mantasisg
Active Member
Hello,
Simracing to me is prestigious genre, but it is not properly defined and probably will never be, because what really defines if a title is a simulator is knowledge, common sense and level of standard of simracer. I think a lot of simracers are feeling at least a little bit proud. IMO all games are less or more a waste of time, from certain point when it is overused, IMO simulators probably has the highest time mark of all games from which you should start considering if you are still using your time properly, mainly because you gain lots of useful things, you are actually leveling up yourself. You are also potentially saving a lot of money which would be spent for real tires and fuel
For quite a long time plenty of car games used to label themselves as simracing titles. Some of those games in my opinion really shouldn't be named like that, a lot of simracers with proper common sense understands that some of the popular simulators are probably replicating the most important stuff - physics, quite poorly. Of course maybe they are named as simulators because they are very good at simulating visuals, or sounds or whatever but physics.... So I think a vehicle simulator is a game/simulator or just simulator which uses as little as possible of placebo effect to be believable, critically it should be at least more true than placebo. But how do you know, how do you measure that ? I am afraid that there is no way of doing that.
I'd like to point out few things that IMO is/was/will be a threat to simracing.
First - getting popular. I am not going to try to convince you, but it is always like that - anything what is great is usually surrounded by the best, most creative people which leads to great achievements, great functioning communities, amazing vibes and so on. Naturally less creative people (mostly) will join later not because they understands the greatness and beauty of a thing, but because it is just getting popular, and thats just how it goes.... A concentration of great, creative members are dropping, the mass effect is slowly consuming the greatness, and anything what seems unusual to them, to make it worse best people of course are leaving for various reasons.
Second - increasing visual focus to content, decreasing physical focus, not going past first impression stage. This is heavy problem IMO. We all want lots of content to try. But it is not being made to be tried once or twice in simracing. As soon as content will be made with a first impression, looks in mind, and as long as such content will be appreciated the most because simracers can't get deeper into a car/track, do more than fifteen minutes in it, won't appreciate different ideas - the simracing is doomed. Thats why big amounts of content is simracing can have a negative effect. I am not even talking about ripped content - most of that is the lowest low of simracing, apart those few who were just horrible people to make it, but actually made something well.
Third - content creators, websites and communities which are blending simracing titles with simcade titles. While on one hand it is a good way to introduce new people from simcades to simulator titles, on the other hand it is just welcoming lots of negative people into the house. Simulator shouldn't be an apple hanging low, it should be the best apple not the easiest to bite, but the most rewarding.
Fourth - monotony in online racing. People does that to themselves, suffers from it and doesn't realise what it is. Thats monotony. Thats because you don't like challenges, always staying in comfort zone, don't like variety, thats because you always seek to do only things that you are best at, and that are well familiar to you. That fits for 9/10 simracers. That is absolutely antisimracing phenomenon. Because that way people close themselves from new experiences, and new things to learn. How many times I saw people quitting because they don't win immediately, or because grip is not optimum, or because sun angle is too low and so on...
Fifth - raw, real cars are slowly becoming more and more a thing of a past. In future less and less people will understand cars dynamics in wide range. Motorsports are becoming less appealing, drivers are getting less involved, cars are doing most of the work, I don't know how it is but these days it is probably mostly about having snake reflexes, perfect setups and super strict conservative driving style.
Sixth - political correctness, and well image seeking. What could be more fake than political correctness and building up ones perfect image. Simracing is something about being real. If developers, or even modders in some cases wont tell things how they are, won't argue, or if cut their good thoughts because certain things will become unpopular to say, then the whole thing will turn out fake. In other words real stuff should be overshadowed by silly dramas and fights.
I think simracing might be heading downhill in near future, especially popular titles. Mostly because the way userbases will be and already are from my latest experiences in few more popular places earlier this year.
Thanks for reading, if you did. Huge sorry for wall of text, I feel frustrated myself for it because I have had no time for it, and still wrote it.
WHAT DO YOU THINK, WILL SIMRACING BE ALRIGHT ?
Simracing to me is prestigious genre, but it is not properly defined and probably will never be, because what really defines if a title is a simulator is knowledge, common sense and level of standard of simracer. I think a lot of simracers are feeling at least a little bit proud. IMO all games are less or more a waste of time, from certain point when it is overused, IMO simulators probably has the highest time mark of all games from which you should start considering if you are still using your time properly, mainly because you gain lots of useful things, you are actually leveling up yourself. You are also potentially saving a lot of money which would be spent for real tires and fuel
For quite a long time plenty of car games used to label themselves as simracing titles. Some of those games in my opinion really shouldn't be named like that, a lot of simracers with proper common sense understands that some of the popular simulators are probably replicating the most important stuff - physics, quite poorly. Of course maybe they are named as simulators because they are very good at simulating visuals, or sounds or whatever but physics.... So I think a vehicle simulator is a game/simulator or just simulator which uses as little as possible of placebo effect to be believable, critically it should be at least more true than placebo. But how do you know, how do you measure that ? I am afraid that there is no way of doing that.
I'd like to point out few things that IMO is/was/will be a threat to simracing.
First - getting popular. I am not going to try to convince you, but it is always like that - anything what is great is usually surrounded by the best, most creative people which leads to great achievements, great functioning communities, amazing vibes and so on. Naturally less creative people (mostly) will join later not because they understands the greatness and beauty of a thing, but because it is just getting popular, and thats just how it goes.... A concentration of great, creative members are dropping, the mass effect is slowly consuming the greatness, and anything what seems unusual to them, to make it worse best people of course are leaving for various reasons.
Second - increasing visual focus to content, decreasing physical focus, not going past first impression stage. This is heavy problem IMO. We all want lots of content to try. But it is not being made to be tried once or twice in simracing. As soon as content will be made with a first impression, looks in mind, and as long as such content will be appreciated the most because simracers can't get deeper into a car/track, do more than fifteen minutes in it, won't appreciate different ideas - the simracing is doomed. Thats why big amounts of content is simracing can have a negative effect. I am not even talking about ripped content - most of that is the lowest low of simracing, apart those few who were just horrible people to make it, but actually made something well.
Third - content creators, websites and communities which are blending simracing titles with simcade titles. While on one hand it is a good way to introduce new people from simcades to simulator titles, on the other hand it is just welcoming lots of negative people into the house. Simulator shouldn't be an apple hanging low, it should be the best apple not the easiest to bite, but the most rewarding.
Fourth - monotony in online racing. People does that to themselves, suffers from it and doesn't realise what it is. Thats monotony. Thats because you don't like challenges, always staying in comfort zone, don't like variety, thats because you always seek to do only things that you are best at, and that are well familiar to you. That fits for 9/10 simracers. That is absolutely antisimracing phenomenon. Because that way people close themselves from new experiences, and new things to learn. How many times I saw people quitting because they don't win immediately, or because grip is not optimum, or because sun angle is too low and so on...
Fifth - raw, real cars are slowly becoming more and more a thing of a past. In future less and less people will understand cars dynamics in wide range. Motorsports are becoming less appealing, drivers are getting less involved, cars are doing most of the work, I don't know how it is but these days it is probably mostly about having snake reflexes, perfect setups and super strict conservative driving style.
Sixth - political correctness, and well image seeking. What could be more fake than political correctness and building up ones perfect image. Simracing is something about being real. If developers, or even modders in some cases wont tell things how they are, won't argue, or if cut their good thoughts because certain things will become unpopular to say, then the whole thing will turn out fake. In other words real stuff should be overshadowed by silly dramas and fights.
I think simracing might be heading downhill in near future, especially popular titles. Mostly because the way userbases will be and already are from my latest experiences in few more popular places earlier this year.
Thanks for reading, if you did. Huge sorry for wall of text, I feel frustrated myself for it because I have had no time for it, and still wrote it.
WHAT DO YOU THINK, WILL SIMRACING BE ALRIGHT ?