Out the cockpit or behind the car?

[drventure]

A recent image post from Randy got me to thinking....



When you play racing games that enable you to toggle the view, which way do you play? From the point of view out of the cockpit (so you can't see the vehicle), or from the "behind the car" vantage point?

I find it a bit easier to play from behind the car, but more more like I'm running a race from out of the cockpit so I tend to play that way more, even though I almost always score lower that way.

[SavannahLion]

It depends almost entirely on the game and how it plays. I find some games, especially those that are intensely arcade-like generally are 3PV. If the game is more simulator-like, then I have tendency to play in FPV.

In short, the default view point is usually sufficient as that is what the developers generally optimized the game for. A lot of developers don't seem to put forth the same effort in tweaking the alternate views so game play always seems to suffer.

That's just me I guess. 

[Samstag]

I prefer a cockpit view or at least something on the front bumper or dash.  Behind the vehicle makes me feel a little disconnected and makes it hard to get the timing right when I need to make a turn.

The only exception is something like Grand Theft Auto, with all the intersections and stuff going on in the periphery that you need to be aware of when making a fast getaway.

[Howard_Casto]

It depends upon the setup. 

For many arcade games it's behind the car because they have dinky 25 inch screens and I don't really feel immersed anyway.  In truth it's usually easier to play behind the car because it's easier to see if you are about to hit something.  Arcade games don't have side mirrors yet, unfortunately.


But for a while there I was playing xbox racers on the big screen with a wheel setup.  For that I positioned everything just so and used a cockpit view.  The wide aspect made it feel more like I was actually driving and it worked well. 

[lilshawn]

I prefer a cockpit view or at least something on the front bumper or dash.  Behind the vehicle makes me feel a little disconnected and makes it hard to get the timing right when I need to make a turn.

The only exception is something like Grand Theft Auto, with all the intersections and stuff going on in the periphery that you need to be aware of when making a fast getaway.

this. Straight up fast racing it's got to be bumper view...next in line is cockpit. I don't care for the clutter of the extras on the screen dasboard wheel etc. but for games where interacting with the environment is more the game (GTA or flatout) or games that are slower action wise you need to be able to see all around you.

most difficult was Need For Speed: Most Wanted because at times it can be both. I ended up having to set up a quick button to switch between 3rd person view and bumper view for when you get in those situations where you have a mess of police cars surrounding you and you need a quick out.

[lilshawn]

actually i have to mention that while i prefer a "bumper view" i don't like when it sits too low as in the camera is mounted almost under the bumper. all you see is road wooshing from top to bottom of the screen and you can't see corners coming properly.

hood height is good but not so high it feels like your riding the roof of the car. almost a 3rd person view without the car.

but still it really depends on the game.

[Well Fed Games]

SavannahLion summed it up pretty good, but generally behind-the-car is what I prefer, usually bumper cams or cockpit views feel too constricted to me... unless I want a very sim feel, which is rare.

[shmokes]

I'm with SavannahLion to the extent that I completely agree that most racing games are really meant to be played in one mode, and the other modes are just dressing. But all things being equal, I prefer to play in the cockpit with a steering wheel. If I'm playing with a gamepad, though, I prefer the floating-behind-the car camera (again, assuming that the developers nailed the feel properly for each view)

[flashiv]

I generally do better in 3PV, but enjoy playing in 1PV for a more immersive experience.