GRID

[vasko]

It's finally happened, there's a game i want to buy but my PC doesn't meet the minimum requirements.
I really want to get Codemasters GRID.
The only game i play on my PS2 these days Race Driver 3 (GRID's predecesor), it's taken me more than a year to get barely half way through but it's brilliant. I've always loved racing games and have bought all the TOCA and Gran Turismo games.. Until now.
I just can't justify the expense of a PS3, not even to myself let alone Mrs Vasko.
But i want to race on-line!
Then a brainwave: get it on the PC.. Problem is my graphics card is too old, min req's are a 6800GeForce and i only have a 5600.
A quick look on some sites shows me i can pick up a GeForce 7series graphics card for 30-odd quid, a bargain for what could be a huge upgrade.
Looking further into it i may need a new PSU too.. starts adding up
Sadly I may have to stick with MarioKart for my online racing fix.. not proper racing though is it.

Plan b: wait for two years till the PS3 is cheap and buy it then.

arse!

[Nav]

I have it for the 360 and find it a very enjoyable game. At first I was disappointed that they had gone for the arcadey, overly-grippy handling that they employed in DIRT but the game is just plain fun. My only real gripe is that, because the handling isn't realistic, the cars corner in quite an unpredictable manner. I love the helmet cam in Codemasters games, but you really need to use an external one for GRID so you can see what your car is up to.

The career mode is a lot of fun, as you get to build up your own racing team from scratch, attracting sponsors, hiring a team mate, buying cars etc. The 'rewind' function is nice too, which is ripped straight from Prince of Persia. Racing purists may hate it, but it's like a get out of jail free card and you really need it for events like Le Mans, as it's very hard to see at Sarthe in the dark.

[vasko]

Cool. Are Bathhurst and Leguna Seca still on there?
I can't wait to race real people on Bathurst

[Nav]

I don't think either of them are there I'm afraid, as far as I know the track list is:

Circuito del Jarama, Madrid
Nürburgring Sudschleife, Nürburg
Donington Park, Leicestershire
Istanbul Park, Istanbul
Milan (street circuit)
Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans
Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
Otukama Grand Circuit (made up)
Yokohama Docks ('street' circuit)
Shibuya (street circuit)
Mount Haruna, Honshu (Togei track)
San Francisco (street circuit)
Washington DC (street circuit)
Detroit (street circuit)
Long Beach Grand Prix Circuit (real street circuit)

It's a shame they didn't get Laguna Seca, but it's become quite closely associated with both Gran Turismo and Forza so maybe they were asking too much. Bathurst would be a great addition, it's big and scary but not pointlessly so like Nürburgring Nordschleife. I think there are so many great circuits that are now abandoned or largely disused which could be experienced by a whole new generation if they were replicated in driving games. Brands Hatch and the Österreichring would be my two picks.

[vasko]

At least Spa is in there, I've smashed up so many (virtual) cars on the first lap negotiating those first few sweeping corners!
No too many circuits either are there? I guess as the detail of what goes into a circuit increases so does the time, effort and money needed to create them.
I'm really hoping they bring out a circuit/map editor a la DS.
Either that or a proper development kit like the SDK for Half Life 2.
I've done a bit of mapping in the past and to design a curcuit could be awsome. Imagine recreating some of the streets local to where you live and ripping around them in a DTM!!!

EDIT: and thanks for such a thorough reply btw

[Nav]

It seems like there's more when you're playing, but that's the list. Many of them have different layouts (like the GP loop at Donington) so that might have something to do with it.

I went to see the DTM at Brands Hatch at the weekend actually, they used the tiny Indy layout, which was a shame I think. It meant the cars were always in sight, but the field got very jumbled up very quickly. Lewis Hamilton made an appearance too and talked about how boring Valencia was, plus I nearly got knocked down by Ralf Schumacher on a scooter!