Opinion | Racing In The Rain

[mantasisg]

@Brice.S. I don't, I guess I just understand that it is a shadow... I also understand that in rain you have to drive slower. I guess that is just logic.

 

[Tim Meuris]

I hardly do it. Just started a championship in acc with variable weather. Really looking forward to it.

 

[GRaFkiyv]

Not every game is rain logically, but I like 3 games.
PC2 - nice light rain, streams and increased pools
WRC8 - overcoming the ford and lateral slip
ACC - aquaplaning and tire cooling
P.S. F1 2013 - drift due to a sharp gas pedal release

 

[guidofoc]

I think it's rather simple: rain is one element of real racing/driving. If you simulate real racing/driving without rain you are missing one part of reality. In reality, rain happens. You don't get to choose. ACC offers a good simulation of rain conditions. Of course, if I join a league in ACC I will have to do some kms in the wet to be ready in case it happens. Same for brake pads, tires, night driving etc. Everything is simpler when we don't need to care about those, right? If you just want to have some fun in a quick race, you can disable all that stuff. And if you don't like sim racing then Mario Kart is a great alternative.

 

[wombat999]

I probably do it 50/50, but only in ACC, pCARS2, and when I'm feeling really immortal in P&G!
Never bothered me that much IRL, usually extra preparation and 110% focus on track.
Always evened up the racing as well, but I couldn't say I 'loved' it, I just got on with it.

 

[oorjit07]

Only a few sims offer wet weather racing currently, and my pc struggles to run those, but in karts, living in southeast asia, wet racing is one of my favourite things.

 

[hablom1977]

I could race with rain conditions in rF2 but I prefer racing in good weather and good grip. The game is already tough enough for me. Also the rainy conditions give less fps.

 

[Antony Snook]

Wet races are difficult for me. But it depends, You can have a dry race with a light shower or a heavy monsoon the whole weekend. It will help you as cars retire a lot but its down to setup and if you can alter it.
It was not that long ago F1 teams could change setup from wet to dry sessions. But it is band as FIA don't like engineers tampering with car between sessions. You just need some system where scrutineers or cameras to watch teams via a room with monitors. Simple surveillance like in a apartment building or office.

 

[Ghoults]

I like the rain but ideally I'd really like to see changing weather conditions. The best and most fun conditions for me is when it just started raining slightly or it stopped raining a little while ago. You have your rain racing line you have puddles but you also have parts of the track being more wet and almost dry at the same time. That for me is rain driving. You can experiment and you have to experiment to figure out where there is more grip off the line and where that extra grip is worth it or not

I never cared about driving in monsoon weather for example. I don't really find it fun if my car starts aquaplaning randomly. I don't think consistent rain is that much fun either because at that point it is just a static grip multiplier and repetitive. You are still doing the same lines and lap times. It is fun for a little while maybe but nothing like racing in the changing conditions.

I think lots of people don't really care about this but when it comes to dynamic weather the wind and its effect is typically extremely under estimated. I still remember a race I did in live for speed where we had ramped up the wind to maximum. And because the wind comes in gusts getting the braking points right was really challenging. There was a strong head wind into one of the biggest braking zones and it was super fun trying to figure out the braking point all the while you were overtaking or being overtaken. It is somewhat poor example because just earlier I said I wanted more variability but less extremes and then I talk about a race where we used an extreme wind setting. But wind is definitely a factor I think is fun.

I'd wish sims went deeper into this variability of the weather. Having stuff like oil spills which have been cleaned off with sand which has left some patches on the road that slightly puffs when you go over it. Have those occasionally appear in random places with associated grip loss. Have the rain come so certain part may only get tiny bit of rain whereas some other part gets more. Instead of having a linear progression with two extremes I'd much rather want to see something that changes all the time but doesn't need to change much. Have wind and simulate the changing aspect how certain parts of the track may rubber up more or less quickly or behave differently in the wet.

All that being said I race very rarely in the wet. Not because I choose to but because the sim I play doesn't have rain unless the track maker has made a wet track option. And even then I want more than just a general grip reduction. But when a wet weather is available I use it althought it is really rare sadly. I don't really play rf2 but occasionally when I do some laps I think at least 30% of my track events have some rain. Hopefully ams2 has good weather progression model which allows me to do more of it.

 

[motoliser]

The only reason I dont race in the rain that often is due to lack of a good rain simulator!! Actually Pcars2 is still installed on my pc just because its satisfatory weather transitions.

 

[Jugulador]

In RL I really like to drive and ride in the rain... in simulators I fell it awkward. I think the tech is not there yet and the results don't fell real to me. It's not like wet virtual racing is not real enough... it's not even close to reality, like a different environment. No pleasure in that at all.

 

[Aitze]

I like rain, but as an offline racer AI is too quick most of the time compared to dry

 

[Shovas]

Ask any pro race driver how often they'd prefer to race in the rain: I think they'd say never.

It's not a matter of preference, it's a matter of making things interesting at random.

It's so cool to go into a championship or career mode and not know what the weather for your next race will be. Just like real life.

 

[Jugulador]

Ask any pro race driver how often they'd prefer to race in the rain: I think they'd say never.

There was a driver, once upon a time, that used to prefer the raining days.

 

[MarkR]

A lot of my real track time here in the UK is in the rain in anything from mildly moist to heavy rain with puddles on track so yes I love it. Even when the rain is forcing itself up my leg on a soaking wet day in the Atom it's always a challenge.

In racing games, I'd say somewhere near 50/50 for me because the choices are limited.

The games:

ACC
I absolutely love the rain effects in ACC, by far the closest to wet track reality so far especially in VR. Being able to feel the car understeering and being pushed wide, the puddles impact line but are not as deadly as in PCARS2. ACC in the wet is challenging just like real but not impossible, exactly as it should be imo. The wet Hotstint events are a real innovation in racing games and a huge amount of fun too.

Night, storm, rain, the ultimate challenge as far as I'm concerned and it's even better with the latest updates.

PCARS2
Before ACC came along PCARS2 was a good wet weather experience at light and medium rain settings. Beyond that, the puddles became deadly with uncontrollable spins off track. The car settings for rain were realistic too. A good experience with the right track and conditions.

Forza 7
Simplified for sure but especially with the latest updates for road feel and feedback, the rain is a great experience, changing weather and grip levels are handled well too. Sure you don't have to stop to change tyres for conditions but it's fun all the same.

RFactor 2
Hmm...I know some people love it I don't get it at all. Enough said.

F1 2019
By far the best races in each season are in wet conditions. Fabulous career racing fun and the F1 AI can maintain a decent if not perfect pace in the rain.

WRC 8
Ok but again the puddles deflect the cars way too much especially on tarmac.

DiRT 2.0
Like it a lot, realistic wet mud feel in a rally car.

Until you've wrestled an overpowered lightweight car around a track with the wind and rain trying to tear the helmet off your head you haven't lived! Until a game can replicate that ACC does a fine job of replicating a wet track.

 

[Corey Rogers]

I drive in the rain in practice sessions in ACC or on a Kunos server when there is heavy rain. I don't always want to race just to drive around and test the car.

 

[E304LIFE]

Racing in the rain sucks. Dirt, drift or dry. No rain.

 

[Oldzeb]

no simulation without real time weather, especially for endurance!!

 

[roadyroad]

Any game calling himself a sim should include the rain. It is a mandatory feature, it's an important part of racing irl. The rain made and still makes Pcars2 unique in the current generation of sims. Rain in ACC is also impressive. The rain in Codemasters's F1 games has become more and more interesting and fun. In all the games with this feature, I always like to hotlap or to race in rainy conditions, it adds some nice challenge.

Viewing the figures, and taking in account that some of you answered less than 10% because their most played sim doesn't include the rain (the question should have stated "when you play a sim which includes the rain"), it is obvious that this is an important feature for the sim racers. I hope our favorite deceloppers will listen and focuse on this aspect of racing.

 

[Dr. Death]

I hate to race in the rain, but i absolutely love the fact that a game can have rain.