Q&A with Slightly Mad Studios: Ian Bell [Read OP]

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@IanBell

Can you confirm that the current PC option of REAL weather has in fact continued into Project CARS2? I have seen a ton of content regarding LiveTrack 3.0 and Dynamic Weather and how they interact, but there has been no official confirmation yet of the REAL weather continuing on.

My league has been using this REAL weather option since day one, and we hope to continue that when we move to Project CARS2 (notice I said WHEN and not IF? ;) ) . It has added immensely to the immersion and strategy and has really played a factor in the races as you invariably have some drivers who did not prepare properly for potential wet conditions.

I am loving all the features announced so far. LiveTrack 3.0 plus the Online Championships feature are the 2 most anticipated for me. The improved tire model and physics model run a close 2nd.

Thanks again for your time and openness with us here.
 
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@IanBell Ian when can we expect new official released media information in the form of screenshots and videos? Will the first new released material be linked to an event (e.g. E3, Gamescom) or promotion (partnership with various websites) or will it just come out of the blues? :)
 
Question from PS4 user: Speaking of audio, the new system that was implemented is Bass Shakers friendly? "Single Tactile" or "Surround Tactile" just changes the enjoyment of the game. Also, if we have support for 3 monitors, then of course the immersion is total !!!
Thanks for your time answering ours questions :gtpflag:
 
Will there be a blind-spot indicator? it was really annoying racing in any first person view and not knowing where the cars behind you are.
 
First of all thanks @IanBell for sharing all the infos to your upcoming title. :)

Pcars 1 was cool but for my taste too less cars.

Since you know promise over 170 cars I´m more then excited.
The screens and videos also looked nice.

1.
Is this time a XP-System planned?
You know lvl up etc. just to see each race as a progress.

Or is the carrer of Pcars 2 "credits" based so you have to earn cash to
buy new cars etc.

2.
Have you ever though about early access for consoles?
I know on XBOX there is a programm where developers can
offer it.

I would support that :)

3.
And to cars.
I saw that sexy new AMG GTR.
Can we expect also some old classic AMGs like the legendary "Hammer" ? :)


Thanks for your time and hopefully you can keep September :cheers:
 
Ok, 2 questions.

1. Just a yes or no will do: if you are at the last option of a menu and press down, am I at the top again? (We can go to the moon, make worlds that fit in a shoebox size computer but this seems to be impossible in most games.)
2. Uh... how do you like Zandvoort......? :) Any chance seeing it ingame? Motorsport is booming here in the Netherlands. Don't know why but it is. Some teenager (sorry, forgot his name...) is do'in some motorracing in a Formula 1 apparatus.
 
Sch@dows
Hi @IanBell,

As the sore looser as I am, I was often jealous of opponents who succeeded in clearing a corner while taking some high kerbs repeatedly (and managing to stay in control unlike me). Will pcars 2 have suspension failures in case of repeatedly abusing the car suspension ?
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Excellent question. It's a question I wanted to ask after racing at Zolder yesterday.

I'd like to add: Will we also be able to take chicanes at speed similar to this?

I understand cars like GT3 and higher, are heavily sprung, but is there a new suspension and steering model for us to attack kerbs like the AI?

Zolder, Oulton Park, Monza, Imola chicanes, are a bit tricky at times.
 
sems4arsenal
Will there be a blind-spot indicator? it was really annoying racing in any first person view and not knowing where the cars behind you are.
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That reminds me of one small little detail.

With the Dual Shock 4 in PCARS1 I reassigned the right analog stick to look behind instead of down, but when looking behind, the X-axis is "backwards" from expected. So to look to the rear on my right side, I have to tilt the stick down and to the left, and vice versa. May we please have the X-axis flipped around when "look behind" is active, at least for in-car views?
 
Ian i feel bad asking you stuff as we are keeping you so busy but now the tap has been turned there is no stopping these questions.
So just a few more.....
1.There are already good reports about live track 3.0 & i'm really interested in how far you have taken it. I know you can drag dirt onto tracks & water reacts to gravity. But how is the snow working, I'm guessing it forms a slippery surface but will it actually build up on track? Could enough snow fall to turn it into a rally circuit? Will the snow melt & turn to slush & then drain away?
2.We have seen footage of 2 tracks, are you going to let us see more every month or so? Est is Oct> is a long time for us.
 
GBalao888
Are all the cars from the original Project CARS gonna carry over or will some be left out? Because the original has 125 cars already off the bat with all DLC's and then saying that the game would have 170+ cars would mean 45 or more new which may not seem that plenty though, but I'm really looking forward to it.
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Most are carried forward and reworked yes. 45 cars with the detail we put into them is a lot I can tell you. They are all there for a reason also, I think we made some great choices on grouping which makes for some excellent racing.
 
avijan
Hi @IanBell,

Props to you for using your time on this awesome Q&A.

I'm reading that alot of effort (and focus) is put into take the realism and immersion up to new standards with all the new advanced Livetrack 3.0 system, new complex (and geographically correct) weather/season system, new?/revised physics engine and not to forget a new tyre model. Big thumbs up for that!!

Visually it looks stunning from what I've seen so far - I'm 100% sure that we're in for a treat here but It looks like the visual treats are concentrated on the environment and track - what about the cars will they be affected by the weather/dirt more than Pcars1 when it comes to progressive buildup of dirt/snow/tyre residue on the cars themselves to make it look more authentic after a long race? or when you push it too far and venture "offtrack" plowing through grass/dirt etc.?

in terms of damage model (I know that your're somewhat restricted by the manufactors when it comes to the car models themselves) but will we see new/more stuff like engine fires on severe crashes or engine blowouts? thick black/white smoke, sparks, tyres "exploding into pieces etc. you know...more subtle visual treats to accompany all the other new promising features?

Will the lightning model be changed? headlights are not that efficient/realistic in Pcars 1. they don't lit up the track or the environment enough (personal opp.) and very poorly represented in the rearview mirror if you ask me. I can imagine with new HDR standards and all that you have thought about the lighting model.

Any plans on replacing/removing that damn chopper hovering around in all sorts time/weather conditions - would be nice to actually be able to hear it (at least in replays) - or maybe even throw a spotlight at you at night for example when there's an accident on the track or something. Well Joke aside..the chopper is not important to me - just annoying sometimes ;)

Enough about eyecandy..

Adding to realism and the feeling of dealing with a real simulator is data and statistics. What additions in info and statistics can we expect to see in Pcars 2? Here I'm thinking car/track/personal/performance/progression/historical statistics. The stats page in Pcars1 is useless if I may say so. I know we get esports and custom championships and as a "multiplayer/league only" racer this is important to me and very promising that we finally get this. but other types of new stats/history are most welcome!

Features/requests/whishes I've not read about yet - or maybe forgot..

Will we be able to chance car/class once in game lobby (single user practice mode AND multiplayer without quitting the created lobby?

Will we have 100% control in terms of setting up cars/classes for online races?

Will there be any additions to define the ruleset/marshalling ingame for online/league races?

Will there be a 100% free moving camera option in replays or maybe even spectator mode?


I could go on...but the post has become rather long so I better stop.

Kind Regards

"avijan".
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Wow, this is a long one!

Yes on the cars, they will build up dirt/snow etc as appropriate.

Manufacturers hate to see smoke coming out of their cars... Fire is right out.

The rendering system has been rewritten from the ground up yes. We have more dynamic range and the headlights are also being greatly improved. I agree they were a little weak before. You'd be amazed though how many real drivers told us they were too effective...

Those damn choppers are still there :) The audio has been completely rewritten so you should hear them.

We have a lot more in the stats area. You will be rated in multiple areas and this will carry through your 'career' both online and offline. We are limited on consoles as to how much memory we can allocate to the storage of data though.

No on changing car on track. That would require us to load up and maintain the garage/UI etc for that and it would take up too much memory at run time.

100% control yes. Well in all areas I can think of that matters.

Yes on the host being able to dictate the rules.
 
gabrielradu
Question from PS4 user: Speaking of audio, the new system that was implemented is Bass Shakers friendly? "Single Tactile" or "Surround Tactile" just changes the enjoyment of the game. Also, if we have support for 3 monitors, then of course the immersion is total !!!
Thanks for your time answering ours questions :gtpflag:
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I would like to know this also. Pcars1 works awesome with my Aura Pro shakers. When I play assetto corsa, I get nothing compared to Pcars.
 
Hi @IanBell, thanks for doing the Q@A

Just one question from me

Is there a possibility that a modern touring car from a certain German series may appear in the game?
 
breyzipp
@IanBell Ian when can we expect new official released media information in the form of screenshots and videos? Will the first new released material be linked to an event (e.g. E3, Gamescom) or promotion (partnership with various websites) or will it just come out of the blues? :)
Click to expand...
nrosko
2.We have seen footage of 2 tracks, are you going to let us see more every month or so? Est is Oct> is a long time for us.
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I can tell you this: Our marketing team is on over-drive right now....expect incredible materials monthly. And keep your eyes on our Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for near-daily drops

pro-tip: bookmark those links
 
Are you importing cars from p1? ..have you considered putting out a gt legends type game? Just the old stuff?
 
Wolfe
That reminds me of one small little detail.

With the Dual Shock 4 in PCARS1 I reassigned the right analog stick to look behind instead of down, but when looking behind, the X-axis is "backwards" from expected. So to look to the rear on my right side, I have to tilt the stick down and to the left, and vice versa. May we please have the X-axis flipped around when "look behind" is active, at least for in-car views?
Click to expand...
Yeah I know what you're talking about. I'll mention it to the guys, should be a quick fix.

But honestly, with me on your radio and the little arrows...you'll just be looking straight ahead the whole race, like a real driver should.
 
I dunno if you are allowed or have any interest in shedding some light about this, but I've been musing for a while about the racing genre.

1) You likely have access or at least know the overalls of this genre market, along with your or your publisher tools. Do you think the racing genre has shrinked these past 5-10 years? From available information, sales in the genre have been trending downwards, but I wonder if there's any insight on the reasons, if any.
Have developers in general failed to capture new audiences, or is it the same trend observed in racing sports viewership affecting a whole generational interest?

2) A bit of a continuation from the first, I assume the market you guys achieved is sufficient for a profitable, healthy game, but would you say there's a "known" ceiling for growth as of now?

3) Another question would be, what is the attach rate on DLC for your game and if that matches the genre and overall averages? I've read from 15% to 20% in general and it'd be nice to know where racing consumers sit, since cars/track is the bread and butter of what they want.

4) Do you know what/how is the overlap in consumers in the genre? Do they split themselves between title or do they consume numerous titles.

That's about it.
I'd like to thank you for getting Interlagos, hopefully other brazilian tracks will follow suit with time!
 
cutmeamango
I dunno if you are allowed or have any interest in shedding some light about this, but I've been musing for a while about the racing genre.

1) You likely have access or at least know the overalls of this genre market, along with your or your publisher tools. Do you think the racing genre has shrinked these past 5-10 years? From available information, sales in the genre have been trending downwards, but I wonder if there's any insight on the reasons, if any.
Have developers in general failed to capture new audiences, or is it the same trend observed in racing sports viewership affecting a whole generational interest?

2) A bit of a continuation from the first, I assume the market you guys achieved is sufficient for a profitable, healthy game, but would you say there's a "known" ceiling for growth as of now?

3) Another question would be, what is the attach rate on DLC for your game and if that matches the genre and overall averages? I've read from 15% to 20% in general and it'd be nice to know where racing consumers sit, since cars/track is the bread and butter of what they want.

4) Do you know what/how is the overlap in consumers in the genre? Do they split themselves between title or do they consume numerous titles.

That's about it.
I'd like to thank you for getting Interlagos, hopefully other brazilian tracks will follow suit with time!
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1. You can't iterate a stock game (and engine) with new cars and tracks and sell it over and over again. Hence us adding a silly amount of new features per iteration. Only that will keep the punters coming back and paying again.

2. I think we can go 4 million plus on sales for pCARS2. It certainly deserves it in terms of the effort we're making. I don't see a ceiling. We just need to bring more people to the genre and you do that by innovating properly.

3. 10-15% for us depending on the particular package. It was oddly low for some reason. Maybe we had too much content to start with and this relates to my first answer also. People want innovation to motivate them to part with their hard earned cash.

4. Most of the core fans buy most of the titles. I suspect we've ruffled a few feathers at Turn 10 and PD with our planned release window (and they should be worried) :)
 
IanBell
1. You can't iterate a stock game (and engine) with new cars and tracks and sell it over and over again. Hence us adding a silly amount of new features per iteration. Only that will keep the punters coming back and paying again.

2. I think we can go 4 million plus on sales for pCARS2. It certainly deserves it in terms of the effort we're making. I don't see a ceiling. We just need to bring more people to the genre and you do that by innovating properly.

3. 10-15% for us depending on the particular package. It was oddly low for some reason. Maybe we had too much content to start with and this relates to my first answer also. People want innovation to motivate them to part with their hard earned cash.

4. Most of the core fans buy most of the titles. I suspect we've ruffled a few feathers at Turn 10 and PD with our planned release window (and they should be worried) :)
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I would pay for a trans am (60s ) class, 70s can-am class, mclaren m20, Lola t70 ect... I think historic racing is making a comeback. Just look at Australia, with their tourmasters series. Plus us old guys have more disposable income.
 
Allek
Can we have mandatory pit stops for AI cars in Quick Race Weekends?
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It's there, works good.

RacerDude08
How are manual pitstops going to work?
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Drive in, tires and fuel, drive out #ShakeAndBake

Fun Fact: We reject any job applicants that haven't watched Talladega Nights....that's just how we roll. #BabyJesus
 
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IanBell
1. You can't iterate a stock game (and engine) with new cars and tracks and sell it over and over again. Hence us adding a silly amount of new features per iteration. Only that will keep the punters coming back and paying again.

2. I think we can go 4 million plus on sales for pCARS2. It certainly deserves it in terms of the effort we're making. I don't see a ceiling. We just need to bring more people to the genre and you do that by innovating properly.

3. 10-15% for us depending on the particular package. It was oddly low for some reason. Maybe we had too much content to start with and this relates to my first answer also. People want innovation to motivate them to part with their hard earned cash.

4. Most of the core fans buy most of the titles. I suspect we've ruffled a few feathers at Turn 10 and PD with our planned release window (and they should be worried) :)
Click to expand...

I deeply appreciate these answers. It's great to have a closer look inside this passion and know prospects are highly positive.

If I may squeeze just one last question I forgot:

It's observable that online game communities are one of the best, if not the best way to strengthen consumer "loyalty" and consequently increase the longevity of a game. PCARS2 is seemingly not making any stops with the online capabilities to foster that. PCARS1 had already dipped its feet in the esports pool to great success.

Is a great online with matchmaking and ranking metrics comparable to other well-trodden genres like shooters, the missing silver bullet this generation? And are there any estimatives, yours or 3rd party, on the potential of eSports for the racing genre?
I see there's an ever increasing interest by manufacturers themselves in expanding their brands in that environment, so it would be nice to know how it can correspond.

The_American
Fun Fact: We reject any job applicants that haven't watched Talladega Nights....that's just how we roll. #BabyJesus
Click to expand...

Gotta love Highlander as well then.
 
cutmeamango
I deeply appreciate these answers. It's great to have a closer look inside this passion and know prospects are highly positive.

If I may squeeze just one last question I forgot:

It's observable that online game communities are one of the best, if not the best way to strengthen consumer "loyalty" and consequently increase the longevity of a game. PCARS2 is seemingly not making any stops with the online capabilities to foster that. PCARS1 had already dipped its feet in the esports pool to great success.

Is a great online with matchmaking and ranking metrics comparable to other well-trodden genres like shooters, the missing silver bullet this generation? And are there any estimatives, yours or 3rd party, on the potential of eSports for the racing genre?
I see there's an ever increasing interest by manufacturers themselves in expanding their brands in that environment, so it would be nice to know how it can correspond.



Gotta love Highlander as well then.
Click to expand...

Great question on eSports. We are and have been the only official racing eSport for over a year now with our last product. That's with ESL, Playstation Plus and many others. http://www.projectcarsesports.com/

Hence I was intrigued to hear that GT Sport will move sim racing into eSports....

Our eSport and league based features for pCARS2 are truly revolutionary.

To answer your question specifically, eSports is going to be huge and we're well ahead of the competition in this area. Good link here: http://www.bizreport.com/2017/02/global-esports-revenues-to-reach-15-billion-by-2020.html
 
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Wait wait wait!! Did I just read above that manual pit stops are in? No more Ai taking over when in the pit lane? I'll use a bit of my native 'slang' if that's in..

You bloody rippers! Can't wait to dump that clutch in the pits at Bathurst in a V8 supercar after wacking on some fresh boots and having a sip of the ol Victoria Bitter! #strooth
@IanBell @The Owl @The_American
 

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