iRacing

[Jase]

I'm really tempted to get this as I'm enjoying ACC but a few questions:

1) Does it matter if I purchase on Steam or Direct from iRacing?
2) I'm going to be new to this, how beginner friendly is it, is there enough to do
3) I see some people saying it gets expensive with DLC, why is that and what is expensive?
4) What is the community like on iRacing

Thanks

 

[TonyTurbo78]

I'm really tempted to get this as I'm enjoying ACC but a few questions:

1) Does it matter if I purchase on Steam or Direct from iRacing?
2) I'm going to be new to this, how beginner friendly is it, is there enough to do
3) I see some people saying it gets expensive with DLC, why is that and what is expensive?
4) What is the community like on iRacing

Thanks

1. Purchase direct from iracing, you'll also get better deals on tracks and cars direct I think.

2. The learning curve is a little steep, but it is absolutely fine for a beginner. Navigating through the website is quite straight forward. You'll get a few cars and tracks free once you subscribe. You'll have access to "rookie" series of races and be able to practice, do time trial or race AI on certain car/track combinationsuntil your heart is content. Races tend to be every hour and you can do as many as you want.

3. Each car and track costs money. If you want to race GT3 for argument sake, you'll need to buy whatever GT3 car you like (there are about 7) and then the track. Cars and tracks are about £8 each. You basically buy what you are interested in racing. There are maybe 30 or so circuits to buy, and about the same amount of cars. Obviously if you bought every piece of content it can get very expensive.

4. The community is brilliant, it's very active and the forum is alive. Plus loads of discord channels going by the streamers and youtubers, in there you'll have ppl talking setups, cars, tracks, races and everything to do with racing. The online community is pretty serious, once you get out of the rookies you'll find serious sim racers. Multiplayer is special in iracing.

 

[steve45]

I'm really tempted to get this as I'm enjoying ACC but a few questions:

1) Does it matter if I purchase on Steam or Direct from iRacing?
2) I'm going to be new to this, how beginner friendly is it, is there enough to do
3) I see some people saying it gets expensive with DLC, why is that and what is expensive?
4) What is the community like on iRacing

Thanks

1) Nope, however unless you really want to use steam to launch and pay for stuff then just cut out the middle man. everything else is handled through iRacings launcher anyway.
2) I found it to be pretty straightforward starting out, the Beta standalone launcher is pretty slick so navigating is easy. Handling physics take a bit of getting used to even if you are familiar with other sims but when you get on top of the tyre physics and the braking its a very rewarding sim. the rookie races can be a bit rocky but in my experience you get a lot cleaner racing even at that level compared to other sims. Matchmaking is linked to your Irating so you should be in and around drivers of similar rating/experience level.
3) Yes it can get expensive, you have your monthly Sub, and each additional track is ~$15 and cars are ~$12 a piece, however that money can be spread out over time, you dont need to own everything, you can specialise in series and discipline, only needing to buy cars/tracks as and when required. Some cars are eligible for multiple series and most tracks are used in multiple series, so you dont need to spend that much is you spend wisely.
4) Generally quit friendly and respectful from what I've seen, some races are really chatty at the start some are quiet, but I have rarely come across any *****. What you will find is that some parts of the iRacing community can be quite elitist, but thats a small minority.

 

[Jase]

1) Nope, however unless you really want to use steam to launch and pay for stuff then just cut out the middle man. everything else is handled through iRacings launcher anyway.
2) I found it to be pretty straightforward starting out, the Beta standalone launcher is pretty slick so navigating is easy. Handling physics take a bit of getting used to even if you are familiar with other sims but when you get on top of the tyre physics and the braking its a very rewarding sim. the rookie races can be a bit rocky but in my experience you get a lot cleaner racing even at that level compared to other sims. Matchmaking is linked to your Irating so you should be in and around drivers of similar rating/experience level.
3) Yes it can get expensive, you have your monthly Sub, and each additional track is ~$15 and cars are ~$12 a piece, however that money can be spread out over time, you dont need to own everything, you can specialise in series and discipline, only needing to buy cars/tracks as and when required. Some cars are eligible for multiple series and most tracks are used in multiple series, so you dont need to spend that much is you spend wisely.
4) Generally quit friendly and respectful from what I've seen, some races are really chatty at the start some are quiet, but I have rarely come across any *****. What you will find is that some parts of the iRacing community can be quite elitist, but thats a small minority.

Thanks for the reply, I think I'll give it a go. If it's half as good as ACC I'll be happy, mainly interested in some decent/fair online racing and not too bothered about racing at the top end.... for now...

 

[Jase]

1. Purchase direct from iracing, you'll also get better deals on tracks and cars direct I think.

2. The learning curve is a little steep, but it is absolutely fine for a beginner. Navigating through the website is quite straight forward. You'll get a few cars and tracks free once you subscribe. You'll have access to "rookie" series of races and be able to practice, do time trial or race AI on certain car/track combinationsuntil your heart is content. Races tend to be every hour and you can do as many as you want.

3. Each car and track costs money. If you want to race GT3 for argument sake, you'll need to buy whatever GT3 car you like (there are about 7) and then the track. Cars and tracks are about £8 each. You basically buy what you are interested in racing. There are maybe 30 or so circuits to buy, and about the same amount of cars. Obviously if you bought every piece of content it can get very expensive.

4. The community is brilliant, it's very active and the forum is alive. Plus loads of discord channels going by the streamers and youtubers, in there you'll have ppl talking setups, cars, tracks, races and everything to do with racing. The online community is pretty serious, once you get out of the rookies you'll find serious sim racers. Multiplayer is special in iracing.

Thanks also for the reply, it sounds good to me

 

[Jase]

I signed up for it late last night so only had a quick play but first impressions:

The physics seem really good even on the little Mazda I tried out, it felt pretty realistic and that was very noticeable at the start.

The graphics are basic, the dashboard of the car is very simple, not sure if other cars you buy are better?

Everything felt very American, from cars to the tracks, great if you like NASCAR etc I guess.

Not much choice of tracks from start and they are quite expensive. I looked at joining a race and to do so I would have had to spend $66 dollars on track and car..

I need to work out what I need to buy in order to progress up to GT league/cars.

 

[steve45]

If its GTs you are after, spend nothing till you are out of rookie. You wont be in rookies for long though. Aim to reduce incident points and finish top 5, drive safe, drive consistent, drive clean, the priority is clean driving and avoiding incidents at this level.
There are options for the Kia and Caddy early on, but I didnt enjoy those cars personally. When you reach D, Your first proper GT series will be BMW 12.0, just remember there is no requirement to purchase the whole series at once. You can buy the car and spread the cost by buying the tracks are they come, track changes weekly throughout the season. However, also remember, you do get bigger discounts when you purchase multiple items at once.

 

[jbs]

I signed up for it late last night so only had a quick play but first impressions:

The physics seem really good even on the little Mazda I tried out, it felt pretty realistic and that was very noticeable at the start.

The graphics are basic, the dashboard of the car is very simple, not sure if other cars you buy are better?

Everything felt very American, from cars to the tracks, great if you like NASCAR etc I guess.

Not much choice of tracks from start and they are quite expensive. I looked at joining a race and to do so I would have had to spend $66 dollars on track and car..

I need to work out what I need to buy in order to progress up to GT league/cars.

As above, don't spend any money, unless you ask for advice and people help you to make decisions, you definitely do not have to spend $66 to do a race. Do not see iracing as other games where you progress through stages. There is a license level, but you only really need to progress if there is a series you want to participate in and many people are happy to take part in lower level series. You can also earn credits for running a full season, which you can then use towards your track purchases. To take part in a series with more than one car you do not have to purchase all cars, just the car you want to drive.

Again, before purchasing ask away on the iracing forums to make sure you do not spend too much money. It can seem expensive, but with the right advice it really does not have to be that bad.

 

[SDK^]

As the others have posted - Don't buy anything until you get out of Rookies. Work out which type of racing takes your interest using the free tracks & cars - Oval, Road, Road/Dirt etc.. and then when you get promoted to D look at your options.
I went with Road racing and got the BMW GTE and Skip Barber. These series share some of the same tracks so keeps the cost down a little

 

[Jase]

If its GTs you are after, spend nothing till you are out of rookie. You wont be in rookies for long though. Aim to reduce incident points and finish top 5, drive safe, drive consistent, drive clean, the priority is clean driving and avoiding incidents at this level.
There are options for the Kia and Caddy early on, but I didnt enjoy those cars personally. When you reach D, Your first proper GT series will be BMW 12.0, just remember there is no requirement to purchase the whole series at once. You can buy the car and spread the cost by buying the tracks are they come, track changes weekly throughout the season. However, also remember, you do get bigger discounts when you purchase multiple items at once.

As above, don't spend any money, unless you ask for advice and people help you to make decisions, you definitely do not have to spend $66 to do a race. Do not see iracing as other games where you progress through stages. There is a license level, but you only really need to progress if there is a series you want to participate in and many people are happy to take part in lower level series. You can also earn credits for running a full season, which you can then use towards your track purchases. To take part in a series with more than one car you do not have to purchase all cars, just the car you want to drive.

Again, before purchasing ask away on the iracing forums to make sure you do not spend too much money. It can seem expensive, but with the right advice it really does not have to be that bad.

As the others have posted - Don't buy anything until you get out of Rookies. Work out which type of racing takes your interest using the free tracks & cars - Oval, Road, Road/Dirt etc.. and then when you get promoted to D look at your options.
I went with Road racing and got the BMW GTE and Skip Barber. These series share some of the same tracks so keeps the cost down a little

Thanks for all the replies.

I've had a bit of a play today and at the start had mixed results and gave up a few times just at the Mazda rookie stage.

The problem I was having was with control when the back end started to go etc, I just couldn't correct it in time as the FFB in the wheel just got too strong at that point. I thought it was me so gave up a couple of times. I later found a few settings on Youtube for my wheel and tried them, what a difference a couple of changes made, since then I've been having a blast, still make the occasional rookie mistake but I'm now at point where in practice I'm catching people who had a good lead and passing them cleanly.

There is much to learn on this but I think the challenge will be quite rewarding.

I did comment above that I though the graphics were a bit basic but they are better than I originally thought and the cars are really good when watching the replays etc.

Having only a few weeks ago got back into PC gaming (thanks lockdown for a very expensive month) I'm really pleased that I got one and super pleased I went for an Ultrawide monitor.

 

[SDK^]

I've been watching a few of the Nurburgring 24 Hours iRacing race streams which started 1pm yesterday. Interesting to see the team driver stint strategies. Some teams are just about hanging in the race, some have retired and some holding top positions. Verstappen and M.Jensen (Team Redline Cup 69) are leading with about 4hr 10 mins left to go.

 

[picnic]

Was a little disappointed Lando wasn't doing this but then I see he trashed the Indycar guys yesterday evening.

 

[Jase]

I've been watching a few of the Nurburgring 24 Hours iRacing race streams which started 1pm yesterday. Interesting to see the team driver stint strategies. Some teams are just about hanging in the race, some have retired and some holding top positions. Verstappen and M.Jensen (Team Redline Cup 69) are leading with about 4hr 10 mins left to go.

Where are you watching these, on twitch or does iRacing steam their own events?

 

[SDK^]

Was a little disappointed Lando wasn't doing this but then I see he trashed the Indycar guys yesterday evening.

Lando did so well In the Indy race. I also watched the warm up race on Friday and he smoked them in that too. His fuel saving laps were quicker than the Will Power Laps with him using the ‘push to pass’ button

Where are you watching these, on twitch or does iRacing steam their own events?

Jimmy and Dave Sampsons teams streaming on YouTube. Loads of others on Twitch, including Max.
The Dave Cam Channel was also streaming on YouTube but they dropped out in the middle of the night.

 

[Jase]

Lando did so well In the Indy race. I also watched the warm up race on Friday and he smoked them in that too. His fuel saving laps were quicker than the Will Power Laps with him using the ‘push to pass’ button


Jimmy and Dave Sampsons teams streaming on YouTube. Loads of others on Twitch, including Max.
The Dave Cam Channel was also streaming on YouTube but they dropped out in the middle of the night.

Thanks, I watched the GT3 racing this afternoon on ACC so missed a lot of the iRacing stuff.

Really good to see that e-racing is taking off the the moment.

 

[Dup]

It's really taking off. Fanstec stuff is selling more used than new direct from Fanatec, G27s going for £140 even T300 with the better pedal sets are going used for similar prices to new. Everywhere is more or less out of stock for new stuff. I had a G27 before but sold it due to inactivity then I've caught the bug again like everyone else. Luckily I have a friend with a spare G27 to get me back into it and I have a playsear challenge to mount it on as that was what I found most difficult previously with pedals moving and wheels too close to me at my desk. I'd sooner my old CSR and Elite pedals but even those are selling for daft money used.

Gonna get back into iRacing when/if my Nixim mod turns up. I never did many actual races and get out of rookies but really want to get into some competitive racing when I feel comfortable. Waiting for the Nixim mod to turn up though before I re-sub as I had it last time and made a huge difference.

 

[steve45]

Thanks, I watched the GT3 racing this afternoon on ACC so missed a lot of the iRacing stuff.

Really good to see that e-racing is taking off the the moment.

Its also very frustrating, trying to purchase anything at the moment is a complete nightmare, stock is being bought up instantly and back orders are huge on most products.
I got let down massively by demontweeks on the Cube controls wheel, when I put the money down there was a 10 day lead time. almost a month on and they are telling me they effectively cannot guarantee me a wheel before June... Even in this current situation, thats just not acceptable, dont put lead times on the website if they cannot meet them. So I've asked for a refund, and been in comms with someone about getting a custom built Audi R8 GT3 replica rim made with ascher racing and Leo bodner components, got the quote and lead times through, just need to wait for the refund to process then I'll be placing the order.

 

[Jase]

Luckily I got a new pc right at the start of this and although I had no intention of playing sims I already had a wheel etc. Bad news is it’s only a T300RS and I was going to get something better now but sounds like I’ll be waiting a while.

ohh well a poor wheel can be my excuse for not winning

 

[steve45]

Dont knock it mate, I'm still running the T300rs at the moment, the same wheel that got my team manager a drive with Williams and Ferrari esports, before he sacked it all. Gucci kit dont make you a better driver, only time practice and experience will get you there. Nice wheel and pedals might make you more consistent but, but you can be plenty fast on a cheap wheel.
Only reason I ordered a direct drive wheel is my increasingly expensive quest for more realism and immersion. Its frighteningly addictive and a rabbit hole you'd be well advised to steer clear of.

 

[Jase]

Dont knock it mate, I'm still running the T300rs at the moment, the same wheel that got my team manager a drive with Williams and Ferrari esports, before he sacked it all. Gucci kit dont make you a better driver, only time practice and experience will get you there. Nice wheel and pedals might make you more consistent but, but you can be plenty fast on a cheap wheel.
Only reason I ordered a direct drive wheel is my increasingly expensive quest for more realism and immersion. Its frighteningly addictive and a rabbit hole you'd be well advised to steer clear of.

I was only joking I was going to get something different although mainly for the pedals and my Brake squeaks and annoys me and the throttle is loose. I'll probably just get some pedals when I can and change wheel later as it's fine.