rFactor2 Dev Update: It's been a while...

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Scott Juliano

It's been a while...

...since I last had time to post any updates. As I hope you can understand, it has been a rather hectic, crazy time. So, without further introduction...

As you all have seen by now, Monte Carlo was the "monster of a track" I mentioned previously. While in scale it's not that big, the shear amount of art that it took to create it was staggering. This is the second time I've done MC (first time was done in only a couple of months and was a rush job), and I honestly never want to build it again. Luc and I are still recovering from it

That said, it makes use of all the techniques we have developed and refined to date for building tracks with such a small environment team. It sets the standard for any tracks we build from here out for release and the updates beyond. It also pointed out some other little flaws in our technique, which we've already applied to the track we're currently working on.

It's funny, in a way I wish we could re-do all the tracks prior to this one. While I think all our current tracks look great as-is, some of the earliest-built ones do suffer a bit from having been updated over and over while engine and game features were being developed and refined. But that's okay--we have a lot of great stuff coming up. Things are much more stable now and we can really play to our strengths...

We had started an update for Toban, and it was progressing nicely, BUT, we had to set that aside for a bit to work on another track to go along with a new car license we have. This will be an addition to the beta build of the historic open-wheel mod, and we wanted a track to go along with this new car.

After that we should be able to complete the Toban update. The "new" Toban will be different to the new Mills. Where the owners of Mills had money to upgrade the track, garage and grandstands, Toban has only gotten 6 years older with very little upkeep. So, visually it will have a much different look.

Beyond that, we are at varying stages of licensing deals and will have a WIDE range of new racing series and tracks to go with. Plus, as you all have seen, we're keen to get point-to-point working with proper ladder-type scoring. We're still eager to expand dirt racing as well. All of this will help rF2 continue to grow and expand in many new directions long after release.

Even between the time we release the first Beta to the first "Gold" release, we will be updating not only the series you'll soon see, but adding new series as they reach a more final state. We have many close to this stage--rFTrainers, FISI, Clios, karts as well as a few others. There will be a lot coming to keep you busy.

Finally, we will be offering support to modders with regards to cars and tracks. We'll still have our hands full with new content as well as fixes, but we have a few documents lined up, as well as some forum support to get you all started.

I expect a slew of quick rF1 track conversions to "hit the shelves" VERY quickly. While a track from rF1 won't be drag and drop and a bit more work is required to get them to use the newer track features, it is easy to get a basic conversion up and running--just re-export the original assets using the new exporter, and package them up into a new track component.

The new component/mod system seems a bit restrictive at first. But, I can honestly say that once you learn to work in a more organized fashion it will be just as easy to add content to rF2 as it was for rF1--even more so because you won't have all the mismatch madness to contend with. I think league admins will also have an easier time in the long run as they'll be able to keep their drivers more organized. I have a tutorial doc ready to go that will hopefully help ease the learning process for the new system...

In any case, this will probably be the last update before the holidays. Happy Holidays to all who celebrate, no matter how or what you celebrate. We'll be seeing you all online at the track very soon. Not long to go now--thanks for your patience through this long development.

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[VELOCIPEDE]

grazie a Max

Scott torna a parlare delle piste

Quello di Scott è un intervento molto discorsivo, mi limiterò a citare in italiano i punti che ha toccato.

Dice che Monaco è stata una pista molto impegnativa, per via dei suoi dettagli, che ora è diventata il punto di riferimento qualitativo per i circuiti a venire.

E' iniziato un update di Toban che però è stato messo in pausa, avendo la pista licenziata di recente (una pista storica) la precedenza.

Appena terminato questo tracciato, che non è stato ancora annunciato, Scott riprenderà il lavoro su Toban.

A parte queste due, ci sono ancora tante nuove serie e piste, più altre a vari stadi di trattativa per averne la licenza.

E' stata implementata anche qualche regola per i tracciati punto punto (ma qui non ho capito che vuol dire "ladder-type scoring" (qualcosa tipo punteggio a scala, ma boh

)

Insomma, il lavoro prosegue senza sosta e serie come rFTrainers, FISI, Clios, karts più poche altre stanno avvicinandosi allo stadio finale.

Gli artisti daranno supporto ai modders per quanto riguarda vetture e piste, tramite documenti e interventi nel forum di supporto.

Scott si aspetta che in tempi molto rapidi una serie di conversioni di piste da rF siano rilasciate.

Sebbene l'implementazione delle nuove features di rF2 richieda qualche tempo in più per la conversione, è facile convertire in modo "basico": basta riesportare gli assetti originali usando il nuovo exporter e impacchettarli in un nuovo componente.

Il nuovo sistema componenti/mod da principio può sembrare un po' restrittivo, ma Scott dice che una volta imparato a lavorare in modo più organizzato aggiungere contenuti per rF2 sarà semplice quanto lo era nel veccho rF.

Secondo Scott anche gli admin di lega a gioco lungo troveranno vantaggi.

E' pronto un tutorial che possibilmente aiuterà a capire come fuziona in pratica il sistema.

Infine augura Buone Feste e si scusa per il lungo tempo di sviluppo.