Race with the cars that have updated sounds, like the GTE(s) & Oreca 07, or rFPro etc. The new sound engine greatly reduces the sounds you hear from other cars. The blips are still there, but you really only hear them when you are side by side in a corner.(or spectating)
I agree with the comment on first lap from the perspective of having the AI not fight for some number of fast paths and thereby break heavily into the first few corners. My strategy is always to be VERY conservative on the first lap to avoid a wreck. Monaco is a great example of that. I have fixed the AIW at Monaco and added 3 distinct fast paths. The AI race pretty decent, but the first lap is a tip-toe dance through the first set of corners. I also agree about the slip stream. Draft stickiness makes them draft, but then they never try to pull out to pass. Most passes are dive bombs into the corners as they rarely pull out on the straights. Having defined the 3 fast paths does get them to run different lines, but they won't draft 1/2 way down the straight and then pull out to get side-by-side very often. The final BIG issue I see is yellow flag behavior with respect to lining up. Running with safety car enabled usually destroys any race withthe AI. For me, this is the #1 thing S397 needs to fix as the rest is good enough to create a fun race.
I have been working on fixing AI for F1 tracks based on sim racing hubs tracks. With lots of fixes to the AIW and vehicles (look ahead distances make a huge difference), racing with the AI is pretty good. Until the safety car comes out and it is a mess. AI cars can't line up for formation lap or for safety car they just battle back and forth at VERY low speeds.
Honestly, with good AIW I don't see this as a huge issue. It is definitely there when I look at replays but it is quick enough on/off that it doesn't result in my running into them. The LINE is very sensitive and I have had to occasionally override the calculate speed for a waypoint to avoid 'break checks'. I also wrote a tool that inserts extra waypoints into sharp corners that makes the AI a bit better in places like the hairpin at Monaco. If you run F1 and can re-package cars and tracks I will be happy to share my changes to some places. I can't share content because I don't own any of it.
I've been fascinated by your discussion about the work with AIW you have been doing. I agree with you about the on/off NOT being an issue, but there are SOOOO many here and at other forums who just cannot stand it. It does not affect the driving but the immersion. Even though the effect has been minimized while in the cockpit of cars that have the updated sound package, it is still persistent in replays and broadcasts of online events and the many many cars that have yet to receive the sound updates( GT3 S397?) Please continue to inform us about your AIW discoveries, hopefully those few among us that have learned the voodoo required(like YOU!) will benefit and then we ALL will benefit. Thanks!
I was planning to do a thread on everything I have learned. Main issue is always that some findings may not globally apply to all situations. My goal is to create decent racing in multiplayer with my son and I on F1 (at the moment). Takes a lot of time running with the AI; but it helps me learn the tracks too so that part is good. FYI: I am a software engineer, so I write some tools in C# that I used to modify AIW.
I actually believe it affects the driving in some cases, specially with less stable cars, which can't ride curbs and "digest" the on-off throttle (Porsche Cup, BMW M2, Tommy78's 2018 TCR, ...) which causes the AI to go belly up waaaaay too many times... or, in the case of the AMG GT3, to lose the rear... Then, from an immersion point of view, it's absolutely horrible... specially T1 after the race start...
Could be. The F1 cars have a ton of grip. I thought I could fix it with better waypoints and lines but as everyone has said, I cannot.
