Project Gotham Racing 2

[YOUWIN]

im sure the game in the fastest cars will be very fast and a real challenge

Hodge you seem very defensive, i was/am a big fan of PGR, and really wanted/want PGR2 to be as good or better, but with online - however after playing the demo i feel dissapointed. I don't wanna argue the toss over 30/60fps because firstly its been done to death, and sceondly im not as technically informed as many of you here probably are. But i've gotta point out again how fantastic Quantum looks (even now) with all the effects, silky smooth, ultra fast - and (im assuming here) 60fps - after playing it for the last few days, several hours a day, there is noticable difference in the smoothness compared to PGR2, and i just can't see where the extra graphical oomph is in PGR2 over QR -
Is it an online issue for 30fps???

Anyway personally its put me off the game, and when the news of 30fps was announced and everyone was arguing the toss, i never imagined it would bother me- but it has......

[Kirby]

There's agressive and there's driving into you as if you were invisible....Intelligent drivers dont constantly drive into their opponents. (well to be fair if i could do the same with no repurcussions like the AI can that's all i'd probably do as well).

[Hodge]

Your probably right you win that i am going defensive as it`s getting alot of undeserved critisism which it doesn`t deserve. As matt says flick gotham back on and have a look what the graphics are like compared to 2. 1 seems very boxey and sparse. 2 has a lot more depth to the buildings and more buildings and scenery in general especially on the yokohoma track. I could go on but don`t want to get drawn into the technical aspects again. It`s just a shame people gonna give up on this game over such a trivia thing.

[Ravon]

Had yet another look at this, and it is the 30 fps that i don't like.

But the cars seem to handle ok...and it looks nice

[Burai]

Oh, and I still don't get where the accusations of '****' AI come from Aggressive, yes, but then you should just fight fire with fire And learn to control the car in skids Saying they stick to the racing line like brainless automatons is nothing like what I've seen in PGR1 or 2....

It's easy to fight fire with fire, but when all you've got in your arsenal is a zippo ligher up against a flame thrower, suddenly it ain't all so rosey.

If you could give as good as you get, fair enough, but they stay rock-solid to their lines regardless of how you hit them. The only time they ever come off badly is when they get a bit overzealous and pitch themselves into the wall or when they desperately scrabble for the racing line oblivious to there being another car in the same space they are programmed to be.

If hitting them brought the same rewards to you as it does them, I'd be all in favour of aggressive AI (Kudos for aggression in PGR3 maybe?), but the things they do are unfair and frankly unnatural and suicidal.

[therealjohnpeat]

Can I just remind folks that demos are seldom a good example of the final game...

The finished code for a coverdisc needs to be submitted at least 3 months - often longer - before presstime.

The demo being the E3 code would be about right - it's also likely that the E3 build was broken away from the main code weeks before for final tweaking.

I'm just thinking back to game demos I've played in the past and things like the Conflict: Desert Storm demo are GREAT example of the MASSIVE differences between demo and final product.

That said - if the AI remains 'PGR aggressive' I'll be a bit disappointed - I gave up playing PGR once I had the last car as winning the remaning races was an exercise in frustration...

JP

[dc-arena]

If it was a smooth 30fps I wouldnt be too bothered (although it still sucks as its on 'The most powerful console in the world'), but the fact that half the time it running at a juddering, stuttering 20fps and frames out even more during a busy corner, is just disgraceful, and completly unforgivable.

The textures look as bland and flat as Gotham 1 and MSR, and some of them in the demo are awful (the tarmac in one of the tracks is laughable).

The handling is pretty much the same as before, so no real gripes there...

But the framerate is pathetic. I cant bring myself to play last generation looking games these days with framerates from PlayStation 1 days..

[mid]

You know, I'm sure that, when I was trying the demo out last week, I was 'helpfully' shunting AI cars round so they faced backwards on the exit to turns, as punishment for trying to block me by going wider than normal when I was trying to go round the outside. Are you sure you can't knock them off their lines?

[Azelpds]

Just to say i recently got my hands on a review version of the game and was very surprised with it.

Contrary to the preview version and demos, a time i was very critic to the game, the review the more time i play, the more i like the game. In one word, it all about the handling, specially in the inside view. The thing feels very natural the more i play and the speed in this view is very good for now. Remember that i still only have the first cars, so i assume things will become probably better with the more powerful cars.

Things i didn't like at the beginning was the classic 30Fps thing, but now i almost forgot of it, because the animation is solid and the graphics too, and inside view really rocks. Outside view seems a little weird and the handling was not very good for me in that view. Other stuff i didn't like was when you, sometimes, get into other car and yours spins like crazy for a strange reason, sometimes in a random factor. But you can do the same to the others as well lol

Well, for now the game is getting very good and more and more with more hours in it. If i was very ceptical at the beginning because of the preview impressions, now i can say i am in love. the handling is really good, like feels good and natural driving the diferent cars for now.

Still didnt get the time to see how internet racing is, but you can unlock some cars getting Live with the game.

Will try to get some more impressions when i get the time to play more.

[baad bwoy]

If the agressive and unfair AI isnt changed or dampened down slightly for the full release, I would imagine this would lead to players going online a great deal more as this is sure to be a much fairer and less frustrating experience, although this is not guaranteed as Im sure there will be a fair amount of 'Drivers from hell' cluttering up the servers(such as myself).
I think the whole business of 30fps is getting a bit tired now, and on the demo I've got I have not witnessed the game juddering into 20fps at any stage, even with cornering with a bunch of other cars. Some people are so negative I don't see how they enjoy anything as all their energy is so focussed on perceived failings there is very little to spare to appreciate the games triumphs, which are many imo.
Fact the game has changed quite a bit and has become slightly more tricky with the cars handlng than the previous games which seemed a lot more arcade style experiences, Fact it runs at 30fps but has vastly improved graphics and textures, you know the saying, you cant have your cake and eat it.
Oh and if the game seems to slow I would suggest the in-car view which while initially seems tricky to get to grips with, seems to more adequately convey a decent sense of speed to the player. I think the more time which is spent in the company of this game does pay dividends.
I was also particularly impressed by the obvious effort spent on the handling models, which is reflected in the differences between the handling of the three demo cars. I cant wait to get the full version 8)

[YOUWIN]

Oh and if the game seems to slow I would suggest the in-car view which while initially seems tricky to get to grips with, seems to more adequately convey a decent sense of speed to the player.

lol - yeah we're all a bunch'a new b's - thx for the tip

[Mr Spew]

If it was a smooth 30fps I wouldnt be too bothered (although it still sucks as its on 'The most powerful console in the world'), but the fact that half the time it running at a juddering, stuttering 20fps and frames out even more during a busy corner, is just disgraceful, and completly unforgivable.

The textures look as bland and flat as Gotham 1 and MSR, and some of them in the demo are awful (the tarmac in one of the tracks is laughable).

The handling is pretty much the same as before, so no real gripes there...

But the framerate is pathetic. I cant bring myself to play last generation looking games these days with framerates from PlayStation 1 days..

Did you count the frames or something? It's fine from where I'm sitting.

[Burai]

Yeah. Apart from when you slide the car a round and see the skyscrapers in the distance juddering along sideways.

Then pop in PGR1/GT3/RRV and do the same thing and watch as scenery smoothly pans around.

[dc-arena]

If it was a smooth 30fps I wouldnt be too bothered (although it still sucks as its on 'The most powerful console in the world'), but the fact that half the time it running at a juddering, stuttering 20fps and frames out even more during a busy corner, is just disgraceful, and completly unforgivable.

The textures look as bland and flat as Gotham 1 and MSR, and some of them in the demo are awful (the tarmac in one of the tracks is laughable).

The handling is pretty much the same as before, so no real gripes there...

But the framerate is pathetic. I cant bring myself to play last generation looking games these days with framerates from PlayStation 1 days..

Did you count the frames or something? It's fine from where I'm sitting.

No, I just know what I am looking at.

I am not being negative. If the game ran nicely, I would praise it. As the game runs really bad, I say it is. If you cant see the frame drops then you dont know what you are supposed to be looking at. Perhaps you dont care, but I do. Technical problems in games always ruin the overall experience, and juddery framerates in racing games is very very bad.

[marcus]

I didnt like MSR, I never liked Project Gotham Racing and true to form Im struggling to bond with Project Gotham 2 also. The game just feels empty and devoid of any charecter, in that way it reminds me a lot of the bland Sega GT. Im only at the beginning yet already I find little here to grab me.

The visuals are dull and lifeless, the buildings once again appear flat to the point of being just like cardboard cut-outs, the lure of racing around "real" locations to me is moot if Ive not ever been to these places, and for this reason the lack of London (seemingly) this time round is disappointing. For me I do have issue with the 30fps, it looks poor compared to its peers and very noticeable to me. I expect all modern day racers to be a standard of 60fps, and I fail to see why PGR2 isnt. To add insult to injury, Ive seen the game slow down several time already, was that not the point behind restricting this to 30fps in the first place?

The handling feels odd also and not natural to me, whilst if I find Im driving along to be clipped by another car and then spun around one more time Im going to break this pad! Also I wasnt impressed by multiplayer at our recent LAN meeting.

I do love the showroom section however, very nicely done. Ill persist, but I feel right now that there are other games more deserved of my time than this.