This image is. Done. To. Death.
Well, here we are at launch plus essential patching, and how is it?
Summary:
It's a modern take on Project Cars, generally slightly less good than Project Cars 2 - except FFB is done right (if not well).
Graphics
Starting here as this is in fact my biggest issue. It's just not great. It's a tough month to release in, AC Evo is getting somewhere, AMS2 has released much of the same content (and is polished to within an inch of it's life now) and then AC Rally has come along and aced visuals hard.
To compare... RRRE is in the same ballpark, and actually what worries me most at the moment, it's on par with the last Farm Sim I played. There's just something inherently not real about the graphics. And I'm not talking about how cars float then drop through the road (they do) on regular occasions. It's just meh (a common theme).
Car Selection
Yes, there are epic cars in this game. No doubt about that. But if you've maxed your RRRE & AMS2 DLC you've got them all, except some Marcos & TVR stuff. Those you can find in AC, everything is in AC.
Are the cars well modelled, yep, they look a lot like any other game, that's essentially realistic, as it shoudl be. Meh, then.
Control Mapping
I'm greedy. I have:
- Fanatec wheel
- Fanatec H pattern (set to sequential)
- Off brand (old buy sim racing) H pattern - which is awesome btw
- Button box, home made, basically joystick buttons.
- Flag box - Simhub
- Digital Dash - Simhub
- Racelogic wannabe - Simhub
They all work fine in the main sims out there. They don't work fine in PMR.
- Despite the update, the button box doesn't work
- My (not) fancy H pattern doesn't map/work
- The flag box goes nuts. Worst is if I return to pits I'm subject to flashing chequered for the duration
Handling
This is very subjective, car, track, weather, FFB setup... it all adds up. I took some time to find the DD1 settings as recommended, dialled them back from ape, as always, and then went out for a spin. I'd say similar to AMS2, but without the finesse. It just doesn't feel as good. And as to actual "handling" - great, very sticky tires for sure. A good game one might say. Meh.
Circuit Selection
Hard to believe they're laser scanned to within an inch of their lives when they're not licensed, or at least don't have real names associated with them. Derby, Dolton, or whatever they've called Donnington isn't too bad. Spa... it's just not quite right. Or maybe every other version of this circuit isn't, hard to say.
See above for comments on not great graphics... And no tractors in the fields, just saying.
AI (Offline)
I've only raced offline so far. And honestly it's not as bad as all that. It's not AMS2, but of my benchmark of GT3s around Bathurst, it's better than the GT'esq cars of AC Evo. That's a shitfest - as an aside, take the Evo 190 round a Bathurst race in AC Evo, that at least is excellent.
So, overall... Meh. It's not the best by far, but it's not the worst. In fairness there's been a decent patch to fix it before I played it. Note that when you're reading other reviews too.
So how is it?
Honestly, Meh. It doesn't feel big production, certainly doesn't live up to the hype.
Frankly there's better out there.
With RRRE and AMS2 everything in this game is covered pretty much.
I raced some old GT cars in PMR, did the qualifying and a few laps, then went and did exactly the same race in AMS2 and whilst that game is an old slipper to me, it's also better in every single aspect.
I'd not say PMR is a confused mess, but it's trying hard to be. If they'd released it with some caveats then there's every chance folks wouldn't have been too hard on it.
Will I get a refund? Nope, same way I have Forza Motorsport in my library - it'll get some irregular racing, and we'll see if it improves. Hard to see a wow factor coming in though.
