Glad you see the point Ian.
First, they don't work trapped in a office with a boss watching their back, they are their own boss and we are just customers, and just not the usual customers, we are a group of loyal customers who have more then a fair share of patience, so their motivation is their own quest in creating what is a great online racing simulator - so it's down to them really. Money might also be a motivation, but they are bold enough to quit their all time job for this, so I guess their economical needs aren't pressing enough to make them superhuman.
They might be moody and not very transparent, they keep things in their head and do make huge promise, it's the nature of "artists", however it's the same character that make LFS possible, it's why LFS have gone down a different route, and that's why it is special - special in a sense that with different priorities than usual game developers, they manage to use very little man power to create what is a very respectable sim.
So to me it is PERFECTLY NORMAL that LFS is lagging behind in other aspect, again just think about the odds.
I am a freelance designer as well and I know how it is, doing a website is one thing, it's merely handful of weeks for a project to be completed. But making a sim is a matter of years, keeping up the same level of commitment and concentration over such a long time is difficult, furthermore they ain't nobody who is trying to build their reputation, they are already accomplished individuals in their own field, just trying to do things the way they want to be after years in the industry, so in a sense, this is a hobby project, just a very big and serious hobby project, if a hobby project become the same as a standard practice, then there's no point doing it right?
If scavier set out to do LFS with the same priority as common game developers, we won't get LFS as it is. It could be something more mainstream, more updated, however less unique, and for that genre we have more then enough choice already, and still there's no way they can compete against big companies all on their own.
You think they are slacking, maybe part of it down to the differences in your priority and theirs, take insim/outsim for example, it is a coder's sandbox that does not matter to you, however to some people, people who make their own cockpit/controlling device/remote host control it is important, and they do make up of part of sim racer's population, I don't mess with insim myself but I could understand the value of that.
All in all, the problem is the same as the solution.
the problem of LFS is that.... it is just what it is. the business model is the problem, however without this business model...LFS will never happen, it might have been sold to some publishers, revamped and dumbed down for a BTCC game.
So fact is, the root of the problem, is the root of everything. change it, there's no LFS to complain about. and I wouldn't bother if it becomes GTR3 or TOCA4, people will complain about the lost of personality and everything in the game industry going the same directly and we need something fresh...
To say LFS is a bad commerical product...is just stating the obvious in my opinion. As my first reply say, love it or frustrated by it, we are emotionally attached by it, how many game in the world makes you feel that way?
Feel is a very vague thing yes, however it is also very true and no body knows how you can design that.
To talk about how we can progress LFS better, I think we must work within the business model. If that is denied, then any suggestions would be out of context.
. Cant find the post now, but it was Scawen himself so guess pretty reliable.
