I'm still having a lot of fun with the demo and spend more time with
it than is good for me. Also, I still can't drive the car. But I'm
getting better. Now, I have learned how to burn the car, at least. ;)
Here is something nice I noticed in the meantime: the demo has an
almost Linux-like approach to transparency regarding settings. Not
only are many configuration files in plain ASCII, they are also
commented in detail. You don't need a Hex editor to change some
parameters, you don't even have to figure out what a cryptic setting
(a la "blap") means! The settings have self-explanatory names and
tagged-on descriptions. I expect a lot of fun stuff 3rd party
enhancements coming soon. Thanks for taking this path, Papyrus!
I know the demo is announced as pre-alpha (I only wish the "gold"
versions of other games were as finished as this demo), but I have
reason to believe that the folks at Papy want our feedback. Allow me
to list a few things that aren't perfect with the demo:
- Installation:
The program installed just fine and worked instantly for me. The unzip
and installation routine, however, left a lot of unnecessary files (37
MB) lying around in my C:\windows\temp directory, wasting space on the
harddisk.
Furthermore, I'm a bit ***about the structure of my subdirectories.
I have different hierarchies for games and application programs, and
would have loved the demo to reside in c:\games\autosim\gpl. The GPL
demo wants to insert "sierra" in the path. It would be nice if the
installation program of the final version allowed to precisely specify
a destination directory.
- Graphics:
Mike Lescault warned that the unaccelerated graphics aren't optimized
yet. I see a strange flicker once or twice per lap (no, I don't mean
when I'm somersaulting in a burning car, but during normal operations
;) There's another graphics glitch which is a bit distracting in the
replays. In TV camera view, the car changes its shape when coming
closer. This sounds funny and looks funny, especially since one of the
shapes seems to hover a few inches above the ground.
The tires sometimes vanish in the guard rails. During replays using
the rollbar camera (what roll bar, BTW?), the driver's arms don't
change gears.
- misc:
Whenever I change graphics settings during a lap (i.e. go to replay,
change settings, go back on track), the program records a lap time of
1:36. I was puzzled at first when I couldn't remember driving that
fast in the G3 car...
O.k., now for a short wish list:
- There is a problem with assigning functions to keyboard keys and
non-English keyboards. 'Z' and 'X' are perfect for head panning on a
US keyboard, but on the German layout, the 'Z' and 'Y' keys are
exchanged. Not very ergonomical, I have to say. The problem becomes
even worse when you use ';' as a key, for instance, since ';' is
SHIFT+another key on some non-English keyboards. With a DOS game, one
could simply leave out the german keyboard driver on the start disk,
but with Win95 this can be troublesome. Maybe there is a way to read
the keyboard directly instead of using the language specific Win95
driver? I'm sure this problem occurs with other foreing language
keyboards too. If one could freely assign game functions to keys, it
would be less of a problem, but some keys are reserved for the
multiplayer interface.
- Thrustmaster, I want a clutch pedal for my T2. :) I found myself
pushing the brake when changing gears. It took a while until I
understood that I was unconsciously looking for a clutch. Blame this
on the realism of the sim: if I have to ease off the throttle to
change gears (just like in real life), my reflexes expect having to
use the clutch too. BTW, did the real drivers back then use the clutch
to change gears?
- It would be nice to have a key that brings the gear lever into
neutral instantly. And one for reverse. It makes no sense having to
shift back through the gears all the time to finally reach reverse on
an H-type gearbox. And don't you dare asking why I need the reverse
gear so often. ;)
- Likewise, it would be nice if the little guy in the car choose
neutral by himself when the car has stopped for more than one or two
seconds.
- Another wish that could bring me into trouble, but could we have a
top-ten list of best laps in the different categories. [I can hear the
mob now: "Burn the arcadish heretic!" :) ]
That's all I can think of right now. Please, RAS folks, don't crucify
me for pointing out that some minor details of the demo or program
could be improved! It *is* pre-alpha, that's why I'm offering
constructive criticism.
--
Wolfgang Preiss \ E-mail copies of replies to this posting are welcome.
Uni des Saarlands \ and U.S. law. You have been warned.