Last updated on January 18th, 2021 at 12:17 pm
If you’re a PC racer in need of more SIM, the rFactor games are in a Steam sale.
Scheduled to end at about 6PM today (7PM CET, 1PM EST), Image Space Incorporated’s first self-published sim starts us off with a 75 percent discount. Usually listed at a slightly eyebrow-raising £18.99, rFactor is just £4.74 (€5.74 or $6.24) today.
As ISI’s own description suggests, rFactor is a base that’s ripe for modding. It has been a stable content platform for over a decade, surely making rF an unparalleled racing sim in terms of the amount and breadth of content produced by mod teams.
Given that it is a mid-2000s game, rFactor is certainly showing its age in stock form by now. Nonetheless, it remains a playable title that outshines later alternatives in terms of an engaging drive and a wealth of additions. It’s worth noting that for all of its years, rFactor also plays host to cars and locations still not seen elsewhere.
rFactor 2
How to summarise ISI’s long-awaited follow-up?
Well, though there’s no such thing as a definitive answer to the ‘Which is the best?’ question, rFactor 2 is the sim of the current generation for many PC racers. Quite simply, rFactor 2 should be tried by experienced sim racers and newcomers alike.
Freedom
Though apparently running on a far more complex framework behind the scenes, Image Space Incorporated has continued the open nature of rF2’s predecessor. Once again, the sim producer has given us a state-of-the-art simulation platform with a combination of real and fictional cars and courses. Continuing a theme seen in the original rF, some cars in the standard rFactor 2 line-up have made headlines when scheduled to appear in other PC and console games – so you know you’re off to a good start even before expanding the garage with mod packs.
It’s time for options and prices!
rFactor 2 is offered in a standalone off-line version and an on-line one where the single payment permanently includes on-line play.
Today’s sale pricing looks like this:
- Standard off-line version £14.39, €17.99 or $19.19
- rFactor 2 with Lifetime Subscription £37.79 or local equivalent.
Usually sold at £23.99 and £62.99 respectively, the offer prices are the result of a 40 percent discount.
The Euro and US Dollar prices are courtesy of Steamprices. We don’t have equivalent tags for the Lifetime Subscription listing but considering the standard GBP price, they should be approximately €47 and $50.
Anyone choosing the ‘Standard’ option can also add 1-year of on-line access at any time. Automatically renewing each year, the Online Services Subscription costs £8.99 on Steam.
N.B. No upgrade from off-line or 1-year access to a ‘lifetime’ subscription is available.
We should highlight that code updates and any content that ISI creates will be added to rF2 installations regardless of the package. Excepting the annual on-line subscription option for Standard buyers, rFactor 2 has a one-time price. That’s the one you pay at the time of purchase, rather than an ever-growing figure from membership fees and DLC!
Requirements
According to the Properties/Local Files tab in the Steam client, a default rFactor 2 installation is about 12.5GB (12844MB).
The Minimum system requirements are as follows:
- 2.8GHz Intel Core 2 Duo or 3.0GHz AMD Athlon II X2 processor
- 4GB RAM
- Nvidia GTS 450 or AMD Radeon 5750 with 1GB video memory
- Windows 7 or above
- Broadband Internet connection
The recommended specs move to 8GB RAM, a 3.0GHz or faster quad core processor and 2GB video card.
Running here on a system between those two levels, the full rFactor 2 runs much better than previous demos. Even in early off-line testing with 12 AI cars and some ‘High’ settings, we’ve been able to lock the frame rate above 60fps on modest kit. Multi-player hasn’t been tried yet but rF2 has run remarkably well on this PC with 8GB RAM, a dual core Intel i3-2100 and Nvidia GTX 560 Ti. That’s 5 year-old hardware!
As we’ve been so impressed by it, expect to see rF2 regularly feature alongside its peers this year.
Adding to our forthcoming comparisons, let us know how you’re getting on in this modern age of racing. Are you a veteran of PC gaming or a former console racer that’s stepped across to get into deeper simulation and the oh-so-tempting world of cockpit building and never-ending upgrades? What’s your favourite title and what are the must-have add-ons that you’ve discovered on the Web or in the Steam Workshop?
You can keep up with all the latest rFactor 2 updates and news, here. Or check out the full rFactor 2 car list, and the rFactor 2 track list. Along with downloading the demo version for free via Steam, or buying rFactor 2 for the PC. The GTE class cars for rFactor 2 can all be found on Steam, here.
Leave a Reply