rFactor 2 | Upcoming Q4 2022 Update

rFactor 2 BMW.jpg
Its been an exciting year for rFactor 2's development and its showing no signs of slowing down. In fact with a new build on the way, new content and its inclusion in the Low Fuel Motorsports platform, its doing nothing but accelerating!

BTCC​

Studio 397 have just announced that the BMW 330e M Sport BTCC will be joining its ever growing roster of BTCC cars aiming it the 5th car of its class to be added! This is a car that has been much talked about over on the forums at S397, and will be a big hit with Colin Turkington fans!

Avery welcome addition to go with the existing BTCC cars and also the BTCC tracks we now have in the game, but it seems there may be more on the way, will we see another track from the series maybe, I can certainly think of a couple I'd love to see in fully laser scanned glory!

Bahrain​

Talking of tracks, the first ever laser scanned version of Barhain is coming to the sim in this content drop and as some of you may know, it was already used in the recent Virtual Le Mans opening round, so that may not be news to you.

What is news is that they are planning to release four different configurations of the desert circuit, which should certainly keep us busy, and by the looks of the screenshots and video of the track I'm sure its designer Hermann Tilke would be proud to see it represented in all its digital glory!

Low Fuel Motorsport​

rFactor 2's online presence has shot up recently with its inclusion in the fantastic Low Fuel Motorsport platform, making it the second simulator supported by the system after Assetto Corsa Competizione, and so far its been a resounding success, with multiple L.F.M. servers attracting up to thirty drivers per race! I've never seen so much activity in RF2 online outside of a league in a long time!

There's all of this and more, because along with the new content comes a new build of the simulation which packs a host of new features, fixes and improvements!

The track limits system is again receiving updates and refinements and I have to say, it's already one of the best track limits systems I've ever seen in any sim, which must be a big plus for the online community at LFM.

UI​

Further improvements have been made to the UI making it faster and more user friendly, track loading times have improved and there is even a function to quit to desktop instantly using a key press combination from anywhere within the game!

Offline​

One of the biggest improvements for offline players in the new build will be a fix to the A.I. that has solved a long standing issue with their brake and throttle behaviour. This has had knock on improvements to the way they sound and look going around the track and most importantly their driving. Infact its also solved issues with certain A.I. cars ability to make it round specific tracks!

You don't even have to wait for the update (which should arrive early November) to try out some of the improvements as there is a beta Release Candidate you can already opt into through your steam library!

If you're not sure how to opt in, or you would like to see a comparison of the old A.I. vs the new A.I. I've put together a little video showing you all of that and a couple of other features of the new build as well, hope it's of use to you!

What do you think of the rFactor 2's progress over the last year, do you see it as a brief revival of what has sometimes been a controversial racing simulator, or do you think the future is bright and getting better?

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75% off thru Halloween for select DLC

And even with that great discount, on my country a single RF2 pack is a lot more expensive than a full AMS2 season pass :-(

With all this LFM buzz and AI improvements I tried the new beta build after a couple years without touching the game.

I was really impressed by the easy of use of the UI for a VR user, it's definitely a very good improvement on the QOL aspect of the game. Performance vs graphics quality in VR is really good too, better than I remember from two years ago. I don't want to write about the physics/FFB aspects because it always was great to me, those weren't the issues for me which led to not playing the title (bar some weird quirks from the tyre model)

On the announced AI fixes, I have to say that the annoying brake/accell while turning is tonned down significantly, but AI at 100% still is reckless and lack awareness, making impossible to race with the AI on powerfull open wheelers like the Formula ISI 2012. Racing slower cars against AI is a lot better tough.

I think S397 is on the right track with this update, LFM integration will boost player base which will lead to more optimizations, bug fixes and hopefully more features. Only thing I'm mad right now is the cost of the DLCs because I can only drive the base content, and they are not much inspiring sadly.

I'm happy to see improvements on this very good title.
 
shame literally all of rf2's worth while content is jammed behind expensive dlc, the default content is garbage
Yea, it's just not worth the money. AMS2 is shaping up to be what rF2 should have been in the first place, and the DLC is much cheaper. yea yea I am sick of hearing about rF2's better physics. A product is the sum of all it's parts and AMS2 as of 1.4 physics overhaul is much much more than rF2 as a package.

I just can't see myself buying those DLCs
 
Premium
Yea, it's just not worth the money. AMS2 is shaping up to be what rF2 should have been in the first place, and the DLC is much cheaper. yea yea I am sick of hearing about rF2's better physics. A product is the sum of all it's parts and AMS2 as of 1.4 physics overhaul is much much more than rF2 as a package.

I just can't see myself buying those DLCs
I like RF2, have always kept it up to date and up to a point I was buying the DLC.. But I am a multiplayer racer so I still do everything in iracing.

Its interesting with LFM, that announcement made me want to have another look but you essentially have to buy 100% of content to race online. Want to take that gt3 you do own on a multicalss race with LFM - sure after you buy every single piece of gt3, gte, lmp content.

If they had something like LFM years ago I may have done that over time like I buy iracing content over time but there is very little chance I am going to buy all that content to run one thing.

Yes, I know the resaons, they are technical.. That why techies are not in charge of product development. They make cool products but dont think about the end user as they should.
 
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Yea, it's just not worth the money. AMS2 is shaping up to be what rF2 should have been in the first place, and the DLC is much cheaper. yea yea I am sick of hearing about rF2's better physics. A product is the sum of all it's parts and AMS2 as of 1.4 physics overhaul is much much more than rF2 as a package.

I just can't see myself buying those DLCs
You have a point about the fact that a sim isn't just about physics but all of it's little bits and pieces that make it a good package. The wierd thing is that rF2 offers exactly that and it's most likely one of the reasons why it is used in very diverse ways from SP racing, League racing, Pro Esports and now with LFM public pick up online racing. I got to dissapoint you but AMS2 falls short in alot of other areas compared to rF2 that don't have anything to do with physics. The online experience (inlcuding netcode, the whole MP system, server options, rules etc.) is quite frankly complete garbage compared to rF2 and it's one of the reasons why it isn't used by LFM. The simple way to plugin any content that you like from the workshop, the official or 3rd party DLC is another area where rF2 shines. It's pretty close minded to claim that rF2 is just about physics. It's such a complex and big experience in itself. The track content that is offered with the DLCs speaks for itself.

To say that rF2 isn't worth the money while AMS2 is the best package is complete nonesense if you ask me. And who in gods name believes that you need to buy DLCs to have fun with the sim. Buy the DLCs that appeal to you - no matter wich platform - or try the great mods that are offered by the community. This alone is a point where rF2 easily whipes the floor with AMS2. For allmost every payware content that you can get for rF2, you have a good chance to find a free alternative. But don't be surprised if the quality varies. Next to that, it comes down to what you are looking for. If you are looking for BTCC racing or high quality endurance racing, there is simply no way around rF2. You get allmost full IMSA, WEC and ELMS packages. How on earth are you going to do that with AMS2?
 
Fact ? You speak for everyone here ?

Personally speaking the overall driving package is hands down the best and over shadows everything else.

That's a Fact ..... IMHO
Hehe, for me physics and handling are very important. But I can see how other sim racers have other priorities. It's one of the most important reasons from my perspective why the product is still relevant after all these years. And it's quite interesting to see all those YT celebrities dipping their toes into rF2 now that LFM offers a platform for pickup racing within rF2 and I just think to myself: we have been telling for all those years that it's great, so why does it take that long for people to realize the beauty of the product? And from my perspective the lack of alot of things that make it a great package now, have been an obstacle. I can't tell you how long I have been waiting for dynamic ambient and track temps for example. For the next person the new sound engine might be the next best thing since sliced bread.
 
Premium
Great update including improvements and looking forward to purchasing the BMW BTCC and Bahrain Track.:)

Sim Racing is all I do and do not do any other Game genre, so personally I keep my pennies aside for any new Sim content that appeals from any of the Sims I have on my PC...always helps towards further development of said Sims.:thumbsup:

More than happy with the progress that Motorsport Games / Studio397 are going with rF2:thumbsup:...keep chipping away a the big picture;)
 
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2022 has been a very eventful year for rF2. It almost looks like MSG has moved more resources to rF2, because all the other projects they were working on seem to be ‘dead’. The new QoL updates to the sim are very welcome again and also is the extra content drop, but nobody will be surprised about another BTCC car and the Bahrain track. Does Studio 397 have another surprise for us in Q4? We will probably find out soon.

I don’t understand all this discussion about what is the better sim… rF2… AMS2…etc.. It is almost like iOS vs Android discussions. But… buying two flagship phones is much more expensive than 2 sim racing games. If I spend 50 EUR on each sim yearly, I can enjoy both.
 
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Premium
2022 has been a very eventful year for rF2. It almost looks like MSG has moved more resources to rF2, because all the other projects they were working on seem to be ‘dead’. The new QoL updates to the sim are very welcome again and also is the extra content drop, but nobody will be surprised about another BTCC car and the Bahrain track. Does Studio 397 have another surprise for us in Q4? We will probably find out soon.

I don’t understand all this discussion about what is the better sim… rF2… AMS2…etc.. It is almost like iOS vs Android discussions. But… buying two flagship phones is much more expensive than 2 sim racing games. If I spend 50 EUR on each sim yearly, I can enjoy both.
 
Hehe, for me physics and handling are very important. But I can see how other sim racers have other priorities.

Absolutely ! :) I respect individuals choices but not someone posts just to complain. If you have not got the gist of ancient ISI motor and it's limitations after 10 years I just don't know what to say.
Lastly S397 forum is the place to complain I tend to think most here are not even bothered about the things which they complain of.

Personally I like every sim I have and just like rF2 they all have their pros and cons. I not going to waste my time worrying about it or complaining in other sim threads.
 
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Yea, it's just not worth the money. AMS2 is shaping up to be what rF2 should have been in the first place, and the DLC is much cheaper. yea yea I am sick of hearing about rF2's better physics. A product is the sum of all it's parts and AMS2 as of 1.4 physics overhaul is much much more than rF2 as a package.

I just can't see myself buying those DLCs
Haha. Ams2 did have a good base with the madness engine. But it has no soul. Sadly it feels like its one up from PC2 when it comes to handling and it caters for eye candy simcaders. Which is why lots of Youtubers use it because it looks good recording it. If you want a more arcade sim approach then go for it. If you like to tinker have greater engagement with the wheel then maybe the laborious nature of RF2 is not for you. I am no sim racer when it comes to esports as i play casually. But i feel engaged. These BTCC handle so well you will not find a sim with that level of detail. But yeah much of the other stuff is frustrating.

So yeah i will be buying this. And i hope they finally remaster the Reiza tracks.
 
been a very big year for RF2. lots of leaps forward. Seems like ditching old leadership and letting new brooms sweep clean was a good decision.. Just did a 30 lapper in VR with BTCC and AI at Bridgehampton.. damn awesome!

Some places I feel its still lacking:

- the multitude of settings are still hidden in INI files.
- that awkward AF mirror placement system.
- unintuitive pitstop system.
- no in game setting for FSR (its nearly 2023 MSG... Foveated FSR is a thing)
- the external settings for chaning between VR and Pancake. fix this already
 
Premium
Can anyone help:)....In Paul's video above there is a 'MINI':inlove:...where can I get that, can provide a link please, if possible...thanks in advance:thumbsup:
 
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