On-line Comparison

[jjaisli]

As I've mentioned in previous posts, I purchased F1:CE, Ferrari Challenge & GT5P, all at the same time. My racing sim experience was extremely limited before purchasing my PS3 last autumn and for two weeks in late October of 2008, I was switching back and forth between all three titles like a kid in a candy store. And I quickly realized:

- Things have come a long, LONG way since the one and only PC based racing sim I played back in 2002.
- I had a big learning curve to overcome.
- Switching back and forth between the 3 titles was confusing me and hindering my progress.
- Trying to learn different cars, tracks, and play systems was a little overwhelming.
- (Not to mention even simple and basic things like navigating in the XMB was not something I was familiar with).

* The first time somebody sent me a friend request I looked at it with much suspicion. LOL *

Anyway, for various reasons, I decided to concentrate on Ferrari Challenge and shelved the other two titles until I felt I had mastered FC. Well, I still haven't 'mastered' it but once I learned all the tracks in FC and unlocked all the cars, I went back to GT5P and have several times since late December. My problem is, the on-line play has been so compelling in FC that I really haven't spent all that much time in GT5. I completed all the A-B-C events and ran various races. But there is so much talk in various places on this forum and others about what a nightmare the on-line experience is in GT5 that I always staid away and played off-line only. I tried once about a month ago to play on-line and after two attempts it couldn't sync to the race I tried to join and I gave up. Yesterday I had the day off and spent about 4 hours playing various on-line events. So coming from somebody who didn't come FROM the GT universe, here are my observations:

The pros:
- compared to FC lobbies there was almost no stutter, shaking, disappearing cars, collapsing lobbies. Just smooth, steady play.
- much more subtle name tags on the cars
- Ummm...GREAT visuals. Seriously. Every time I go back to GT5 I'm just blown away by how wonderful the lighting and realistic the textures look. Everything else just pales by comparison.

The cons:
- No control over who/where you race
- no live coms
- no private lobbies
- no direct control over the number of laps & conditions (i.e. I couldn't choose to set the physics to professional unless I entered certain races)

General Observations:
I read with a bit of interest the process of obtaining a GTP tag and had been taking a few practice laps of Fuji in the RX-7. But it was tough for me to judge how I was doing compared to others. So I entered a beginners event. I started last with two other cars (both WRXs) who promptly took themselves out at the first corner. The next race it was the three of us again and the same scenario. I was beginning to think I should switch events but the next race there were suddenly 4 other guys, all with the NSX. So I quickly learned the disadvantage of racing different spec cars together. I could hold my place on corners but on the long straight they all blew past me. (I understand about performance points and tuning but I was trying to keep the car untouched and similar to how it would perform in time trial).

Generally though, they seemed to respect each OTHER on the track but not the track itself and took whatever line seemed fastest whether it was actually on the track or not.

I switched to the Audi R8 and hit an intermediate lobby on the same track. That event provided a full grid of 12 cars. And it was chaos. Cars flying every which way, appearing, disappearing, driving around you, through you, inside you, crashing, banging, charging, brake checking. What a freakin' mess! I guess this is the 'slop' everybody talks about.

As smooth as the on-line play was, I found the frenetic nature of the cars very disjointed from reality. They seemed to resemble a swarm of bees, all buzzing in a million different directions. If you try to take proper lines, respect other cars, stay out of their way, you feel like the only one. There was no way to communicate intentions, no way to apologize for mistakes...I ran 10 races in a row, mostly with the same people and never finished higher than 5th (I should have given the R8 more power and it's a little hard when the Ferraris blow past you on the straight like you're standing still).

There's a lot of potential there and it's proof that a good, stable, lag free lobby can be created. As with everything else in GT5, it just feels so polished. But it also makes me realize just how much better the lobby system is in Ferrari Challenge and how compelling the racing is compared to the 'free for all rat race' in GT5.

Anyway, this is not a very organized post. It's just a lot of (long winded) thoughts and observations.

 

[Hun200kmh]

Jeff, to have any kind of good racing in GT5P you must unlock the PRO events, and then use the "technique" we came up here on gtplanet. That is:

1. Set your PS3 clock using the internet connection. That way, your clock will be at the same precise second as everyone else.

2. Check in the GT5P: Race Events forum for our own GTP events and at what time schedule they're raced (and what settings, for example AWD, RWD, PP limit sometimes is lower than what the event allows, and some have a delayed start).

3. Enter those events, pressing "Start" at the exact time (as shown in your in-game clock).

And that's it!

 

[jjaisli]

I think I've only unlocked 2 pro-events. I have to double check. It's been my intention for at least a month to finish them off. But every time I set out to do it, I end up taking a few practice laps in Arcade Mode first and then decide to do a race and then before I know it, time has gone by. Or I turn on the PS3 and see people on my friend list playing FC and well, you know...

In general, I'm just not a big fan of unlocking some of the events in GT5P. The AI may not be trying to murder you like they are in FC but I find the whole concept of, "Pass these 15 cars in one lap" totally ridiculous. And I think this concept promotes the sort of 'shoving/banging' that we witness on-line. Because you really HAVE to drive like that to win some of these events.

But thanks for the tip--I'll try and clean them up... 👍

 

[Hun200kmh]

I fully agree with you, but at this stage I wouldn't care much about AI punting, they're morons anyway and we all know that against human players you are a very clean and fair driver

So, just clear the S-Class events as fast as you can (you can return to them later to get gold medals or clean wins, whatever), that's the only way to be able to race online PRO events.

And then we'll have two games where we can meet/race online, not just one. 👍


EDIT:
I don't remember which are the most difficult because, to be honest, GT5P offline mode isn't worth returning and I never returned to it, but I remember some of them weren't exactly easy to overcome. However, if you struggle with any of them, check for tips (what cars to use, how to setup them) in the GT5P forum and also in the GT5P Tunings and Settings subforum.


RE-EDIT: At this point, however, we would only meet in GT5P PRO events if you buy a PAL disc

 

[sarrinen69]

Played GT5P to death when it first came out.Had the fastest time trial time at Fuji until about 1 day to go before it closed. I think I ended up 11th! Gutted! Very disappointed when I first played it, was expecting so much more. I thought the online racing was terrible particularly due to the ridiculous penalties and collision detection. And the tracks are poor, especially Suzuka, which is a very poor reproduction of the real circuit.

 

[jjaisli]

RE-EDIT: At this point, however, we would only meet in GT5P PRO events if you buy a PAL disc

I was just about to mention this. Region coding for on-line events. Yeah, I would list this as a con too...

 

[Hun200kmh]

Not in the intermediate level, you have some global online events there. Next time we meet online we'll try the Fuji 650 PP one, just to experience "something completely different"

Sarrinen, did you use that username also in GT5P? I never met you there, I think. But I didn't play GT5P the first months it came out, only bought a PS3 after my PS2 got "killed" (was up until then happily playing TRD3 online and having great fun with it).

 

[jjaisli]

Played GT5P to death when it first came out.Had the fastest time trial time at Fuji until about 1 day to go before it closed. I think I ended up 11th! Gutted! Very disappointed when I first played it, was expecting so much more. I thought the online racing was terrible particularly due to the ridiculous penalties and collision detection. And the tracks are poor, especially Suzuka, which is a very poor reproduction of the real circuit.

Well, I'm pleased that I have the 46th quickest time in the Mini Cooper on the Daytona Road Course. But I've never considered it a brilliant or challenging track.

The collision detection IS a joke. Somebody slams you and YOU get a penalty?

Would you care to elaborate about Suzuka?

 

[sarrinen69]

Just had a quick go on GT5P and it feels so poor compared to FC. FC is in a different league in terms of handling and feel particularly under braking. You can really feel the weight transfer in FC and is definitely more rewarding to drive. Alot of people complain about the gearbox in FC, but i think its great and is more realistic than GT5P which lets you change down very early, which in real life would lead to bent valves!

 

[jjaisli]

What I really want is Ferrari Challenge's Lobby System of direct track/car/weather control, open coms and private room flexibility combined with the stability and smooth, lag free flow of GT5P.

 

[Kryz11]

Jeff, to have any kind of good racing in GT5P you must unlock the PRO events, and then use the "technique" we came up here on gtplanet. That is:

1. Set your PS3 clock using the internet connection. That way, your clock will be at the same precise second as everyone else.

2. Check in the GT5P: Race Events forum for our own GTP events and at what time schedule they're raced (and what settings, for example AWD, RWD, PP limit sometimes is lower than what the event allows, and some have a delayed start).

3. Enter those events, pressing "Start" at the exact time (as shown in your in-game clock).

And that's it!

That or you send message to your friend to get ready
Then write JOIN JOIN JOIN lol


By the way the penalty system on PRO events. I only encountered one problem with it when I got penalized instead the other guy.. Other wise it works really well for me. Besides guy.. brake early if someone is ahead of you.. that how real life racing should be

 

[danjama]

What I really want is Ferrari Challenge's Lobby System of direct track/car/weather control, open coms and private room flexibility combined with the stability and smooth, lag free flow of GT5P.

Yea i agree with this and your entire post/opinion really. I find it almost ridiculous that you can't talk to people and arrange races with them. It's just race with whoever clicks the button at the same time

I find it very odd that GT races are lag free yet cars buzz all over the tracks as you said. This doesnt add up. I much prefer the FC races. A little lag is sufferable.

 

[jjaisli]

Besides guy.. brake early if someone is ahead of you.. )

Trust me, I'm totally with you...

...look at the spoiler...


But if they're close enough to read it, it's probably too late...

 

[jjaisli]

I find it very odd that GT races are lag free yet cars buzz all over the tracks as you said. This doesnt add up.

Just to clarify, what I meant was, the other cars were smooth and lag free in their movements but because the people driving them were taking such random lines and driving in such an erratic manner AND because the cars kept ghosting in and out, nobody seemed to be making a genuine effort to avoid each other. It seemed like cars were buzzing left and right, criss-crossing everywhere. It was like racing a dozen of your ghost cars on time trial at the same time and each one of them was driving slightly differently.

 

[Hun200kmh]

LOL, I have to check back on begginer/intermediate events, I don't see that kind of show for a long time now!

 

[Kryz11]

As I've mentioned in previous posts, I purchased F1:CE, Ferrari Challenge & GT5P, all at the same time. My racing sim experience was extremely limited before purchasing my PS3 last autumn and for two weeks in late October of 2008, I was switching back and forth between all three titles like a kid in a candy store. And I quickly realized:

- Things have come a long, LONG way since the one and only PC based racing sim I played back in 2002.
- I had a big learning curve to overcome.
- Switching back and forth between the 3 titles was confusing me and hindering my progress.
- Trying to learn different cars, tracks, and play systems was a little overwhelming.
- (Not to mention even simple and basic things like navigating in the XMB was not something I was familiar with).

* The first time somebody sent me a friend request I looked at it with much suspicion. LOL *

Anyway, for various reasons, I decided to concentrate on Ferrari Challenge and shelved the other two titles until I felt I had mastered FC. Well, I still haven't 'mastered' it but once I learned all the tracks in FC and unlocked all the cars, I went back to GT5P and have several times since late December. My problem is, the on-line play has been so compelling in FC that I really haven't spent all that much time in GT5. I completed all the A-B-C events and ran various races. But there is so much talk in various places on this forum and others about what a nightmare the on-line experience is in GT5 that I always staid away and played off-line only. I tried once about a month ago to play on-line and after two attempts it couldn't sync to the race I tried to join and I gave up. Yesterday I had the day off and spent about 4 hours playing various on-line events. So coming from somebody who didn't come FROM the GT universe, here are my observations:

The pros:
- compared to FC lobbies there was almost no stutter, shaking, disappearing cars, collapsing lobbies. Just smooth, steady play.
- much more subtle name tags on the cars
- Ummm...GREAT visuals. Seriously. Every time I go back to GT5 I'm just blown away by how wonderful the lighting and realistic the textures look. Everything else just pales by comparison.

The cons:
- No control over who/where you race
- no live coms
- no private lobbies
- no direct control over the number of laps & conditions (i.e. I couldn't choose to set the physics to professional unless I entered certain races)

General Observations:
I read with a bit of interest the process of obtaining a GTP tag and had been taking a few practice laps of Fuji in the RX-7. But it was tough for me to judge how I was doing compared to others. So I entered a beginners event. I started last with two other cars (both WRXs) who promptly took themselves out at the first corner. The next race it was the three of us again and the same scenario. I was beginning to think I should switch events but the next race there were suddenly 4 other guys, all with the NSX. So I quickly learned the disadvantage of racing different spec cars together. I could hold my place on corners but on the long straight they all blew past me. (I understand about performance points and tuning but I was trying to keep the car untouched and similar to how it would perform in time trial).

Generally though, they seemed to respect each OTHER on the track but not the track itself and took whatever line seemed fastest whether it was actually on the track or not.

I switched to the Audi R8 and hit an intermediate lobby on the same track. That event provided a full grid of 12 cars. And it was chaos. Cars flying every which way, appearing, disappearing, driving around you, through you, inside you, crashing, banging, charging, brake checking. What a freakin' mess! I guess this is the 'slop' everybody talks about.

As smooth as the on-line play was, I found the frenetic nature of the cars very disjointed from reality. They seemed to resemble a swarm of bees, all buzzing in a million different directions. If you try to take proper lines, respect other cars, stay out of their way, you feel like the only one. There was no way to communicate intentions, no way to apologize for mistakes...I ran 10 races in a row, mostly with the same people and never finished higher than 5th (I should have given the R8 more power and it's a little hard when the Ferraris blow past you on the straight like you're standing still).

There's a lot of potential there and it's proof that a good, stable, lag free lobby can be created. As with everything else in GT5, it just feels so polished. But it also makes me realize just how much better the lobby system is in Ferrari Challenge and how compelling the racing is compared to the 'free for all rat race' in GT5.

Anyway, this is not a very organized post. It's just a lot of (long winded) thoughts and observations.

By the way.. If you want TRUE GT5P online racing.. Go to Professional events.. Professional mode is way better then Standard mode physics.. I also noticed on the PRO level (physics) online modes, you are always racing with way better drivers then on arcade style Standard physics where everytone think its Need for Speed game.

So go back again for online PRO mode..

 

[myke6699]

Played GT5P to death when it first came out.Had the fastest time trial time at Fuji until about 1 day to go before it closed. I think I ended up 11th! Gutted! Very disappointed when I first played it, was expecting so much more. I thought the online racing was terrible particularly due to the ridiculous penalties and collision detection. And the tracks are poor, especially Suzuka, which is a very poor reproduction of the real circuit.

I agree with the rest of your observation but you nee to give credit where it's due and Prologue's rendition of Suzuka is pretty good by any standard.

 

[Hun200kmh]

LOL, I have to check back on begginer/intermediate events, I don't see that kind of show for a long time now!

Update: Last night I tried to give a practical lesson to jjaisli on how to overcome the "random matching" lobby system in GT. So, I returned to intermediate events and did a few races with jj at Fuji 650 PP. Since we are FC players, we chose that awesome piece of machinery known as the 512 BB (not available in FC). Beautiful car, btw.

Intermediate events remain, as I suspected, a battlefield but we got around that by delaying our start for about 30 seconds. Even then (and keep in mind that it's a rolling start, so 30 seconds stopped mean probably a lot more distance to the other guys), and in just 3 laps, we usually could catch up with the others in the last lap (keep also in mind that RBE is active in intermediate events). It was fun.

Jeff, I'd like to know your thoughts on last night's experience. Comparing it to the pleasure of having a private lobby in FC, with voice coms, it results a very poor online experience. But that also has solutions available, skype (and a laptop near) is just one of them.

But, as you saw, "random matching", as a draw back, is definitely possible to avoid. Not fully (no way you can make a championship), but with 2-4 players you can almost everytime be sure to meet.

 

[jjaisli]

Well it was certainly, ah, different. LOL! General observations:

- The lack of coms made doing anything a hassle.

- The first two races I had the setup all wrong and was running S1s instead of R1s. It was making me nuts how you were able to pull away from me on the corners. Once you explained and I figured it out it was, well, quite a relief.

- Although it was kind of a hassle to wait until a certain time to start the races and then another hassle to let the field by, it was enjoyable to be able to race you, in our own way.

- While in my previous observations I noted there is much less lag and stuttering with GT5P compared to Ferrari Challenge, I now realize that there IS some lag but it manifests itself differently. In FC, the lag results in odd things like cars blinking on and off, in some worse cases, the cars appear and disappear as if they're teleporting around the track, in worse cases still the cars bounce like balls, up and down in the air, leaving a trail of parts around the track. Or in the case of WayneJones, who claims to have broadband but is probably using dial-up, I've even seen the cars 'float' above the track like a hovercraft. The other cars in GT5P remain sharp and clearly rendered at all times but the lag will often result in somewhat erratic changes of direction. I think this has something to do with why the on-line races in GT5P seemed so frenetic and insane as in my observation in the first post. So yes, there are lag issues but GT5P handles it MUCH more elegantly.

- As you noted, in most of the races, even though we were sitting on the grid until the 30 second mark and made a standing start, we were usually passing the tail enders by the 3rd lap. So it's clear there are people of varying skill levels all driving together in these events. And with varying intent. I know you were purposely punted off at least once and I was taken out twice. Although in my case I don't thin it was intentional. You have to consider that the guys we were racing, if they were that much slower, probably just weren't very experienced.*

I wanted to mention too that I had unlocked the 512 but hadn't really spent any time with it. But once I had the settings right I felt comfortable with it. And by the last 2-3 runs, I felt I was slowly working my way up to your pace. After our last race, I ran three more events just out of curiosity. Two I won and one I spun on my own and ended up 4th. But I still say the ghosting in and out of the cars is just annoying and I think it detracts from the racing.

* Edit: Case in point, I tried to avoid another car and ended up with a corner cutting penalty around the hairpin (turn 6) so I took myself off line and rode the inside curb so I wouldn't impede cars coming up behind me. What does the guy behind me do? He goes onto the grass and passes me on the left. Oh well.

 

[Biggles]

The thing that's annoying about GT5P online is that some of the problems are by choice: the exaggerated collision physics, ghosting & RBE (not in Pro events anymore) have been programmed deliberately by PD. The problems in FC: the frame stutter/lag are (presumably ) NOT by choice.

 

[Ardius]

The thing that's annoying about GT5P online is that some of the problems are by choice: the exaggerated collision physics, ghosting & RBE (not in Pro events anymore) have been programmed deliberately by PD. The problems in FC: the frame stutter/lag are (presumably ) NOT by choice.

But, the important point - FC is meant to be a full game, GT5P is a test of what works and what doesn't. What's wrong with ghosting? And the collisions have been dumbed down a bit (or I think they have since I returned to it, can't really tell, punters rarely get me nowadays).

My only issue that turned me away from FC was the horrible reliability of the connections in the lobbies and races, as I have stated many times before.
I can overlook GT5P's issues because of its far better stability.

I personally feel that GT5P gives me a better feel of what the car is doing compared to FC, but then I use a DualShock 3, so it may be different with wheels. The FFB through the controller is surprisingly accurate to the point of feeling the bumps in Daytona Road.

Obviously FC has the advantage of private rooms and lobbies, voice chat and more tracks but since April I've actually cared less and less about having such things as GTP5 still provides an enjoyable online experience time and time again.

All in my opinion of course.

 

[Biggles]

But, the important point - FC is meant to be a full game, GT5P is a test of what works and what doesn't. What's wrong with ghosting? And the collisions have been dumbed down a bit (or I think they have since I returned to it, can't really tell, punters rarely get me nowadays).

My only issue that turned me away from FC was the horrible reliability of the connections in the lobbies and races, as I have stated many times before.
I can overlook GT5P's issues because of its far better stability.

I personally feel that GT5P gives me a better feel of what the car is doing compared to FC, but then I use a DualShock 3, so it may be different with wheels. The FFB through the controller is surprisingly accurate to the point of feeling the bumps in Daytona Road.

Obviously FC has the advantage of private rooms and lobbies, voice chat and more tracks but since April I've actually cared less and less about having such things as GTP5 still provides an enjoyable online experience time and time again.

All in my opinion of course.

Fine if GT5P is a demo designed to test what works & what doesn't, but why haven't they got rid of what doesn't?! One of the reasons for the ghosting in GT5P might have been the exaggerated collision physics. Get rid of both & you would have no problem - as in FC.

It's a shame you encountered the connection problems in the big lobby FC grids. In general, I do not encounter any problems, except for the frame-rate stutter, which definitely IS a continuing problem. I agree that there are no real issues with GT5P online, except for the lobby limitations & I've enjoyed playing it over the last year. The issue with GT5P is "I've been there/done that" - there are so few good online events that I feel I've played it out (although I enjoy going back to it after spending some time away).

IMO there's just way more variety of racing to keep my interest in FC - I've had many, many superb races in a variety of cars (& I actually enjoy the one-make racing, as it makes the racing fairer & closer). The physics are good in both games, but I prefer the feel of the FFB in FC - it's just more visceral.

I wish you would give FC another go online Ardius, as we could use the participation. Stick to 2 to 6 car races & you shouldn't have any serious connection issues.

 

[Ardius]

I may come back one day, but it won't be for a while now and if I do I won't come back again if I still get connection issues (which I had no matter how many players there were). It just wasn't fun to spend 20 minutes trying to get into a lobby that works in the first place only to lose connection to the host half way through the race and spend another 20 minutes trying to find a good host again.
I wouldn't mind so much if it used some method of late-joining alike to F1:CE, but it does not, so once you lose connection - thats it. It made races beyond 10 minutes pointless and wasted too much of my limited gaming time.

My point about GT5P being a "test" is more a point that FC should really have fixed its issues before its release, compared to the full GT5 which will hopefully have its major problems fixed or at least changable. Though I personally don't see the problem with ghosting as it avoids many uncessary incidents, even if it isnt perfect - no system like that ever will be.
Rubber banding was necessary at first because of the massive differences in player skills and the fact Gran Turismo is not a sim just for sim-players.
The exaggerated collision physics are something that can and should be tweaked but I think they may be just a placeholder for if and when damage makes its way to the game.

 

[Biggles]

It sounds like you have some particular issue with FC online, because I have never had connection problems like that. If that has been your experience, I'm not surprised you're not keen on FC online.

It's true that FC was put out prematurely with a number of issues which really should have been fixed. On the other hand GT5 is taking an incredible amount of time to arrive, so you would expect it to be a pretty complete game. I really would have expected some DLC tracks for GT5P in the interim, but it's looking like this is not going to happen.

It's really not fair to compare FC to GT5. It's like comparing a 150 million dollar Hollywood Blockbuster to a small Indy film. I'm certainly glad FC (& F1CE) exist, because without them I would be bored to death by now with just GT5P...

 

[Ardius]

Oh, don't get me wrong, I appreciate FC for what it is, and I enjoy its offline mode immensely.
But its online mode was seriously lacking from what I played and what seemed like a well polished game quickly showed its flaws, I was willing to overlook the limited car list and disappointing support, but the repeated problems (for me) online just put me off playing it.

I understand the game was rushed by System 3 and Eutechnyx could have done better with more time, but that doesn't excuse the game's problems. I hate publishers for this reason, but thats life, fact is, the game has avoidable flaws which don't look like they are going to be fixed any time soon.

 

[jjaisli]

Ardius, I have to say, despite it's many short comings, I've never experienced problems to that extent in Ferrari Challenge. I've seen severe lag issues disrupt the game play. Trying to effectively and cleanly race against cars who are blinking and popping first 50m in front of you then 5m in front of you then to the left, then to the right, isn't very endearing. But I've also run many races, against people from different continents where the cars seemed very stable and lag free, even side by side. Generally speaking, if you're racing against a small group (<6) who all have quick broadband connections with little latency, you're going to have smooth, lag free action. But the player with the slowest connection is going to be the weakest link in the chain.

In this sense, I think GT5P just handles the latency issues better; instead of cars blinking on and off, you have cars which are cleanly rendered but they seem to change direction in a very erratic manner. I'm guessing the way it's coded, GT5P attempts to fill in the missing gaps where as in FC when packet data is missing, the cars just blink on and off. In general, I prefer GT's solution but it's still far from perfect. And either way, I don't think PD would have released even a demo where cars 'bounce' up and down in the air.

That said, I never had an issue joining a lobby and the few times I've been kicked out, I was able to rejoin immediately. And it's not as if that happens all the time. It's rare--maybe 1 in 25 races. The problem usually seems to be either:
A) Lobbies with > 8 players and > 5 minutes in length, which we pretty much know don't work.
B) Specific people who have low bandwidth issues who effectively become the cause of specific other people being kicked out.

I'm not trying to suggest that the problems don't exist. But maybe you just had a string of bad luck.

 

[Biggles]

What's wrong with cars bouncing? I think it adds (literally) a whole new dimension to the game...

 

[jjaisli]

The first time I saw it, I thought I had been playing too long and needed a break. I think what's more amusing is when the cars are bouncing, parts start falling off, a bumper here, a fender there...

 

[Ardius]

That said, I never had an issue joining a lobby and the few times I've been kicked out, I was able to rejoin immediately. And it's not as if that happens all the time. It's rare--maybe 1 in 25 races. The problem usually seems to be either:
A) Lobbies with > 8 players and > 5 minutes in length, which we pretty much know don't work.
B) Specific people who have low bandwidth issues who effectively become the cause of specific other people being kicked out.

I'm not trying to suggest that the problems don't exist. But maybe you just had a string of bad luck.

I meant rejoining the race itself, not just the lobby - once the race has started you have no way of ever joining it again till they finish, and with 30 minute races this is immensely frustrating, at least with F1:CE I could late-join, but then I never had connection problems in that game.

But still, even joining the lobbies seemed to be bugged half the time, where the lobby would just not load up and the "host has disconnected" even though they blatantly hadn't.
I didn't have these problems randomly (and I also didn't have them with 8+ player games, I had them with any amount of players even 2 player), I had them for 3 straight weeks that I played the game online, and at varying times of the day. Even with hosts that had been stable for several races eventually had me disconnecting, such as the races Hun setup, I was fine until the race at Spa, where in the restart I was booted after 3 laps, that event was the last straw for me with this game's online system.

On Wednesday I will try the game online again and see if the problems come back, if not then I will give it a second chance.

 

[jjaisli]

But still, even joining the lobbies seemed to be bugged half the time, where the lobby would just not load up and the "host has disconnected" even though they blatantly hadn't.
I didn't have these problems randomly (and I also didn't have them with 8+ player games, I had them with any amount of players even 2 player), I had them for 3 straight weeks that I played the game online, and at varying times of the day. Even with hosts that had been stable for several races eventually had me disconnecting, such as the races Hun setup...

I think this is the 'case B' scenario I mentioned where certain people, for whatever reason, are simply 'incompatible' with certain other people. I know Hun once had this problem with Biggles or Energiya where every time one of them entered a Lobby, the other (or both) were kicked out. I think simply quitting the game and logging out and then logging back in while in the XMB will resolve this issue with THAT particular person at THAT particular time. And I believe it may simply be very unfortunate luck that it happened to you so often.

From my own experience I've seen it happen to others (although I never had it happen to me personally). So I don't think it's a 'common' problem although obviously it does exist. And I agree, it's something which should have been resolved a long time ago. Hopefully you'll have better luck this time around.