Noel Hibbard
Registered
For me the biggest problem with the default FFB is the lack of self aligning forces. In a real car when the rear is sliding the front wheels try to turn into the slide. This is massively masked by power steering but it is there. RealFeel does this very well. RealFeel exaggerates this self aligning torque vs a real car with power steering but as you said we need to compromise all out realism sometimes. The default FFB sort of just raises and lowers centering forces but doesn't really self align. One thing that is missing from pure RealFeel is canned rumble strips. With pure RealFeel you only feel curbs if they are 3D. Luckily most good tracks have 3D curbs. The canned FFB gives you rumble strip effects any time the car goes over a surface that is tagged as a curb in the TDF even if the curb is totally flat in the 3D model.
Like you said it all really comes down to learning how to interpret the forces and train your brain how to relate it to your real life experience. This is why I don't fully take real drivers opinions as the bible. Sim racing will never "feel" like real racing. But the way the car reacts to inputs is really damn accurate. The "feel" part comes with time. Personally the best opinions come from real racers who are also serious simracers. Not just guys you pull off the track and say, hey sit in this thing and tell me what you think. They will always tell you it lacks grip. We need advice from people like Tommy Milner, Sean Edwards (RIP) and Bryan Heitkotter to name a few. I am not talking about paid marketing stunts like Tommy did for SMS for NFS:Sh*t but behind the scenes stuff that is unbiased. Tommy worked with ISI way back in the day on the Panoz and the FBMWs. Sean was known for helping out on Porsches too. Bryan seems to be paid by Sony to pretend he plays GT5 and keep his time in rF a big secret.
Like you said it all really comes down to learning how to interpret the forces and train your brain how to relate it to your real life experience. This is why I don't fully take real drivers opinions as the bible. Sim racing will never "feel" like real racing. But the way the car reacts to inputs is really damn accurate. The "feel" part comes with time. Personally the best opinions come from real racers who are also serious simracers. Not just guys you pull off the track and say, hey sit in this thing and tell me what you think. They will always tell you it lacks grip. We need advice from people like Tommy Milner, Sean Edwards (RIP) and Bryan Heitkotter to name a few. I am not talking about paid marketing stunts like Tommy did for SMS for NFS:Sh*t but behind the scenes stuff that is unbiased. Tommy worked with ISI way back in the day on the Panoz and the FBMWs. Sean was known for helping out on Porsches too. Bryan seems to be paid by Sony to pretend he plays GT5 and keep his time in rF a big secret.
