Featured Automobilista 2 V1.6.8.5 RELEASED; Now Updated to V1.6.8.6

Hah, confusion all round! I was too focused on the straight cut gear noise to get my facts right

 

So is this official confirmation that the Overtake stream was wrong/incorrect? I've been playing on my own PC and my audio is identical to the preview stream in every way (where I am A/B'ing the sound of my gameplay recording to the stream audio on my headphones). To be honest, I've never heard or seen any YouTube recording of AMS 2 that looked or sounded different to my own game.

Does this mean my PC/install is busted or set up incorrectly? I keep seeing multiple posts claiming differences ranging from "night/day" to "much improved" in regards to the stream cockpit audio and I am concerned that all of my stuff is set up wrong.

Edit: Again, I am not claiming that anything in the game is bad or unacceptable, just trying to wrap my head around claims on this forum. It is exceptionally hard for me to separate the legit feedback opposed to the comments always posted near update launches that claim everything is fixed/improved/etc.

 

I just looked at the stream video, and I'm not sure exactly what he didn't like about the sound (I just stopped when he said it's "kind of mid" so I knew I was in the right spot) but it sounds the same to me as it does in-game, aside from being a bit more 'mono' compared to my 5.1 setup.

I can only assume he's complaining about the sound because of how loud the straight-cut gears are, but that's the reason I posted that video above (and Crimson posted a better one because I still got it wrong) - that's what it sounds like IRL

 

I have a suspicion that it wasn't a Youtube problem - I'm guessing his streaming software has compressed the in-game audio somewhat to reduce bandwidth usage, so it's lost a bit of audio quality and stereo width. To me fundamentally it sounds the same on my 5.1 setup, just with the audio losses I would expect to hear with compression.

If he's complaining about the in-game audio directly, then I don't think he has a leg to stand on because to me it's about 100% as close to authentic as you can get

 

I had only very limited time to do 2 shakedown laps on Le Mans, 1 with the Maserati, and 1 with the Viper….it was incredible how great the sound felt on helmet cam for me, I could actually hear the cracking noise from exhaust on downshifts, and the sound on both were much more dynamic and aggressive for lack of a better word. The best sounding cars in AMS2 (have tried just these 2 from new pack), but this brought a huge smile on my face on these 2 laps…and I found this Le Mans layout trickier but more rewarding as well, very well done , incredible atmosphere as always. Never been that happy with an update, well done Reiza, I just touched the tip of the Iceberg but I’m loving every second. Great period, great tracks and great cars. Sim racing paradise .

 

Somehow I feel like I understand what happened even less than before, but I appreciate the reply either way. Again, my comment was not to say I felt the cars sounded bad, only that I could not understand why everyone seemed to agree that YouTube videos "ruin" the sound or look of any game (in a broad sense).

I agree that YouTube's encoders can and will change the compression for uploaded videos, but the comments about this sound thing in particular still don't make sense to me as I read them. First off, re-encoding audio can alter the sound of a file, but unless something goes really wrong, it does not change volumes or "the mix" in the same way running audio through a studio compressor would. My gripes were more targeted at the comments saying things like "oh no, the engine sounds way louder on my PC and the exhaust is super crisp, unlike the muffled mess on the livestream". File compression does not do that (and someone would need to post actual proof that YT is using studio compression/limiters/etc on uploaded audio streams).

After a couple of hours with the new DLC, I think everything sounds good enough for me. It's simply not possible for any game to offer "authentic" sounds for any vehicle for a variety of reasons. I've wasted so much money, time, and effort trying to make recordings of my guitars sound the same way they do in-room as on the final mastered recording (and I never get it 100%). There's no way on earth that this process is any different when it comes to recording/mixing/mastering race car audio because the devs still need to use the same mics/mixing boards/etc that come along with that workflow (along with all the complications that arise from such endeavors + synthesis for all the possible variation in engine RPMs, etc).

 

I've had a bit of time to jump on track now and honestly, loving the new cars I tried out - I only used the Lambo and the Corvette GT2s, but they had distinct personalities. The new Porsche RSR and the Milano were great fun - the Milano was an absolute blast around the Nordschleife, very lively and needs a bit of taming.

The 2004 M3 GTR for me is kind of like V8 Supercar-lite with the steering wheel on the wrong side. I absolutely love the whine of straight-cut gears and it doesn't disappoint. I did a couple of laps around Bathurst in it and I can tell I'm not quite on its limits yet.

I have also realised that I've spent little to no time on Road Atlanta previously, so can't give the new track a good assessment since I crashed at some very obvious places to crash because I simply don't know the circuit. Spa 2005 definitely caught me out a bit, but I'm not sure what's changed in Le Mans - but to be fair I haven't spent much time on Le Mans.

Funnily enough, I switched to the "Basic" default custom FFB setup and I'm quite enjoying it, more than Default - I'm pretty sure they're different and it's not just a placebo effect.

 

T1 cannot be cut anymore and it's slower. Tertre Rouge (the gate to Hunaudieres/Mulsanne Straight) is much slower and with walls on the immediate outside. Asphalt is less smooth all around especially at Porsche and Corvette corners. And obviously the surroundings are more 2000s than today's version

 

Hence why I was saying I don't think it's a Youtube problem, and I think possibly his streaming software. To me the in-game audio on the stream sounded slightly 'muted' in the top end (which is definitely a factor in types of audio compression like MP3) and the stereo panning was a little squashed to mono. But I don't want to preach to the choir, just giving my personal opinion and theorising as to what the problem may be.

I still say in my opinion, allowing for those factors that the audio sounded precisely the same as in-game, which to me sounds great and very authentic. No game is ever going to sound 100% like the real thing unless you're running a 10.4 surround system or something haha

 

I suspect that anything I post that isn't immediately positive will go off the rails like it has in the past so I will limit my feedback to the good stuff. All of this is based on early first impressions.

Track Pack DLC -
Worth it for the Road Atlanta short layout alone. I ran a 30-minute sprint with German Group A and it took less than 10 minutes before I lost track of space and time. This small addition opens up what is one of the finest circuits on Earth (my opinion) to a wider range of car classes that have been less than compelling on the full endurance layout. Stuff like the Copas, ARC Camaro, older Brazilian stocks, etc, will be electric.

As far as the main content of the pack, I feel that Spa 2005 is the standout. Sure, this is probably just because Spa itself is so picturesque, but this 2005 variant easily felt the most "2005" of the three new layouts upon initial impression.

Historical Endurance Pack Pt. 1 -
Oh boy, this is the good stuff. Right off the bat, this is the best collection of liveries Reiza has ever produced. I'm not sure if there are new paint shaders or its just smaller adjustments in the background, but all the new cars look good in the showroom and on track. A few of the Viper and C5.R liveries are just absolute beauties.

For the art staff at Reiza responsible for the reworking of the car class art headers in the car select menu: Outstanding work all around. The lack of readability and lack of coherence between class indicator art has always been a sore spot in the front-end UI (amongst many, lol), but this is a MASSIVE improvement. There already so much character added throughout the stack of classes, particularly with the Formula Retro and Formula USA entries.

The Alyssa Milano GT36 is a real firecracker. Mostly because trying to drive it feels like I'm running around with a lit firecracker in my hand. Throttle application is so smooth and everything feels clean at lower speeds. Once I approach the limit, this thing turns into a nightmare (in the good way). I will have to enable the lowest traction control setting on my game pad for now as this new horse is awfully squirrely. If this is a sneak preview at future Milanos, we are in excellent hands.

The Viper GT1 is finally here and it's everything I could have wanted. When all the other cars in this pack allowed me to navigate Turn 7 at Atlanta in the same way I do for GT3/LMP/etc, the good old Viper made sure to remind me that it does in fact have an aircraft carrier for a hood and that I must be mindful of that snout if I don't want to oversteer out of that turn. 10/10 - would never pay money for a Dodge car in real life, but would gladly pay for this AMS 2 Dodge any day of the week.

Lastly, simply seeing a yellow C5.R stalk me in the rearview while testing the other GT1 cars made this pack worth the asking price. Once I got to drive it, I found it to be downright pleasant to pilot around (especially in comparison to some of the others in this class that feel like trying to tame a wild animal). This thing feels like it drives me in most low and mid-speed corners. Having owned more than a few LS-derived smallblock V8s as daily drivers in real life, I can confirm that this particular C5.R does, in fact, sound exactly like an LS.

After about three hours of racing and lapping at 4K on a single screen, I can declare TAA to be a winner. As others have mentioned previously, the cockpit cam problems have not been solved by this addition, but the overall look of the track and foliage in the distance is an objective upgrade. Distant specular highlights and fencing have most of the temporal shimmering eliminated and the overall image is comparable to downsampling from 5K in the game prior to this update. Now, we have that image quality bump without the associated performance hit from rending higher than native resolution.

 

TAA is definitely a game changer especially for night racing. But the issue with some cars windshields in cockpit view is now even worst than with MSAA. The Viper is especially hideous with flickering Aliasing on the top and left.

Bug Reports - Automobilista 2 (Read the Opening Post)

 

I really wonder if Traxion was using helmet cam without realizing it? I intentionally set the FOV for helmet cam to a much higher number to differentiate between the two and to be sure I don't accidentally drop into it.

 

Maybe give the Features Request thread a try instead of in release threads.

 

After getting home and trying the update, it’s fantastic, all the new cars are really good and feel really good to drive, even the gt3’s, feel a good step forward, so whatever has been done physics wise keep going with it.
TAA with my crystal light is also much better than MSAA, so big win here.

Will keep driving and testing but overall, this update for me is a giant W.

 

Does this new file include all of the mods names or is it just changing the Reiza cars?

 

As much as the world needs even more comments about sound quality on a preview stream…

This is a fantastic update! TAA is a huge improvement in quality and my frame rate jumped about 30%, too. The GT1 2005 cars are solid, and I love the Audi R8. I prefer open cockpit cars and this is one of the best.

 

Yea TAA is a big improvement, both picture wise for me in VR and good performance boost to.

 

I had a short go yesterday and the game is very, very fun. The truly slept-on change might be the Group A chassis pivot moment of inertia change. The cars turn so believably and the tyres bite so nicely.

 

The update is magnificent, the game is great, but when are we going to get the career mode? When are all the online issues going to be fixed and many more options added? When are all the bugs going to be resolved and the gameplay more or less finished?
You have the power to be the best simulator and dominate the market by fixing the things that are failing. It has already been 5 years and the DLCs are very good, but if the core game mechanics and options are not properly polished, this is useless.
Thank you