I find it very frustrating that you can't join a server towards the end of a session, ie 5 minutes before the end of qualifying. There is no way of knowing how long is left in the session from the browse online list. Any chance you could scrap this limitation.
If you are browsing the server list, check the lobby details before joining. If the remaining time in the session is 2 minutes or less to end Q, don't bother joining, you won't be able to. If it is 4 mins or more, you can safely join. If it is 3 mins, it is a gamble. Terrible design, but it is what it is.
I understood this is done to get less wreckers in the sessions. With this time limit they have to spend more time in the session to get racing and do the wrecking. Since I only join open lobbies and I don't meet too many wreckers I think this works like they designed it. I avoid racing GT3 since there are usually some drivers who think that they can make all positions up in T1. So I wouldn't know how the situation is in GT3.
I just don't join GT3 races because I find racing with aids is boring... But you'll usually find a wrecker or 2 in any formula races in an open lobby... If they are down to lack of skill instead of intent it's hard to tell... With open lobbies it's best to be on pole or in last place on the grid... Avoid that T1 carnage and get on with the fun... As far as the OP goes... Just click on the server name and you'll get the details of how long is left and what the server is running so you can avoid default settings or bad weather... As said above if you see 3 mins and under on that screen there's a high chance the join button will never light up... I'm in favour of these for open lobbies... But I wish there was an option to adjust it... Sometimes when I've been in hour long qualy sessions you really want to see what people can do with the last 5-10 minutes of grip... Having a lot of people turn up late and be moving chicanes is a bit of a headache in an open lobby... And in a league race, if someone drops out because of a disconnect or they need to reset the wheel or any reason, they get locked out even whilst the session is running...
MeToo Im a bit surprised people want to be able to join so late that (as example) the qualify is almost over. For me this sounds like a very casual gamer who just wanna kill some time - and therfore just want instantly be teleported on track/grid. Instant teleporting would probably be good for wreckers but bad for serious drivers - me think
I thought there was a technical reason as well: If someone joins right before the session transition and has connection problems, the game might get stuck when transitioning to the next session? On the topic of "session joining lottery", there also seems to be a problem if there is only one free spot left, and two people with slow connections join simultaneously, where both get the spot before the other is able to send back that the join was successful and the spot is taken… (the Two Generals' Problem)
@Roar McRipHelmet If one of your 2 explanations is the reason then there is even less reason to be against this restriction.
It's a real bummer when you can't jump into a server right when you want to, especially during those intense moments like the end of a qualifying session.
i would send people who come late or who have no eligible time set in "P" or "Q" to the pit at race start. Accept "R" only races.