to get FF. It didn't work for me, and I remember that
there seems to be more than one "species" of the LWFF,
and some people had to use different setups for GPL.
In the LWFF profiler settings menu (not in the game),
I check Enable FF ( of course), and set the sliders:
"Overall Effects Strength" = 150%
"Spring Effect Strength" = 150%
"Damper Effect Strength" = 0%
For me any Damper masks the downforce FF.
Hine suggests checking on Centering Spring and put it at 150%.
It masks the downforce FF for mine, So I leave it unchecked.
I've tried every combo I can think off and this is what works
for mine. I can use some centering spring but more than 30%
completely masks the downforce FF. If I set SES to 0, all I
get is rumble strips, grass, etc. If I set SES to 150 and
OES to 0, I get nothing.
My settings work pretty good and
I get strong downforce FF when taking turns at the limit with
wings high. The lower the wings, the less the FF. Also the smaller
you set the steering ratio in the garage, the MORE FF. The reason is,
if you set the steering ratio to half its max, then a large turn of the
wheel is translated to half that before the data is sent to the tires. So
when the car gets downforce around a turn that data is doubled
before it gets back to your controller.
So at the first turn at Silverstone and the Esses I feel good FF, then
at the first chicane the downforce FF is completely gone, and it feels like
power steering. As I increase speed after an apex, the downforce
FF spools up and it feels pretty cool. Problem is it models downforce,
NOT grip. So I can push too hard and start to gradually slide off the
track and the downforce FF doesn't drop one bit. It's not like
in GPL, which reflects grip. If I start to go into a spin, there is no
warning drop in FF. Then when the car gets sideways the FF drops because
a sideways car doesn't get airflow across the wings, so no downforce.
And by then, you know. So, it reflects airflow on the wings, but
if the downforce is strong but not enough to overcome the lateral g's
your highly trained GPL reflexes will get you killed, since you get a
snug, safe FF feeling in your arms as you slide into the wall. I'll just say
something positive, it's an interesting alternative approach.
In the game controller settings menu ( in game, not in the LWFF
profiler ), I put all the sliders all the way to the left. These options
are evil and make the car handling seem like an arcade game. This stuff
is in there so people can play with the keyboard, don't let it get between
your wheel and the physics model. HOWEVER, when at Monaco or
Australia, I can't get around the tight turns without setting the
(garage) steering ratio real high to 25, that makes it hard to control on
the straights. DON'T jack the speed sensitivity real high. Set it at only
4, you don't need any higher. At a low setting like 4 it works like it does
in GPL, only when the car drops below a certain speed. And at 4 I can
easily make all the turns with the steering ratio at something like only 17.
I use steering ratio of 12 for most tracks. It feels as realistic as any sim
at these settings, finally!
Don't forget to tweak the braking ratio. It's not available in the game
garage so just use Explorer to go to \f1 2000\Season00\Vehicles\Williams
if you drive a Williams BMW. Then use Notepad to open the *.veh file
for your car.
I set braking_ratio=(7000.0)
Lower number is less sensitive, less lockup. Higher number is stronger.
And tweaking this SPECIFIC variable is allowed by the hotlap sites,
it won't invalidate your laptimes. This for me is the single most important
adjustment on the car. It makes all the difference in the world. Think
about it. In real life would you drive a multi-million dollar car at the limit
risking your neck, if you weren't allowed to adjust the brakes at all?
"Sorry Mika, we don't do brakes. Get used to it!" Yeah right.
Why did game developers always assume that they could set the optimal
brakes for every human with every type of controller that comes out?
I have a very high instep so my feet are very inflexible, I need this option
more than setting bump stops, or even wings. A program like DXTweak
can only do so much, in fact with GPL it is only effective to a limited degree.
I'll keep playing GPL, but for now on my standards
are "no braking ratio adjustment, no sale".
Tom