You know, Neon, in my earlier days on this site, I posted a special thread concerning AI and Pit Crews. Why would you want to have 3D pit crews? Well, the answer is simple for GT fans, as they seen video of a Ford GT40 getting new tires and fuel before going back out on the track. Will this happen? I can probably say that if you think actual PEOPLE will be used in animations, you may just see an animated pit crew either in low polygon, psuedo-3D sprites (meaning,from being viewed at all angles, it still looks the same), flattened textures, or the like.
If indeed a 3D pit crew was implemented, it would have to respond to the tires and fuel areas well. I mean, the fuel tank and tires on a Dodge Viper GTS are in different locations than a Formula One race car or a JGTC NSX. So the AI would have to be smart about the cars, and again, as I said in an old thread, "it is a losing cause when you challenge PD's intelligence." I would think an upgradable pit crew would be a nice consideration as well. I mean, you have a professional race car running in more challenging events, so why not make your ho-hum team of amateurs be more professional? Because after all, even the Pit Crew can determine how the race goes. About the last game I've seen an animated Pit Crew was probably "Le Mans 24 Hours," and I'm talking about games I've played before, so I know there are other games with such pit crews. LM24H actually made things interesting from tire changes to fuel. I even noticed the fuel nozzle looked a little weird with the polygon flow. But if you ask me, low-polygon human models will do. I say low because you don't want to have beautifully-designed humans doing your car. And as a rule in gaming:
more polygons + not so capable processor = slowdown
So, the "no show of the pit crew" thing? We'll see, come E3 2004. PD might surprise us maybe with the final version.
