Rate The Sims: Community Edition | iRacing

[Paul Jeffrey]

We are looking to crown the 'RaceDepartment Community Favourite' racing game - get your votes in now for our next game on the list... iRacing!

Our dear RaceDepartment community. You folks are the most mighty fans of sim racing, often displaying an immense amount of understanding and depth of knowledge when it comes to our favourite hobby.

With sim racing and eSports in such a wonderful boom period of late. Gamers looking to have some fun with their virtual racing machines have never before had such a wide and robust variety of software to enjoy.

Now occasionally I've been in a position to rate new racing titles that have come my way, and almost every time I've received a wide variety of folks agreeing, or strongly disagreeing with my own opinions.

Opinions are great, but sometimes the opinion of one person, with their own likes and dislikes taken into account, can often give a bit of a skewed picture (intentional or not) to the greater cause in which said person is trying to explain.

As such, rather than doing one myself, and in the spirit of engaging some interesting community discussion, I thought it could be fun to let our own community rate each of the key sim racing / racing games available today.

As always with these things, please do try and respect each other and their opinions, and let's try to see if we can give a fun, but fair shake of the stick to each of the games included in this poll.

For transparency, I'm going to be featuring the following racing games over the next weeks:

• Assetto Corsa
• Assetto Corsa Competizione
• Automobilista (AMS)
• DiRT 2.0
• F1 2019
• GT Sport
• GRID
• iRacing
• NASCAR Heat 4
• PCARS 2
• RaceRoom Racing Experience
• rFactor 2
• WRC 8

I'm going to launch the article each Monday evening, and keep the poll running for a full week until the next new article is pushed live. So get your votes in quick!

Once I've completed the full list of games, I'll publish a final results feature, and we can award the winning developer the lofty title of 'RaceDepartment Community Favourite'!

Have fun, stay sensible and let the voting commence!

 

[PickABetterUsername01]

No, its simply not what the word 'monopoly' means. First there are other options, they just aren't as good in your opinion. Second, even if there weren't other options, there is nothing that to prevent others from developing a competing service. It's simply not a monopoly.

It would be like saying that Mercedes has a monopoly on luxury cars because their luxury cars are the best; despite the fact that there are other companies making luxury cars.

No. iRacing is the only one that offers a structured multiplayer system for SIMRACING on PC. Period. It's a fact, not an opinion. Did anybody else try to compete with them? No.

You example is also horrible, you can't be serious. There's so many car brands that sell luxury cars, how can you even think your example compares to this?

 

[RCHeliguy]

Still didn't even try to understand what me - and so many others with the same opinion - wrote about IRacing their approach towards monetizing.

If you want to agree to disagree and call it a day, I'm all for that at this point.

The only person who agrees with me 100% of the time is me and I've changed my opinions about many things over time and I have no problem with people disagreeing with me.

Your premise that I don't understand you or that I'm not trying to understand you is flawed. It's a misconception to believe that someone would have to agree with you if they understood you.

 

[VFX Pro]

If the FFB would be like RFactor 2 or Automobilista and the prices a tad lower, I would give it a 9 instead of a 7. No matter what I try with my Accuforce, I cannot get the same level of detailed FFB from AC or ACC and the realism of the FBB in rFactor 2 and Automobilista. Some VR optimization on some tracks is needed, the FPS dips too low in some areas around the starting line. Graphics and sounds are great, but bring everything to TyreV7 ASAP, otherwise it's like driving on a ice ring.

Racing against AI would be great as well...

 

[RCHeliguy]

Looking at the rating distribution curves on the titles to date, there appears to be a very similar curve on most titles with only AC ( better) and Grid (much worse) sticking out.

My take away is that people generally seem to be similarly happy with the sims that they use.

 

[Koen Verlinde]

If you want to agree to disagree and call it a day, I'm all for that at this point.

The only person who agrees with me 100% of the time is me and I've changed my opinions about many things over time and I have no problem with people disagreeing with me.

Your premise that I don't understand you or that I'm not trying to understand you is flawed. It's a misconception to believe that someone would have to agree with you if they understood you.

You don't have to agree with me, and I don't have to agree with you, but for some reason I fail to see how you understood what I was trying to say, and although english is not my native language, I presume I can at least express myself decently.

Then again, I will not spit on the hand that wants to agree to disagree, that's not my nature, so I'll accept it and wish you a good day.

 

[dene11]

Well, regular I used Raceroom, ACC and Automobilista. Now I tried iRacing... and it's a real shock for me: very, very outdated graphics (even in comparison with Raceroom and AMS) and feeling of "non-existent" FFB (I have no passion of driving with iRacing as opposed to r3e, ACC, or AMS). I understand that iRacing is top notch in online racing and rating system, and plenty people invested a lot of money, but... looks like outdated project with error on own graphics and driving physics base.

 

[E304LIFE]

Agree with @BigMike8 on this one. Time and money were the issue for me as well. For the online racers, it was the benchmark though.

 

[Ville-Samuli Mutanen]

I had to give it 6 points. 7 wouldn't be wrong either but because I've been rather strict with the previous titles it would be wrong to change the standards midpoint.

It offers unrivaled structured MP and good quality tracks (when up to date) but everything else seems mediocre at best. Tyres and FFB is the main reason I find myself not driving it even when my subscription have been active. Atm. it's not.

 

[snyperal]

I do think regarding ffb, if they went with some of the Kuonos faked forces it would improve the sim substantially. It's not that it's bad per se, more that other sims capture that vehicle movement that you can't feel sitting in a chair.

I'm amazed the graphics are getting panned, I think it's a damn good looking title.

 

[RCHeliguy]

The FFB in iRacing appears to be completely physics based, so you feel the wheel loadup, unload and if you go over a large curb you feel that, or god forbid you hit a wall. With a direct drive wheelbase you better let go of the wheel or risk injury. Otherwise there isn't anything else to feel.

I have a transducer mounted to my wheel base support structure that carries engine rpm and there is some road texture that comes through the wheel and fills in the blanks a bit.

Part of the reason I may be happier with how everything feels is that I have a seat mover and 4 transducers. So when start the engine, I feel a lumpy idle and when I shift gears there is a small lurch as the clutch disengages and reengages, there is a thunk in the seat of your pants and you feel the rpm change.

There is reasonable surface detail for the transducers and I get great feel when I go over the rumble strips on the side of the road. The sound and tactile response are in perfect sync and it is very believable.

So YMMV.

 

[sonicviz]

I recently decided to try it with a $4.95 deal for three months.
I just uninstalled it in disgust, and I still feel ripped off at $4.95.

Benchmarked against AC, ACC, DR1/2, WRC 8, F1 2019, Wreckfest.

 

[Ryan Robbins]

Many say there is no other online system like iRacing. I agree for the most part. I think the guys at Simracingsystem are trying to provide an alternative. It works quite nicely and is free. In my experience there the AC servers are well populated.

Fact is, at iRacing I cannot race the cars I want unless I plan ahead and join a race once a week that has a crowd. This defeats the purpose for me because I can do that in a league who a sim I enjoy more.

I spent so much cash on cars I love only to see they arent popular and so I never drive them. Live and learn

 

[Wayne Hutchison]

Tried them all. Regularly race on iRacing, rFactor2, Raceroom, ACC. If you want the most accurately simulated physics and FFB, iRacing is your sim. rFactor2 would be 2nd with ACC 3rd. Raceroom, while a nice package, uses very simplified physics - and the FFB - just weird. Add in the only real multiplayer matchmaking system that actually works AND has races to participate in every hour and iRacing further distances itself from the field. Add in very detailed dynamic track surface and day/night/sun/clouds and how these are all part of the physics model and not just fake add-ons like rFactor2 - and iRacing takes another huge leap ahead of the pack. And it goes on and on. It might cost more than the other sims out there - but, like with most things, you get what you pay for.

 

[BrunoBæ]

Tried them all. Regularly race on iRacing, rFactor2, Raceroom, ACC. If you want the most accurately simulated physics and FFB, iRacing is your sim.

I dont really know what to say.
But decided that you must be sarcastic

 

[sonicviz]

I'd give iRacing 100+ because the Fizziks are outstanding (sic)

https://twitter.com/x/status/1200189061249540096

 

[stickdeath1980]

have it a 6 after 3 plus years playing I've ahd highs and alot of low's.
League wise the amount of grid's for au/nz is amazing.
seen mates race v8 supercar driver's.

+livery creator pretty badass
+Enduro event's 12/24 hours
+driver swaps

-Werid net code
-after a 24 hour race i gain 0.7 on my irating after 70 plus laps and x4 inc
-irating is just ****
-every car and track cost more than the base game
-Sub fee's $17.99 a month
-Average Car cost = $11.99/14.99NZD
-Average Track Cost = $11.99/$14.99NZD
-They don't have package deals (like raceroom etc)
-some race's are like forza lobbys

Done one 12 hour race which we couldn't finish to a "Known" Bug was pretty gutted!!!!
Got ready for the next 12 hour race Sebring ,Couldn't do it because of a bug.So all the money we spent of server's practice everythink was for nothing

if you want track maps set up help they all cost

 

[Mike McCormick]

They do have package deals, check the site. The more you buy the greater the discount. If you do 8 weeks out of the 12 weeks in a series you get a small $ bonus. No limit on the series you can run to get this.

Multiplayer is great, I would much rather race against real people. I also like the fact the sim is upgraded every 13th week. Tracks are great, but some need to be updated as do some of the cars. The individual stats is a great feature also.

Yes, some of the lower splits have some crazy or inexperienced drivers. However if you get to the higher splits the driving generally improves and is much better in the top split.

FFB is fine with me as I feel bumps on the road and curbs and I can also pretty much feel what the car is doing, but like anything else it could be improved more. I run an AccuForce wheel. I agree surface and curb detail for the transducers is good. The FFB in iRacing appears to be completely physics based is what I have heard also.

Version 7 tire model is an improvement, but still has some issues. It's getting better, just not as fast as most would hope. However much better than when I joined in the Fall of 2010.

The New Damage Model is still pretty much in beta, but looks like it will be good when the bugs are worked out.

It is no longer "ice racing" as some like to call it. Is it perfect, no. However what sim is, they all have their strengths and weaknesses. Like some have said before, it would be great if you could combine all of the positive points of each game into one. However we know that isn't going to happened so just race the one you like and don't bad mouth the one you don't. Be glad we all have a choice of which one we want to race on.

 

[Eckhart von Glan]

No limit on the series you can run to get this.

yep, but a limit on the bonus cash you get, i.e. 10 iRacing dollars every 13 weeks, no more. Running one lower level series and one higher level will get you the max as do 3 lower level series or two higher level series.

 

[GRGOutlaw]

If I could give it a vote, I'd say 4.5/10. My reasoning is this, I've had this sim for almost a year now (got at the beginning of 2019) and I loved it at the start because of this group I was in and racing with. We had fun doing stuff and they still do but I had to stop paying for my sub because I wasn't having fun. I had more fun doing a 5 man LMP2 race @ COTA on PC2 on pc. I realized that the rating system was making too much of a driver where I was just focusing on getting to that next license class or iRating level. It ruined the fun of sim racing for me and I didn't realize it until then. I might renew my sub when I get more money just because of some of the new content but that's about it. . I love the fact that you can come home and jump into a session that is usually always full and race. But I don't think that is why you should buy it. To be honest, I feel there are more down sides to it than up sides. Nothing draws me into it anymore like it used to.

You go spend your money on this sim and I'm not going to stop you but if you can't afford then wait because as soon as you get out of rookie you have to pay to progress and it is pretty annoying. I'd be fine with paying for the tracks and cars or the sub fee but not both at the same time it is pretty annoying for the people without much money. I've spent a good $400-500 in the time frame that I have owned it. That includes tracks, cars and the sub. I don't like that once the sub is over you can't access anything. Yea, I get that I agreed to the terms on the contract but it is annoying.

The rating system is annoying because it is there to have experienced drivers race against similar experienced drivers but you have 500 iRating guys driving cars that they can't control in high splits and causing wrecks.They need to organize it where if a driver has x iRating then they have to race against people with that iRating no matter the class but there should be at least 2 drivers in a class. I get keeping things 'official' for races but it is annoying in some ways. I had a pretty bad iRating at one point because I kept getting taken out or tried racing people and they would wreck into me, which leads to my next point.

The protest system is a good system but the consistency of rulings is just bad. I get wrecked out of a race and the ruling is we'll look at the driver but won't do anything. I see more people banned from voice chat because a slip of anger than I do with wreckers. I want to have fun racing people but it is hard when people wreck and nothing is done.

The community is good in some places and not in others. K&N community is an example I'm going to use because of issues I've had before with them. I made a mistake one time and a dude gets all up in arms because I made a little mistake. It just annoys that I want to have fun but people ruin it cause I make a mistake.

Content release. I love some of the content that has been recently released like NTMv7, the damage model, the new off road trucks, the TCR, and the coming soon 917 GT4. Some games don't have many of these cars as is so it makes it special to iRacing. Problem for me is that it isn't organized. I get that they want to balance the road, oval and dirt content but they are only releasing 1 car per class so you're pretty limited on options if you want to race. There is also some pretty out-dated content like the P2s, DP and some GT3s. I've heard many things about this old content not getting replaced or don't have to rights or whatever for it. Just sad to see many classes left out to dry and can't have anything done for them.

I'd love to give my view on the latest update but I can't. It looks really good for many groups of the community. Painters, drivers, oval driver, dirt drivers, and many others. It is really great. I've heard good things about it as well. I hope iRacing can fix somethings like the license/rating system, content, etc. because it would give it a better rep for the game. I've raced on iRacing, ACC, AC, PC2, rF2 and RaceRoom. They have their own great qualities. rF2 with a good tyre model. ACC with GT3 cars that feel amazing. AC with a great modding community. PC2 with a great Xbox community behind it and some surviving even though it wasn't the best, it was different. RaceRoom with DTM, WTCR and some pretty exclusive tracks in my opinion. But nothing will be the absolute perfect sim and that's ok.

Probably more stuff I could have written or done better but it is 9pm at the time.

 

[avenger82]

If you want the most accurately simulated physics and FFB, iRacing is your sim

Based on what? Your subjective feel? Verstappen and other pros playing it? How about tire model? Will NTM8 finally fix it? When different tire compounds will be available.

Raceroom, while a nice package, uses very simplified physics

Again, source? I'm not saying it has best physics, but why simplified. It uses highly modified gMotor engine. Project Cars 2 has quite advanced, but people(including independent pro drivers) say result is not that great.

It might cost more than the other sims out there - but, like with most things, you get what you pay for

Are you serious? As others say:
-Sub fee's $17.99 a month
-Average Car cost = $11.99/14.99NZD
tracks can cost even a bit more.

Yes you can save 15% by buying 6 cars at once, but that's still a ripoff in comparison to other sims.
On recent BF sale you could get AC Ultimate for $10, a bit more for AMS Ultimate, PC2 Deluxe for $20 IIRC etc.
For instance AC ultimate has 178 cars 19 tracks (almost all laser scanned also) with 40 configurations.
I think iRacing cars and tracks are more accurate, but I don't know.
You can argue which sim is better, all have strong and weak points depending what you're looking for.
For me the only justification for iRacing pricing is when someone plays online a lot and doesn't like alternative options to it's online competition service.