Friday 7th February 2014

Ringside Seat: Playing games again

How do the latest driving sims actually compare to the real thing? Dale tries GT6 to find out

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Like many PHers this winter break, I've been playing more than my fair share of computer games. Some call it the plague of our generation; thousands of our valuable man hours are poured into something which can never really "pay back".

Real v game similarities uncanny; see the vid!

But when did that ever stop us pursuing our hobbies?

And while I do enjoy the occasional running/shooting/looting type game, the multiplayer conversation is hardly high-brow. Seven-year-olds screaming words they shouldn't rightly know, while virtually perforating your avatar's skull with a variety of weapons?

No, the biggest drain of my evening hours this winter has been the latest incarnation of the world-famous Gran Turismo franchise. Launched at Ascari last year, GT6 is the PS3's premier automotive title and claims to bring simulator-like detail to the masses.

About the same time that I was placing my pre-order last year, I was lucky enough to be contesting the final round of the VLN championship in the Toyota Swiss Racing GT86. We won our class, for the second race running, and finished the season on a high.

Lap times are very close between the two

And when I finally unwrapped Gran Turismo 6 and started playing, I found the same car ready to drive in the game. Well, the comparison just had to be done. Importantly, I don't really play with the standard controller. There's no point using the word 'simulation' if you're going to use your fingers and thumbs to control a whole car. I use a reasonably high-end steering wheel and pedal set: the Thrustmaster (stop laughing at the back) T500RS.

The first conclusion you can draw from my video below is that the representation of the Nurburgring in the latest version is uncannily accurate. Track widths, lengths and corner radii are totally perfect. The lap times match to within moments. Both the real lap and the virtual lap were actually my second flying lap in the car ever.

I've had the pleasure of inspecting world-class simulators that cost thousands of euros per hour, and they don't even come close to the accuracy of GT6s track maps. You can drive the Nurburgring in its F1 guise, just the Nordschleife, or the VLN and 24-hour configurations, and they're all close to perfect.

Committed in both versions!

But as, Matt might agree, it's not all sweetness and light. The biggest differences I think are now the almost insurmountable ones - the feeling of pushing a car is so much more than a resistance in a steering wheel. The g-forces pull at your body, your vision is assaulted by vibrations and motions that would inflict nausea in isolation. The brake pedal is something else that nobody really tries to emulate. In my real-life race, the ABS failed and the rear balance was way too high. Why not emulate the buzz of ABS, the sudden stiffness of the pedal, the fading resistance of over-heating brake fluid?

The only conclusion to draw from the video is that while games are getting closer to reality, there's still a big dark chasm for them to cross before the dream of virtual reality becomes indistinguishable from the actual sport we all so much enjoy.

Until then, as my wife will gladly tell me at any given time, we're all just wasting our time. And I love it.

Vid here

 

 

[Yorkshirepud]

Could you give Forza 5 on Xbox One a try to see what you think about their implementation of vibrating triggers to emulate brake resistance etc?

One of the nicest treats on the pad and adds a lot more feeling than previously capable.

[FurballS2000]

Some of the more expensive Fanatec pedals can be set up to simulate abs

[IAJO]

Amazing how well those videos tracked, surely a fluke?

I havent bothered with gt or forza for a while and really hope the makers of these games look at this video. I realise they were limited in graphic performance by the old hardware but with new gen consoles perhaps they can add more track detail.

The computer game just looks so stark and boring, the amount of variation in track colour, texture and even the light in the camera footage would be really great if it could be better emulated in the next gt/forza.

Real life still makes vr look a little dated and i'm sure the real life lap was much more fun but on a boring wet sunday afternoon when you've had a few glasses of red with lunch gt6 is probably a safer bet.

[Gecko1978]

On my one and only trip to the Ring in 2012 I was really pleased I had played the virtual track on GT5. I felt it had helped me to an extent "learn" the circuite and made it a less duanting experience than otherwise it might have been.

It was not perfect and in real life fear sound sensations etc of actually driving are far more intense but as a sim goes GT is very good. An lets face it most of us don't have the time or funds to go on track days as much as we would like so video games are a good sub (not a perfect one of course).

My fave GT moment was taking a Zonda R round the track in under 7 mins, I recall the actual real car did that made me feel very cool, though I susoect in rl they did not crash off every barrier to achive that.

[Madkat]

that GT6 video looked utterly boring! that's put me off buying a ps3 for GT5

[HereBeMonsters]

Now try Forza, and be amazed...

[Veeayt]

Excellent video, Dave, thank you. Never though it would be so close to reality in the hands of a good driver. Although I've noticed that the gearchanges in-game a quite different to the real ones.

[EDLT]

Do the cars still sound like asthmatic hair dryers?

[SystemParanoia]

EDLT said:

Do the cars still sound like asthmatic hair dryers?

there are a few gems in there.

i.e the tuscan.. just off idle, with a throttle blip sounds epic!

[wc98]

another classic from mr lomas. love the pass at angst curve and the commitment on the entry to hohe acht and wipperman,the exit was a bit meh though.
amazingly close from game to real life,but the steady horizon on the game through the carousel shows a huge part of what the game misses.
still better than watching uk telly on a winter night !

[robm3]

Detailing is great on gt6. The shadows in the cabin, track etc..

[jcl]

Arcade Mode???

[RUSTLE]

I drove brands hatch for the first time recently and no game can prepare you for, or deliver, the sensation of going through paddock hill bend for the first time at a decent whack. That really hit home for me. But it's raining, and I can drive spa this afternoon so games have their place.

[hifihigh]

http://www.lfs.net/ is the best sim I have ever played, although the last gran tourismo game I played was GT4 on the ps2 so maybe things have moved on a bit since then. In LFS the graphics look quite dated, but if you have a force feedback wheel LFS is better than any other game I have played for changing the 'weight' of the steering depending on how much grip the front tyres have. Also the network code is second to none. Lining up on the grid for a sprint race with 31 other boy-racer wannabies from across Europe is really quite good fun.

[RumbleOfThunder]

Another advertisement for Gran Turismo. I should be keeping count.

[ayseven]

I wish I could get into the games a bit more: I am sure it makes me a better driver. However, I can't seem to help getting nauseated every time I play for longer than 10 minutes.

[CBR JGWRR]

Yorkshirepud said:

Could you give Forza 5 on Xbox One a try to see what you think about their implementation of vibrating triggers to emulate brake resistance etc?

One of the nicest treats on the pad and adds a lot more feeling than previously capable.

The problem with that is FM5 doesn't have the 'Ring...

jcl said:

Arcade Mode???

Don't let the name put you off, what it is really like is nothing like your first impression judging from what it's called.