Need For Speed Shift 2
 

Thought I would make this thread as the game was released today, and I have the Limited Ed. copy of it (got it for $10 bucks..:) ).

Initial First Impression:

The Physics engine leaves a HEAP and TON to be desired. Coming from someone who plays GT5 nearly on a daily basis and who competes in Road Racing/Time Attack in real life, Shift 2 feels like there are no tires on the car. You get tire screeching sound, but you get no "FEEL" for where your tires are in relation to the road surface. The difference between on track surface and dipping a tire off into the grass are the same feeling. There is no change until you send the car all the way into the sand pit. I am racing on the "Elite" settings with a DS3 controller. Even with a DS3 controller and no Aids in GT5, you still "FEEL" the car and the surface changes.

I think the cool factor will be the cars and what you can do to them, but a GT5 dethroner....this game is not. I bought it for the "fun" I hope it will bring once I'm deeper in the game, but good GOD I am disappointed in the Physics Engine. I was expecting something at least CLOSE to the GT5 Physics Engine (with all the advertisements about it and what not), but that seem more like a Hype now after initial play time.

Such a shame...was looking forwward to the game

Upon further game play (progressing into Career mode now with unquestionably a Scion tC), when you run off into the grass, the traction decrease MAYBE 5% compared to the road surface. Like it's ridiculous the amount of grip you have still when driving completely through the grass.

In GT5, you running slicks and you set the grip level to Real....you might as well hang it up if you even so much as dip a tire into the dirt. If you dip off into the dirt on GT5, the only way to stay in control is to completely let off the throttle and drive the car with steering only (no brakes, brakes would make it worse).

Not in S2 though. You run off in S2, you can maintain the same speed as the AI who is still on the track, while I'm driving through the dirt not to lose my position because I accidentally missed a braking zone since I can't "FEEL" when to brake (no sensation of vehicle weight transfer), I just have to guess based on distance to the corner.

I find cars a lot easier to drive in GT5 than in Shift(original). I'm getting shift 2 today in the mail, so I'll be able to compare both, but theres something in GT5 that is just missing compared to Shift. GT5 feels controlled, reserved, and practically every car is manageable . . . in Shift however my heart starts racing any time I get into a supercar, and the whole experience is an adrenaline rush, like if you hit that wall your life is over. The fact that I used a wheel for shift and a controller for GT5 may contribute, lol. I'd love to get my hands on a G25.

Quite the contrary, you hit a wall your life is not over. Visually your car is just hideous yet you can still reasonably drive in a straight line and finish the race after the game resets your car. Try hitting a wall in GT5 with full damage on, it's the opposite, you don't have the visual but your not completing the race.

Secondly, there are more glitches in this game to count. I am nervous each time I play the game and make progression because the game might glitch and lose all my progress (it's no wonder the game saves nearly after every loading screen, it's poorly programmed).

I can see what you mean about feeling the adrenaline rush of getting into the super car on there, but it is more or less a speed up game engine rather than the actual sensation of doing 180+mph. In real life, if you are doing 180+ you will still retain a great deal of control of the car (granted you have the proper gear to do those speeds to begin with). I've done 150mph on the tri Oval of my home track right before coming into turn one, and at no point does real life feel like you are about to careen into a wall.

Visually the game is great. Physics however, comparing to GT5, is like the a 3rd world country vs the United States of America. It's just no comparison. The AI is good at times, but they try and wreck you a LOT.

I hope that you have a steering wheel cause that seems to be what this game was built upon. They completely left out the dynamics of 80% of people who will be buying that game (in that they use controllers and not wheels). Drifting is nearly impossible to play with a DS3, you can muster up some good drifts, but doubt you are going to be linking drifts left and right.

I play on Hard setting, with Elite Handling. Cars are super Floaty and have no sense of road surface feel. Little touches to the game are very neat (rubber on the track that you run over....sounds like a Horse trotting around the barn, but still a nice little touch). It's entertaining but don't expect to get GT5 physics out of this game. Despite the "FALSE" advertisements and marketing done to hype the game up, it is an EPIC FAIL in the Physics department which at times makes the game un-enjoyable.

The other un-enjoyable aspect is in the tracks. They are not accurate. Corners have the wrong distances between each other, wrong camber angle, wrong radius..etc.

Would you be down for a challenge? Nurburgring, S15, stock?

Right after I get that time I'm gonna do the same lap on GT5, and compare. But I'd be interested to know what times youre getting.

Of course Im going to be using a wheel for Shift, GT5 doesnt like my wheel (FFFFUUUU)

Shift 2 or GT5? I would prefer a challenge on the Burg on GT5 as I haven't even so much as touched the Burg in Shift 2 (except the Burg GP/F course layout), so I haven't ran it and gotten accustom to it's in accuracies yet.

What wheel do you use? Send me a friend request and Autolog will automatically compare your times to mine of course.

Or we can battle at the same time if you wish.

I will say this about Shift 2 over GT5.....drafting in GT5 is over exaggerated. Shift 2, the drafting is the only thing that ISN'T over exaggerated.

Chris Rado's tC is the only reason I bought Shift 2, I can care less about all the other cars in the game, or the game itself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiWKp...&feature=feedu

That's pure passion for speed he speaks....love it, and reason why I love my tC so much.

I'm getting ridiculous steering lag, with the controller. About a sec, to be exact. Any ideas? I cant race with that.

To bad. I have to say I'm not a fan EA's current philosophy of alternating arcade and "simulation" with the NFS series.

The closest the NFS series got close to Gran Turismo physics was in the 90's. I can't speak for II or IV High Stakes but III Hot Pursuit on PS1 with the dynamics set to simulation was in my eyes very close. It is still my favourite NFS game I have to date.

Firstly the bugs are always the biggest disappointment in NFS, as I usually get my NFS games from the bargain bin they're usually much more stable than the initial "faux beta" release. Since it's a yearly EA staple, the bugs are "normal." So no surprise there.

Second, in Prostreet totaling the car on the first barrier you hit was very possible and extremely easy to do. I never bought Shift 1, I bought Forza 3 instead. It was possible in Prostreet on the top speed courses with all assists off to recover from a fishtail at 140-180mph but anything above that was pretty much a death sentence. That had the feeling that any second you could go shooting into the next wall and total the car.

NFS AI has been terrible as long as I've been playing it. A good AI would be fighting you for time and the occasional tap not trying to blatantly wreck your car.

The only redeeming quality NFS had in my mind was creativity, like Underground2 days. I only liked Prostreet better because while there was no cops, it was on the track where racings belongs.

Thanks for sharing about Shift 2, I was considering getting back on the PC for racing since I have a wheel and now I think I'll pass on Shift :thumbsup:.

Had to turn down the steering sensitivity to 15% or less. Start at 15%, if that's not comfortable enough, then turn it down some more. Turn all the "Dead Zone" settings to 0 (throttle, brake, steering) as well.

It's stupid they shipped the game with these default settings that make the cars unbearable to drive.

No problem. You touched on a key point with EA and their racing games. They do have some creativity that doesn't get put into some other games. They just fail at the proper deliverance of that creativity.