rec.autos.simulators

1996 surely?. Amazing that a sim getting on for three years old is still
the one that attracts the most online racers. Just goes to show what an
incredible franchise TEN is wasting....

Cheers,
Richard

Yes 1996.. oops
IndyCar Racing 2   1995

As for your comments, Im not sure that TEN is the correct company to point
here.  Remember that SIERRA owns the NROS and they decide whatever they
want, unfortunately.  I know the NROS Officials and employees, I know that
they would really want new stuff, new tracks, new options, etc..  Remember
the idea that we had to put a restrictor plate on/off option for Talladega
but also all the other tracks, Sierra didn't want it.  So I guess we should
target our flames to them, not TEN.  TEN is only working with the tools they
have.

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard/Nas-Frank>
-- NROS Nascar sanctioned Guide http://www.nros.com/
-- May the Downforce be with you...

"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realise
how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."

That's not really the sort of thing I am considering. I know that Sierra
owns what it owns. But where's the advertising for TEN? Hundreds race every
night but there are many thousands who could also be competing. If the most
popular racing environment can be so without overt advertising, just think
how big it could be with it!

And what about upgrades that are under TEN's control to make? Does Sierra
mandate that they use an ergonomically poor front end? Does Sierra forbid
them from putting up a race board? Does Sierra force them to adopt a
network architecture which means that two separate flows of data to very
different sites (both geographically and in terms of internet topology)
have to be maintained or you get booted from a race?

Personally, I think TEN and the guys running NROS deserve to succeed. They
stepped up to the plate when no other comparable service was available and
they *still* provide the best online racing environment. But they are
wasting the effort they have put in. By not actively marketing and doing
whatever they can to visibly improve the service they are sowing the seeds
of their own demise. Usage may or may not be rising, but in the world of
the internet, if you're not measuring growth rates in terms of doubling
every few months you are going backwards - and they are certainly not
generating anything like that sort of growth.

That's why I consider TEN to be "wasting" the franchise they have acquired.
It's not a flame, just sadness and frustration that what was a great leap
forward in mass appeal online sim racing looks like it could all too easily
end up drifting away to nothing :(

Cheers,
Richard

umm,  everything was correct their except for the last bits.  Nascar 3 is
not going to be out in 99.  Nacar 3 has been postponed for quite some time.
They have screenshots for nascar 3 at www.papy.com.  but actually that is
going to be Nascar 2000, which is simply based on the Nascar 2 engine,  but
they've souped it up, and gave translucent smoke, and better 3d acceleration
that will support D3D.  I won't be called nascar 3 when it comes out.
Nascar 3 when it comes out,  no later than 2000, will be based on a BETTER
version of GPL(the greatest sim of all time).  The reason they postponed the
project is because of the resource problems in GPL.  Imagine 32+ cars on
track at the same time, all tightly bunched together with graphics and
physics even more complex than GPL.  That would take HUGE amounts of memory,
and proccessor power.  So it has been postponed.  I will try and find the
article where I got this info from.  Its on the net somewhere.  I hope this
wasn't too confusing.  I even confuse my self sometimes.  Thanks.

-jeremy

Actually, Papy has renamed the sim once again (a month or two ago) to
"Nascar Racing 3".  Last I heard, it will have better (and different) car
shapes, modified (but *NOT* GPL) physics, improved sounds, better graphic
effects, force-feedback wheel support, and will allow many more than 20
cars (they're trying for 40) online in any given race.

The "Nascar Racing Legends" sim will probably (and more obviously)
utilize the car shape feature in an effort to depict the unique Chevy,
Ford, Pontiac, and Chrysler body styles.

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Sure I know this since a long time ago, but the current title is still N3,
not N2000.

Naw sorry that's just a PR make-up.  Just give us a # of AI slider until PC
are enough powerful to run with more cars.  Papyrus has a long tradition of
releasing simulation that were too powerful for their era.  Indy500:The
Simulation, Nascar1, GPL, etc..  So it's quite an irrelevant point for them
to say such things.

The real reason is that Sierra still wants to milk money out of the old game
engine, with the nice sellings of NR99.  It's cheap to produce, not much
R&D, the tracks were almost already done by the 2dartists, etc..  Of course
that won't ever appear in PR.

--
-- Fran?ois Mnard <ymenard/Nas-Frank>
-- NROS Nascar sanctioned Guide http://www.nros.com/
-- May the Downforce be with you...

"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realise
how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."