Racing simulators

[chemame]

Hey all. I have a question that has nothing to do with emulation, but EVERYTHING to do with my arcade cabinet. Hopefully you don't feel it's too out of line for this board. I've come to expect that the people on this board really know their stuff, and lots of you seem to be about where I am in terms of family status (gotta watch what the kiddie are exposed to, etc).

So... here's the deal. After 8 years of being a diehard NFS fan, I'm about to bail on the entire franchise. I haven't enjoyed NFS since Porche Unlimited, and the most recent NFS game I'll allow on my system is NFS:U. Anything newer is filled with smut that I don't allow on our TV at home, so I refuse to allow it on my computer either.

It makes me furious when I spend good money on a game like NFS:U2 only to have to shelve it because my nine year old starts learning about Brooke Burke and half-naked women. Josie Maran? Forget it. Not on my watch, no way.

So what are my options these days? I don't want to throw my money away on my next purchase. I've looked at the Test Drive Unlimited website, and I can't tell if it's ok for general consumption. Anybody know?

And just to be clear... I'm not averse to a little realism in games. Tony Hawk has scantilly clad women. It's just not central to the game. I refuse to turn my boy loose on anything along the lines of GTA, and in recent years, the NFS franchise is steadily moving closer and closer in that direction.

Your thoughts and opinions would be most appreciated.

Che

[headkaze]

I can recommend the Trackmania Sunrise series. It's far from having any sort of realism, but it's alot of fun with crazy tracks and puzzles to solve.

[TOK]

I don't really consider any of the NFS titles simulators, though Porsche Unleashed is a great game with loosely realistic physics. Trackmania is very arcade-like, which may be a plus, but it also has that heinous Starforce copy protection.

My recommendation is to try out Live For Speed www.liveforspeed.net and fFactor www.rfactor.net .
Both have demos that give you enough to decide if you like the games enough to purchase. They are both online activation. Live For Speed (horrible title, I know) has good physics, crisp graphics and runs nice on a mid-line computer. fFactor is more immersive and detailed, but needs a much more powerful PC to do anything other than hotlap. It really slows down with lots of AI cars on the track.

[chemame]

I don't really consider any of the NFS titles simulators, though Porsche Unleashed is a great game with loosely realistic physics.

Oh you know what, that is a really good point. I may have really grossly misused the term "simulator". Basically I'll take anything with good gameplay. The physics etc in NFS:U are pretty unrealistic, but it's still a fun race. Hate city driving though -- but that's just me, I really liked the tracks & graphics in NFS:Porsche. Basically, what it all comes down to is I hate SMUT in my son's games. Don't get me wrong, I like smut just fine, but it belongs in adult swim time, not in a family racing game. Brooke Burke should stay on E! and NFS should stick ro racing IMO. BTJMO.   

Che

[chris2922]

If you've got a decent Wheel and feel like testing out quite possibly the most realistic track and car physics in a mainstream game; try GTR2.

http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/740/740142p1.html (9.2) - Good review.
http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/driving/gtr2/review.html (9.0)
http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/gtr2 (9.2)


Its a bit spec heavy, and not very arcadey, but its really really good.

If your pc isnt quite up to scratch, you could try GTR instead.  Another top drawer racer.

Need for Speed lost the plot a long time ago...

Happy smut free racing.

[youki]

I have loved NFS: Most wanted  (on my XBOX) , but i agree it is not good at all for kids.

2 others games i love that are better for kids, i think  are :

Microsoft MidTown Madness 3

GT Legends

Both exists on PC.