Post by TTR Dr Payne on May 21, 2008 6:29:32 GMT -4
FAQ list written by RFT on the Codemasters forums
(I had highlighted some of the more 'important' questions, but it seems copy and pasting onto this forum doesnt copy the bold and larger text font...I really dont feel like going through the whole FAQ again highlighting stuff again...If for whatever reason you dont wish to read the whole list, you just wish to read what I have highlighted, you can click the below link and see my post on XBOX.com where the text is highlighted....)
forums.xbox.com/20413558/ShowPost.aspx
Section 1: General
Just what is GRID anyway?
GRID (aka Race Driver: GRID) is a racing game from the makers of the Race Driver and Colin McRae Series. It shouldn’t be considered a sequel to the Race Driver games, more of a reboot as a game with the emphasis on fast, action-filled races and not on Simulation.
What formats is it coming out on?
PC, PS3, Xbox360, and DS.
When is it out?
The PC, PS3, and Xbox360 versions will be launched 30th May in PAL territories, and 3rd of June in the US. The DS version will launch soon after that, though the date is TBC.
Will it be released on Steam?
Yes.
What are the car and track lists?
Car and Track List Thread: community.codemasters.com/fo...ad.php?t=280819
What Driver Assists are there?
Traction Control - when turned on, TC ensures that the driving wheels do not brake traction due to excessive throttle.
Brake Assist - prevents the braking wheels from locking due to over-braking (like ABS).
Stability management- ensures traction, when cornering, is not lost due to sudden movements (because of weight shifting).
Can they be switched off, and if so, does that get saved into the driver preferences?
Yes and yes.
Will the PS3 version cache data to the HDD for quicker load times?
Yes – Data will be cached to the HDD to give us much quicker load times.
Is there car tuning or setups?
No.
Is there a livery editor?
There is the option to create a customised paintjob for your team, though it’s intentionally a simple and easy-to use system, and not as complex as Forza’s system.
Is there a track editor?
Only in the DS version.
Is there a photo mode in the full game?
No.
Section 2: Single Player and Career
Will all the cars and tracks be available from the start in single player?
The game has an unlock structure in much the same way as every racing game we've released for the last ten years, and pretty much every non-hardcore racing sim ever released. It gives a sense of progression - and a lot of feedback we've seen over the years has said that players are put off by games that give them the whole "sweetshop" right at the start- it can be confusing, and somewhat overwhelming.
Can you describe the rough progression of the career mode?
When you start the game, you're just a driver for hire, and pick from offers from other teams. Your aim at this stage is to restore your starter car to raceworthy condition- you can see the car sat in the garage.
Once you've accumulated enough money, you start your team. you pick a name and a paintjob for your team.
You've only got the one car at this stage (though you’ll be able to use it in many different events), so you need more money for more cars. You can enter this car under the banner of your team in events where it's eligible, or you can choose to do more driver-for-hire work, if you want to drive lots of different cars and accumulate cash in a different way.
After a while, you’ll start to attract sponsors. A while after that you'll gain the ability to expand your team with a team-mate.
How do the in-game seasons work?
when you're racing with your own team, A season consists of four events, and at the end of the season is the Le Mans 24 Hours.
An event is usually a championship consisting of a few rounds or races - at the end of the season you'll get an invitation to compete at Le Mans- how good this invitation is depends on the Rep you've built up over your career to date. Once you've got the cash to afford your own Le Mans-legal car, then you can just enter that car in Le Mans instead of waiting for an offer.
Will all the cars be available to drive on all of the circuits?
It’s not totally open (it can’t be, sadly), but most cars can race on most tracks.
What kind of differences will there be on the tracks, ? Such as are they just reversed, or are there shortened versions.
It depends on the track in question, but most of them have multiple layouts, be they shorter, longer, or just “alternative”.
Will there be night and day driving , wet weather conditions?
Yes there’s day and night driving, but there’s no wet weather.
Section 3: Multiplayer
How many players for each platform?
We will be supporting up to 12 players on all non-handhelds (4 on DS).
Is there split-screen multiplayer?
No.
Can I use my single-player team livery online?
Yes.
Will voice comms be standard on all platforms?
Voice chat will be supported on PS3 and Xbox360 with a text chat available on PC.
Will XMB friends list be supported (PS3)
Yes - PS3 friends lists are supported and players are able to filter their friends on Leaderboards etc.
Will there be the option to go to the Playstation menu, to send invites to friends who are online, or will you have to quit the game?
No Friend invites in the PS3 Version, I’m afraid.
Are all the cars unlocked online or do you have to unlock them to use them?
Everything unlocked online.
Is the topology client/server or P2P?
P2P.
What hosting service is being used on PC and PS3?
GRID will use Demonware.
Will the lobby system be like TOCA2 or TOCA3?
Neither – For public sessions we will be using a voting system where all players get to have a say in the next Event. Private Sessions will use a more traditional system with a host setting up a session and choosing the race options/settings.
If it's like TOCA3 will there be a spectator mode?
We will have a full Spectator Mode option available to players who want to watch a race in progress. In addition if a player suffers terminal damage in a race they are free to watch the remainder of it play out via the spectator mode.
Will there be a penalty flag option for those who want to get serious?
No – There are no penalty flags used in the single player game and therefore these will also not be present in the multiplayer races.
Can Players set the end-of race time-out (how long the race is allowed to continue after the winner crosses the line)
No - This is always set at 30 seconds from the time the lead car crosses the start/finish line. The finishing position of players who fail to finish within this time will be determined by their position on track when the timer has expired. This timer is universally set to prevent unnecessary waiting at the end of the race.
How will backwards drivers be handled ?
Drivers who drive backwards around the track have their collisions switched off. This prevents players adversely affecting the race for the rest of the players.
We're looking at making this a switchable option in a future patch.
What about user created tournaments and leagues? Will players be able to setup any kind of private extended season or even quick tournament with their friends?
GRID will support private sessions where the host can set the rules, race format and choose the event.
If you don't provide built in seasons and score tracking will the results screen be easily accessible after a race so league leaders can write down times/ positions...
Yes - We have post race and post event results after each online race where all players can view the times/positions of each of the drivers. In addition we record a wealth of online stats for each player (total races won, lost, total race distance etc.) and have an experience system where players are awarded online ranks for their performance in races. All players will start out as Rookies and the very best drivers will aspire to achieve the rank of 'Legend'.
Will you be able to save replays of your online races?
Nope - replay saving is unavailable online. We do allow players to spectate on whole online events if they wish to though.
How about leader boards? How will the be broken down - by car? class? online/offline? Will there be hot lap leaderboards that you can do in single player?
Leaderboards will be broken down by car class (A - E) and you will be able to download the ghosts of hot laps to compete against in single player test drive mode.
Can Players set a race length by time, not completed laps?
This depends on the Event. Some events will be timed based e.g. Le Mans, drift and several endurance events but we also have more traditional lap-based events.
Can players set a race length to a specific number of laps (7, for instance, as opposed to the more usual 1,2,3,5,10,25 prgression some games use).
In private sessions we allow lap numbers of 1 through to ten and then multiples of five and ten thereafter.
Can they do the full 24 hours of Le Mans online?
Unfortunately not - it was something we looked at doing and tried to get it in but it just wasn't feasible to include, I’m afraid. The maximum online length of that race is 2 hours.
(I had highlighted some of the more 'important' questions, but it seems copy and pasting onto this forum doesnt copy the bold and larger text font...I really dont feel like going through the whole FAQ again highlighting stuff again...If for whatever reason you dont wish to read the whole list, you just wish to read what I have highlighted, you can click the below link and see my post on XBOX.com where the text is highlighted....)
forums.xbox.com/20413558/ShowPost.aspx
Section 1: General
Just what is GRID anyway?
GRID (aka Race Driver: GRID) is a racing game from the makers of the Race Driver and Colin McRae Series. It shouldn’t be considered a sequel to the Race Driver games, more of a reboot as a game with the emphasis on fast, action-filled races and not on Simulation.
What formats is it coming out on?
PC, PS3, Xbox360, and DS.
When is it out?
The PC, PS3, and Xbox360 versions will be launched 30th May in PAL territories, and 3rd of June in the US. The DS version will launch soon after that, though the date is TBC.
Will it be released on Steam?
Yes.
What are the car and track lists?
Car and Track List Thread: community.codemasters.com/fo...ad.php?t=280819
What Driver Assists are there?
Traction Control - when turned on, TC ensures that the driving wheels do not brake traction due to excessive throttle.
Brake Assist - prevents the braking wheels from locking due to over-braking (like ABS).
Stability management- ensures traction, when cornering, is not lost due to sudden movements (because of weight shifting).
Can they be switched off, and if so, does that get saved into the driver preferences?
Yes and yes.
Will the PS3 version cache data to the HDD for quicker load times?
Yes – Data will be cached to the HDD to give us much quicker load times.
Is there car tuning or setups?
No.
Is there a livery editor?
There is the option to create a customised paintjob for your team, though it’s intentionally a simple and easy-to use system, and not as complex as Forza’s system.
Is there a track editor?
Only in the DS version.
Is there a photo mode in the full game?
No.
Section 2: Single Player and Career
Will all the cars and tracks be available from the start in single player?
The game has an unlock structure in much the same way as every racing game we've released for the last ten years, and pretty much every non-hardcore racing sim ever released. It gives a sense of progression - and a lot of feedback we've seen over the years has said that players are put off by games that give them the whole "sweetshop" right at the start- it can be confusing, and somewhat overwhelming.
Can you describe the rough progression of the career mode?
When you start the game, you're just a driver for hire, and pick from offers from other teams. Your aim at this stage is to restore your starter car to raceworthy condition- you can see the car sat in the garage.
Once you've accumulated enough money, you start your team. you pick a name and a paintjob for your team.
You've only got the one car at this stage (though you’ll be able to use it in many different events), so you need more money for more cars. You can enter this car under the banner of your team in events where it's eligible, or you can choose to do more driver-for-hire work, if you want to drive lots of different cars and accumulate cash in a different way.
After a while, you’ll start to attract sponsors. A while after that you'll gain the ability to expand your team with a team-mate.
How do the in-game seasons work?
when you're racing with your own team, A season consists of four events, and at the end of the season is the Le Mans 24 Hours.
An event is usually a championship consisting of a few rounds or races - at the end of the season you'll get an invitation to compete at Le Mans- how good this invitation is depends on the Rep you've built up over your career to date. Once you've got the cash to afford your own Le Mans-legal car, then you can just enter that car in Le Mans instead of waiting for an offer.
Will all the cars be available to drive on all of the circuits?
It’s not totally open (it can’t be, sadly), but most cars can race on most tracks.
What kind of differences will there be on the tracks, ? Such as are they just reversed, or are there shortened versions.
It depends on the track in question, but most of them have multiple layouts, be they shorter, longer, or just “alternative”.
Will there be night and day driving , wet weather conditions?
Yes there’s day and night driving, but there’s no wet weather.
Section 3: Multiplayer
How many players for each platform?
We will be supporting up to 12 players on all non-handhelds (4 on DS).
Is there split-screen multiplayer?
No.
Can I use my single-player team livery online?
Yes.
Will voice comms be standard on all platforms?
Voice chat will be supported on PS3 and Xbox360 with a text chat available on PC.
Will XMB friends list be supported (PS3)
Yes - PS3 friends lists are supported and players are able to filter their friends on Leaderboards etc.
Will there be the option to go to the Playstation menu, to send invites to friends who are online, or will you have to quit the game?
No Friend invites in the PS3 Version, I’m afraid.
Are all the cars unlocked online or do you have to unlock them to use them?
Everything unlocked online.
Is the topology client/server or P2P?
P2P.
What hosting service is being used on PC and PS3?
GRID will use Demonware.
Will the lobby system be like TOCA2 or TOCA3?
Neither – For public sessions we will be using a voting system where all players get to have a say in the next Event. Private Sessions will use a more traditional system with a host setting up a session and choosing the race options/settings.
If it's like TOCA3 will there be a spectator mode?
We will have a full Spectator Mode option available to players who want to watch a race in progress. In addition if a player suffers terminal damage in a race they are free to watch the remainder of it play out via the spectator mode.
Will there be a penalty flag option for those who want to get serious?
No – There are no penalty flags used in the single player game and therefore these will also not be present in the multiplayer races.
Can Players set the end-of race time-out (how long the race is allowed to continue after the winner crosses the line)
No - This is always set at 30 seconds from the time the lead car crosses the start/finish line. The finishing position of players who fail to finish within this time will be determined by their position on track when the timer has expired. This timer is universally set to prevent unnecessary waiting at the end of the race.
How will backwards drivers be handled ?
Drivers who drive backwards around the track have their collisions switched off. This prevents players adversely affecting the race for the rest of the players.
We're looking at making this a switchable option in a future patch.
What about user created tournaments and leagues? Will players be able to setup any kind of private extended season or even quick tournament with their friends?
GRID will support private sessions where the host can set the rules, race format and choose the event.
If you don't provide built in seasons and score tracking will the results screen be easily accessible after a race so league leaders can write down times/ positions...
Yes - We have post race and post event results after each online race where all players can view the times/positions of each of the drivers. In addition we record a wealth of online stats for each player (total races won, lost, total race distance etc.) and have an experience system where players are awarded online ranks for their performance in races. All players will start out as Rookies and the very best drivers will aspire to achieve the rank of 'Legend'.
Will you be able to save replays of your online races?
Nope - replay saving is unavailable online. We do allow players to spectate on whole online events if they wish to though.
How about leader boards? How will the be broken down - by car? class? online/offline? Will there be hot lap leaderboards that you can do in single player?
Leaderboards will be broken down by car class (A - E) and you will be able to download the ghosts of hot laps to compete against in single player test drive mode.
Can Players set a race length by time, not completed laps?
This depends on the Event. Some events will be timed based e.g. Le Mans, drift and several endurance events but we also have more traditional lap-based events.
Can players set a race length to a specific number of laps (7, for instance, as opposed to the more usual 1,2,3,5,10,25 prgression some games use).
In private sessions we allow lap numbers of 1 through to ten and then multiples of five and ten thereafter.
Can they do the full 24 hours of Le Mans online?
Unfortunately not - it was something we looked at doing and tried to get it in but it just wasn't feasible to include, I’m afraid. The maximum online length of that race is 2 hours.
