I was lucky enough to have a play on the latest GTR demo at Donington on Sunday and promised BHMS I would share my thoughts with anyone who is interested.

I had heard from other reports (E3 and recent Simbin interviews) that the physics had been developed a lot further since the Press Demo so I got to the GTR tent early, eager to get behind the wheel!

Release Date

The promo stuff in the tent said 'Late Summer' as we already knew, and 'Winter' for Xbox. I couldn't tie Simbin down to a date but when I mentioned I had heard September, they nodded! I asked if they were planning to release another demo version and was told yes, probably. This is great news because we need to have a good look at an AI/multiplayer version.

The GTR Promo tent looked pretty cool and big-budget! - Game play on one side of the trailer and promo shop and GTR babes the other!

The Promo set up

The set up was a row of 6 cool looking race seats all with Logitech Momo Racing Force wheel/pedals. They were all linked by a LAN. Groups of 6 people were given a few minutes free practice time so it wasn't a proper race. Cars available were the Lister, Viper and Saleen (with finished cockpit) and Porsche GT3 RSR and Morgan in N-GT. I didn't see a Ferrari 9 . The demo was enabled with Simbin's new 'Live Track Technology', but to be honest, there wasn't enough track time for me to really notice anything.

The Lister on track

OK, before we start I do drive without aids on, but I'm no pro! - The session was only enough to get about 4/5 laps in and I really needed to do 40/50 get a good feel for the car and track! I drove the Lister so I could make a comparison with the Press Demo. The car was certainly a bit more of a handful than on the Spa demo. Were the physics better? I hear you ask - well, I just couldn't tell in 4 laps, but it definitely felt like I needed to go easier on the gas and gentler round the corners. In my opinion, laptimes with the new physics will be slower, or should I say, more realistic. Force feedback was all there, but didn't feel to me as good as the press demo - but I do use a Momo Force (good ol' red one) at home - the new Momo Racing Force wheel just can't touch it.

The Track

To me, there are some noticeable differences between the new GTR track and the one I am used to in EA mods (which I think the original Simbin team also built) - a couple of examples:

As I threw the car round the final left-hander of the craner curves, there really wasn't much road left before you brake for the right-hander into the old hairpin - this section of the track felt shorter than the F12002/F1C track. Afterwards I went and had a good look at the real thing and watched drivers race it and yes, I think Simbin have got it spot on!

I braked way too late coming into the final corner before the pit straight (Goddards) because I didn't see the kerbs in the distance until it was too late - not what I'm used to from the FI 2002/F1C track (that's my story and I'm sticking to it!). Again, I went to have a look at the real corner, and it's true, the bend slopes away from you all the way around to the pit straight, so you have to brake before you can actually see the corner.

I think these are good examples of where Simbin's commitment to using GPS to aid their track modelling really makes a difference.

Overall, it was great to have a play on the latest demo version. The track and other cars look fantastic, but that's what we've come to expect from Simbin. 4 laps just isn't enough though! - so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we get a new demo release soon.

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