They didnt really had a set skill level it changed all the time.. results like 1st, 11th, 7th, 4th, 10th etc..
So you never had a rival in the championship and you could win one finishing 5th every race for instance..
Ive now played 3 tiers in career mode, started with the genetta junior, junior uk finals, ginetta gt5 and clio cup series.
From my experience the ai is not like pc1.
Ai varies in talent with the top 10 guys usually swapping places within 1-3 grid spots. I had the top 3 guys usually always chasing me through out the seasons so yes in a way you have rivals.
Ai are not perfect but either is any other title there very clean, will not hesitate to make a pass when the opportunity arises and some will make mistakes from time to time, they race one another and overall pretty good.
The neutral, weather is scripted for each session and cant be changed.....I get why some may not like it cause they want full customisation or realistic driving conditions but on the other hand if its that big of deal you can setup a race weekend in single player mode or launch a server for you and your friends.
Me personally I dont mind it as i am not really a career mode player and prefer racing humans online. Career mode to me is to be fun while challenging and I see it as SMS just showing off what there engine can do....and really where else are you ever gonna have a chance to drive a formula ford in the snow lol
The bad, there slow to get off the grid so you can pick up a few places at the start, theres still a few turns where there too fast or too slow and in rain there pace drops off too much. The biggest issue currently is there pace varies greatly from track to track and becomes annoying when you have to constantly change there skill level for every tack.
On the up....theres a thread on there form inregards to balancing the ai for each track and has had alot of community input so far.....so IF sms use that info the ai should be in pretty good shape soon.
My honest advice inregards to the game.
There are many bugs currently in the game that are annoying, especially if your expecting a polished product at release like many expected. Id than hold off and wait for some updates.
On the other hand if your like me and have just come to accept the days of polished games at release are a thing of the past and mostly all get released in a half ass state and can look past that. You ll find tech, features and certain driving experiences that you cant find in other sims all in one title.
IF SMS can sort the issues make some tweaks and get it polished in a timely matter it will be an overall great package and will force other developers to pick up there game going into future titles.
Love em or hate em I have to give them credit for advancing the tech in the sim racing genre.