Feedback for HattaCM (developer)

[The Hoff]

I can also confirm Monaco turn 15 A.I. crashes as confirmed in this post you commented on. Is it still being looked into?

http://community.codemasters.com/t5/F1-2013-Technical-Assistance/PC-Monaco-bugs-and-bad-braking-points/td-p/394494

[snthennumbers]

Can we get any kind of update on this? Anyone alive over there?

Sorry to spam, but this is in regards to the following:



I had my 1st season Career race at Monaco last night (50% distance), and after restarting the race 3 times due to pile ups at turn 15, I finally got to lap 22 before there were 8 cars left in the race, and I just retired myself from the grand prix in order to keep the points standings in the drivers championship relatively unchanged.

I don't know if I'm supposed to mention this, but it's important feedback so oh well:
I have modified the AI's braking points and cornering speed for turns 4, 10, 12, 15, and 18 at Monaco.
- Turn 4: the AI carries too much speed through this turn and rides the armco barriers on the exit down the straight to turn 5...luckily the default damage sensitivity settings in the loose_parts_settings.xml file are low enough that the cars survive this impact unscathed.
- Turn 10: this corner can be corrected with some simple adjustments to the distance_modifier and curve_modifier values to keep the AI in check and not go crashing into the barriers
- Turn 12: the AI carries too much speed through this turn and slams into the armco barriers on the exit time and time again, luckily the damage settings are so low that the AI survives the impact. Again, easily correctable by lowering the curve_modifier value
- Turn 18: The AI carries too much speed through this turn and slams into the wall just at the exit of the corner. Again, easily correctable as described above

Turn 15: this corner is an issue with the AI, or with the AI's line through turn 13 and 14. I'll explain:
I've made the AI brake both later and far earlier by modifying the distance_modifer value, as well as take the corner slower by modifying the curve_modifier value (as well as nearly every other "modifier" value in the ai_vehicle_track.xml file blindly just hoping for some magic to happen).
No matter how I adjust this corner, the problem of the AI straightlining and crashing through turn 16 persists.

My thoughts on this are 1 of two things:
1: Even though I've corrected turn 12, the AI does take a slightly wide line through turn 13, and thus takes a bit more kerb than may be necessary through turn 14. This may be upsetting the car, causing the AI to lock up when braking into turn 15. This may explain why these crashes happen sometimes infrequently. However, when watching the replay I do not see the AI locking their tires until well past the braking point for turn 15. They're basically already off into the run-off area beyond turn 15 by the time they lock up.
2: After watching a large number of replays of this happening over and over to me, the AI cars that wind up crashing do seem to make a slight twitch while going through turn 14. It appears they are either attempting an overtake, or making an avoidance maneuver...both of which causes them to leave the racing line and/or crash. At times I do see them save themselves and just slow down enough to rejoin the racing line exiting turn 16.


Now, while I'm on the topic of correcting braking points and cornering speed for the AI, I've had to do this at the following locations JUST to get the AI to be competitive enough that I don't lap everyone, or win by 40 seconds, etc:
- Melbourne: [race start], 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
- Sepang: [race start], 1, 2, 4, 9, 14, 15
- China: [race start], 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
- Bahrain: [race start], 1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 11, 14/15
- Spain: [race start], 1, 4, 5, 10, 13
- Monaco: [race start], 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 18
- Canada: [race start], 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 14
- Britain: [race start], 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 15
- Nurburgring: [race start], 1, 2, 5, 8, 10, 13
- Hungary: [race start], 4, 5, 8, 9, 11, 12
- Spa: [race start], 1, Eau Rouge, 5
- Monza: [race start], 1, 4, 8, 11
- Singapore: [race start], 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21
- Korea: [race start], 3
- Japan: [race start], 1, 8, 9, 11
- India: [race start], 1, 4, 5
- Abu Dhabi: [race start], 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19
- Texas: [race start], 1, 12
- Brazil: [race start], 1, 6, 7, 14

Now granted, not ALL of these adjustments have been drastic, but they have all been necessary. Otherwise, as mentioned, you run into situations where you pick up 1/2, or one, or even two seconds per lap on the AI just because they're not even taking corners properly.

Now I'm sorry, but this frustrates me to no end (and that's putting it politely). Unless this is fixed in the 2014 game, Codemasters will lose my business, and I don't feel like this is me being an unruly or unrealistic consumer. Is it too much to ask just to get the cars to go around the corners in a competitive manner?

Codemasters clearly goes to great lengths to make the graphics and content of the game increase year by year which, don't get me wrong, is much appreciated. However, with that being said, what good is ANY of that if the game isn't even competitive? I won't get started on how the AI acts, because I have no idea how AI programming works (and granted the AI has been improved, a bit, over F1 2012); but when a lowly no-body like me can make the game THAT much more competitive (in only about a week's time working in the evenings mind you) simply by ACTUALLY racing at each track and modifying a few values here and there, I can't help but wonder where my money is actually going...

[BWX]

crapmasters doesn't care...