rFactor is a racing simulator for Windows developped by Image Space Incorporated. This simulator can be downloaded from the official rFactor web site as a demo which can be converted later to a full version if you buy an unlock code from the same web site (a DVD version is also available). I will review this simulator using a D-BOX SRP-120 Motion Platform (see my previous review for more details) to experience motion.
rFactor as well as the D-BOX Motion add-on have a standard software installer. Once rFactor is installed, you can execute a configuration setup to chose your basic video card options. The other options (controls, advanced graphics, audio...) can be accessed through the in-game menus. The D-BOX add-on also installs a configuration panel to tweak the motion options to your likings. The main settings are related to the engine vibration, road texture, acceleration motion and skid vibration. You can do custom configurations or use a preset matching the car you want to drive. You do not need to restart the game for these settings to take effect.
Image Space Incorporated developed tools to create cars and tracks. On top of the dozen tracks and dozen cars (ranging from F1 to rally) shipped with the game, many vehicles and tracks created by other users can be downloaded. Some of these user created elements are high quality while others are pretty bad (ie a track where your car can get stuck).
rFactor has a career mode where you can earn money to customize the visual appearance of your car and upgrade its performance. rFactor supports multiplayer and it has an interesting statistics tracking system. The key aspect of rFactor is the handling of the cars: the physic engine developed for this simulator is great. That handling really shines when using a motion system. With the D-BOX system I could feel the acceleration, even taking into effect the shifting of the gears, while driving a car around the track! When taking a turn I was pushed to the left or the right as it would feel driving a real car. Sometimes (very often in fact!) a vibration was also produced as a skid effect. Furthermore the D-BOX system reproduced the engine vibration, which varies related to the current RPM. I also felt a subtle vibration based on the current speed and the road surface but when I left the road, that vibration was far from being subtle... as you would expect!
Explaining motion effects with words is not easy so I made 2 videos to show the motion in action (unfortunately you cannot really see the vibration in these videos, you would need to sit on the chair to feel them):
rFactor as well as the D-BOX Motion add-on have a standard software installer. Once rFactor is installed, you can execute a configuration setup to chose your basic video card options. The other options (controls, advanced graphics, audio...) can be accessed through the in-game menus. The D-BOX add-on also installs a configuration panel to tweak the motion options to your likings. The main settings are related to the engine vibration, road texture, acceleration motion and skid vibration. You can do custom configurations or use a preset matching the car you want to drive. You do not need to restart the game for these settings to take effect.
Image Space Incorporated developed tools to create cars and tracks. On top of the dozen tracks and dozen cars (ranging from F1 to rally) shipped with the game, many vehicles and tracks created by other users can be downloaded. Some of these user created elements are high quality while others are pretty bad (ie a track where your car can get stuck).
rFactor has a career mode where you can earn money to customize the visual appearance of your car and upgrade its performance. rFactor supports multiplayer and it has an interesting statistics tracking system. The key aspect of rFactor is the handling of the cars: the physic engine developed for this simulator is great. That handling really shines when using a motion system. With the D-BOX system I could feel the acceleration, even taking into effect the shifting of the gears, while driving a car around the track! When taking a turn I was pushed to the left or the right as it would feel driving a real car. Sometimes (very often in fact!) a vibration was also produced as a skid effect. Furthermore the D-BOX system reproduced the engine vibration, which varies related to the current RPM. I also felt a subtle vibration based on the current speed and the road surface but when I left the road, that vibration was far from being subtle... as you would expect!
Explaining motion effects with words is not easy so I made 2 videos to show the motion in action (unfortunately you cannot really see the vibration in these videos, you would need to sit on the chair to feel them):
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