PC3 Project CARS 3 to Change Focus?

[Paul Jeffrey]

Slightly Mad Studios Head Ian Bell recently revealed PCARS 3 is in development, and now hints have been dropped that the direction of the title might change for the next release.

The Project CARS series of games have, up until this point, been heavily focussed on a wide selection or road and race cars from a wide variety of different disciplines of motorsport - giving players the opportunity to drive such varied machines as top tier open wheel cars, to stockcar, touring cars, GTs, historic and road going performance machines.

Although the scope of the previous two versions of the game are indeed admirable, some could argue that potentially Slightly Mad Studios looked to become a jack of all trades with their game content, and as a result became the master of none.

This appears to have been noted by the decision makers back at SMS, as Ian Bell once again took to the internet to drop a few hints about the next release - suggesting that maybe Slightly Mad Studios would look to return to their roots somewhat, and produce an experience more akin to the earlier Need for Speed Shift release of 2009.

“I’ll let you know that pCARS3 will be more ‘focused’… More ‘fun’…" said Bell over on the GT Plant forums. "We went to insane lengths with variation in pCARS2 and with that comes infinite balancing issues. We’ve learned a lesson here and although we have no intention of reducing content, we know what we need to fix, where we made design decisions that were, let’s call it, ‘sub-optimal’…​

“pCARS3 will be more of a spiritual successor to Shift, but with all of the sim goodness everyone appreciates… The key focus though is on fun and not biting off more than we can properly chew and digest.”
​

Ian Bell does refer to the desire to retain the "sim goodness" of PCARS 1 & 2, however the shift (ha ha) towards an experience more closely aligned to the Need for Speed series does suggest that the new title could take itself a little less seriously than has been the case in the past, and leads one to wonder if a more arcade slant is to be applied to the title than has been the case in the past.

With PCARS 1 & 2 failing to match the quality of other sim racing titles the likes of rFactor 2, Assetto Corsa, RaceRoom and AMS, and with new games from Reiza Studios and the Early Access Assetto Corsa Competizione from Kunos in the works, a move towards a more fun and light hearted experience is probably not a bad idea for PCARS and the new title - quite how the end result will pan out remains to be seen.

One thing is for sure, however SMS pitch the new title, it will be very interesting to hear and read what is said on the build up to release of what is surely going to be another very interesting piece of software from the prolific game studio.

Check out the Project CARS 3 sub forum here at RaceDepartment for more news, discussion and features on this sequel release to the hugely popular Project CARS franchise of games.

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[chrisracer]

Got to love all of these responses. Especially the "handling and physics" guys. It's a game, a simulation. I've been racing for fourty two years and not one game, not one, comes close to the feeling of a real racecar. Why? Because racing is about visual and seat of the pants feel. There is no feel in any sim, unless you can afford a motion simulator (even those don't feel quite right). It's all visual and that changes your perspective completely. When I am in my car, it's what I feel in motion (those pesky little balance canals in your ears that cause the feeling of pitch and yaw, inertia etc). None of that in any game. Oh, and not to mention, I f**ked up, let me hit restart. Not the same in real life I'm afraid. I have no fear of turn two at Mosport in the game. It scares the **** out of you in real life. Turn six at Watkins Glen, same thing. The downhill at Lime Rock. The "Kink" at Road America (google Davy Jones or Katherine Leggae to see what I mean). Any of these and more, you make a mistake it's going to cost you, a lot. Maybe some pain too!

Of all the games I have (GPL, GTL, GTR2, PC1, PC2, rfactor 1 and 2, F1 2014, Assetto Coursa) the one I always go back to is GTL. It has almost everything. It feels good, looks good enough (compared to PC2) has the most mods (everything from 1955 LeMans to 80's IMSA, and Group C if you convert from GTR2). It doesn't take a degree in programing to add cars, tracks or new race groups to the game. It's fun, which I think is the bottom line. GPL is good but dated. GTR2 just not as good as GTL. PC1, good but cars and track selection left me wanting. PC2, better than 1, but still missing iconic tracks and cars (good fun factor). Rfactor, nice but difficult to mod unless you really know the programing. Forget F1 2014. Assetto Coursa, unfinished in my opinion. RF2, when the hell are they actually going to finish it?

 

[Shadowoff]

SMS to do list for any Project Cars title:
1.) Hype it up
2.) Release the game even though it has plenty of bugs
3.) Never solve these bugs but keep adding content which results in more bugs
4.) Release the next generation title after 12 months and never touch the previous title anymore
5.) Repeat

 

[InsaneOzzie]

Mr Bell, why would I buy your hype over your future MadBox console, when my PC will kick it's arse even when its out of date and your fantasy console is new. You've cried wolf once to many times in regards SMS products being "the best" or "blowing the competition out of the water" when the reality is, it doesn't hold up to the hype.

When will you wake up to the fact most of the sim racing community has woken up to you and your hot air hype, hence the lack of trust in all you say. SMS now has a reputation of being full of promise initially but never delivering on the quality or after sales support for said products once released, or have you realised that you've burnt most of the community that believed the initial spin of PC1 & 2 and know now that it's time to move on and milk a new format.

A word of advice, make sure the console is & does everything you claim it will or you could find yourself and SMS involved in a class action law suit, look at Bethesda they've learnt the hard way with Fallout 76 not to try and dupe the community that supports you.

 

[David Wright]

SMS to do list for any Project Cars title:
1.) Hype it up
2.) Release the game even though it has plenty of bugs
3.) Never solve these bugs but keep adding content which results in more bugs
4.) Release the next generation title after 12 months and never touch the previous title anymore
5.) Repeat

More accurately

1) Hype it up
2) Release the game even though it has plenty of bugs
3) Release lots of DLC at a great price for 12 months
4) Patch the game for 12 months solving/improving many but certainly not all bugs. Some patches introduce new bugs but these are fixed in the next patch.
5) Stick with strange design decisions which annoy the community.
6) Release the next generation after 30 months.

 

[aleph]

It baffles me that people would spend so much energy discussing the pros & cons of a game that doesn't even exist – or, worse yet, wishing it to fail even though that wouldn't benefit any of us, as opposed to what would happen if it actually turned out to be good.

I had great expectations for PC1, but gave it up after spending some 20 hours trying to make the damn FFB system work for me, plus a few more trying to get answers from the SMS team. People would either tell me that I should be patient and invest some time deciphering its cryptic parameters, or else would direct me to Jack Spade's files, a thread that by then had some 500 pages. I couldn't understand why such enthusiasm for a game that was obviously flawed and needed to be fixed by others who weren't even in SMS' payroll, until it dawned on me that many had stakes on the clever crowdfunding system devised by Mr. Bell. He had an army of thousands praising his product day and night, regardless of their personal feelings, because they wanted to get their money back with a profit – which I believe they did.

Anyway, I had no more time to waste with that, so I shelved the game. No great harm done. When PC2 came out, I bought it straight away and was delighted at the improvement. It is beautiful to look at, does several things nobody has managed to match yet – day/night cycle, real evolving weather, even changing seasons, etc., and has a good fun factor. However, I don't visit it very often because FFB still doesn't feel quite right with all cars, and the AI is still not solid. Since I only race offline, that is important to me, and right now AMS fulfills both needs quite nicely. (I do own a VR set and I understand its appeal to others, but I don't enjoy using it for racing – too blurry, too uncomfortable, too hot for long sessions.)

When PC3 comes out, I will surely buy it, as I do with every other racing title. It is my hobby and, if you think about it, software is the least expensive part of it. I wish all sims to succeed, because every developer does something quite well and every iteration brings the genre forward – and, love it or hate it, you can't deny that PC has played an evolutionary role in this process.

As to Mr. Bell being a genius or a scam artist, I couldn't care less. But you have to admire a guy who, once again, pulls the trick of having people talk endlessly about what he is offering, this time not out of financial interest, but of what appears to be pure hatred. As you learn with age, the opposite of love is not hate, but indifference. It is also what kills a new product in the market - and, if this thread proves anything, it is that PC3 won't ever go unnoticed.

 

[Boby Kim]

We have to admire SMS commercial strategy. Bad attention is still attention...
SMS scores very high in reply's on RD....maybe most of all games

 

[Deleted member 379375]

We have to admire SMS commercial strategy. Bad attention is still attention...
SMS scores very high in reply's on RD....maybe most of all games

But the bottom line is PC2 has till now sold a fraction of the numbers of PC1.
People are not only expressing their disappointment with SMS's commercial strategy in threads like this but also with their wallets

 

[hotak]

I may understand bashing pcars bugs (even if i find the argument VERY exagerated, I play it online pretty much every evening and not having great bugs since months, had many more in RF2).
I may understand the critics about not loving FFB, even tho i personally dislike AC one and find PC2's "raw" one not much different from RF2 and RRRE.
What it's really beyond me is how so many people have to argue about the physics engine! It provably simulates MORE than pretty much any title out there, and i don't think the parameters are tuned that bad, IMHO is the title that feels closest to RF2, and it even feels a bit better in "limit" situations, where you can really feel the rubber bouncing and twisting. It simulates temperatures in a very realistic way for tires and brakes, has pretty much all the physics features that are being hyped for ACC, lots of them already better implemented, when Ian Bell says it has the most complex tire model of all sims he's not telling something false, even if you don't like him or his sim.

RD community with this attitude just shows how immature simracing enthusiasts crowd is, learn to appreciate all developers for what they do and to care less about personalities you don't personally like. If you don't like Ian Bell, search for Casey Ringley's, Jussi's or Andrew Weber's posts on SMS forums to see all the passion that goes into researching and creating physics for pCars games.

If you look for it, somewhere you can also find a PDF with all the back-and-forth discussion between physics devs, Ben Collins and Nic Hamilton, but i imagine most of you don't really care and will continue to say they were there just for marketing purposes.

 

[Damage Inc]

I may understand bashing pcars bugs (even if i find the argument VERY exagerated, I play it online pretty much every evening and not having great bugs since months, had many more in RF2).
I may understand the critics about not loving FFB, even tho i personally dislike AC one and find PC2's "raw" one not much different from RF2 and RRRE.
What it's really beyond me is how so many people have to argue about the physics engine! It provably simulates MORE than pretty much any title out there, and i don't think the parameters are tuned that bad, IMHO is the title that feels closest to RF2, and it even feels a bit better in "limit" situations, where you can really feel the rubber bouncing and twisting. It simulates temperatures in a very realistic way for tires and brakes, has pretty much all the physics features that are being hyped for ACC, lots of them already better implemented, when Ian Bell says it has the most complex tire model of all sims he's not telling something false, even if you don't like him or his sim.

RD community with this attitude just shows how immature simracing enthusiasts crowd is, learn to appreciate all developers for what they do and to care less about personalities you don't personally like. If you don't like Ian Bell, search for Casey Ringley's, Jussi's or Andrew Weber's posts on SMS forums to see all the passion that goes into researching and creating physics for pCars games.

If you look for it, somewhere you can also find a PDF with all the back-and-forth discussion between physics devs, Ben Collins and Nic Hamilton, but i imagine most of you don't really care and will continue to say they were there just for marketing purposes.

yup, but you'll get nowhere with that sort of post here, according to the naysayers all the drivers were "paid to just promote the game and had no input" and Casey, Jussi and Andrew are completely clueless amateurs. Nothing anyone can say, or no evidence will convince these people otherwise, just because the game doesn't feel like their personal favourite.

The ONLY fair comment from the naysayers is that the business model could be better, i.e. more like the other big devs and just continue to suport the one game over a longer period, add content and fix bugs.

At the very least 2 years of dlcs and bug fixing would go a long way I feel. 1 year of support is stingy.

 

[Theodore 2019]

I came across a stream by Jimmy the other day and people where donating him 30, 50,10,10 etc pounds, that was in 5 mins of me watching it...

What in Gods name are these people doing sat watching a person play a game for 4 hours let alone giving him money??
Its utter madness.... we may moan about games like PCars 2 but at least for £30 you get something..... £30 to watch Jimmy turn his FFB up to 100% and drive a pixelated car around a track?! Huh what?

I find myself praying for Pretend Race Cars to come back.......please Austin we need you...

At least if the money was for a lisp surgery

 

[Deleted member 379375]

What annoys me about him is he's like the pinterest of sim racing. every time you do a search it's littered with his stuff. Need a browser app to filter him out