With setups being so complex across multiple sim racing titles and a good setup being worth huge amounts of time across a race, it can be rather daunting for those who do not know much about car setups. So we had an idea, rehashed from the MotoGP and Project CARS games.
Image credit: Codemasters / EA Sports
We have all been there, have we not? About to do a race on our favourite sim or game and quickly looking for a setup on Google, since we all pretty much assume that the default setups are no good. Of course, for many people, developing the setup from scratch is part of the fun.
But that is still a strong minority who are more technically and mechanically inclined, and for the most part setups are a surface level topic for less hardcore players. It should come as no surprise, the Fixed Setup series on iRacing for the most part have more participation than their Open Setup equivalents.
With it being such a controversial subject matter within sim racing, maybe there is one thing that can be introduced that will satisfy both the immersion crowd and those who have not got the faintest idea of what to do.
In the MotoGP games developed by Milestone, you are able to talk to your engineer if there is an issue with the way your bike is behaving out on track. In the menu called ‘Guided Setup’, options include Braking, Corner Entry, On corners, Corner Exit and Acceleration. After going through the criteria, the engineer suggests some changes.
This is infinitely better than looking at things like ‘Front Pre-Load’ and ‘Swingarm Connector’, and all these other many options which are just as incomprehensible as hieroglyphics to most racing game mortals. It can be quite daunting, like having loads of options for something to watch on Netflix and eventually you want to just eat your pizza so you watch Friends for the 384th time.
A similar system could even be found in Project CARS 2, so it is not like car racing sims could not implement it. In PC2, players clicked the tab called ‘Tuning Setup’ and then ‘Race Engineer’. They are then presented with four options: Brake, Downforce, Suspension and Gearing.
Again, the player just answers a few questions trying to describe the issue that is bugging them. The engineer then suggests changes and voila, give it another chuck around and see if the car feels better to drive. Repeat the process until you are fully comfortable with the car – like professional racers would to with their engineers at the track.
For a demonstration, here is a video by the late William Marsh of Sim Racing Paddock putting it to the test.
This hypothetical Race Engineer software would analyse the setup you have in-game – whatever it may be like ACC, F1 23, iRacing, et cetera – and you can then tab into it and be presented with the same kind of questions as in the MotoGP game and Project CARS 2. Then once you have figured out the issue, it suggests changes and you manually apply them to the game.
Of course, the difficulty here is the fact that different games would warrant different settings for the same issue. It would be quite the task for whoever would make this app to have the solutions for each and every title, since the setups across all these games are so different. Plus, with the handling models being so different, a solution on ACC may not work on iRacing.
It would also have to cater for both qualifying and race setups. One of the easiest things to do on the F1 game is go to time trial and load the world record setup for a particular track, but that setup could not suit you but more importantly, not be a good race setup. There is more to a race than pace, you want to also not have a setup that destroys your tyres.
Should a tool like this become reality, more people being able to optimise their setups would close the gaps and make for an even better experience for us all. Let’s face it – not everyone has five hours to dedicate to keep lapping a track to find those precious extra tenths. This is for the most part, a hobby after all.
Would you like to see a setup guide service for sim racing? Tell us on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below!
Image credit: Codemasters / EA Sports
We have all been there, have we not? About to do a race on our favourite sim or game and quickly looking for a setup on Google, since we all pretty much assume that the default setups are no good. Of course, for many people, developing the setup from scratch is part of the fun.
But that is still a strong minority who are more technically and mechanically inclined, and for the most part setups are a surface level topic for less hardcore players. It should come as no surprise, the Fixed Setup series on iRacing for the most part have more participation than their Open Setup equivalents.
With it being such a controversial subject matter within sim racing, maybe there is one thing that can be introduced that will satisfy both the immersion crowd and those who have not got the faintest idea of what to do.
A Setup Wizard
Creating setups in sim racing titles has become quite the business, with many services charging subscriptions to access setups created by some of the top sim racing pros. But surprisingly, for all the claims about immersion, these titles lack something that could be very helpful and perfectly realistic since every driver has one: an in-game engineer.In the MotoGP games developed by Milestone, you are able to talk to your engineer if there is an issue with the way your bike is behaving out on track. In the menu called ‘Guided Setup’, options include Braking, Corner Entry, On corners, Corner Exit and Acceleration. After going through the criteria, the engineer suggests some changes.
This is infinitely better than looking at things like ‘Front Pre-Load’ and ‘Swingarm Connector’, and all these other many options which are just as incomprehensible as hieroglyphics to most racing game mortals. It can be quite daunting, like having loads of options for something to watch on Netflix and eventually you want to just eat your pizza so you watch Friends for the 384th time.
The setup refinement process is made so much easier with the Guided Setup menu. Image credit: Milestone
A similar system could even be found in Project CARS 2, so it is not like car racing sims could not implement it. In PC2, players clicked the tab called ‘Tuning Setup’ and then ‘Race Engineer’. They are then presented with four options: Brake, Downforce, Suspension and Gearing.
Again, the player just answers a few questions trying to describe the issue that is bugging them. The engineer then suggests changes and voila, give it another chuck around and see if the car feels better to drive. Repeat the process until you are fully comfortable with the car – like professional racers would to with their engineers at the track.
For a demonstration, here is a video by the late William Marsh of Sim Racing Paddock putting it to the test.
How Could It Work?
A possibility would be an external tool in the same vein of Crew Chief, for instance. There does exist an ACC Engineer app that we have reviewed before on stream, although that does not do what we are suggesting.This hypothetical Race Engineer software would analyse the setup you have in-game – whatever it may be like ACC, F1 23, iRacing, et cetera – and you can then tab into it and be presented with the same kind of questions as in the MotoGP game and Project CARS 2. Then once you have figured out the issue, it suggests changes and you manually apply them to the game.
Of course, the difficulty here is the fact that different games would warrant different settings for the same issue. It would be quite the task for whoever would make this app to have the solutions for each and every title, since the setups across all these games are so different. Plus, with the handling models being so different, a solution on ACC may not work on iRacing.
It would also have to cater for both qualifying and race setups. One of the easiest things to do on the F1 game is go to time trial and load the world record setup for a particular track, but that setup could not suit you but more importantly, not be a good race setup. There is more to a race than pace, you want to also not have a setup that destroys your tyres.
Sim Racing Setup Engineer Tool – Helpful For Everyone?
A piece of software like this would not only be practical to quickly iron out issues, but also go a long way to helping people learn more about setups in sim racing. With AI on the rise, it might even learn what works and what does not for different sims, making it more and more useful over time.Should a tool like this become reality, more people being able to optimise their setups would close the gaps and make for an even better experience for us all. Let’s face it – not everyone has five hours to dedicate to keep lapping a track to find those precious extra tenths. This is for the most part, a hobby after all.
Would you like to see a setup guide service for sim racing? Tell us on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below!
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