Project C.A.R.S.

I decided to become a pre-alpha / alpha / beta tester for the game "Project C.A.R.S." at WMDPORTAL. For 25 euros, you become a member and you get access to weekly builds. The designers of this project, Slightly Mad Studios - the same team that provided SHIFT / SHIFT 2 - gave the idea of a SimBin / rFactor racing sim a go, and although it's in Pre-Alpha, here's a review of what I've seen so far.

First thing's first, this is NOT a game for weak CPUs and GPUs; GPUMeter and CPUMeter go Ballistic with this developmental build (Build 106). However, with a good GPU (560m and higher), getting average framerates in the mid 50s at 1080p with all settings on high is possible (No AA or AF or FXAA or MSAA stuff though...), although in races, the framerate is more in the low 50s (I average 51 to 52 fps). Right off the bat, this is an improvement from the 45 fps on average in Shift 2. I attribute this to the fact that as of right now there are no PS3 / XBox 360 system builds and thus no need to allocate resources to those entities. This is welcome because as of right now the PS3 has GT5, Xbox 360 has Forza, but there is no mass - PC-only game available. Hopefully this becomes it.

Driving in this game is a bit different than in Shift and Shift 2. Whereas in these games physics accuracy and driving technique are sacrificed a bit for entertainment value. Project C.A.R.S. is nothing short of brutal. If you hit an apex wrong, the car will react to even the slightest dip in the road; if your car goes more than halfway off-track, kiss the laptime goodbye... even if it was a legendary lap. Additionally, more features are adjustable, such as spring-rate, spring bounce, brake-lock, steering-lock, and even how much fuel you wish to carry in your car for a race. Every nuance can be calibrated for not only the track, but to the car itself, and the car reacts accordingly. What makes ths great is that a finely tuned car will carve like no other, stomp kerbs (yes, that's legal) and brake nicely; whereas you'll pay dearly for a poor setup that favors solely speed over handling (the cars flip, body panels fly everywhere, and in cars such as the Caterham R500 it is frighteningly easy to go tail-out).

Even though this game is only in pre-alpha, force-feedback has been implemented and signal delay is just about zero, even with a keyboard tiny inputs can mean the difference between a cliffhangingly great run and losing 15 seconds on a lap (and possibly the lap / car itself). It's finally nice to see a game for PC where drifting is deferred as a race technique for finesse, proper braking (foot-brake and engine-brake) and have as strong of an incentive to stay on track. It makes me wish I had a G27 or a Fanatec wheel of my own to see how much time I could take off a lap with a well-tuned wheel instead of a mere keyboard.

However, being as this program is still in pre-alpha build, there are flaws inherent to the game. Some racetracks may confuse the main road for a pit and vice versa, and at least one track has garbled boundaries that are only known as "the bottomless pit of going 500 km/h". But all things considered, for a pre-alpha game that has no MAJOR gaming company's backing (Just Slightly Mad Studios and the funding of fans of racing games all over the world), it's very well put together; it doesn't feel like Shift 2 (but rather, more like what shift 2 SHOULD HAVE BEEN... no cartoony stuff), and it's definitely worth a spin and giving feedback on the game.

Cars, the backstory, and some glory shots.

Jason

 

Thanks for the mini review, I've been hearing about it more and more, but still indecisive whether I should pay to try it out. I'm fairly new to sim racing, but I do have G27 I bought recently, so I've been enjoying sim style racing a lot(been a long time arcade racer). Think I'm just going to have to try it out now :>.

+rep

 

I look at it like this, it's shift 2 without the cartoon physics, without the cheesy storyline, without the floating cars, and with more accurate bits such as pit-stops, the use of engine-braking, tweaking more components of the car, etc., To me, if Shift 2 is like a studio album, then C.A.R.S. is a live concert on a mind-altering substance. It's worth a shot, and SMS will give the final product for free to all testers.

Jason

 

So it is only listed in Euros? That is expensive then in Dollars for a Pre-Alpha... However, if this is going to be as good as they say then we are pretty close of getting a serious racing simulator onto the PC platform.

 

I'll stick with rfactor, race and netkar pro. Your statement that there is no mass pc only sim to compete with forza etc is thankfully quite incorrect - rfactor has been kicking butt for quite some time.

I do like the WMD development model tho - best of luck to them, but this isn't yet a 'sim'.

 

I forgot about rFactor and RACE. (And Ironically I'm a HUGE simbin fan). But something that combines the graphical prettiness of NFS Shift 2 with the sim-physics of rFactor / Race... I am completely in favor of. This is a project I would LOVE to see succeed

 

True but they lack the graphics by a lot. Forza and GT has the graphics and driving dynamics. We only get one or the other. This new model could finally get us best of both worlds.

 

Exactly. Race, rFactor, etc., have graphics engines that date back to 2005. It's nearing 2012 and only now is SimBin getting around to updating the basic architecture of their games. It will be nice to have the graphical prettiness of Shift 2 in a PC-only platform with the driving dynamic of rFactor and the Race Series.

Jason

 

Too much realism in driving games = road rage...

 

Yes, and BUILD 111 was a pretty big step back... it was like "ACK!" compared to the joys of 108.

Jason

 

I've heard of this game but I'm much more interested in BETA builds.

 

I went ahead and bought the Team Member status for 34.37USD. The game runs fairly well for being pre-alpha(on my G73SW) and I've been enjoying it a lot. The forums on there are very active as well, so nice to see a community is already around for a game that is a year or so from being released.

 

I might interested in this as well. $34.37 is hefty but we can get our inputs be heard, then I guess it is well worth it (on top of a huge discount or free final copies to all that contributed development! )

 

Indeed, there is a cheaper option for just monthly builds. Team Member gets weekly builds as well as other stuff. Image below breaks it down. I figure I'd probably be playing it enough to warrant the weekly builds, but for others you can pay the 10EUR($13.04USD) if your not sure you will like it or not. You can also upgrade anytime by paying the difference of what you've already paid, so no risk of paying cheap at first either, which is nice. :>

 

Per their contributor site, all those who contribute get a free copy of the final product, and a sort of "dividend" based on how many copies are sold of the game. See Here.

jason.

PS: if you do go for it, references are a good thing

 

Just joined as a Team Member. It's downloading as we speak. Hopefully it's good.

 

So even the most basic membership will? Or only like the top three tiers do???

Either way, I might join as a "Team Member" when I get the time to.

 

All members, regardless of 10 euros or 25k euros.

 

Update Bump:

I'm still testing Project C.A.R.S., and the game has truly taken on many improvements in areas such as handling, steering lag, driveability, new tracks, etc. Additionally, and perhaps most beneficial to laptop users is that it seems optimizations have been done from a graphical perspective to enhance playability across all platforms. Case in point, my Sager NP8662 can do the following at the following settings:


Here's my first laptop's specs and settings:
Sager NP8662:
Core 2 Duo P9700 @ 2.8Ghz,
nVidia GTX 260m,
8GB DDR3-1066 7-7-7-21 RAM,
15.4" 1680x1050 screen,
DVD Burner,
160GB Intel X25-m SSD,
win7 pro x64

Graphics Setup:
Resolution: 1680x1050 @ 60hz - Fullscreen
Texture Resolution: High
Texture Filter: 2x
V-Sync: Off
Anti-Aliasing: Off
Post-Processing Filters: Off
Reflection Quality: Medium
Car Detail: High
Track Detail: High
Shadow Detail: Medium
Motion Blur: Off
Rest as-is.
avg FPS: 45 in time trial, 35 to 40 in proper race.


Here's my second laptop's specs and settings:
Sager NP8130:
Core i7-2670qm @ 2.2GHz,
nVidia GTX 560m,
16GB DDR3-1333 9-9-9-27 RAM,
15.6" 1080p matte screen, BluRay-Rom,
120GB Intel 510 SSD,
win7 pro x64

Graphics Setup:
Resolution: 1920x1080 @ 60hz - Fullscreen
Texture Resolution: High
Texture Filter: 4x
V-Sync: Off
Anti-Aliasing: 2x
Post-Processing Filters: Medium
Reflection Quality: Medium
Car Detail: High
Track Detail: High
Shadow Detail: Medium
Motion Blur: Off
FPS: 45 to 50 (DX9); 40 to 45 (DX11). I prefer DX9 since DX11 makes everything look HDR, even in simple photographic mode.
(NB: both FPS rates are for races, not time trials)


Native Res with goodies turned on for the most part and averaging that is definitely a sign of a game that has become very nicely optimized both in playability as well as in graphics. I'm not sure if that's due to a lack of corporate powers breathing down the neck of SMS, or because the sim-racing community has higher standards of automotive accuracy than what's designed to cover everyone from the sim-racer to the "I love NFS THE RUN!" crowd, but it reflects not only in the playability of the game, but if you have a good wheel / pedal / shifter set, in the feel and accuracy of these cars on the tracks.

If you want to see more, go on Youtube and look for "project cars build 139" (the latest build at the time of this post), for a game still in pre-alpha, I think the racing lot here will be extremely impressed.

Jason

 

I'm a new member on NBR (joined yesterday) but I've been playing pCARS for over half a year now. I haven't really kept up with the builds as much as I should. Will definitely need to try out the Nordschleife with the Zonda R (pretty much my favourite car/track on GT5/Forza).

Also if anyone is interested it looks like Sim Bin is going the f2p model with their new game Race Room. There is a demo on steam, but I haven't tried it yet.

 

Hey...
since september no more comments on this???
Project Cars Videos
new car is coming this week

 

I really didn't like the physics in Shift 2. They claimed it to be the most advanced physics, but for me it was unreliable, random and unrealistic. It's frustrating to play that game. So I'm hoping Project CARS will have a demo for me to test to see if they got it right this time.

 

"Sorry, new members registration and Tool Packs purchasing is no longer possible. We hope to welcome you as members of future WMD projects."

That's really a bummer.

 

While I didn't mind the physics of Shift 2 (it was an arcade racer imo), the input lag was what really killed the game. It was basically impossible to play, which was a real shame because I felt that at the time the cockpit view was leaps and bounds ahead of anything else on the market.

Thankfully SMS has taken the more sim oriented route with pCARS (they are aiming more for the GT/Forza feel rather than iRacing/rFactor). Input lag was still present when I first started playing in December 2011, I remember the thread where multiple people were complaining about it. Its fine now though, no noticeable input lag using an Xbox controller (plan to get a CSR Elite/CSP sometime in the near future).

 

Been slacking a bit myself since FC3 and C3, but I am still very happy to be in on the Alpha.

 

Tried to sign up today. Apparently the no longer accept registrations. I'm really looking forward to a realistic PC sim.. Does anyone know if it's possible to get a build somewhere without signing up(which isn't possible any longer)

 

Even if you could find the builds somewhere, you need to login to their server to start the game. If you haven't already tried it grab RaceRoom from Steam (its a free base version, additional tracks/vehicles need to be purchased). Also Assetto Corsa is starting/having closed testing (need to purchase a paycode for NetKar-Pro) looks pretty decent. In addition to these, iRacing and rFactor 1/2 are also pretty solid options (physics simulation is probably better on these) if not quite as good looking as pCARS.

 

Bummer, I just found a build in some forum. Any idea when a public beta of some sorts will be released?

I'll have a look at the other games thanks.

 

I honestly have no idea when its planned to release into open beta. I wouldn't bet on it coming out anytime soon, maybe Q3 this year at the earliest.

 

new subscriptions are closed, since being a part of this project "looks like" an unproper ( not fully regulamentated) form of investment: so was stated from a UK market authority.
So, wdm staff is going to specify some aspects of this open project to that authority and until that, no new "investors" are admitted in....(it will take some time to restore the situation, allowing again new subjects).

Unofficial release date is april 2014, no official plans about an open peta, such as assetto corsa tech preview.
But remember: the whole "making of" really differs for the two upcoming sim titles: pcars is developing day by day from a closed but wide community (including lot of real drivers such as Hamilton's brother), assetto corsa is a closed development, almost done.
I'm in since the first builds, in later 2011 and it's a beautiful experience at all!

 

I don't do a lot of pCARS vids, but if anyone is interested Quagmire's pCARS Playlist. I intend on a thorough settings view vid down the road.


More pCARS candy to get the chops wet. I count 35 actual gameplay racing views (not all are useful and some work much better on other cars than this Pagani), this game has taken views to a new level imo. My favorite views are of course cockpit, then helmet cam (been getting real used to that and may take over standard cockpit, the helmet can be removed) and I'm digging the shaker bumper cam(s).


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Project CARS nice view of Sunrise coming around the corner at Badenring with the Mustang Boss 302R1. Youtube compression does not do the detail of the sun rays justice. Hard to believe it's still pre-Alpha.

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yeah, it's a preapha but everyone is working hard on it, introducing news every week....by the way, the graphical part is astonishing, without comparisons to any other racing title.
For now, nvidia vgas are more reactive and compatible while ati counterparts suffer from low performances.
The whole project is still affected by low scalability, changing resolution or different antialiasing method doesn't improve framerate a lot, the only way to manage greatly this title is to own a middle-high vga, but the visual impact can be gorgeous at all...

 

Take a look to this video, no more words needeed, gameplay is growing better and better....

Project CARS – Spectacular On Board Video &mdash; VirtualR – Sim Racing News

 

Well I finally got my CSR Elite back from repair a couple of weeks back. Been playing the latest builds quite a lot recently. The FFB and physics feel noticeably improved from when I last played (a few months back). Plus now that I have a decent enough rig, I'll probably put some videos up of the game maxed out soon, the day/night progression is pretty awesome.

 

man I'm so jelly, well atleast there is grid 2 now..

 

Well hopefully you should be able to buy into the toolpacks soon for the console version, this gives you access to the PC alpha/beta as well. I recently saw that they are hoping to open up new registration soon (though no date was given). Keep your fingers crossed.

Also after having played Grid 2 for about an hour, I can say that I am quite disappointed. It's worse than the original in terms of the career mode (imo) and the car selection is pretty damn sparse. Handling is fun but feels more loose compared to the original (it seems like drifting is just the way to go). Honestly Codemasters have been slipping ever since Dirt and Grid, just look at the sequels: no Pikes Peak, no Le Mans, limited tuning, etc...

But hey if you enjoy it, just ignore my ramblings.

 

Nah I basically agree with you about the game. Its not really a sim and cant be compared to pcars. Its a nice change from dirt though, when it comes to the big racing games out there.

 

For those feeling left out, I'm trying to help Here I scroll through many of the settings available at this time in the pre-Alpha phase, build 480. This is still very early in the project and some settings may be removed, added or expanded.
Then I run a couple minutes in one of the better cars for this in car view through California Highway reverse. As always, I like heavy clouds and the sun in my eyes to bring some depth & realism, then it flows into a foggy day.

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hi mate, thx for sharing your resources, great videos! wheather conditions and sunlight are really impressive

 

I have to agree with you: before falling in love with racing sims such pcars i played a lot of arcade titles and i had great fun with first grid chapter.
I've waited for grid 2 but i'm a bit disappointed: great graphic engine, with rock steady smoothness, adrenalinic but with some major lacks.
There's no inside camera (why since grid 1 offered maybe the best i ever seen at the time?), with great loss of immersion, there's no tuning at all.....but it's fast and easy (too easy?) and looks great...not enough pros point for my taste indeed...

 

Yes, it wont pass lot time, dont know how many new accesses will allowed but it's a great news for upcoming members.
I'd like also to add a simple consideration: pcars is a sim, it will allow a high level competition for racers, but it's a title born with the aim to be a blockbuster, it will run also on consoles and i assure everyone it's very funny also with pad controller and aids enabled.

 

Quagmire, what do you use to record video with? I'm running Dxtory and the framedrop is ridiculous (I need to play with the settings a bit).

 

hi mate, every thursday and sunday my friends (we have a weekly italian league) take videos of our races using msi afterburner, i used in the past a fraps pro version...don't know if one choice is better in quality and performance but i think it's normal to have sensible framerate drops..

 

Hey Ninja, I use MSI Afterburner like fanta. It seems to get better at it as time goes on also. I am noticing as little as 5% fps loss when recording. Always best to have a recording drive different from the OS or very active game file drive, helps recording smoothness. The only hitch I still see in it as a recorder (keep in mind it's free and really good) is dark scenes, recording tends to make them darker and some lighting adjustments may need to be done in editing.

 

Quagmire, my name in game is Roberto bertomanno, it would be a pleasure to meet is some online race! usually i play at home, with my deskop pc and using my wheel, but sometimes (when i'm out for work) i like to race with laptop and gamepad.
of course the feeling is different and i need to enable some aids, but i find very funny even with pad (xbox controller).

 

Thanks for the tips, I ended up just changing some settings in Dxtory. Now the output file size has gone down from 70 gb to around 10 gb for about 10 minutes of recording. FPS drop is also much more manageable now.

 

it still seems a huge file dimension, without any compression i assume....so you have to edit the work with some video tools, msi afterburner video capture generate compressed output not so big (correct me if i'm wrong) and overall quality seems to be very nice, maybe it worths a try if you have time...

 

Yeah I have to use Sony Vegas Pro to edit the file down to a usable format/size. It's not too bad though, it only takes a few minutes to render a ~10 minute video, still I might have to see how MSI afterburner compares.

 

Sure fantabrothe (Roberto), it would be cool to hook up for some mp. I mostly play during early to late morning hours at work USA EST. I imagine we could find some time. Next chance for me would be Tuesday early AM, PM me and we'll see what we can work out. I use the same user name here. Cya.

 

I'm still around (very much so, in fact) and I've found that it's up there for "best graphics" in the racing department. I tend to play at night after work / graduate school. One thing I will say is that they've begun to start the "transition" to mandatory STEAM, and although I'm not happy about that, I can accept that the majority of gamers use STEAM. What amazes me is that even on keyboard, the game feels incredibly immersive, and more importantly, it feels tactile; something Shift 2 COMPLETELY failed to do (I blame EA for that). I sort of, admittedly, have an interest in the flow of the game as a multi-manager, but I try to test on laptops at the high-end, and at the entry-level (I have an inspiron m5030 playing, for perspective). 2013 / 2014 is going to be a *VERY* awesome time for racing games. We may not have the audience of BF3 / BF4, but we're going to get this crowdfunded AAA race game off the ground.

Jason