Race Driver: Grid demo

[polonyc2]

I'm a fan of racing games so I downloaded the demo last night...Grid is definitely more of an arcade type of game rather then a sim...but that being said it's pretty fun (much better then NfS: Pro Street)...graphics are pretty good and damage modeling is very well done

after playing so many games in the Need for Speed series it's good to be able to have real damage modeling effect your racing again...car handling definitely takes somes getting used to as well as not getting into wrecks (the NFS games made wrecks almost mandatory so it took some getting used to in terms of real racing)

[polonyc2]

.....

[jaketerminate]

I have Need For Speed Pro Street, the graphics look like they could match it...

[polonyc2]

Originally Posted by jaketerminate

I have Need For Speed Pro Street, the graphics look like they could match it...

I liked the demo...I'm probably gonna pick up the full game when it comes out in June...the game seems better then the last few Need for Speed games

here's the official website for GRID where you can also find a link to the demo...

RACE DRIVER GRID ™| CODEMASTERS

[Drufuss]

My system seem to fit into the recommended specs for Grid, so i think that's another game form codemasters i'm going to buy.

Can't wait to install and try the demo.

Greetings

Dru

[Drufuss]

Iinstalled and played the demo yesterday evening and i'm pretty impressed.

I had it set on medium details @ 1280x1024 and it looked great and played fluently. Don't know any fps numbers now, will try play it again with AtiTrayTools running later today.

The graphics are pretty amazing, the damage modell is really nice, and the replays look better than watching a race on tv.

I defintely have to buy this game.

Greetings

Dru

[Drufuss]

Yes, playing at 1440x900 (16:10) is even better.

Anybody tried the demo with a wheel so far? What about ForceFeedback? (There are many options the set)

Are real crash scenes (car hits car) blanked out from the replay video? Noticed massive black outs yesterday (had a rough ride) and i remember that i had such a black out once playing Dirt (lost control of the truck, came to a halt lying on the roof straight across the street and was hit by another truck at full speed, but scene was black during replay)
Is this some "anti-violence", "innocent youth protection" feature?

Greetings

Dru

[polonyc2]

the crash scenes are not blacked out for me...

the full version comes out today! ...I think I'm going to pick it up

[Drufuss]

Tried to install the game yesterday, but ran into troubles (some related to Kaspersky IS)
Game only starts once, then i have to reboot for another start (game needs to be restarted when you change settings) and even that doesn't always work.
I can't set Audio to hardware. Software Audio is selected and can not be changed.

Greetings

Dru

[polonyc2]

Originally Posted by Drufuss

Tried to install the game yesterday, but ran into troubles (some related to Kaspersky IS)
Game only starts once, then i have to reboot for another start (game needs to be restarted when you change settings) and even that doesn't always work.
I can't set Audio to hardware. Software Audio is selected and can not be changed.

did you have the same problems with the demo or only in the full retail version?

I see the game is now also available via Steam

here is a review of the game from GameSpot:

"The new version of Codemasters' Neon engine, named Ego, imbues Grid with some particularly impressive visuals. The backgrounds aren't always sharp, but the action moves at such a frightening pace that you'll rarely have a chance to notice...On the technical side, Grid runs at a solid 30 frames per second with no slowdown during pileups. The one notably absent feature is weather effects, given that the game features nothing other than warm, sunny conditions in which to race.

Grid's controls feel light, responsive, and even quite forgiving, but the damage model and challenging AI can make for a difficult first few races. Minor bumps and crashes will do little to impact the performance of your vehicle; bumpers will fall off and windscreens will shatter, but the innards of your car will perform as normal. However, major incidents will have a more drastic effect on your ability to race. Your vehicle might pull to one side or lose speed and acceleration, or even worse, it could fail completely...

GRID for Xbox 360 Review - Xbox 360 GRID Review

[Drufuss]

Okay, after uninstalling the game and installing it with Kaspersky closed, i can restart the game (with Kaspersky closed) without having to reboot.

I'm still stuck without hardware audio acceleration, but changed one or to settings from medium to low so fps is about 50-60 (40 - 50 fps in during replay).

Black-Out's still take place during replay, but only occasionally, and seem to be related to the GPU overheating (reaches 80° C very fast). Looks like i have to get a water block for my HD3850 AGP.

PLaying @ 1440x900 with the logitech G25 wheel is great (after i disabled the "breaking assistent").

Greetings

Dru

[PeterT]

Thanks for the heads up. It looks pretty cool. Downloading demo now. slow...

[S.SubZero]

I played with the demo a bit. Does the full version have any more open tracks, or are they all these tight "damage every car in the first turn" deals?

Like other racing games I've played, they also change the driving experience depending on the view. If I use an outside view, the car is very front-heavy and every little twitch makes the car get unstable. With the in-car view it's more forgiving, but the view is not very good, especially after aforementioned first turn smashes the windshield.

It is extremely pretty, and on my Penryn 2.5ghz+8800M GTX laptop it runs very nice at 1900x1200 with eye candy on. It also has a Mustang, and as a Mustang owner I have to give bonus points for this, even if the way it handles makes it seem very not-RWD.

[Drufuss]

The first patch for GRID is here!

Let's see if it can fix or improve some things for me.

Greetings

Dru

[Drufuss]

I've installed the patch yesterday evening and things do look better now.

I haven't tried running the game with Kaspersky still active (just wanted to play) and i didn't use the wheel.
The game seems to be more stable, no hangs or crashes (had plenty of "crashes" with the car though) and in-game sound seems to have improved although i still can't select "hardware sound" in the options tab. Does this game really need an X-Fi card for that?

Greetings

Dru