SimHQ.com - Motorsports Zone - Feature: New Developments in Grand Prix Legends

October 2008 marked the 10th anniversary of Grand Prix Legends, the remarkable sim from Papyrus Design Group featuring the cars and tracks of the 1967 Formula 1 season. The exact release date is not well documented but September 27th and October 9th seem to be the dates most often mentioned.

Anyone who has followed the progress and development over the years will in all probability be familiar with the landmark advances achieved by the community modding this sim. The developments have been so groundbreaking and far reaching in GPL that you are forgiven if you missed one or two of the many advances. Things are proceeding at quantum leap speed and a lot of mods are in development.

SimHQ took a previous look at the Grand Prix Legends community back in 2005 here and here — so we were well overdue!

Recent achievements include the release of a 60 frames per second update, the release of new rasterizers improving the rendering in GPL, optimizing frame rates, and while we’re at it; introducing the option of driving in fog.

Very soon we should see the release of Targa Florio: At 72 km per lap it is a monster of a track. The video preview can be found here.

To keep you up to date, SimHQ have talked with some of the people behind the coming mods for GPL, and we are able to bring you not only many new and exclusive screenshots but also videos of some of the mods in action!

Shelby Daytona Coupe

“It Grabs You and Never Lets You Go.”

When you are done reading this article you might want to get that old CD-ROM out of storage again or download the 2004 enhanced demo and reinstall this sim to turn some laps in classic race cars on the classic tracks — including the 3rd party add on tracks, the number of venues exceeds 550!

The add-ons made for this sim means that you are in for what is still a very immersive and captivating experience, even in direct comparison with more modern titles. At the end of this article we’ll provide some links to help you get GPL completely up to date, even where to find a copy of GPL, if the inconceivable has happened and you’ve lost yours.

But why is it, that this ten year old sim still captures the souls and hearts of drivers and modders alike, to a degree that we don’t really care if some new and technically superior simulations have been released in the years between 1998 and today?

As “Royale” a modder whom we’ll meet again later in this article puts it:

“Ah yes, what is it about GPL? An intangible for sure. Why am I more nervous before a GPL online event than I ever was in a real race? Can't be fear, so it must be the competition. Imagine that — LOL. For me, GPL — and this after racing Formula Fords for 25 years — just seems very close to the real experience even without tactile feedback. It's immersive yet simple nature must be some blend of the cars modeled, how the original physics interact as well as for many of us; these were the tracks we read and dreamt about as kids.”

“MECH”, another modder with whom I’ve talked says:

“It's steep learning curve. It might put others off but I’ve discarded many games in the past just because it got too easy. The realistic physics (drag, tow, etc..), The numerous amount of add-ons: utilities, mods and so forth. And the beautiful shaped cars of the sixties. I never saw cars that attracted me more than these babies....”

The STP Indy Turbine

In preparation for this article, I drove the ´67 Lotus 49 again for the first time in years, and in spite of taking it to a negative rank many years ago; I was blown away all over again by the speed of the monster as well as the reactions and skills needed to actually direct it safely around the track. How on earth did I manage to drive it so fast back then, when my GPL-obsession was at its highest?!

GPL still demands total concentration and a burning desire to always drive one more lap in search of perfection.

The graphics appear decidedly pre-DX 8, on paper, the tire model is of course out of date, whether the slip-angles of the tires in the un-modded 1967 season are correct may be argued, and you could still stir a heated debate on whether the grip values are equally correct at low speeds and at high speeds.

None of which deters from the fact the overall feel of GPL is just incredible, and there is something uncannily special about sitting in your car on the grid, surrounded by names like Clark, Brabham, Rindt, Stewart, or Ascari, Fangio, Moss, while the engines rev and scream towards their crescendo at the start of a Grand Prix.

By some fluke of fate, GPL appeared so functional, uncompromising and unforgiving upon its release that it is impossible not to draw a direct parallel between the software’s in-your-face appeal to how it must have felt for the drivers of the era strapping themselves into tubs on skinny wheels with a hugely powerful engine in the rear, tanks filled to the brim with highly volatile racing fuel. One single crucial mistake and you were coming home in a box.

We have since learned that it was the intention of the developers to provide a ladder for the driver to start in the trainers and achieve some driving proficiency there before being allowed into the all powerful, fire-breathing F1 beasts, but development time ran out and GPL was released as was.

Interestingly, one of my observations about GPL is that the AI actually works! Excepting the presence of one Mr. Surtees who will always make very determined, no-prisoners-taken moves at the start should he find himself anywhere near you, the Artificial Intelligence in GPL exhibits that degree of common sense and racing instinct that has eluded just about every title calling itself a simulation not of Papyrus pedigree. The AI driver will rather fall back a bit and watch you waiting for the best moment to pass instead of charging through you, over you and into you. Then when you make a mistake, the AI driver will make a clean pass because he knows you’re there and he knows about smart racing.

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