rF2: Reiza DLC Released!

[Paul Jeffrey]

Studio 397 have made available the new Reiza Bundle DLC for the simulation.

Developed by Reiza Studios of Automobilista fame, the new 'Reiza Bundle' DLC for rFactor 2 is now available to purchase. Containing no less than six vehicles and four unique venues in 10 different layouts, the new pack retails for £16.98 and can be purchased on Steam HERE.

Want to see more racing action? Check out our early 'first drive' video HERE.

The new pack has been much awaited by fans of both Reiza Studios (AMS) and Studio 397 (rF2), and it will offer an interesting first look at how the two different design and production philosophies of these two studios come together in rFactor 2.

The new DLC contents are...

Tracks:

Virginia International Raceway (commonly known as "VIR") is a race track located in Alton, Virginia VIR is an incredibly beautiful and diverse racetrack allowing for numerous configurations, suiting all types of categories from small club cars to big GT and powerful prototypes.

The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari di Imola, better known as Imola, has hosted both the Italian and San Marino Grand Prix 28 times in total. This rF2 track comes in two versions: the classic, dangerous 1972 layout surrounded by nearby barriers before the introduction of chicanes to reduce its high speed nature, along with the current configuration fully adapted to modern standards but still retaining a lot of the unique challenges that made it famous.

Autódromo Internacional de Guaporé is a motorsports circuit in Guaporé, a small city in southern Brazil. It is one of the oldest race tracks in the country and traditionally hosts a variety of different categories, ranging from Classic tintops, modern endurance prototypes to racing trucks.

The Autódromo Internacional de Yahuarcocha, is located in Ibarra, Ecuador. It´s unique layout flowing around and in between a lake, mountains and even a vulcano makes it an unique driving experience.

Cars:
Formula Vee
This popular trainer formula car is heavily based on parts from the classic VW Beetle. Its open differential and swing axle rear suspension makes it a constant challenge and ideal tool to develop your driving skills.

MCR Sports 2000
The MCR S2000 is an incredibly nimble 500kg British prototype features an I4 Duratec engine, and is popular racer both for its driving fun as well as close wheel-to-wheel races.

Metalmoro MR18
The MR18 is a succesful mid-range endurance prototype from Brazilian manufacturer Metalmoro. It features a Honda K20 I4 Turbo engine.

Metalmoro AJR
The AJR is the latest high-performance prototype from Brazilian manufacturer Metalmoro. Capable matching the performance of a modern LMP2 car, this versatile prototype can be used with a range of different engines - the rF2 version features versions with Honda K20 I4 Turbo, Powertec V8, Chevrolet V8 and Judd V10.

Puma GTE
A sensation among Brazilian car enthusiasts from the 70s, the GTE is a modified version of the VW Beetle, featuring the same mechanics of the Brazilian Fusca with a lower, light weight fiberglass bodywork in an iconic design. The rFactor2 version is modeled after the original car and runs on radial tyres.

Puma P052
The P052 is a modern re-imagination of the 70s Brazilian classic, it retains many of the pure driving attributes that made the originals so popular in Brazil. The current prototype as modeled in rFactor2 runs with tuned MIVEC engine, 5-speed gearbox and slick tyres.

rFactor 2 is a PC exclusive racing sim from Studio 397 - Available now.

Check out the rFactor 2 sub forum here at RaceDepartment for the latest news and discussion regarding this excellent sim. Like your racing hard and fair? Join in with our rFactor 2 Racing Club for all your eSport racing fun! Oh, don't forget we like mods to, with our own rFactor 2 Modding Forum for you to enjoy!

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[Lefthook]

AMS and RF2 are basically the only games I play and both are amazing. Having said that, I have no intention on paying twice for the same content.

When Reiza drop AMS2, I will be glad to splash cash... but I don't want to support them by buying this DLC. If I am being honest, a couple of the tracks were already converted by modders and are really good... and the cars in the pack I will never, ever drive. AMS fans have been waiting 2 years for any solid news on the successor to AMS and it is getting pretty frustrating, not to mention this DLC was several MONTHS late. Is there not still one final DLC to come as well?

 

[muzikant]

Maybe is just the beginning.. hope they can more work together Reiza and S397

 

[M D Gourley]

Thoroughly enjoying the Formula Vee at the moment, especially at Ibarra...which is a fantastic looking track.

 

[Dragon60]

If Reiza Studio had the scan with this pack to test whether the rFactor 2 engine was suitable for future projects then they hit the nail on the top. Even there are still some minor issues the cars and tracks look and feel great and the pack is worth every cent.

 

[Heikki21]

After testing all cars and tracks there is only one word to say, FANTASTIC!
For me, Reiza delivered a pack which keeps us busy for many many hours. Even though I know all content from AMS, in rF2 it overall just feels more alive to me. The track quality is second to none. I didn't expect myself enjoying Ibarra that much, but the landscape, the small details like boats driving on the lake and cars in the service area, is just great. Same for Imola, VIR and Guapore off course. Also the nightlighting for all tracks is just perfect. It makes me wanna visit Ibarra, because that small village looks so good from the distance at night
The cars feel wonderful to me, out of the box. They feel as good and better I think than in AMS and are on a level with S397 cars. No tuning for FFB needed (for me), driving with a Fanatec CSW V2. Favorite car so far, also unexpected, is the MCR, followed by the MR18 and Puma. Also the fact, that Reiza delivers tons of skins for all cars, should make the community happy
So overall, this pack is a must have for every rF2/AMS user and big thanks to Reiza and S397 for that and hopefully we will get more AMS content in the future

 

[M D Gourley]

Time to tackle the Nordschleife...was it slow...Yes...was it boring...hell No...LOL

 

[D_Moriarty]

I love this pack, and not only because I received it for free as a backer (would gladly pay for the whole kart pack imported from AMS, much better than KartSim in my view). At the moment, I'm totally addicted to the MCR2000. Tracks are also excellent, Ibarra looks particularly catching, and it's a blast to drive with the sweeping corners.
A small observation - on most vanilla tracks I race the AI at 100%, and it's just enough for me for heated races, slow as I am. In Ibarra with MCR, I have to crank it up to 105% or even more, and the AI is not really willing to fight. Anyone noticing similar difference btw rf2 and ams-pack AI performance?

 

[b)b]

At Ibarra, the AI is especially slow on T1.

 

[Leynad777]

did you even read the part I refrained from the physics part. Surely some iracing cars are boring and imo rF2 has a way better wheel feel. But the cars in iracing have way more detail into its systems and what you do irl vs sim.

You seem to be impressed by the complexity of setup-screens rather than real life comparisons. Nicki Thiim said not only once, that the setups in iRacing doesn't make any sense and are often even the opposite of what you would do in real life. Real Skippy drivers like Andre Gomes saying to the new tyres in iRacing, the car has "way too much grip ... entirely different handling characteristics of the real car". GTE and GT3 cars in iRacing are up to 5 sec. faster around Nürburgring GP compare to the real cars and that's too much for a so-called simulation. There is too much grip in the corners which leads to faster lap-times depending on the layout. Certainly it's nice when the blue dash-lights in GTE-cars are flashing while traction control is working unlike in rF2, but what's the point about this feature if the cars are substantially wrong from the physics?

IMO the hole purpose of racing and balancing the car between over- and understeer is done a lot better (not only) in rF2 and the FFB is just translating that. This rather on/off-grip in iRacing might work well enough for high-downforce cars, but when mechanical grip comes to play, it just is a nerdy driving game with tarmac physics not even ahead of Dirt 4.

 

[DEIC]

Hi numbersevenhull !
I also have this problem: "At times it feels like when you might add a mod to the old rfactor and the force feedback would invert - they don't feel natural at all."
This happen to me for the first time with Mercedes GT3 by Studio 397, never liked that car, never understood why till a couple of weeks ago.
There seems to be some problems with the steering setup in rf2.
If I have a different steering angle in my Thrustmaster setup than the one the car has in rf2 the feedback I get from the car is like the one you are having right now.
The fix that I found is to find out what steering angle your car has and set the same value in the Trustmaster setup before starting the game. For example for the Mercedes GT3 is 380deg.
You should be able to let the wheel at 1080deg in the Trustmaster setup and when you load a car in rf2 the game should change the steering rotation to the correct value for the car loaded and should work fine but for some cars the FFB just seems to go crazy.

"The constant tyre screech really highlights the shortcomings of the rF2 sound engine." I agree the beautiful detailed and much refined sound from AMS is gone, really wish Studio 397 wake up and realise sound improvements are badly needed. At the moment seem to be their last priority.

"The brakes are lethal across the content" I just moved the braking balance to the back in the MCR, only one click and the problem was solved so this seems to be an easy fix.

"The tyres don't feel like they are the current model..." Something is happening with the tyres, they do not behave like the latest ones from rf2.

My biggest problem with all the cars in the Reiza pack is their feedback when going over the kerbs.
I wasn't a big fan of Norma LMP3 by Studio 397 because the FFB when going over the kerbs felt to rough for me but in MCR for example is just way overboard I only use my wheel at 70% for official content and 60% for this Reiza pack but the MCR just feels like is gone break my hands or break the wheel. The same thing happens with all the cars in the pack.
I went back to AMS did some laps with MCR FFB going over the kerbs on the same track VIR felt a little rough but was so enjoyable nowhere near the feedback I get in rf2.
Also I did a test with the Metalmoro AJR and for this car the FFB is identical to the one in AMS. The feedback when going over the kerbs is alot smoother and enjoyable similar to the FFB I also get from the Studio 397 Oreca.
This could be an easy fix if Studio 397 would just give us an option in the FFB menu to adjust the FFB strenght when going over the kerbs, like AC has for many years now.

The tracks are amazing, always said they don't need laser scanned tracks if they keep doing so good tracks.

Overall for me this is a great pack, needs some polish, but knowing Reiza I am sure they will certanly improve it, highly recommended !

The tracks are superb. Great addition and purchase

The cars. I can not make my mind up, so hopefully we'll get an informed conversation on this thread.

They are either amazing and it's me that has to adjust to them and drive them a lot more, or they are the worst content I own in rf2. First impressions though, I have no interest in driving them again, other than the MCR perhaps.

I had to literally half my force feedback and they still all have an awful range of force where at one moment you feel nothing, next it's clipping city whereas AMS was just beautifully subtle. At times it feels like when you might add a mod to the old rfactor and the force feedback would invert - they don't feel natural at all. The constant tyre screech really highlights the shortcomings of the rF2 sound engine.

The brakes are lethal across the content, and if that has to be tuned out then stock set ups provided like that can fook right off, they should be enjoyable off the bat, as they are in AMS with additional set up work for those that like fine tuning. The tyres don't feel like they are the current model, but that could be the result of the FFB. I would say though it's nice to have a real relationship between brake and car which is often something rF2 has missed, but it still seems overboard. And the models look clumsy and crude in many areas, something uncanny valley about them (VR user I should say). And I miss AMS windscreens, that's a bit of an immersion killer which rF2 need to address, as is missing those wonderful offtrack sound you get in AMS - odd how all these tiny things add up to a lot more than you would imagine in enjoying a drive.

Hopefully the car content will get polished and refined, beauty of modern games are that updates are the norm, and I wouldn't discourage anyone from buying supporting Reiza. Sorry I can't be more upbeat because I adore their previous work. But yeah, tracks outstanding, cars don't feel right, to the point I'm disappointing they were released in that state. And they don't make me smile like in AMS. Discuss and tips ?

 

[Matheus Machado]

You seem to be impressed by the complexity of setup-screens rather than real life comparisons. Nicki Thiim said not only once, that the setups in iRacing doesn't make any sense and are often even the opposite of what you would do in real life. Real Skippy drivers like Andre Gomes saying to the new tyres in iRacing, the car has "way too much grip ... entirely different handling characteristics of the real car". GTE and GT3 cars in iRacing are up to 5 sec. faster around Nürburgring GP compare to the real cars and that's too much for a so-called simulation. There is too much grip in the corners which leads to faster lap-times depending on the layout. Certainly it's nice when the blue dash-lights in GTE-cars are flashing while traction control is working unlike in rF2, but what's the point about this feature if the cars are substantially wrong from the physics?

IMO the hole purpose of racing and balancing the car between over- and understeer is done a lot better (not only) in rF2 and the FFB is just translating that. This rather on/off-grip in iRacing might work well enough for high-downforce cars, but when mechanical grip comes to play, it just is a nerdy driving game with tarmac physics not even ahead of Dirt 4.

You certainly haven't read the part I say I don't think either game simulates properly a race car. Having said that, what I like about iRacing in the simulation department is the variety of electronics and fuel management systems is way better than what you find in rF2. TC system is a lot closer, launch control implemented for GT3 cars, accurate dashes and the list goes on.

I work at Porsche cup as a race engineer and I can also second that iracing behaviour does not match real life at all, but so does rF2, and they do physics in a completely different way. Again, what I'm saying is that they put a lot of work in the details of the car, representing accurately its control systems and peripherals.

 

[beef]

After some more driving of the formula V.
I’m very disappointed. It’s not as good as the version in AMS. I only really got it to try in VR. But can’t see the back wheels or front suspension and even on the outside view only the wheels move none of suspension or driveshaft move. The sound is not as good. Not as raspy. Ams is still number one. So glad I only wasted £2.57

 

[beef]

And they have the cheek to say,
The Reiza rF2 Bundle combines the diverse content developed with quality standards and attention to detail Reiza became known for, on the DLC page

 

[Gringo]

I’m very disappointed.

Don't you get 48 hours to refund? Or am I miss informed.

 

[FeltHat]

Don't you get 48 hours to refund? Or am I miss informed.

https://store.steampowered.com/steam_refunds/

 

[beef]

Don't you get 48 hours to refund? Or am I miss informed.

Done

 

[MetalMania]

Just read through all the comments. I realize pricing is subjective to different people, but I really don't get comparing this to iRacing. iRacing has an annual fee to use any of it (and is a higher cost than the purchase price of RF2, every year), additional cars are $12 (US) and tracks are $12-15 - each. This pack is a little over $22 for 4 tracks with multiple variants and 6 cars. That seems like a fair value to me, assuming the level of quality is deserving of being paid DLC. S397 Endurance and GT3 packs are $17 for 5 cars - again a lot more content for just a little bit more money vs what you'd get in a single iRacing purchase. If you want to argue tracks like Sebring are close at $10+, Ok... but it's still less and arguably the quality is as good or better (for that track, at least). I would hesitate if per track prices for an individual track got higher than that in RF2. It would have to be a track I really wanted and be very high quality to justify, especially if there was already a good mod available. iRacing can justify some of its cost with the depth of the full service that they are providing. But again, with regard to the full Reiza pack and the S397 packs released so far, let's not muddy the water and say they are charging "iRacing prices", it is not comparable.

Also regarding "this DLC is as much/more than I paid for the base game". Yeah - at $32 regular price RF2 is pretty good vs a lot of games, and at $19.99 sale (when I got it) it's a steal. I don't buy an album from a band I like (yes, I still buy the whole album and not just one or two tracks on iTunes) and expect to get everything else they ever produce for free or at reduced cost. Hell, some bands are now asking for crowd funding money from fans just to make new albums, and these are groups that have been around for decades! I wouldn't work for free, but for some reason a lot of people in the world today think game developers and other artists should (don't forget S397 still treats us to new free content). They need to make a living folks, and I doubt the teams at S397 and Reiza are all buying new Ferraris, Porsches and mansions off their sales proceeds, and don't forget Steam still takes a cut. Think about how big companies like EA screw their customers and shaft game developers - firing them after they put a game together and stealing their intellectual property, then bend the fan base over and pull every last cent out of their @## for as long as they can, OR just stopping support altogether. We're not being charged for individual car skins or anything frivolous (think about stuff like Fortnite, pay for character skins and "dances" - I approve that it's not "pay to win" but still... paid DLC for essentially a paint job and character animation). S397 and Reiza aren't doing that, and have no one over their shoulder telling them to monetize every last bit that they can (I think...). I might not be interested in everything that is available, but so far I have not been disappointed with what I have bought, or felt like it was too much money for what I got.

RF2 has it's issues for sure (the recent snafu with 3rd party car skins being borked is infuriating), but it's been in a state of constant improvement since S397 took over. Even though it might lack some of the polish in some areas vs competitors, it's still the one I enjoy driving the most regardless of it's shortcomings. With over 1000 hours on the clock it crushes my playing time in anything else in my Steam library by hundreds of hours - 2nd is Assetto Corsa some 400 hours behind, and I got them around the same time. To each their own but there is something fundamentally really good in here. Patience isn't forever, but I'm very pleased with the direction RF2 has been going for the last couple of years. Getting the new UI and simplifying some of the custom grid/championship/adding skins and teams kinds of things sorted out would go a long way towards eliminating any annoyances I have.

Wow... sorry folks this post got a lot longer than I thought it would be.

 

[Gringo]

Done

It is a bit strange really, some users are having trouble others not. No doubt some issues with individual rF2 installs, maybe mod content creating conflicts, or other oddities.

No doubt Reiza / Studio397 will address the issues as they become clear.

 

[randMracer]

Ok is it just me or does the menu system suck? I buy all these packs, open up the game and get a list, then I can't tell what's new content versus old content. Which are the official tracks and cars and which are Workshop content? Hell they didn't even put Reiza in the title so you could at least tell which ones they were. It would be nice if you could tag favourites or even edit the titles just so you could group and sort things out a bit.

Am I missing something? Are there any mods to organize the menu system and make it better?

 

[samprince053]

You not think thats a bit much? an ad every 3 minutes?