Developers / Game developers and publishers

Bugbear Entertainment

discussed in 67 posts, 2001-2005 · overall tone positive

Rally Trophy 2001

Posts per month

How the mood changed

Starts at zero. Every post that spoke well of them moves the line up, every critical post moves it down (weighted −2 to +2).

Press releases

Date	Release
2001-06-27	Official Rally Trophy forum opened
2001-08-21	Rally Trophy update: new screenshots, MP3s and trailer
2002-12-19	Rally Trophy plugins released

Key threads

Bugbear announces FlatOut 2002-11-05 · 24 posts
Bugbear car lead artist Ilari Lehtinen announced FlatOut, which would use a refined version of Rally Trophy's physics engine. He confirmed online multiplayer and said the game was about racing rather than demolition despite its crash-heavy promotion. Posters were interested but sceptical of its console-oriented wording, and some asked for a Group N Rally Trophy instead.
Tom Pabst's 'timing bug' post sparks hotlapper flame war 2001-11-01 · 158 posts
Tom Pabst reported a real-time versus physics-clock bug in the Rally Trophy demo and claimed a similar bug was being exploited by GPL's 'alien' hotlappers, whom he also called poor, crash-prone racers. Top GPL drivers and their friends reacted furiously, with personal abuse, challenges and threats to boycott BRD hardware, which Pabst was associated with; he later said the GPL claim was a deliberate troll. The long thread then turned into a debate over talent versus practice and whether obsessive hotlapping is healthy.
Rally Trophy previews and developer Q&A 2001-09-05 · 70 posts
David Cook asked whether the upcoming historic rally sim Rally Trophy might be the next GPL after reading a hands-on preview. Developer Ilari Lehtinen answered questions, saying preview builds were unfinished rather than locked to novice physics, the driver's head moves with the car, each tyre is modelled separately, Act Labs shifter support was planned, and the Lancia Stratos was included. Previewers including John Bodin and Goy Larsen were enthusiastic, though some found early physics simplified.
Who are the West brothers, and will WSC ever ship? 2001-08-13 · 84 posts
A newcomer asked who the West brothers were and why World Sports Cars was so eagerly awaited. The question sparked a heated debate between sceptics who had given up waiting and supporters who pointed to movies, previews and EB's Q1 2002 listing. Others noted the brothers had never shipped a racing sim and mentioned alternatives from Bugbear and ISI, including a rumoured licensed CART add-on for F1 Championship Season 2000.
Rally Trophy controller problems and JoWooD forum post deletion 2002-03-24 · 38 posts
Gerry Aitken complained that Rally Trophy's controllers did not work properly even after the patch, and that JoWooD deleted his critical forum post explaining the input.ini file, so he returned the game for a refund. Others shared the JoystImm utility method for configuring input.ini and debated whether the patch had altered the physics. The thread then argued about UK versus US software return policies and the ethics of returning games to Electronics Boutique.
Does the FIA really block online play in F1 sims? 2002-01-24 · 48 posts
Rob Adams asked for evidence that the FIA prevents proper internet multiplayer in F1 games. Ian Bell said he had heard the online licence would cost around $5 million on top of the standard licence, and Schumi of Relay Games explained that F1 Relay was legal, tolerated by Ubisoft, and had nearly got official support before a licensing crackdown. The thread mixed this insight with insults between David G Fisher and Gerry Aitken.
Rally Trophy demo released 2001-10-16 · 67 posts
Andre Warringa announced the release of the Rally Trophy demo. Early reactions were enthusiastic about graphics and the comic co-driver, with some confusion over whether only arcade mode was available until Bugbear's Ilari Lehtinen explained that arcade mode means closed-course racing against AI with the same physics. Some found sim mode too easy and missed force feedback and Act Labs shifter support, and much of the thread was banter.
Bugbear posts new Rally Trophy screenshots 2001-07-20 · 24 posts
Bugbear 3D artist Ilari Lehtinen pointed to new in-game screenshots of the historic rally sim Rally Trophy. When a poster complained of unrealistically wide, smooth roads, Bugbear staff explained that camera field of view exaggerates width, that stage widths vary, and that off-road surfaces affect handling. They also confirmed cockpit views, varied weather and upcoming hands-on previews.
RBR controller support versus Papyrus calibration 2004-09-17 · 35 posts
Kendt Eklund warned users with non-standard controllers not to buy RBR yet because of reversed brake axes. Posters shared DXTweak2 workarounds and argued whether the fault lay with high-end wheels, DirectInput or developers, with many praising Papyrus's own calibration routines. A side argument arose over Steve Simpson's claim that RBR beat NR2003 in physics.
Google's posting history of rec.autos.simulators 2004-05-16 · 21 posts
A link to Google's statistics for the newsgroup showed a peak around summer 2000, prompting members to reminisce. Stephen Ferguson recalled the group forming in December 1993, and others blamed the later decline on web forums. Posters remembered past controversies such as CART Precision Racing, the first GPL add-on track, GP3 versus F1 2000, and Jack Rambo's unreleased GPaL.
First Richard Burns Rally video stirs hopes for rally sim 2004-02-03 · 25 posts
Jason Moyer shared an early video of Richard Burns Rally and praised its terrain and suspension behaviour, arguing it looked far more serious than Colin McRae Rally. Others said they would only buy it with a proper in-car view, and a side debate compared ISI and Papyrus physics and sound. Jason also briefly leaked a beta of his CART mod for F1 Challenge.
Report of a Microsoft CART PC game deal 2003-03-25 · 32 posts
A poster reported that CART's Chris Pook had hinted at a deal with Microsoft for a new PC CART game. Reactions were wary given Microsoft's CART Precision Racing, though Steve Blankenship noted parts of CPR were advanced. Posters recalled CPR developer Richard Harvey, whose recent death was mentioned, and argued over whether the newsgroup had driven him away.
Rally Trophy's rear-wheel-drive cars hard to control 2002-03-14 · 32 posts
Todd Walker found Rally Trophy's rear-wheel-drive cars almost impossible to keep from spinning. Advice included installing the v1.01 patch, starting with the Mini or Fulvia, adjusting steering linearity and input.ini settings, and using left-foot braking to counter understeer off the throttle. Several felt the physics were exaggerated and noted stuttering and split-axis pedal problems.
Getting split-axis pedals working in Rally Trophy 2002-02-24 · 24 posts
Bert could not get split-axis pedals working in Rally Trophy with a Wingman Formula Force and TSW pedals. After trying controller ID changes and reinstalls, Gerry Aitken's fix of editing the brake axis range and OverrideRanges in input.ini worked. A side spat broke out over Bert's tone, and posters criticised the game's controller setup.
Windows XP Universal Plug and Play security hole 2001-12-21 · 95 posts
Dave Henrie gloated over news of a serious Windows XP security flaw. Posters clarified that it lay in the Universal Plug and Play service, enabled by default in XP and installable on Windows ME, that Windows 2000 was unaffected, and that Microsoft had issued a patch. The thread became a wider argument over XP versus 98, ME and 2000 for gaming, along with Mac and Linux jabs.