La Codemasters ha mantenuto la promessa di qualche giorno fa: è disponibile l'attesa patch ufficiale per la versione Demo giocabile di Colin McRae Rally 3. Questo update da 23MB corregge i problemi del dimostrativo con i volanti ed il force feedback, effetti sonori, luci, fluidità grafica ed altro.

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In pratica questa patch aggiorna la demo alla versione del codice finale di quello che sarà il gioco, che uscirà il 13 giugno; questi i bugs corretti:

Nei giorni scorsi erano circolate voci insistenti riguardo un prossimo progetto in cantiere da parte della Papyrus, riguardante la formula Cart americana; oggi è arrivato un commento ufficiale da parte della stessa Papyrus, che non ha confermato, ma neppure smentito:

"We have not announced anything definite regarding the next project for Papyrus, so what you've heard so far is just rumor. When we have an official statement, you'll be sure to know."

[Fonte BHMotorsports]

Incredibile ma vera, la notizia che giunge dai colleghi di SimRacing World: la Codemasters si è resa conto dei troppi bugs e problemi (sonoro e force feedback soprattutto) che affliggono la versione demo dell'imminente Colin McRae Rally 3 ed ha deciso di correre ai ripari. Verrà quindi rilasciata mercoledi o giovedi una apposita patch da 20MB, già in fase di test:

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Taking on board the disappointment some had regarding handling (including force feedback - ed) and sound problems, and a number of other issues we have decided to update the demo.
This will mean all the fixes from the final build including steering, sound, etc will now be added to the current demo version. It will come in the form of a zip file which will have to be extracted to the current Colin McRae Demo Root directory. This update will be undergoing testing today, and should be available somepoint Wednesday PM or more likely Thursday morning, all being well with the code. We do want you to get a more in depth view of what the final game does look like, hence the urgency to get the new update out ASAP.

Il sito di Gamer's Pulse ha pubblicato una completa preview dedicata al prossimo Colin McRae Rally 3 della Codemasters, ecco il commento conclusivo:

Colin McRae Rally 3 may offer a good introduction to newcomers to the rally racing genre. The game possesses some potential with a solid graphics engine and a pick-up-and-play style that should attract beginners more than hardcore rally racers. From what we’ve seen, the game needs a little tuning before its release; however, the restrictive nature of the preview code prevented us from seeing a good portion of the game. Look for our review of the Playstation 2 version of the game in the coming days for a better look at what the PC version of the game may have to offer later this month.

Dopo Colin McRae e Toca Race Driver i Codemasters si stanno preparando per rilasciare Indycar Series. In attesa della versione per PC ecco arrivare, grazie ad Avault, una review sulla versione PS2:

IndyCar Series features 14 authentic speedways from across the nation, including Nashville, Chicago, Kansas, Phoenix and Indianapolis. The development team recreated not only the look of the tracks, but also the racing environments. From the extreme banking of the Texas Motor Speedway to the tight corners of Gateway International, Codemasters conveys the conditions in as realistic a manner as possible.

Per leggere tutta la review visitate questa pagina.

Anche dal fronte di Nascar Racing 2003 si muove qualcosa per quel che riguarda la prossima patch ufficiale. Ecco infatti il comunicato, ufficiale, apparso sul forum dei Papyrus:

I apologize that it has been so long since we have last given you an update. We have been very busy fleshing out future product proposals (no, we are not going to tell you what they are , working on the track pack, and yes, working on a patch. At this time I am not positive when the patch will be completed and released, as there are a lot of things that are involved with patching that we have no control over. I am not going to go into a lot of detail on what fixes will be made, but I am sure you will be glad to hear we will be addressing unrealistic setups, driving aids on-line and the aero mapping for the super-speedways. I hope you enjoy the new tracks, we tried to come up with courses that everyone would enjoy. Make sure to check out the high line at Hillside.