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What are the best driving games on the PC

post #1 of 48
1/26/07 at 11:18am
Thread Starter 
The reason I ask is because I now have my Logitech Driving Force wheel (which is supported on the PC via drivers I am told) near my 37" 1080p monitor, and with the new AGP 1950Pro going in I should be able to push 1080p on alot more games than my 6800GT could.

Since the wheel is there, and GT4 looks pretty lousy at 1080p with the severe underscan and such, I was wondering if it was time to give some of the PC driving sims a try.

Note, I dont have the DF Pro but the standard DF, the old GT3 one......what games do i want to try, and in what order...preferrably a demo version supporting the FF would be nice.

All forms of racing may apply, tho I am not real big on Formula 1.....
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post #2 of 48
1/26/07 at 3:56pm
GTR series. More sim side then arcade style.
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post #3 of 48
1/26/07 at 9:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tinker View Post

GTR series. More sim side then arcade style.

Agreed...GTR2 demo
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post #4 of 48
1/27/07 at 4:39am
GTR2 and Richard Burns Rally
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post #5 of 48
1/27/07 at 9:40am
GTR 2
Richard Burns
R factor

If you want a fun and more arcade style game try xpand rally.
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post #6 of 48
1/27/07 at 12:10pm
Thread Starter 
will be installing card, and checking out demos later
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post #7 of 48
1/28/07 at 8:17am
Also try the TOCA Race Driver series. They are slightly less "serious" than GTR and GTR2, but still alot of fun. If you decide to buy GTR2 and want to get serious into it, let me know, we can do some racing online, I can give you some tips and advice.
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post #8 of 48
1/29/07 at 6:32am
Thread Starter 
I remember owning the TOCA game waaay back in the day...it was impossible without a wheel...lots of spinouts, crashing, but man it was fun watching my BMW fly into pieces when I slammed into a wall.

That is the kind of racing I want to do....more sim than arcade, but perhaps not so simmy that I have to adjust camber angles, and will have to race for 3 hours

I also remember trying Richard Burns rally, it too was impossible without a wheel......
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post #9 of 48
1/29/07 at 10:22am
My vote goes for rFactor, although I hear that GTR2 is great, too. Keep in mind though that rFactor is more of a sim than a "game" and can be kind of frustrating to the person who is used to driving games on playstation or xbox. Good luck and have fun.
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post #10 of 48
2/2/07 at 3:29pm
Thread Starter 
What do you guys thing of Evolution GT.....I snagged the demo.....its like...Gran Turismo ish......I haven't hooked up the wheel yet tho (Still adding games and demos).

Hmmm...now that I think about this, I have Rally Championship here somewhere...does anyone remember that one? With the vintage rally cars from the 60's, 70's and I think 80's?
I wonder if thats worth firing up or not.

Oh yeah and rFactor? Yeesh, that game looks like I'd need $10,000 of equipment just to fire it up! PS: Anyone else amused by that fancy 1/2 F1 (style) half cocpit that they built...all that cash..and they slap a 20" 4:3 monitor on the thing!?

Now thats livin large
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post #11 of 48
2/4/07 at 9:46pm
Not played many of the mentioned above apart from GTR and GT but....

Live for Speed - http://www.liveforspeed.com

Excellent and speedy software, all types of cars to choose from FF, FR, AWD, turbo, etc. And a ton of tail out action in this game. Very fun and realistic. Excellent in camera view with nice dashes in all the cars. Online play is a breeze. Can buy the game online and download. Fully paintable / skinnable cars.

As you can see I am impressed by this game!

Also it supports mouse steering so fun to play even without a wheel.
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post #12 of 48
2/5/07 at 10:52am
GTR2 is my favorite.. very realistic.. can you adjust brake bias on a per wheel basis in other racing games? I think not

The newest TOCA is pretty good too.
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post #13 of 48
2/5/07 at 11:51am
Does GTR2 offer 360 degree cockpit viewing? The reason I ask is that I see lots of racing games supported by TrackIR (head tracking), then when you go to play if you look right or left or behind you, you see no car! That's quite a treat.
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post #14 of 48
2/5/07 at 12:41pm
Thread Starter 
Uh, unless you have a monitor strapped to your face, or monitors behind you as well as to the sides, just what good is the head tracking software going to do for you?

I can see its usefulness when it comes to looking into a turn or glancing at rearview mirrors however. Still..thats alot of dough for glancing at mirrors
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post #15 of 48
2/6/07 at 5:42pm
How much is that Logitech wheel? Did you get the leather one? I saw it retails for $200..wow.
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post #16 of 48
2/6/07 at 7:15pm
GTR 2 supports track ir.
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post #17 of 48
2/7/07 at 6:01am
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadRusch View Post

Uh, unless you have a monitor strapped to your face, or monitors behind you as well as to the sides, just what good is the head tracking software going to do for you?

I can see its usefulness when it comes to looking into a turn or glancing at rearview mirrors however. Still..thats alot of dough for glancing at mirrors

Have you ever used trackir?
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post #18 of 48
2/7/07 at 6:27am
Thread Starter 
Nice Edit Orwell...

I dont believe I made an idiotic statement by wondering "how good is this thing". It tracks your head, right? I've seen the videos on some websites....its good for glancing at your mirrors, looking into a turn, that sort of thing.

I know the flight sim guys love it but I can't figure out its value since turning your head means looking away from your screen.


A valid question, I think.
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post #19 of 48
2/7/07 at 7:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadRusch View Post

Nice Edit Orwell...

I dont believe I made an idiotic statement by wondering "how good is this thing". It tracks your head, right? I've seen the videos on some websites....its good for glancing at your mirrors, looking into a turn, that sort of thing.

I know the flight sim guys love it but I can't figure out its value since turning your head means looking away from your screen.


A valid question, I think.

No, it does not mean looking away from your screen, that is not how trackir works, and thus why your comments make no sense. I'm talking about a modern day headtracker, not one from the 80's.
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post #20 of 48
2/7/07 at 9:28am
Thread Starter 
I just read SimHQ's review of the TrackrIR or whatever it is.

He basically summed up my feelings on this device....for driving games, its benefits seem slim.....look into a corner, a quick glance to the right to see if someone is passing you or check a mirror. Of course I'd buy a LEFT/RIGHT monitor for that purpose if I had to.

In a game like a flight sim where you can use your head to move a reticule around, there its more benefit...or so I've read.
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post #21 of 48
2/7/07 at 9:32am
Quote:
Originally Posted by SpeedyHTPC View Post

How much is that Logitech wheel? Did you get the leather one? I saw it retails for $200..wow.

Its the leather wrapped G25.. I got it for ~$260 shipped online back in december. Its so expensive because it has a huge range of motion, great force feedback, a 6-speed shifter (with gate or sequential modes), stainless pedals including an actual clutch, plus its leather!
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post #22 of 48
2/8/07 at 10:33am
Couple of points about GTR.

AFAIK it does not suppoer mouse steering. So without a wheel your out of luck.

And second point is just a question... how many different types of cars can you race? In Live for Speed you can choose from dozens of different types of cars. Race cars to road cars. Rear wheel drive, all wheel drive, etc.

I've played GTR (no wheel) and was not impressed. But I think with these racing games it ultimately comes down to personal preference of what type and feel of racing you enjoy.
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post #23 of 48
2/8/07 at 11:05am
Thread Starter 
This weekend I'll be firing up the Driving Force wheel and (hopefully) finding the PC drivers for it, I can't seem to turn them up online right now, unless I can use the ones for the Driving Force Pro.

My idea of a perfect driving game gives me great selection of vehicles, but I dont need my roadracing game to be a track game to be a rally game. I do, however, DISlike any game that forces me to adjust camber angles, to minutely modify my suspension in order to have any hope of doing at least reasonably well. If the game expects me to monitor my settings and adjust my air/fuel mixtures on the fly, its lost me. I want a game, not a 2nd career.

I swear, some of those flight sims and racing sims are so complex, at the end of playing the game for a certain period of time, you should get a certificate in the mail qualifying you as an amateur pilot, or giving you your racing license or something ;D
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post #24 of 48
2/8/07 at 11:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadRusch View Post

This weekend I'll be firing up the Driving Force wheel and (hopefully) finding the PC drivers for it, I can't seem to turn them up online right now, unless I can use the ones for the Driving Force Pro.

My idea of a perfect driving game gives me great selection of vehicles, but I dont need my roadracing game to be a track game to be a rally game. I do, however, DISlike any game that forces me to adjust camber angles, to minutely modify my suspension in order to have any hope of doing at least reasonably well. If the game expects me to monitor my settings and adjust my air/fuel mixtures on the fly, its lost me. I want a game, not a 2nd career.

I swear, some of those flight sims and racing sims are so complex, at the end of playing the game for a certain period of time, you should get a certificate in the mail qualifying you as an amateur pilot, or giving you your racing license or something ;D

You might want to try need for speed carbon. I personally like my racing games as sim as possible (mainly because I get a greater sense of accomplishment), but NFSC was a blast to me. It's not the best of the NFS series, but it's fun.
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post #25 of 48
2/8/07 at 12:01pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cohagen View Post

And second point is just a question... how many different types of cars can you race? In Live for Speed you can choose from dozens of different types of cars. Race cars to road cars. Rear wheel drive, all wheel drive, etc.

You get all of the car types from across all three classes, all though in the saeson championship mode, you can only drive the cars from either the 2003 or 2004 season.

BMW M3 GTR
BMW Z3M
Chevrolet C5-R
Chrysler Viper GTS-R
Ferrari 360 GTC
Ferrari Modena 3.6L
Ferrari 550 Maranello
Ferrari 575 GTC
Gillet Vertigo Streiff
Lamborghini Murcielago R-GT
Lister Storm
Lotus Elise
Maserati MC12
Morgan Aero 8
Mosler MT900R
Nissan 350Z
Porsche 911 Bi-Turbo
Porsche 911 GT2
Porsche GT3 Cup
Porsche GT3 RS
Porsche GT3 RSR
Saleen S7-R
Seat Toledo
TVR T400R
Viper Competition Coupe

There is also a V8 supercars mod out.
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post #26 of 48
2/8/07 at 12:09pm
Flatout series. You can get it on Steam, btw.
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post #27 of 48
2/10/07 at 2:13pm
Thread Starter 
I have flatout on the xbox.....and I'm currently working my way through it.

I've tried LIVE FOR SPEED, GRT2, and all the other ones people mentioned...I only tried them QUICK with the keyboard and mouse but out of them all I think GTR2 plays the best and feels the most professional, but its graphics..while high rez...are otherwise about DX8 quality.

(PS: This game seems to run off whatever your desktop resolution is set to, yes?).

I'll be plugging in the wheel soon....(I keep saying that)
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post #28 of 48
2/10/07 at 2:41pm
Gtr uses an outside config to set resolution. Live for Speed and gtr really require a wheel.
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post #29 of 48
2/11/07 at 6:18pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by HeadRusch View Post

I have flatout on the xbox.....and I'm currently working my way through it.

I've tried LIVE FOR SPEED, GRT2, and all the other ones people mentioned...I only tried them QUICK with the keyboard and mouse but out of them all I think GTR2 plays the best and feels the most professional, but its graphics..while high rez...are otherwise about DX8 quality.

Yea... but with all settings maxed, during a race with 29 other cars, the game becomes a bit of a hog, at least at 1080i.
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post #30 of 48
2/12/07 at 5:34am
Thread Starter 
I'm sure it does....I was just stating it had that "last gen" high rez look about it...like a High Resolution GT4 running on the PC...
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