SimBin has unofficially announced that a patch for RACE On is in the works to solve a number of pending issues.

The patch will fix a number of bugs experienced by users. For now, an official changelog hasn’t been issued, but I’m guessing one of the biggest problems it should solve is the nVidia problem experienced by many racers. We’ve been on the lucky side, because the game worked very well on our ATI video card. The patch is in testing at the moment and may be released very soon, stand by for more information.

ISI has sent a few early Christmas presents by adding some more screenshots to their gallery. In these new shots, we see closer shots of the cars, track side shots, views of the pit lanes, a dirt track and rain/fog conditions. If you think the rain picture looks funny, well it does. They’ve since fixed the weird coloration.

They have also announced that work did not stop and that rFactor 2 isn’t vaporware as some are now assuming, so that’s always a good sign.

2009 has been a very good year for the racing game industry, with a couple mega titles dropping down to the end of the year. All in all, it’s good to see that developers are now pushing the graphical and physics frontier in order to bring racers that are much closer to reality. Here is our list of preferred titles for 2009.

5. Midnight Club: Los Angeles (based on DLC release)

Based on Grand Theft Auto’s RAGE Engine, Midnight Club 4 featured a ton of stuff for fans who like the street racing scene. For an arcade racer, the game boasted exceptionally good handling, very competitive racers, realistic cars and and an almost perfect rendition of the inner city of Los Angeles (well the more exciting parts at least). Some of the additional features that made the racing itself more enjoyable were the addition of Action Camera, a variation of racing events and the level of difficulty to win races. Who wants a game where you can just win with your eyes closed? With a combination of heart pumping music, cool camera views, fun races and added DLC, this is definitely one good arcade racer to pick up.

4. Colin McRae: DiRT 2

DiRT 2 is quite an exceptional rally with appeal to a much wider audience. Rather than sticking to the usual time trial modes of real life rallying, they have added a number of other events to make the game even more exciting for newer rallying fans. With superbly awesome graphics, a number of different cities and scenery and the inclusion of different types of racing machines, DiRT 2 kept up with the standards set by its predecessor, DiRT 1 and continues to be the best rallying game as compared to the others. The game brings good handling as well and may be frustrating for newer players who are not accustomed to the delayed style of cornering, but more experienced players are definitely sure to like it. There is also significant differences in handling between the different classes of vehicles, which adds to the experience.

3. RACE On

RACE On is the latest release from SimBin, which brings a specific focus to reality racing. With an exceptional physics engine, it’s a sim racer’s gift from God. With focus on various Touring Car Series, Formala Masters series and fictional US Street racing, it’s a wrap up of all the good work done over the past few years at SimBin. The game offers various modes, including a full career mode in which players participate in the full out race weekend events, which include Practices, Qualifying, Warm Ups and the actual races. Even though RACE Pro came out in 2009 as well, we chose not to include it in the list since RACE On delivers a very similar package.

2. Need For Speed: SHIFT

Yes folks, it’s the game that saved the Need For Speed line. With the NFS name being on the verge of being chopped, EA released this bad boy. With its thriller graphics, cars and tracks, SHIFT is totally unlike the rubbish EA produced over the last few years. The game focuses alot of the simulation aspect, and even though we were not satisfied with the physics engine, everything else was on cue. The menus were solid, music was appropriate and the environmental visuals were superb. Even though they haven’t produced a proper racer like Forza 3 or Gran Turismo, they have come quite the distance and there is now hope for future titles.

1. Forza Motorsport 3

Microsoft and Turn10 have done it. They’ve created the best racing game of 2009 and they’ve shattered all others by miles. What’s so special about this game? Everything! They added 400 cars, all of which can be driven from the get go (once you rack up some points to buy them). There is no such thing as unlocking cars. The next epic fact is that the game was made not just for the hardcore racer with the expensive steering wheel set, but even a newbie to the game will definitely be able to control the cars with assists turned off.  I think this has to be one of the biggest positives for the game. Sometimes I don’t want to have to set up a racing wheel system just to play, instead just hooking up a controller and still being able to have immense control over the cars suits me better. Each car has been uniquely tuned, so no one car feels like any other, and there is an extensive custom tuning section where you can configure your whip to your personal settings.

Visuals also get an A+. The level of detail is ridiculously good, both on the cars and tracks. Amazingly, each car also has its down sounds, so a BMW M5 has that F1 V10 sound, while a Honda Civic has sounds of the straight 4 with turbo chargers. The game is a huge step compared to Forza 2 and is definitely worth it.

If you liked this list, check out some of the hot racing games coming in 2010.

Recently, we posted a story about a mystery world renowned driver being signed up to SimBin’s Real-Time Racing game series.

Turns out it isn’t Micheal Schumacher, or any other popular driver we know. It’s Santa Claus. Woopiee Doo (Sarcasm). Come on SimBin, tease us with something better than that.

In 2009, we saw quite a number of hot racing game releases including Forza Motorsport 3, Need For Speed: SHIFT, RACE On and a few others. In 2010, we expect to see yet a few more, some of which have been highly anticipated.

Gran Turismo 5

We’ve waited years for this title to drop, even getting a full scaled “demo” called Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. Things finally seem presentable in Mr. Yamauchi’s eyes because he will be blessing the world with a demo on December 17th 2009, with hopeful expectations that the game will be released some time in March 2010 (in Japan at least). The game is expected to feature near 1000 cars and 20 distinct tracks with variations, bringing the total to 70 courses. With brilliant graphics, a very realistic damage engine and supposedly epic driving physics, the game will be once again the hottest racing seller on the market thus far.

F1 2010

Even though not much is known about the 2010 version of Codemaster’s F1 title, F1 2010 is expected to be a very realistic game according to them. They have actually held back the game to further improve on physics and graphics, and to even implement the use of DirectX 11 technology. The game is set to use the EGO engine used in GRID and DiRT 2, which makes us a bit wary about the physics. They did mention that they were spending lots of time with the actual F1 teams and drivers to learn about the realism of the sport, and even showed clips of laser scanning technology used for building track scenery. In 2010, we will definitely get to see more once the 15 minutes of fame associated with F1 2009 for the portables is over.

Split Second

Black Rock Studios have invented quite an interesting racing game, unlike any other out there. In this game, you participate in reality TV show and score points for performing tricks and winning races, all for the money and fame. However, there is a twist since you can also impede your opponents by triggering explosions, damn breaks, collapsing bridges and much more. Don’t sweat it because the opponents have the same ability, so your driving skills need to be quite sharp to avoid the wrecks. The game will feature 24 shows, which means 24 events for you to blow up stuff and do some crazy driving.

Blur

Blur is an action packed racer which feature a number of real life sports cars. Racers receive messages via a social network telling them where the next events are. The game is heavily focused on its career mode, and includes Power Up features. The Shock feature allows you to send an EMP signal to opponents close to you, “paralyzing” the electronics, causing them to lapse for a few seconds. The Barge feature is a type of  shockwave that sends cars flying away when it hits them. There is the Nitro feature which gives your car an extra boost, like what NO2 does in real life. Two other features are Mines, which obviously blow up cars when they run over it, and Repair, which fixes your ride’s health. Maybe not the most unique game, but the guys who developed PGR 4 are making it, so maybe we can expect something cool.

Project Gotham Racing 5 (not officially announced)

Even though the game hasn’t been officially announced, this post should pretty much tell you that it’s in development. Project Gotham Racing 4 was quite a good game, boasting some exceptional graphics when compared to the time it was released, and they actually look pretty decent when you look back on it today. The game may not have had good physics, but it was a fun arcade title loved by many, so PGR 5 may turn out to be just as good.

rFactor 2

For the insane sim-head, seeing the first rFactor 2 pics brought smiles to many faces. With an exceptionally realistic physics engine, rFactor 2 is set to be an epic racer just like its predecessor. The game is slowly coming along with lots of new features over rFactor 1.

Ferrari Project

The folks who brought you Need For Speed: SHIFT have been working on this for a while. It’s a Ferrari exclusive racer which features a variety of Ferrari, even including the one from Formula 1. SHIFT took priority at Slightly Mad Studios, but the developers have promised to release the game still. It was expected to come out in 2009 a while back, but now it looks like a 2010 release.

So…which one of these titles are you planning to pick up for the new year?

A car enthusiast’s journey landed him at the Studie Yokohama Store in Japan, where he came across a number of tricked out BMWs and accessories including rims, exhaust manifolds, rubbers, and even a chess set with pieces made from wheel lug nuts. Among the collection was a BMW E30 modified into a racing game set up.

Inside is a Logitech Driving Force Pro, while a big LCD flat screen is attached to the hood. On the screen, they were running Gran Turismo 5: Prologue. If you check out their store, you can get a chance to try out the sim. Check out more photos of the cockpit below. Also, check out more store photos here.

If you are a hardcore sim racing fan, then you should have heard about the iOpener/SimBin project called Real Time Racing. The basic idea of the concept is that the game allows you to race against real life racers. Folks on the sim end can either “race” against them during live events or from events stored on file. Obviously there are a lot of complications such as the reaction of the real cars vs. the sim cars… but SimBin has worked out all those aspects.

With that in mind, the iOpener team recently announced that they signed a world renowned driver to participate in their program as a real life driver.

Have we got news for you today! Our staff just returned to the iOpener office with breaking news for our testers and everybody in the world of motorsport: we have just signed a contract with a driver that everybody in the world knows!

We are so excited to bring you this news as the driver has been quite inactive lately and more or less will make a temporary comeback especially to test the iOpener Enabled feature!

Very soon our testers will be able to drive against him on the Circuit of Zolder. We hope to bring you more news on this subject when we have more details.

They didn’t mention who the driver was, but many people quickly assumed it was Michael Schumacher, heh. So who do you think this famous driver may be?

Read up more on the game here.

EA has published pics of the 5 new cars which are expected to be published in a free DLC package for Need For Speed: SHIFT. It will be available for the PS3, Xbox 360 and PC and include the following cars:

• 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
• 1967 Shelby GT 500
• 1969 Dodge Charger R/T
• 1971 Dodge Challenger
• 1998 Toyota Supra

Check out more screens below.

Once again, SimBin has delivered a game that reaches out towards the true racing enthusiast. RACE On can be considered an all round package of the already previous successful titles such as GTR Evolution, RACE 07, STCC The Game…with the addition of an American perspective to the game.

In my opinion, this has to be one of the best releases from SimBin thus far, simply because of how the game was packaged. Unlike its predecessors, different racing series, tracks and car classes have been included into one. If you wanted to do some WTCC racing, you’re able to select from the 2006, 2007 or 2008 series with their respective cars and tracks. Maybe you want to want to kick it up a notch and drive a Formula Masters series cars…well those are also there. How about a taste of America? They’ve got that too.

If you’ve never played a SimBin game before, it should not be a problem to get accustomed to this one. They’ve made it in such a way that racers of any level can jump in and start practising without suffering an emotional nightmare *cough* SHIFT *cough*. With varying difficulties, you can easily get acquainted with the handling and controls of the game. Once you think you’re good, you can turn off the stability control, ABS and braking assist, then your real driving skills will truly be tested.

The game features one of the best physics engines out there, bringing a very realistic feel to driving. There is also a very extensive garage menu which allows you to tune a number of components in your car. Tuning is actually very realistic, and with a little time, you can perfect your car’s handling to suit your needs like a perfectly fitted glove. The cars have also been specifically tuned to match their real life counterparts. So the 2008 version of the Seat Leon TDi felt quite different from the 2006 petrol version.

In this installment, there are a number of American muscle cars such as the 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT- 8, 2008 08 Dodge Charger SRT8 ”Super-Bee”, 2009 Chevy Camaro, 1999 Chevy Camaro SS and the 2009 Caddy CTS-V. They come in street and fictional racing versions. There are also other classes of cars from previous games including the WTCC and STCC series cars, Formula BMW, Formula Masters series and more.

From a track point of view, SimBin included the WTCC and STCC line-up of tracking including the popular Brands Hatch, Macau and Monza circuits. From the American side of things, they added Laguna Seca and Road America. They spent quite some time detailing both the onside environment and off-side scenery. It’s really hard to focus on any one aspect since the stands, pit lanes, garages, tracks, chicanes and well just about everything else looks superb. The only difference really was the use of SimBin advertising, rather than real life adverts.

The game features a number of racing modes such as a full weekend event including practice sessions, qualifying, warm ups and 1 or 2 session races. There is also a Time Attack mode in which you try to clock the fastest lap around the various tracks. A free Practice Mode also gives drivers the opportunity to take any car on any track they wish. This was a big plus in my books.

Graphically, the game uses the gMotor 2 engine developed by Image Space Incorporated (rFactor developers). Unlike games such as Need For Speed: SHIFT, Forza 3 and Gran Turismo 5, the graphics are not that shiny, glitzy and glamorous, but in terms of detailing, they did quite an excellent job at making it look realistic. Some may say the visuals look like a racer from the past, but hey… they make up for it in every other area. The damage model however was not too impressive. Soft bumps resulted in something looking like dust falling off your car, while hard impacts did result in visual damage that looked rather symmetrical.

The game sounds were also mostly well done. Each type and brand of vehicle had a very unique sound set, with noises to fit every occasion including engine revs and pops, start-ups, gear whining and shifts, crashes and even the sound of squealing brakes on those hard stops. However, they could have done away with the annoying victory comment made by Tom Coronel. I had to turn the speakers down every time I entered the main menu.

Overall, if you have played your share of racing games and think you’re ready to step into the pro-league, this is your game. After playing SHIFT and Forza 3, I have to say I am still extremely impressed with RACE On. It might not be an intense cop-vs-robber, high speed shoot out type racing game, but once you get into it, it’s quite enjoyable, especially in multiplayer mode, so make sure and join one of the many racing leagues out there. An expansion pack has been released which includes a few more tracks and the 2009 WTCC series, so if you are a hardcore racer, you will get it.

SHIFT, the game that saved the Need For Speed series. If you’re an oldie gamer like me, you must have been around in the days of the original Need For Speed for the 3DO. Also you should have played NFS: Special Edition, which basically made Need For Speed what it is today. For many years, the franchise did well, bringing us a racing arcade game that had a wide choice of exotic sports cars, decent graphics and action packed racing.

However, over the last few years, their newer titles brought shame to the name with sequels that did not live up to what we knew Need For Speed to be. Demand for the games was so poor that their next release would basically be the make or break title.

SHIFT was one of three announced titles for the 3^rd quarter of 2009, and was designated as the “simulation” racer of the three releases. There was quite a stir and anxiety for the release, because it was being developed by Slightly Mad Studios, the same people who made GTR 1, GTR 2 and GT Legends. Also, with the number of released media packages, people were simply amazed as to what they saw.

When I stuck in the game, I was very doubtful that my experience was going to be anywhere as good as what I saw in the pictures and videos sent to us earlier in the year. However, to my surprise, I was blown away by the overall presentation of the game. The menus were solid and simple to use. Seeing the introduction videos flow ever so smoothly made me even more excited. I was thrown into a BMW M3 “loaner” car so the game could assess my driving capabilities. Going from video mode to actual gaming mode was actually barely noticeable.

The graphics were simply amazing, smooth, detailed and exciting. According to the FPS checker, I was able to get an average of 30 frames per second, even on a 1600×900 resolution with all settings maxed out. What made the game look so good      wasn’t just the detail to graphics, but how they added a number of effects like sun glare and reflections, blurring at high speeds, shaky cameras when you hit chicanes in the corners and much more.

To be honest, some of the effects were a bit exaggerated because when you crashed, even slightly, your head would shake very violently and you would black out for a second or two. In real life, it’s really not like this but it does add some fun to it. Also, when you drive at high speeds, the environment around you blurs, making your high speed driving feel like high speed driving. If you don’t like these features though, they can be turned off.

All in all, the graphics played a major role in making the game what it is. There are a few other interesting features such as the Precision vs. Aggression mode. If you drive a good line on the race track, avoid jumping corners or not running into your opponents, you are rewarded with precision points, but if you see the need to rip off your opponent’s bumper, skate all across the track and make some tight cuts and passes, you get aggression points. Both of these count towards achieving different “objectives” per race.

The bulk of the game is centered around the Career Mode, where you start of as a rookie driver and basically race in different events, which leads you up to the Need For Speed Championship Cup. During your journey, you unlock different rating cars over different stages, with a total selection of more than 60 whips from across the globe. Some of the tracks featured are also from real life including Laguna Seca, Brands Hatch, Spa Francorchamps and others. There are also some fictional tracks included. The real ones were not near accurate in terms of shaping and scenery, but they still did a pretty decent job making them.

There are actually quite a number of visuals happening on the track itself. With waving flags, moving trees, jumping and cheering fans standing at the guardrails, it makes the whole environment feel more alive. However at times it did get a bit distracting, but it wasn’t something major concern.

So how is the physics aspect of the game? To be brutally honest, the handling was not all good at all, and this is not simply because it’s a simulator, but because it just wasn’t done right. I had to a considerable amount of time tuning the steering wheel’s sensitivity and then playing with the car setup before being able to get a good run. Even then, I had to play it a bit cautious because the cars tended to act like drifters occasionally. However, I won’t come down on EA since they did say the game isn’t a 100% simulator.

Finally, they did well in the Audio department. The cars sounded like those in an FIA GT event, the scene music was very thrilling and the menu music and sound effects did add a special touch to that overall package.

All in all, EA brought a very good game to the table, but it still isn’t in the Gran Turismo or Forza category. Hopefully they build on this when developing future titles.

SimBin has released more artwork screens from RACE On, which is supposed to hit store shelves on the 22nd of October. We get another taste of the American muscles here with 3 new shots. Even though the game is based on the older versions like RACE 07, GTR Evolution and so on, it is definitely a step above in both the visual and physics department.

As always you know SimBin brings you some of the most realistic handling racing games out there, so this should be another to cherish. Check out the screens below.

The folks at Simbin and bitComposer Games have recently announced the release of the RACE On via Steam. In this PC demo, things are coming in sets of twos. There are two cars (Dodge Challenger SRT8 and the Seat Leon TDI). The two tracks include Oschersleben and Falkenberg while there are two race modes. In the “Racing Event”, drivers participate in an entire weekend including practice and qualifying sessions, as well as the race itself. Also, there is the “Time Attack” mode where racers try to clock the best lap around the circuits.

Download Links:
Steam
Offline (via Simbin)

Forza fans should be happy to note that Forza Motorsport 3 has finally gone gold. This simply means that the final game build has been produced and is in a ready state for sale. If that doesn’t make sense still, just imagine going into Turn10’s studio, stealing the gold version and then playing it. It would be the same version as the ones that go on sale later on. heh.

Along with this news, comes more information that a demo will be made available on Xbox Live on September 24th. It will include the Camino Viejo race track and 5 super smoking cars including the 2009 Mini John Cooper, 2010 Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro Works, 2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X GSR, 2009 Ferrari California and the 2007 Porsche #80 Flying Lizard 911 GT3-RSR.

The demo will include a lot of features including being able to drive from cockpit mode, ability to see the damage model in action and the cool rewind feature.

Via: OXCGN

If you are into simulation racing, or any racing as a matter, you may have heard of a control developer called Thrustmaster. They develop a variety of video game controllers for a wide range of gaming platforms. In the driving /racing game world, the Ferrari themed racing wheels are what they are well known for.

Now they have come up with the Ferrari licensed Ferrari Wireless Gamepad 430 Scuderia and the F1 Wireless Gamepad Ferrari F60 for the PS3 and PC. They both run for $49.99 and feature paint schemes from the real racing machines. There is also a wired version for $39.99. Pick these up some time in October when they are released.

SimBin has announced a RACE On released date and has added a few extra shots for us to enjoy.

On October 22nd, RACE On shall be hitting store shelves worldwide priced at 49.99 Euros. The game is set to be one of the biggest packages from the Swedish sim maker thus far. This PC title will include all of the original cars and race tracks from the past including the WTCC 2008 and STCC line up, as well as the addition of a brand new batch of US muscle cars and race tracks.

In RACE On, PC players can race on the circuits in 29 meticulously reproduced vehicles that are available in over 450 designs. 27 variants of 21 racing tracks guarantee hours of gaming fun. Apart from Imola and Okayama, glamorous raceways such as Laguna Seca, Road America, Sturup and Karlskoga also feature on the impressive list of tracks. Drivers can compete against up to 25 AI drivers in the 17 different race classes, and can of course burn rubber against real players online!
The new Dual Ghost mode offers players two ghost opponents to help improve both your own lap times and those of your opponent.

A realistic physics engine and a dynamic weather system that can change during a race, provides a totally authentic race atmosphere. Compulsory pit stops in the STCC races add an extra tactical component to the already exhilarating gameplay experience.

Some more screens have been included, and these can be viewed below.

Source: SimBin