An Open Letter to Sim Racing Developers
A report on the accuracy and short comings of current sim racing titles and recommendations for areas of improvement.
In recent years enhancements in physics have transformed the gaming landscape, we've moved away from arcade games to home gaming with complex simulations with an emphasis on realism.
In regards to sim racing I feel the quest for realism has been grossly misplaced. Simulations are now very detailed realisations of the mechanics of a motor car, with suspension geometry moving and reacting realistically and considerable detail going into areas which effect a vehicles performance. Most noteably the work goes on improving the accuracy of the contact patch simulation (the area where the tyre touches the tarmac).
In terms of vehicle physics the interaction between the tyre and the road is one of the major significant areas for accuracy simulation, along with aerodynamics and engine performance.
However all current simulations focus on the physics of what happens on the cars side of the tyre. All current simulators treat the environment as relatively static.
This has created an atmosphere where recreation of the perfect lap is possible, lap after lap, with clinical precision and monotonous recreation of identical control inputs the perfect lap can be achieved, and there is such a thing in sim racing as the perfect setup - or atleast, close to it.
In real racing such precision is impossible to achieve because the environment is dynamic. The biggest physics factor in real racing is the track surface temperature which not only continually fluctuates throughout a day at a race track, but changes lap to lap, it changes across the width of the track, and it changes as one traverses across the lap.
No current simulation accurately recreates track surface temperature.
Low grip situations are also currently grossly overlooked, whilst some simulations have introduced wet weather driving, the realisation of these weather systems is still rather too crude, as in the dry on a real race track low grip situations still occur with such nuances as marbles on the track, and broken tarmac usually offers more grip when the surface is a little greasy under trees in autumn as the falling sap ebbs away better than on a smooth surface.
In real racing the dynamics of the environment result in drivers continually altering their car setup, such as taking tyre pressure out and adjusting front anti-roll bar torsion near the end of the day.
Trackside objects dissappear from view and are reset, stricken cars removed from the circuit. These are atmospheric killers which in real racing would be dealt with under yellow flag conditions or a safety car.
In short, the current focus on accurate simulation of the car itself is overshadowing the far more important area of environment simulation.
It should not be possible to recreate the same control inputs lap after lap to achieve great lap times. Real racing drivers are continually reacting to changes in the environment. Wind effects cooling rates, more than it effects straightline speed. A seering hot day with a gentle breeze is lap record conditions in real racing, in simulated racing midday without wind is ideal conditions.
There currently is not enough focus on gameplay dynamics, with better handling of environmental repairs (trackside objects and stricken cars) will come a change in driving mentality. With better modelling of environmental conditions will come a change in racing mentality. Both of which will bring sim racers closers to racing drivers.
Go to watch any single class race with cars that have downforce in club racing and you'll notice that lap after lap most gaps between cars remain at a fairly constant distance, even when positions swap. A few cars will pull out a small gap etc, but throughout the field there is a modal gap between the cars (which varies at different parts of the circuit). This occurs because of the effects of downforce. In sim racing field spread is much greater, which highlights that the aerodynamic simulation of the physics currently lags much further behind than the mechanical areas of simulation. With drastic effects on gameplay dynamics.
Currently sim racers focus on the perfect setup and recreating the perfect lap as often as they can. Real racers focus on continually adjusting their setup to chase perfection whilst reacting to the environment. Sim racers experience high field spread and enjoy few consequences in recovering a stricken car, real racers enjoy closer racing.
For sim racing to improve noteably from this point more emphasis must be placed on simulating environmental aspects (in dry conditions, not simply adding rain and a shiny/reflective road surface) and the dynamics of actual gameplay.
We must see the inclusion of better retirement handling - stricken cars sitting out a race by the side of the race track and their competitors bound to the pits, the introduction of a safety car (with automatic and manual control), trackside repairs being handled properly, yellow flags not being waved so wantonly that their effect counts for nothing and people do slow up.
Physics simulation should address current short comings such as aerodynamics and environmental conditions before worrying about competing with other simulations on tyre and suspension geometry which are currently over-simulated and the sole focus of sim racing physics. Too much emphasis has been places on tyres and suspension in the past, whilst not actually realising what racing is all about.
When, as a sim racer, i'm forced to react to the same things that a real racing driver must react too, then I am playing a simulation.
For as long as sim racing focuses on tyre and suspension modelling it is nothing more than a vehicle simulator.
A report on the accuracy and short comings of current sim racing titles and recommendations for areas of improvement.
In recent years enhancements in physics have transformed the gaming landscape, we've moved away from arcade games to home gaming with complex simulations with an emphasis on realism.
In regards to sim racing I feel the quest for realism has been grossly misplaced. Simulations are now very detailed realisations of the mechanics of a motor car, with suspension geometry moving and reacting realistically and considerable detail going into areas which effect a vehicles performance. Most noteably the work goes on improving the accuracy of the contact patch simulation (the area where the tyre touches the tarmac).
In terms of vehicle physics the interaction between the tyre and the road is one of the major significant areas for accuracy simulation, along with aerodynamics and engine performance.
However all current simulations focus on the physics of what happens on the cars side of the tyre. All current simulators treat the environment as relatively static.
This has created an atmosphere where recreation of the perfect lap is possible, lap after lap, with clinical precision and monotonous recreation of identical control inputs the perfect lap can be achieved, and there is such a thing in sim racing as the perfect setup - or atleast, close to it.
In real racing such precision is impossible to achieve because the environment is dynamic. The biggest physics factor in real racing is the track surface temperature which not only continually fluctuates throughout a day at a race track, but changes lap to lap, it changes across the width of the track, and it changes as one traverses across the lap.
No current simulation accurately recreates track surface temperature.
Low grip situations are also currently grossly overlooked, whilst some simulations have introduced wet weather driving, the realisation of these weather systems is still rather too crude, as in the dry on a real race track low grip situations still occur with such nuances as marbles on the track, and broken tarmac usually offers more grip when the surface is a little greasy under trees in autumn as the falling sap ebbs away better than on a smooth surface.
In real racing the dynamics of the environment result in drivers continually altering their car setup, such as taking tyre pressure out and adjusting front anti-roll bar torsion near the end of the day.
Trackside objects dissappear from view and are reset, stricken cars removed from the circuit. These are atmospheric killers which in real racing would be dealt with under yellow flag conditions or a safety car.
In short, the current focus on accurate simulation of the car itself is overshadowing the far more important area of environment simulation.
It should not be possible to recreate the same control inputs lap after lap to achieve great lap times. Real racing drivers are continually reacting to changes in the environment. Wind effects cooling rates, more than it effects straightline speed. A seering hot day with a gentle breeze is lap record conditions in real racing, in simulated racing midday without wind is ideal conditions.
There currently is not enough focus on gameplay dynamics, with better handling of environmental repairs (trackside objects and stricken cars) will come a change in driving mentality. With better modelling of environmental conditions will come a change in racing mentality. Both of which will bring sim racers closers to racing drivers.
Go to watch any single class race with cars that have downforce in club racing and you'll notice that lap after lap most gaps between cars remain at a fairly constant distance, even when positions swap. A few cars will pull out a small gap etc, but throughout the field there is a modal gap between the cars (which varies at different parts of the circuit). This occurs because of the effects of downforce. In sim racing field spread is much greater, which highlights that the aerodynamic simulation of the physics currently lags much further behind than the mechanical areas of simulation. With drastic effects on gameplay dynamics.
Currently sim racers focus on the perfect setup and recreating the perfect lap as often as they can. Real racers focus on continually adjusting their setup to chase perfection whilst reacting to the environment. Sim racers experience high field spread and enjoy few consequences in recovering a stricken car, real racers enjoy closer racing.
For sim racing to improve noteably from this point more emphasis must be placed on simulating environmental aspects (in dry conditions, not simply adding rain and a shiny/reflective road surface) and the dynamics of actual gameplay.
We must see the inclusion of better retirement handling - stricken cars sitting out a race by the side of the race track and their competitors bound to the pits, the introduction of a safety car (with automatic and manual control), trackside repairs being handled properly, yellow flags not being waved so wantonly that their effect counts for nothing and people do slow up.
Physics simulation should address current short comings such as aerodynamics and environmental conditions before worrying about competing with other simulations on tyre and suspension geometry which are currently over-simulated and the sole focus of sim racing physics. Too much emphasis has been places on tyres and suspension in the past, whilst not actually realising what racing is all about.
When, as a sim racer, i'm forced to react to the same things that a real racing driver must react too, then I am playing a simulation.
For as long as sim racing focuses on tyre and suspension modelling it is nothing more than a vehicle simulator.
(JUST GUESSING)
I don't believe Scawen is spending much time on tyre physics 