Graphics Performance
I installed and played this initially on my gaming system, the specs of which are listed below under my Nvidia machine. I also installed it on a slower system with an older Radeon card to see what the performance was like. I turned anti-alias off, set the Direct3D settings to highest quality and had the graphics and sound set to about 80% quality on both machines. Although the Nvidia machine played better, I was certainly impressed by how well the slower Radeon system kept up, both systems at 1024x768. The only noticeable decrease in performance was seen during replays when at least 20 vehicles were in view at one time. Although I didn’t do an in-depth frame rate analysis, based on my “sim eyeball,” I would say that the Nvidia system might occasionally go as low as 25 FPS with the Radeon system around 15 FPS at its worst. Under normal driving circumstances, I doubt I saw less than 30 FPS on either machine. Both machines run with DirectX9b as well as the latest video card drivers, with all hardware at stock clock speeds.

Nvidia Machine:
MSI KT4 Ultra motherboard
AMD Athlon XP 2600 processor
Nvidia Geforce 4TI 4200 128MB (AGP@4X texture)
512MB PC3200 RAM
Sound Blaster Live! X-Gamer PCI card
7200 RPM ATA133 40GB hard disk
DVD drive

Radeon Machine:
Asus A7VKT133 motherboard
AMD Athlon 1200MHZ Thunderbird (built-in sound)
ATI Radeon All-in-Wonder 8500DV 64MB
768MB PC100 RAM
7200 RPM ATA100 20GB hard disk
DVD drive

NetworkInternet Play
I have not had the opportunity to take a close look at how this game performs in a multiplayer environment, however the reports that I’m seeing in the forums are pointing to a solid racing experience with the right connection. You do have the option to download the multiplayer demo and give this a shot before purchasing.

Physics
I’m sure that many will argue this, but the fact remains that somebody did their homework this time around. The first Race Driver had rather marginal physics, but where RD1 failed, RD2 has succeeded. A couple of the vehicles feel as though they may have a central pivot point until you put them sideways over a turn with a rise in it, then the rear weight becomes apparent. Of course we have to be sure that “Pro-Simulation” mode is selected any time we enter the track.

It’s difficult to put into words the physics behind a game. I think best way it could be described is that you can truly feel vehicle weight, horsepower, and sense of speed. The CLK is really one of the better physics models and when you mash the gas pedal you can feel the machine breath as the front end of the car rises violently on each shift. With the excellent sound and superb graphics it becomes a fine combination that can bring a wide grin to your face.

I may be an engineer in my mid-life years, but I was born and raised on a farm and there is a part of me that still yearns to get that rear wheel drive sideways with smoke pouring off the tires. RD2 does a good job with that. The drifting is not what I would call perfect simulation, but it is quite satisfying.

CONCLUSION

Webster’s defines the word simulation as, “The imitative representation of the functioning of one system or process by means of the functioning of another.” By definition, RD2 would certainly fit into the simulation category, however, by the inspection of a seasoned sim-racer, it would have to fall into the category of a “semi-sim” as a forum post had mentioned. Although it is missing a number of things that would truly delight the hardcore sim-racer, it thoroughly makes up for it in many other areas. I would recommend that any sim-racer at least download the demo and give it an honest two hours of racing and controller tweaking. If you are not particularly fond of it, crank out the uninstaller. If you enjoy it, know that there is much more available in the final product, and for 30 bucks, it’s tough to go wrong on this one. I have a feeling that the community will get a hold of this title and do some amazing things with it in the future.

After a few years of what I would consider rough waters in their Motorsports division, I believe that Codemasters has really put out something that they can be proud of. Not bad, folks, not bad at all.