eagletrippin

This is great news. Game Pass was extremely appealing and influential in my re-entering the Xbox ecosystem. Microsoft upped the game; and now Sony can counter. Competition is great for us consumers.👍

@mikeym Sure thing man. Nope not facebook, on their official website, there is a messaging "icon" that allows you to reach out to customer service. They got back to me even on Thanksgiving Day...

@mikeym Finally got my new setup (cockpit & wheelbase) up & going. The Podium DD was delivered days, if not weeks before FedEx usually gets around to it — an early Christmas for me If I could post pictures, I would. Anyways, I was only able to mess around with it for a half-hour. Running at around 35-40% FFB of the DD1 — and with the F-GT strengthening kit installed — I certainly didn't feel or see even the slightest hint of a "play" in wheel mount. No side-to-side movement, no forward & back movement — and that's an understatement. This thing is still as a statue, a tank, unmovable. Although, if getting your legs in & out underneath the wheelstand was not already difficult, these strengthening brackets make it even harder. I didn't get to try the DD1 on the F-GT without the strengthening kit, however. I'll be honest, the rig was already feeling rock-solid before I even installed the kit. But where the strengthening kit undoubtedly helps is for the pedal base. I probably could stand and do a light bounce up & down on that thing and it wouldn't move. Whereas before the kit, the pedal base did have a very slight forward & back movement/flex to it. I think the kit will alleviate any concerns you have for adding a DD and/or load cell pedals to your rig.👍 Tonight I will play around a little in GTSport😁

I don't use the PS5 app because it's way easier to launch & use YouTube on my tv. But I assumed the PS5 app would have already had HDR...

I was really hoping for 8K YouTube support here😫

@mikeym Yup, I can confirm that my new rig came with the "strengthening kit". It's just an extra bracket that goes on each side of the wheel plate and runs down to the base of the rig. It also comes with a bracket for the pedal plate, as well. I should hopefully get my new DD in the next couple of weeks and can see how it holds up.

@mikeym Yeah the service desk person I talked to (Tyson) was really helpful/thorough with his responses. Curious to know what improvements were made to make it more sturdy for DD wheels. But I hope that extends the life of your F-GT!

@mikeym Good to hear👍 Literally just got mine delivered today; going to spend a few hours tomorrow putting it together whilst watching football. One thing I can say, I flipped that thing — all 88 lbs. of it — end over end, up all 49 steps of my condo...fun, exhausting times!
Use the chat feature on their website and ask them about those extra parts. I used the chat last week, and service desk informed me that I could upgrade the seat (which looks extremely flat) by acquiring their universal seat brackets (at a cost, I'm assuming), which only comes with F-GT frame-only version... Perhaps they'll have a solution/upgrade for you👍

@Papasears I get whatcha mean. But none of these companies offer those types of deals (hardware + game bundles), at least not in the console space. But, yea — Fanatec is a company that charges you $80 for a pedal damper, $100 for a wheel quick release, $100 for a kill switch, and $150 for a power supply.😒 They will squeeze every dollar out of you that they can... Nevertheless, I think they make high quality products. Other than buttons/knobs on their wheels, you won't find much plastic, mostly metals...

I would cop it Day 1, free or paid.

@RavenWolfe81 @Mad001 You'd be surprised, my wife & I live in a rather small condo, and I used to play on our living room TV: foldable cockpit (Playseat Challenge w/ Thrustmaster T300). I'd fold it up, walk it upstairs to store it in the corner, and then bring it back down when I'd want to sim race (usually after she goes to bed). It was a workout, but we'll worth it for the fun! Spend a lot of time doing cable management to make it look clean so you don't have a spaghetti wired mess, and she might go for it!

@mikeym RE: ACC on PlayStation — I would agree. I have it for Xbox, but enjoy ACC far more than I do Gran Turismo or Forza Motorsport, which of course are both very good too. The FFB, the physics and just the way the cars handle feels so good. Caveat: ACC on console is best played on PS5 or Series X — up to 60fps. On last-gen, especially base consoles, performance can be poor...

@Latex lol. I just ordered the Podium DD (PlayStation) for that exact reason: cross-compatibility with Xbox. If you get a PlayStation wheelbase (like this Gran Turismo CSL DD Pro base), it becomes compatible with Xbox when you connect an Xbox wheel to it...👍

I understand many people in the comments feeling that the cost is outrageous — and to some extent, I agree. But, if only you knew the prices for this market and this kind of tech😂

Sim racing is a very niche market, an enthusiast market. Direct Drive (DD) wheelbases (not including actual wheels aka rims, or pedals, or shifters) typically range from $1200 to about $3200, from what I have seen. So to be able to get a DD wheelbase, wheel & pedals for $700 is a really good deal. (Also, this "Gran Turismo" wheelbase is compatible with Xbox when paired with an Xbox wheel, cross-platform which is rare, and it gets you into the Fanatec ecosystem of compatible products.) Fanatec quality is really top notch, their products use mostly metals, and very little plastic, which is why their stuff is considered "not toys". And yet, they are still considered entry-level in some regards. (I've seen some pedals from other brands cost $1800 or more!!!)

TLDR; IMO, Thrustmaster is a jump up from Logitech; and Fanatec is a jump up from Thrustmaster...and I have owned wheels/pedals from all 3 companies in the past year.👍 But absolutely nothing wrong with running with a G27 or G29 to race with — if you're the competitive type, you can be a champion with those wheels. More expensive equipment doesn't make you faster or better. But if want the immersion (like me), and want the detail to read what your car is doing on the road (for example, knowing that your car is about to lose traction and being able to react milliseconds sooner), then you'll have to pay more for higher quality equipment...

@mikeym No bro, not the CSL DD; I got all 20 NM Podium DD! (eBay prices of the 8 NM CSL DD are getting ridiculously close to one of these anyway, so I figured, Why not?) I certainly do not plan on running anywhere near that limit, either. I want the hi-def detail FFB and haptics, but without clipping — I can imagine running at 12 NM or so.
But as long as my wheelbase isn't pivoting forward & back 1/2-inch in either direction like my Playseat Challenge does at a meager 3NM Thrustmaster, I'll be pleased!

@mikeym I literally just ordered an F-GT and a Fanatec DD last weekend. You don't think the rig can withstand the DD? I can deal with some flex, I would expect it from only a $500 rig. And coming from a T300 on a Playseat Challenge, I know a little about flex. I just can't pay $800+ for just a rig now now. I feel the F-GT is a good entry...

@Papasears If you can afford a $700 sim racing setup, I think you can swing $70 for a game😂

effin' FINALLY 😂 Been waiting for this announcement for months! But, of course, I couldn't stand the wait (and it still won't be available until March, and realistically even later if you aren't lucky enough to get in the first wave of preorders), so last weekend, I bit the bullet and just bought the uber-pricey Podium DD...

This bundle looks really good though. The leaks from this summer were accurate. The wheel doesn't look as bad as I thought it would. Good luck getting one, though!

@BertMan666 Exactly, I think many people shut down Returnal because of its difficulty. I'm not even great "on the sticks", and I beat it, LOL. It takes a little bit — okay, a lot — of perseverence. But the fast gameplay, ever-changing world, incredible weapons and enemies make it well worth it.

I got R&C on Day 1, coming off the heels of platinum'ing Returnal...and I got to 75% of completing R&C, and haven't even cared to finish the game. Not saying it R&C isn't a good game — it is — but it also wasn't doing anything new or anything we haven't seen before, not only from other games, but from previous R&C games itself...

@Just2Milky Same. For me, possibly of all-time...

Astro's. Demon's Souls. Returnal.

Guess I'll be testing things out with San Andreas on Game Pass, and only if things look good, would I consider buying the trilogy.

That stinks, especially for gamers who had a fond connection between the game experience and the original soundtrack.
It doesn't really affect me so much, as I really only played GTA3, and I don't necessarily have any particular song in my memory of that game. It might be a buy for me — a change of pace game for everything else that I am engaged in. But I would need to know which version (PS5 or Series X) version has the upper hand...

I beat this game (Returnal) and platinum'ed it "legitimately" months ago.

However, I did "save-scum" on Demon's Souls --- not typically my type of game/genre, and for a first-time player it could be brutally punishing: To die from a single hit or fall, and have to start from the beginning of the world, excluding one or two shortcut save points along the way --- fighting & clawing all the way back from the start only to die to the armored spider and having to do it all over again, again & again, made me want to break controllers. I was pissed at feeling like I wasted $70, but this exploit made the game fair, still extremely challenging, and fun to me. So, yeah, no shame here.

I just want the game to release already; it seems that Fanatec is holding back on the announcement/release of their PlayStation compatible CSL DD wheel base because of it.

Also, the pre-rendered videos are gorgeous, but so were they on last-gen. Hopefully we get some gameplay videos soon.

@RedKnight34 How is it "repeating the same thing over and over" when literally the sequence of every room and every enemy type is randomly generated, thus creating a near infinite number of different playthroughs?💁 Sounds like someone who couldn't get past the difficulty of a game and therefore trashes it🙄

@nessisonett you're coming in pretty hot, bro — like every Returnal article, it seems 🤔
I've encountered you going to bat for old, rehashed games like GTA5 Remaster, so you going at an original game like this is kind of, weird...

Anyways... Well deserved achievement. Certainly my GotY ...

@nessisonett Have you always been a troll? You always seemed pretty level-headed, otherwise, but I don't know. You got a real hard-on when it comes to giving negative opinions of this game — did you have a bad experience?

Oof. Literally nothing in there was of interest to me...

Been looking for eBay deals on PS+ codes, but quite frankly the free monthly games the last 3 or 4 months have not motivated me to purchase a code to renew my subscription ...

@4kgk2 Right?! lol. I understand though, this game can be brutally difficult...with the (lack of) a save option possibly being the most difficult.

My favorite game of this new generation so far — and up there with my favorite game of all-time. I still return to Atropos every few weeks just to evaporate enemies and to keep my skills sharp.😁 Glad I beat — and platinum'ed — it while the game was under the developer's original vision. (Not a flex, I'm not great on the sticks, but I dedicated A LOT of time into it because of the awful RNG!) But I am glad they eventually came out with this save option — hopefully that removes the barrier to entry for most of the people skeptical about buying this game👍 and sales go up ...

@Spiders lmao. I experienced that myself whilst mentioning Forza 7 in comparison to GT Sport. Eesh. The fanboys really come out to fight on this site --- and that kind of "enthusiasm" is supported by many here... Things seem much more calm on the sister site.

They should have just given us this game on PlayStation Plus... I really appreciate my Series X and Game Pass when this kind of stuff happens.

@Martsmall more than I'm willing to go through right now, but I'll keep that in my back pocket if M$ screws me over somehow 😂

@Martsmall & @mucc What is this Game Pass "loophole" that you speak of? I've already purchased a couple years legitimately (no regrets) ... But how do you get 3 years for $70?!?!

@MB81 I can't disagree with that! Again, I'm not saying Forza MS is the better game, just that it's more fun to me — so I definitely respect your preference that Forza is the bland one! But I would agree, online is setup waaay better in GT Sport with better, more serious sim racers. And offline, Forza's AI is not as good. What do I like about the Forza are the tracks, weather & lighting, and graphics! On Series X, FM7 already looks like a next-gen game! GT Sport looks noticeably lower res; and this combined with a lack of sense of speed (which doesn't appear to have been changed in GT7 based on videos) just seems less appealing to me. For me it helps with the immersion... Like @Originut said, I wish GT7 wasn't tied down by last-gen version development — I was expecting the graphics to blow my balls off when they revealed it last year, and while it looks really good, it largely looks like the 4k60 game that GT Sport could have been on a console more powerful than the PS4 Pro...

I may just revisit GT's driving school again. Finding myself spinning out way too much in other titles and just cannot correct it🤦

@4kgk2 Wooooow. Yeah, okay, GT fanboy. There are plenty of PC racing enthusiasts (who play iRacing, ACC, RF2, Automobilista, etc.) that will laugh at you thinking that GT is on their level of racing simulation. So I wouldn't talk like some elitist snob if I were you... I'm actually still new to sim racing, and just learning, etc. But, thanks for your opinion from up high — I don't sim race to be known as some "hardcore, realism racing" guy, or to be at the top of leaderboards — I play for the immersion, and for my own enjoyment. Good luck to you in your GT world tournaments, champ.

@4kgk2 Not arguing which game is "better" — I'm a Sony guy, only recently bought a Series X after skipping XB1, but I found GT Sport to be a snooze fest. Forza I've actually had fun with. Just my personal experience, that's all.

@Originut Sim racing is a bit of a niche market — and one that I am new to myself — and I do think the arcadey, open world games (like Horizon, which looks amazing) appeal to more of masses and casual racing gamers. But there are still some sim racing options for enthusiasts: Assetto as I mentioned, Project Cars, and then "sim-cade" titles like Forza and GT of course👍

@Agramonte Great times, indeed. Now — I just need Fanatec to announce & release the new CSL DD for PlayStation already🤷

@RubyCarbuncle Horizon is a much different game from Gran Turismo, not to mention, different from its own Forza Motorsport series.

But I will say, for me personally, I enjoy Forza Motorsport much more than I do GT. GT feels slow and bland (to me). The sense of speed in Forza — while maybe not as "realistic" — is much greater and just feels more immersive: driving at 120mph in GT feels like I am doing 50 in my car IRL, which is not what I am going for when I boot up my PS5. And then as true sims go, I'd rather play an Assetto Corsa instead.

Oh, great — a new FPS: we don't have enough of those...

@HotGoomba Gotcha. We are on the same page👍

@HotGoomba Huh? Wait, what? Who are you defending here, DBrand, or Sony? One sentence you're calling DBrand petty, the next you're saying it's hilarious that people are defending Sony.🤷
I'm saying that Sony are the petty ones. I'm not familiar with DBrand as a company, they are "little company X" as far as I'm concerned.

So petty. Totally unnecessary.

Wow, is Super Mega Baseball 3 really just stealing Ken Griffey Jr.'s likeness like that?

Really hoping PSVR-2 makes immense improvements to prevent nausea. I went all-in on PSVR, but after a few months, I just couldn't handle feeling like I was hungover for the remainder of a day after playing only 15 minutes of VR😩

I had no idea what the hell I was doing when I started playing Demon's Souls. World tendency, character tendency, upgrading the right player traits, etc., and a game genre I had little experience in. Thank goodness for the googles...