Carbonfibre has put together a very neat comparison video, showing the Corvette Z06 road car at Silverstone both in rFactor and Need for Speed Shift side by side.
The video shows the Corvette being aggressively driven around the Northamptonshire track, giving us the chance to compare both the physics and track accuracy of both titles. Keep in mind that this isn’t the stock version of Shift but the latest release of Dario Morelli’s Real Mod.








scca1981
October 8th, 2009 at 03:15
Rather rough comparison. The driving in the rfactor version was umm.. yeah.
Jonas
October 8th, 2009 at 04:47
wtf with those drawings on carpet?? Shift looks good, but those ads are the worst thing I’ve ever seen
Howie47
October 8th, 2009 at 04:49
Mehahaha! Welcome to criticism Carbonfiber.
DevonK
October 8th, 2009 at 05:36
What is with the fish-eye distortion in Shift’s TV cockpit view? The car looks absurd. I trust that can be toned down somewhere…
And Jonas, +1 on the ridiculous track-surface ads/logos – puke central.
crosschris
October 8th, 2009 at 06:05
Would love to have the ‘feel’ of GTR2 or rFactor with the polish of this game…
But alas!…we are just gonna have to get over it.
Don’t like Shift? Play another ‘Sim’…..tis easy……
McBain
October 8th, 2009 at 07:33
The Z06 doesn’t even work in my game. The car just sits there at the starting line.
I turn this game off in disgust every time I play. Tonight it was the drunk Reventon drivers bashing me off the road in their million dollar cars. I know I could get a mod to fix this crap, but such absurdity should never have made it to the store shelves.
A good question for Ian Bell would’ve been, “Why do you still have a job? You have released the glitchiest, most ridiculous game of 2009.”
orubasarot
October 8th, 2009 at 08:54
But McBaaain why are you so mean, as a community of a “100% Sim Racing News” site we’re obligated to absolutely indulge in a Reventon/Veyron destruction derby in exotic fictional locations.
http://www.virtualr.net/wp-content/themes/virtualr/v3/styles/web2_red_blue/logo.png
See? That’s what having gigs of telemetry data and reading manuals on tire compounds is all about; blowing Ian Bell because he cares about us. Thanks Ian for spamming this blog for a year with your casual gaming wacky racer, though I would have prefered Shift to be on my cellphone than my G25/90″ projection setup.
orubasarot
October 8th, 2009 at 09:01
Also Ian before you reply to this thread as well, please consider logging out and Tokyo Drifting your ass here instead:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/boards/gentopic.php?board=957702
Klaas Jan
October 8th, 2009 at 09:05
Lol @ orubasarot
homerfreak
October 8th, 2009 at 09:10
@orubasarot: Hey, Ian is a good guy and with Shift he made a really good game, I#ll enjoy it as soon as I will have my PC. The unrealistic advert on the tracks can be removed and with the RealMod, the physics should be improved, and a patch will be released soon, removing the glitches.
hypertek
October 8th, 2009 at 09:33
hey guys no hate for him, he is pointing EA/need for speed series in the right direction, and hopefully opening up the eyes of the need for speed fans as well.
McBain
October 8th, 2009 at 09:45
Why even advertise Shift in the game? The consumer has already bought and installed it.
I shouldn’t be the one discovering the glitches, which happens every time I play. It’s as if none of the developers actually played the game before it was released.
The fact that it hardly works with ATI cards is inexcusable.
spliff
October 8th, 2009 at 10:43
haha obusarot, your pulse went up there.. breath in – breath out. then stfu. pathetic little wannabe..
Uff
October 8th, 2009 at 10:55
And they’re working on a patch to fix it.
+1 to orubasarot comments.
rj3005
October 8th, 2009 at 11:10
What´s up with the weird camera view in Shift?… shift is about driver experience->use 1st person cockpit view
GTEvo
October 8th, 2009 at 12:22
thats the worste and “Nonsaying” Comparison Vid ive ever saw.
There is no optical synchronisation, straight from Start..rofl
Two different Hud Perspektives….that makes it 100% impossible to compare the Tracksurfaces or the Layout generally.
This is just a ColourKey Comparison between Metallics Orange Shapes..lol
Than.. the rF “Northhampton” Track is the far away from the real layout.
Look at these unbelievable wide “Grasstones” behind the Curbs..these so crappy.
Seriosly..this is all, but here is Nothing what we can Compare !
6, Setzen!
Holger
f0xx
October 8th, 2009 at 12:42
Lol nowadays ppl say whatever they want. Rly stupid comments in here. This ppl lack patience and understanding.
The majority of games today, need to be patched (fact) if you guys don’t like to wait till then, well go bang your heads on somebodys wall and stop coming here just to whine.
And than coming here saying is less realistic just because you’ve spent +100hours PLAYING (not driving) a racing car, its hilarious. Certainty of the uncertainties, thats what I laugh of.
This video was meant to show not what Shift is but what Shift can be, its about its potentialities which you guys can’t see and don’t want to see!
Its amazing how ppl tend to forget this is NFS and its Producers NEVER claimed this was going to be a hardcore sim. Its like Ian said its only a matter of perspectives..just chillax.
Cueball
October 8th, 2009 at 12:45
So the guy made a vid between 2 games. Those 2 games both are completly different from another. Shift is aiming at the more PS3/PS2/Wii public. More a console game to me then a real sim. rFactor isnt aimt at console public but more for the enthousiast, also not made for the real simcracks under us. If you want real tracks with real phycics get iRacing. I am not a hughe fan of iRacing but from what I ahve seen and tested its the farmost best sim out here currently.
What I just dont understand why every time someone makes something, there is critsism again. If you dont like dont watch, fairly easy to do. No matter which forum or website you look people always have critisism. There is always something wrong and it needs to be put out that you dont like it ??. Why ??.
orubasarot
October 8th, 2009 at 13:39
Everything is fantastic and terrific, recursive positive reinforcement doesn’t lead to stagnation, keep feeding me shit, I love it, I love you.
My cat climbed up to the stove, flipped a skillet, knocked over the trash bin and puked in my shoe. Great job Chachi! Excellent work! You gave it all you got and I’m proud of you.
Sommergemüse
October 8th, 2009 at 13:40
Yeah my problem is before Shift I loved GTR Evolution/GTR 2/rFactor so much ..
After Real Cars Patch 2 for NFSS I can’t enjoy it anymore..
With proper physics Shift feels a lot better and more realistic than these “Sims”
Just think about Mods for Tire Wear, Fuel consumption – then Shift IS the King!
And lol @ the peoples meaning a Simulator isn’t possible with nice graphics, physics eats to much …
And don’t tell me sentences like ‘you suck, look to the hideous bloom, adverts’ – all removable with mods..
eh – to find this mods you might visit my (sorry) German Blog
http://sommergemuese.klee.in
And a word to this video: Crap nothing to compare really …
DW
October 8th, 2009 at 14:14
Why on earth did the person choose that wierd roof camera position for Shift? I’ve never come across it though there is a hood-cam similar to the rfactor one. As others have said, this doesn’t compare anything really.
Dillyracer
October 8th, 2009 at 14:24
Again, very adult behaviour of some people here.
This comparison means nothing, the driving was dodgy in both games, and the tracks are completely different in both games.
spamsac
October 8th, 2009 at 14:32
Guys, Carbonfibre’s post with this vid was:
“Instead of just keeping my various tests to myself I decided to actually fraps this quickly and make a little vid, no point or purpose.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tlnxBddQC4g
I’ve got some drifting test footage too but nether of these experiments seem to be working that well sync wise. :neutral:”
He doesn’t proclaim it to be some sort of comparison, it’s just a vid he’s made and decided to share. Now why on Earth this has been put up as a news story I don’t know, but don’t knock him for making the vid.
I used to like coming to this site, but I’m really getting put off quick. It’s full of idiots making stupid statements, and is just a prime example of “teh internetz”.
Alamasy
October 8th, 2009 at 14:53
Veyron can’t move at real maximum speed. BTW why Shift are in this sim blog? Why it keep here?
commodore
October 8th, 2009 at 15:13
I totally agree. The people commenting here are often rather retarded.
DW
October 8th, 2009 at 15:24
Could be because it has sim-like physics even though the basic structure of the game isn’t that of a traditional sim :)
Could also be that Shift is the most popular topic by miles on this site and is very popular on other sim forums too :)
And while we are asking questions on relevance, what has the Veyron got to do with the video above?
spamsac
October 8th, 2009 at 15:26
Would that be the real maximum speed once you’ve turned the special key to enable maximum speed, which is disengaged once you’ve touched the brakes, or the proper maximum speed under normal driving conditions?
carbonfibre
October 8th, 2009 at 15:27
@spamsac, actually I submitted it myself. I saw Stabiz’ video and figured the hell with it, and the more content at VirtualR the better. I frequently refresh this site looking for new stories all the time anyway.
I think I also slipped in the word comparison when I submitted it too, but at least it’s not as flame-baiting as rFacter ‘versus’ Shift.
Apologies for the fish eye camera, I thought that same camera setup also existed in rFactor and you could get a better idea of the sort of angles the bonnet was pointing through corners. It took me 3 laps of footage before I exited and started rFactor only to realise that the same camera view didn’t exist after all.
Cockpit view would probably distract from the movement of the car but I will do a multiple switching view next video as well as spending a lot more time with a new car, new track, etc.
Howie47
October 8th, 2009 at 15:59
The track ads sure add to the sense of speed. Ever drive those tracks in iceRacing, that don’t have even a single tire mark on them. You can be doing 150, and it feels and looks like your standing still.
And let the big mouthed, pea brained, scourges of polite society, keep your dung at home for your families to eat.
Dillyracer
October 8th, 2009 at 16:35
The Veyron reaches about 350km/h on the Nordschleife, do you really think it would reacht 407 when it’s going uphill on an unsmooth surface like on the nordschleife?
Or your statement is invalid, or you’ve found another way to test it, the ignore my post.
Dillyracer
October 8th, 2009 at 16:37
Also, if Montoya chooses to post Shift news here, he can, it’s his blog, not yours.
ermax18
October 8th, 2009 at 16:51
Man I just made an attempt to find some videos demonstrating Real Mod 2.0 but I can’t find a single video with anyone that even has the slightest clue how to drive.
Sommergemüse
October 8th, 2009 at 17:24
Then create one on your own…
toivonen
October 8th, 2009 at 18:12
Well, everyone is free to post whatever they won’t..oh, and also say (wich don’t mean i agree or not)..besides the points of the simulation vs arcadish that i won’t make any comment (i can have opinions without the need of stating them),but it’s not very logical to make comparisons between 2 platforms aimed with 2 diferent objectives, and that are at least 4 years apart from theire conception..either in graphical/tyre models/track acuracy or any other aspect!
To have an opinion is one thing, but to compare the incomparable is at minimum a wastless (or even stupid) exercice! Maybe the comparison with Rfactor2 (if it will come out in the space of 1 year) will be a little more fair and apropriate…don’t you think?! And even that,i don’t see much need…i’m a Rfactor fan (regardless of the flaws and limitations) and it’s Rfactor 2 that i’m waiting for, till than i’ll have no problem in experiment aproaches like NFSS, and i hope it get’s better with time also, nothing against it…
JAGUAR1977
October 8th, 2009 at 18:34
I’d like to know what amazing sim people are playing to be so ultra critical of seemingly everything that’s being released, particularly if it’s not PC exclusive.
With the PC only accounting for 5% of NFS Shift’s sales, perhaps SMS should forget about a PC version of it’s sequal, that would certainly give them more time to iron out any bugs.
In the meantime I’ll applaud SMS and EA for taking the series in a more realistic direction, so much so that it is deemed worthy of coverage on a sim website.
With iRacing being too pricy for many peoples tastes, major rFactor mods seemingly on hold for rFactor 2, which could be 6, 12, 18 months away, and Simbin still releasing variations of Race, you do wonder what VR would cover without GT5, Forza 3 and NFS Shift.
GTEvo
October 8th, 2009 at 18:38
http://comm-beta.sport1.de/grafiken/basic/smilies/smile56.gif
ermax18
October 8th, 2009 at 19:56
Perhaps I will after I get a chance to install the Real mod. I can’t bring myself to drive it anymore in it’s default state. :)
f0xx
October 8th, 2009 at 20:02
There are many definitions os Simulation..if you guys dont agree with it, go make your own blog ^^
Howie47
October 8th, 2009 at 22:06
Here, I made one with the 2b mod. Shift vs. Real. It’s just a quicky so don’t expect to much.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaqwm1_shift-vs-real-physic-mod-200b
vali
October 9th, 2009 at 03:18
I think lots of users should tone down a bit their comments. If you dont like the final game and think it is way different than the “promised” thing, just say it withoub being rude, inrespectfull and stop bashing for the pleasure of it. A simple “I disagree with…” and explaining your point of view in a good mod would be better.
Ian was kind enough to log in a user blog and answer directly to the community, without ignoring it. How many actual game developers do that? From that reduced group… how many of them answer questions where more than half of them are pure bashing?
I THINK most of the problems lie in the fact that EA are the ones that pay the bills and NEED to sell millions of copies. In a game with this amount of users, there will be allways a lot of them that will not like the game. That’s for sure. You need to make compromises between the product you want to do and the thing need to do.
Of course a I dont agree with the Shift developers about this game being ultrarealistic and dont think its the ultimate sim expericence. To me the cars have a lot of body-roll (its like driving an old 2CV not a sport car), the controls have a bit of lag and the driving is not precise at all, among other things.
BUT I think too this game is a HUGE step forward compared to the latter NFS games. There is not “pimp my focus and get 400 km/h” thing anymore and you actually drive supercars instead of a bunch of polyester painted in fancy colours. You even have to brake in corners (Ohh no!).
Please, be a bit more respectfull in your comments and dont convert virtualr in another console forum where most users bark each other.
Howie47
October 9th, 2009 at 04:34
Obviously people are having totally different experience with this game. Body roll seems just right. Did you watch any of the many videos posted. Check mine just above your post. It has a side by side with the same real car on the same track. You can also see I’m controlling the car just like the real thing. With no problems. (G25). No lag. I drive cockpit view. Your right about the childish comments which only hurt Sim racing. Give the community a bad name and a black eye. But we can’t keep out the rift raft.
azrink
October 9th, 2009 at 04:46
+1 Vali
yeaah, at least gives ian and his sms team some respect. we should never forget that we are talking bout a person here. people have feelings too.
oddglob
October 9th, 2009 at 08:00
Any chance of a comparison from someone who has the remotest idea of how to drive a car?
F1Racer
October 9th, 2009 at 09:56
Bravo.
Someone please hand this man an award for ‘Most sensible post on a Shift topic for ages’
I’m stunned at how people still don’t realise that Shift is made to appeal to the largest audience possible in order to sell the most copies possible. The goal with any game.
Shift it not a game where we as proper sim racers are the target audience.
Thankfully though, Shift did detour towards a more realistic experience than any other NFS title so the a nice bonus for us.
But a lot of these reactions that some poeple have having, especially in the thread where Ian Bell responded, come from people who clearly think they deserved Shift to have been a full on sim to satisfy their craving.
They completely fail to see the side of it from a business perspective.
Some of the comments in that thread were laughable and the things people asked Ian were amazing.
If they were running a commercial games business I seriously doubt they would concentrate on full on simulations only. No, they need to stay alive and do to that, and pay all the developers you need to sell lots of copies.
You can’t sell enough in the sim racing community to make enough of a return so you have to appeal to a wider audience.
ISI is a different story altogether. They have other fish to fry what with rFactor Pro etc..
Simbin and SMS both have roots here in this community and I don’t believe any of them have changed their attitude to full on sim-racing. I think given the chance they would love to make full on sims. But the market and the economics of that don’t get them enough of a return on their investment. So they have to appeal to the console market too. Its not a coincidence that both have already done so. It makes business sense if you want to stay alive.
So given all that, I think what Shift turned out to be, was pretty damn good.
It appeals to some sim racers, some not, but they can bite their tongue and get back to what they were playing before and stop expecting SMS to ‘patch’ this game to a hardcore sim.
Shift turned out just what SMS expected and for a console portover its a pretty damn good game.
Sensekhmet
October 9th, 2009 at 10:00
This is puzzling. I feel the cars have not enough body roll, especially Tier 1 stock cars, especially in drift mode. I agree with the rest of your post. I too feel the controls are still not as precise as in ’sims’, even after tweaks. I also feel it’s not a hard core ’sim’, but I just don’t care. It’s much more fun and is a lot more ‘alive’ than our hard core ’sims’ in my opinion.
F1Racer
October 9th, 2009 at 10:05
heh, sorry Howie m8, couldn’t let this one go :) I wish it was ‘rift raft’ cos that sounds way cooler heh.
‘Riff-raff’ is what you’re looking for though
vali
October 9th, 2009 at 10:28
Im not one of the guys who can feel the physics with a video (like lots of people who started bashing the game and were making statements about physics with the first trailers). I am using G25 too with 540º (most of the bashing ppl I found through different forums, blogs, etc were using a PAD or a 270º wheel at best) with the speed sensivity at 0.
The Tier 3 and 4 cars seems to feel just righ (of course, I never driven that kind of car before) and I really enjoyed driving the murcielago for example, but the “wrong feel” I am talking about is with the slower cars. I’ve been driving normal street cars for the last 14 years and the feel of the tier 1 and 2 cars is like they were compact cars from the 80′.
Of course, I can understand that kind of behavior on cheap cars (think of average hatchbacks), but they are suposed to be sport cars. Even if you accept that a sporty production car bounces that much, there is no way after “tuning” them with supossedly high performance parts, they keep moving around like that.
I dont know if that is due the input lag (it is small, but it is there) or the way the suspension rebounds, but keeping a straigh line just after a corner is way harder than in real life (if the police see me driving around I will probably end doing a alcohol test). Its just like driving a car with soft suspension in a windy day.
Of course that is the way I feel it, and probably my mind is playing tricks on me, but I think it is not done correctly.
There are other things in the game I dont think realistic (like the way you can drift through corners) but I cand admit they are good to the fun and sales.
vali
October 9th, 2009 at 10:33
Uhmm… I cant edit my last post to answer this.
Sorry I dont like drift and didnt even try it. Your comment was written just before I posted mine, but I wrote about tier 1 and 2 cars in my post. Keep in mind that we are talking about tuned sport cars, not average ones without things like ESP.
vali
October 9th, 2009 at 12:56
Oops… I was using the wrong word the whole time. Its not “body roll” the thing I was talking about. The correct term should be “weight transfer”.
Body roll is the thing you see (wich is not over exagerated in the tier 1 or 2 cars as Sensekhmet just pointed about), but I was talking about how it feels in the FFB of the wheel.
Sorry about the possible confusion.
f0xx
October 9th, 2009 at 13:08
Great vid man. Now this one also deserves a post for the most skeptical ones to watch :)
Tvensky
October 9th, 2009 at 14:18
hey guys.. I just cant tell.. which one is Rfactor and which is Shift..
I think the shift is above.. but Im just not sure..
Eter
October 9th, 2009 at 14:18
Hi, just made this video with Zonda R and Real mod 2.0b in full Nordschleife (Pro Mode with no aids). You can add it if you want :]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJqur4WLBLQ
Tvensky
October 9th, 2009 at 14:19
hey guys.. I just cant tell.. which one is Rfactor and which is Shift..
I think the shift is above.. but Im just not sure….
kkv
October 9th, 2009 at 14:32
Shift definitely has more detailed look. Although I like more the general feeling of lighting in rF version. Shift shows too mach dark in the shadows which looks like a lack of indirect ambient illumination and atmospheric haze. Also the sky in Shift version seems unnaturally overexposed whatever side of the world you see at. So visually I believe it would be good to have something in between: all the extra details of Shift with a bit more calm and natural look of rF version.
ermax18
October 9th, 2009 at 16:48
The English teacher is at it again. Hehe. :)
scca1981
October 9th, 2009 at 17:46
You can’t be serious….
F1Racer
October 9th, 2009 at 17:53
Well yeah, but only when I feel I have to :) Like I said, I couldn’t let that one go even though I did think it was cool.
I believe in stopping things before they spiral out of control. If no-one corrects these things, others think its correct and they start using it, then it spreads. Like what happened with ‘virii’ and ‘loose’ instead of lose and ‘breaks’ instead of brakes etc. Gotta nip these things in the bud.
But hey, look upon it as some free education. It’s never personal though, just trying to help out really.
There’s so much I’m letting slip past though, believe me.
logos
October 9th, 2009 at 18:51
Howie, great video comparison! The Laguna Seca track layout in Shift, seems very accurate. Also, the car reacts much the same way as the real one in this comparison.
This deserves to be posted on the front page, IMO.
Howie47
October 9th, 2009 at 22:42
I new it was wrong a second after I hit the Submit button. I new it would draw a comment. I didn’t care. What does that tell you?
And yes I was having a couple after a hot day ridding my bike.
Howie47
October 9th, 2009 at 22:51
I guess you didn’t hear that the tuning section isn’t working. I think one of the problems is the tire upgrade doesn’t work at all. Another slider is backwards. Another bug is bouncy cars. It is supposed to be fixed in the upcomming patch. This is mentioned in the ” Offical Fact” on the NFS Shift forum. I do agree some of the cars seem to have aids (steering and traction control) still turned on in Pro mode.
DW
October 9th, 2009 at 23:29
Which cars do you think have traction control still turned on? If there are lots, a couple will do :)
Howie47
October 10th, 2009 at 00:19
For now one will have to do. Because I don’t feel like thinking about it. The Ford GT500. Not upgraded. Steering help and traction control. Try and spin it out. It seems to correct itself even when you throw it against full steering lock.
DW
October 10th, 2009 at 15:43
It is pretty forgiving, with more basic understeer than many Shift cars to balance the power oversteer, but you can spin it if you don’t opposite lock. You can also do donuts, so no traction control.
The real thing seems pretty forgiving too
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O46E0gCF5os