rec.autos.simulators

I bought the Win95 version of ICR2 today, and had nothing but trouble
trying to install and use it. First, Win95 doesn't recognize my T1, but
has no problems seeing a CH VPP. Is this a Sierra problem? Probably not.
It certainly is a playability problem. The doc's (inside the box) say
very clearly that ICR can only use devices supported by Win95.

The problems began while installing the program (not update) in Win95.
It insisted on having 50 MB disk space on the installation drive. My
intention was to simply overlay my existing DOS installation. Another
gripe: the installation forces a directory name of SIERRA\ICR2; you get
to specify where it puts that. I would just as soon forget the SIERRA
part, and get right to ICR2.

The most devastating problem is hitting ESC to exit the track. It exits,
but dumps me back in Windows, still in 640x480x256 mode. WINDY (cute) is
no longer running, and refuses to restart until the machine reboots.
This behavior is consistent with a program aborting prematurely.

As for anything else, I wouldn't know. I got as far as pulling out of
the pit stall, and noticed the steering pulls strongly to the right. The
release notes mention something about this, and advices that we should
recalibrate using ICR's config menu. No problem; hit ESC and... whoops.
There's no way to tell if the replay feature actually works...

Quite frankly, I don't know how anything this bad can ship.
Sierra/Papyrus were correct to not release this as a patch. If you
thought the citizenry howled about the patch being late, wait till even
a small (but ever vocal) percentage starts having problems like these.

On another level of disappointment, the Win95 version only supports
serial connections for multi-player. One would think with all the
network options in Win95, TCP/IP or IPX would be viable. But no... what
we have here is not a Win95 native app; it's a DOS game hacked with a
Windows front-end, one that doesn't work right to begin with. (What's
wrong with a DOS version that simply works with Win95?)

I hadn't counted on doing so, but tomorrow I take advantage of
Electronic Boutique's return policy.

Mike.

Why don't you forget the Win95 version?
With Win95 you get the quirks of the OS in
addition to those of the game(any game, not
just ICR2).

For games on the PC, DOS still rules!

--
--- Terje Wold Johansen

--- http://www.ifi.uio.no/~terjjo/
--- "I am your inferior superior." O.W.

I also am having the same problems. My T1 wasn't recognized but all that
was needed to fix that was the thrustmaster adapter. Now the problem is
that the game doesn't allow for acceleration and braking on the same axis
which is basically what ALL pedals do. Haven't found a way around this
yet...

As for the car pulling to the right when accelerating out of the pits I
thought this was just due to the fact that I was accelerating too quick. I
had to control my wheel spin to keep the car from breaking loose when
accelerating away from the pit stall.

And for the final problem of pressing ESC and being kicked out to Windows
- this only occurs when I select the 640x400 resolution (which by the way
runs at a blistering 59 FPS without track texture on my P166 / Matrox
Millennium). By changing resolution to 640x480 inside of ICR2 - Win95, the
problem went away...

Let's see over the course of the next 2 weeks what Papyrus / Sierra says -
funny thing is that I called Sierra today and they said the game won't be
released until mid to the end of July and yet the game is already on the
shelves. What a bunch of IDIOTS!!!!!!!!!

Mike.

[tons of extremely literate, detailed, and undoubtably rightful
complaints deleted for brevity]

I can't seem to stop laughing about this news. Hysteria? I thought I'd
be rather sad, but truly, it has me laughing hysterically...

Not at you guys, of course. The whole situation. We're all in it
together, the originall owners and the new. It is a comedy in some
sick way.

Now all we need to discover is that GP2 was delayed because Geoffy
secretely expired last year and MP has been frantically assembling
something like Wacky Wheels for all the depressed fans around the
world to buy on July 18th. Real buggy too.

Mike,
*****THIS IS **NOT** A FLAME!!!********
        I mean this as ONLY an observation.  I know how intonation gets lost in
text, and I kinda wanted to make that clear before hand... Nuff said? <G>

        Okay, now... Here's the question I am putting forth to the rest of the
world....
        ICR2 for WIN95 costs about 55 Georges, correct?  So why are we buying
it when we already have the DOS version?  Is there some sort of aversion to
booting the darn computer in DOS?  I mean, WinBUG95 makes it painfully simple!
 Hell, it even has "Restart Computer in DOS Mode" right on the shutdown screen!
 And...here's the REAL shocker... ICR2 runs like a CHAMP under it!
        So, armed with that little tidbit of information, someone please answer
me (intelligently, please.  If you feel like flaming me don't waste the
bandwidth, I'll just ignore it) why one would go out and blow half a bill on a
program they already have?
        Just wondering.  Had to get it off my chest...
                                P.

P.S.  Mike... Thanks for the patience!  

I'm not planning on buying it.  Supposedly Sierra will have some policy for
owners of the DOS version to exchange their CD for the DOS/Win95/Mac version.

Yes, indeed the DOS version does work well in Win95.  But the Win95 version has
an improved PaintKit, more flexibility with loading/changing setups (just open
the setups window; you don't have to hit <ESC>, move cursor to GARAGE, move
cursor to OPTIONS, move cursor to LOAD, and move cursor to correct setup like
the DOS version).

Of course, I've heard some bad things about the actual RACING in the Win95
version, so that's something I'm wary of.

--
+------------------+--------------------------------------------+
|  G. Warren Abao  | Official BBL Jacksonville Jaguars Website: |

+------------------++------------------------+------------------+
| SPOOOOOOOOOOON!!! |  BBL Jacksonville 9-7  | IFL Chicago 9-6  |
+-------------------+------------------------+------------------+

        Ah!  Okay... There are some improvements... <G>  Interesting
observation on the racing things though.  What have you heard, if I may ask?  I
have heard next to nothing about this new program!  Thanks!
                                P.