos).

 

[roby13]

I don't see why Keith's friendly request for the possibility of minor edits warrants a lecture of the history of modding and general high horseness.

web communication limitations. i also never thought keith being sarcastic in any way and dont remember ever seeing such behaviour from him. on the other hand i have seen many ignorant posters in various fora attacking chronus every time he jumps in an tries to re-establish an evidence based conversation, so maybe chronus you reacted a bit too sensitive here mate?

 

[Chronus]

web communication limitations. i also never thought keith being sarcastic in any way and dont remember ever seeing such behaviour from him.

Hello.

Ah, well...

A few months back, at NG, an old timer machine-gunned me (eheh...in a good way, I admit) with his impressions and many questions about GTR2/Race07 and how I translated my work with pro racing teams to these sims. No problem there, taking the "punches" is part of the process. Unless the tone degrades...

Present case: instead of arguing his points, Keith uses his "apparent knowledge" sentences in order to punctuate something. But he is not being "sarcastic", I am being "oversensitive"...Ok.

RE: "re-establish an evidence based conversation"
Some people react badly when asked some questions...instead of seeing in this an opportunity to have an interesting conversation.

And yes, his original post on this thread was a good one.

 

[roby13]

i honestly didnt receive the quoted phrase as sarcastic but ok. if keith wants he can answer himself, no need for an advocate.

 

[Tom Lory]

I'm walking away with appreciation and respect for how much resources can go into the HDV and TBC files, the passion that people who are involved at a high level in racing sims must have and acknowledging that I've been rubbed the wrong by way by one person or another in our league complaining that I'm "monkeying with physics" when I give one car a little more power, slightly less drag or a better set of gear ratios to help balance the performance of the cars.

For an outsider like me, I've been using the word dynamics in place of physics but I accept that physics is arguably more correct as the calculation of physics is what is required to give the simulated vehicle its performance characteristics and that not being a real life, physical, tangible, vehicle it can't really have dynamics.

I realized after I last posted that one could simply specify his own HDV file in the VEH file so that pretty well would seem to be the route that subsequent mods would take so while GSCE has those locked, a GSCE mod won't necessarily.

 

[morsify]

It's been almost a year since my original post on this thread, wow, time flies.
I re-read it, and I still feel the same, but I would like to emphasize 3 points:

(As I said then and I am still saying, I absolutely respect Reiza's stance on it, and their desire and right to keep their work safe/secure, so I don't expect them to suddenly re-open those files).

1) I love my offline racing. I need enough flexibility in a sim, to be able to mould each combination of car and track to a point where, as the player, I can slot in and be right at the exact same level - in lap times, pit stop strategies, tyre, & fuel, & general behaviour on the track. I spend more time achieving this on a single track than I do racing it. And in full length races, any discrepancies become more obvious & are often game-breakers.

2) I love my offline racing. I need a set of cars that work well physically (i.e. I have not created them myself for the wheels might then be square!), but must NOT all be identical on power & braking. Talent files are a start but not enough on their own.

3) Did I mention I love my offline racing? I need to be able to run FULL race weekends & full race distances, so I would dearly like to save my game between qualifying and race sessions.

Now, (and this is only MY own opinion so I don't care what anyone else says here) I will state it once more. Game Stock Car Extreme, with the parameters that Reiza leave open to us, HAS allowed me to achieve the best offline sim racing since Geoff Crammonds original F1 sim. If others disagree with that statement then that is their prerogative. For me it is a fact.

All tweaks, edits, upgrade files, and anything else related to the old gmotor engine, are publicly available on the net for anyone that cares to research and find them. They are not secret. They are simply undocumented, poorly documented, or just plain forgotten.

For me the only remaining weaknesses, are the lack of save between Q & R, and the poor overtaking of backmarkers (but I have managed to improve the latter to an acceptable level, depending on the nature of the track).

I simply continue to ask Reiza to please keep us offline players in mind - I REALLY appreciate a certain level of access to the parameters, and it is what makes this game the best.