Just seen this thread and I`m also a big rf2 fan. To me its still the best racing simulator for the majority of people besides "rfpro" used by racing teams. Unfortunately I also dont see big improvements and updates from S397. I hope Im wrong...
I am personally even very skeptical that there are very superficial improvements, evolution, debugging, optimization. Whether there is new content or updated content, I think it's over, even if there is it will be very superficial and in limited number. I have no desire to be negative about this, but from what I know and what I have read from appropriate and competent people, there is a strong chance unfortunately that this is what awaits us for rFactor 2. I continue to use it exclusively exactly as before without change, I still find it as high quality and brilliant as before, but it is still really frustrating to know that it will probably not evolve more. As far as I'm concerned, I think that economic logic prevailed over the interest of rfactor 2 fans as well as the interest of big driving fans who end up with either a very good new game but with car content and incredibly limited circuit and therefore very reductive in terms of passion, or other simulations which, as far as I am concerned, are far too little advanced in terms of realism and simulation. The choice as far as I am concerned is quickly made, either the new simulation which does not suit me, or the very old rfactor 2. Choice quickly made.
Exactly my words... Rather an outdated rfactor2 with many tracks and cars options than a limited Game just for business reasons. Lets Hope s397 will think about again if giving up rfactor2 is the right decision.
I hope that S397 or more precisely MSG, don't take the decission taking in account these reasons. Mantain an outdated rF2 or invest in a game for business reasons. Every company has to pay their debts to survive (loans, salaries, expenses, etc) The decission in these terms seems clear. Let rF2 die. But this could be seen in a different way. MSG has had bad results in the previous projects, but it seems that LMU can be a success. LMU exists because rF2 exists. rF2 could be a good investment for S397 if they use it as base to develop other games/sims, but would be needed avoid rF2 becoming outdated.
In the case, for whatever reason rF2 got left behind, and/or forgotten by their respective teams S397/MSG, which would really be sad for all of us, I would like to think and pretty much count on It that the community would take over. As they did with AC and It´s Content Manager. The success of ACC Is mainly due because of how well AC/CM turned out and Is still thriving on. According to Steam charts, It reached a peak player count of 17,931 players In the last 30 days, and I am not even sure If that counts Content Manager players as It has It´s own launcher. Just today, It had a peak player count of 4.446 players, circa what LMU Is getting while It´s a totally new game In the market. Human beings are strange creatures In the sense that they might shy away from something that they for some reason lost Interest In, but when It goes missing, they suddenly gain Interest again and passionately try to get It back! You know, like that old girlfriend you left and now has moved on to another city. Personally I find that AC+CM Is a great sandbox and a lot of fun (maybe that´s why Kunos Is working on AC 2 on It´s own engine again), but I also think that rF2 is a better game/engine and could be a better sandbox If the case would ever to come. As It did with rF1. Will that ever happen I don´t know, but If It did I think It would turn out great. Don´t get me wrong, I want my rF2 as Is or better, and would not change It for anything, but If push comes to shove I have hopes that It would prevail. If there was a way to Isolate rF2 with It´s original content, by that I mean content made by S397 and have a app like AC´s Content Manager that does that, use the rF2 engine and manage the user created content In a easy way as It does, that would be great! It would take the burden off of S397 for creating and updating rF2, and any other user content would have to go through the CM app and work In It´s own environment. Then players would be free to choose which platform to use, be It rF2, or rF2+CM. Yeah I know, It´s copying a formula, but It´s a formula that works, at least with AC. Anyhow no cristal ball here to know what the future will be, and speculations are just that, speculations! Cheers
Perhaps rF2 could be transferred to another developer or Modding Group to be kept alive as a stand-alone title but, with QOL updates and expanded modding capabilities. I know, probably never happen but, as long as we're speculating . . .
I will never understand why this community is widely affected by this doomsday syndrome: RF2 has been in miserable condition in the past 12 years. Actually it has never been so alive as it has been in the last two years, so you are still here despite the 12 years of messy unfinished features. Why it should die now that is probably played by more people than ever?
No one said what you said (I think). People actually consider that rFactor 2 has for almost 3 years been both a feat in terms of driving realism as since 2012, but also a complete simulation in the sense that the graphics, the sound, the UI, but also the quantity very reasonable bug and very reasonable optimization for 3 years. In fact, what people say is content of what I just said just before, we must not only continue to use it, possibly for certain people as is the case for me to use it in exclusivity but it is not obligatory of course, but above all, that in addition to using it either exclusively or in any case continuing to use it actively, that it is completely stupid to leave this incredible simulation and even probably the best in the current state of things, that is to say without future development, without future evolutions, without future improvements, without future content updates, without new DLC (at least with few of these things -there even if there is). That's what people say, there's nothing apocalyptic, it's just coherent and to tell the truth, we see where the real fans of rFactor 2 are. The real rF2 fan doesn't run away as soon as there's the marvelous wonderful wonderful wonderful wonderful wonderful LMU which also comes out in early access version, he considers that there is still no better at the moment than rF2 and continues to use it as before. I consider that this is not a misplaced loyalty, but that it is just logical content of what is offered, namely the extreme realistic, the graphics, the sound, the UI, the ultimate simulator experience. I don't really see what's complicated to understand about that. To conclude, no one is really talking to you about the death of rfactor 2 due to a possible very low use in the coming years, everyone is talking to you about the death of rFactor 2 in connection with what I described above, the probable lack of evolution, lack of improvement, lack of new content, lack of updating of new content et cetera et cetera.
I actually believe that people have not understood that LMU exists exclusively and I mean exclusively for economic reasons, which does not concern us, which just concerns the MSG company which appeared as if by magic a year ago. What people don't understand is that we don't care about economic interest, this one matters, it's everyone's interest, the interest of rfactor 2 fans and the interest of the fans of simulation : In this sense, sorry to repeat, in case you still didn't understand, but what was beneficial for the entire community was not LMU, it was an rFactor 2 gradually improving and of course as quickly as possible, whatever form it would have taken, including large DLC concerning endurance or the WEC why not. But damn, the decision to make LMU is one of the worst decisions for us fans of rfactor 2 as well as for the entire SIM racing community. This doesn't mean at all that this game won't be good, it just means that it wasn't at all our interest. The interest fundamentally was not this. And of course LMU comes out, and everyone applauds with open arms it's awesome. Good job guys. Clap then!!!! EDIT: I GAVE MY OPINION WITH SUPPORTING ARGUMENTS, I DON'T THINK I WILL RETURN TO IT. There is no need for me to elaborate further on the essential points that have been said.
Well if LMU can keep these decent player numbers then they found the recipe for success I think. Keep building on the rF2 base and release new sim(s) on it, whether called rF3 or something else. Or release rF 2.5 or something with the car and track license issues to be sorted out. LMU indeed only exists because of rF2 and LMU basically uses rF2 graphics engine more or less as is with all the post FX etc. straight borrowed from rF2 and the physics engine being more or less exactly rF2 with hybrid engine support and some improvement to the tire model. rF2 is always complained about as old and outdated yet the community seems to love LMU and all it took was some minor improvements here and there. So yeah I agree with you, building on rF2 engine in some form seems to be the way to go forward here.
First they said they couldn't because of the license, then it wasn't possible to do it in RF2, the fairest thing was to say it was over and leave it like this, if they launched a hybrid system for mods it would help, I remember Marcel saying he wouldn't make the lmp1h because they were dying and that was the end of the game for me, as I would never have a true hybrid system, then came the formula pro, a modern formula one with v10 engine that is a shame, I hope for these or for a real f1 make the hybrid system. But the studio didn't even update the interior of the rFactor 2 cars sold as DLC, so I don't believe that anything decent will come to Rf2, I hope I'm wrong, but I think the simulator is progressing 100% towards its end. They should hand it over to ISI again, who knows, maybe something decent will come out.
Currently, ISI is a shell company with no real entity, and even if ISI were to buy it back, it would likely only sell rF2 licenses without developing rF2.
This is basically what MSG is doing, as the game is for sale, but it probably won't have decent content anymore.
If there was any future for rf2 some MSG / 397 guy could simply tell us with a few words on this forum. They however never do. This forum was never created for us. Only for them, to extract as much info as possible from the community, of course for their benefit only.
Big mistake was ever licensing Reiza. I sometimes wonder if they had the backing to keep engine inhouse and build their own gmotor1.0 sim where they could be now.
https://sites.google.com/view/racing-sim-pitstop/rfactor-2-tutorials/offline-championships Workable solution.
While it's technically feasible, the majority of players won't go to such lengths to run a championship a game. We're talking about the necessity of using third-party tools, manually editing text files, and learning how to create a rfmod, among other things. This level of complexity is simply too demanding for the average player. Don't get me wrong, I genuinely value the tool as I don't mind tinkering, but I'm aware that my perspective is not shared by most.
