Why do drift modes keep getting worse?

[Crumz]

I've been a fan of NFS since I bought the first release. Since then I've owned many others and loved every one. With each title came a new chance to get sideways, sadly this childhood obsession has continued into my real life and I now have to put away a lot of cash for tyres every month...

When Underground 1 came out, it was the best release yet. It was still a little too arcady, but was enjoyable. Setting up a car with stage 3 everything, but stock suspension and tyres was some of the best fun I've ever had in all the titles. Trying to drive the S2000 with no grip was a challenge, but it felt right. Press the accel, go forwards. Steer, the car turned. Slide, you'd have to counter steer. The drift mode was a little too slippery, but worked and worked well. Handbraking lead to a change in direction, throttle control was of huge importance, braking actually did something. It could have been improved on, but for the most part it was great.
With UG2 came another drift mode. Excellent I thought. Surely they have taken this wonderful mode and made it better. To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. However after a while I got the hang of it. It was never as good as UG1, but it worked.
Then I played the ProStreet demo and pre-ordered the game a day later. The game came in the mail and it was soon installed. I worked my way through the first few races and got up to my first drift comp. Excited? Yes. With the original 180SX (I'm from Australia. We get them straight from Japan. They are 180s, not 240s.) ready to go I hoped for the best.

But it was only 'alright'.

Figuring it was my fault for having a car with such low stats, I ignored it and continued my way through the career. Soon enough I owned an S15 pumped with more than enough bits and pieces to keep me sliding. Expecting it to be what it should be, I jumped in another drift race.

I'm now at a point where I'm prepared to say that the Pro Street Drift mode is shiznit. Not bad, not crap, outright shiznit.
The car doesn't react to user inputs. The clutch is slow to react. The handbrake and brake do nothing unless held for a long time. Throttle control is of no use. There is no grip, front or rear. Hell, I spun out and the brake lights came on, despite me not touching the brake. It's like some one else is driving.

Has EA created a system designed for people who can't drift to be able to still win the races? Is the trick to throw away everything you know and let the car do the work? Drifting for dummies? As some one who does drift on the track, why is it that what I know from driving my own car can't be crossed over to a drift game?

It annoys me. Pro Street is such a great game. The cars are awesome, the other modes are so much better than in previous titles, but the drift mode - which many people, like me, will be the main factor in buying the game - lets it down so badly. I've already told people that if they are buying it purely for drift, then don't bother.

My only hope is that a patch is released... But I doubt anything will bring it close to where it should be.

They did get the tracks right for once though... Such wonderful curves and obstacles. Ebisu is pure brilliance. It's the way it should be. If only I could transfer them over to UG1 - The closest to drifting EA has got.

[blah2]

Try the king mode I suppose. I still like drifting and I can pull 8,000 drifts easily in my RX7, on king mode.

[ahmad0410]

Keeps getting worse? You mean its worst than carbon? Congrats..

This is the best drift physics NFS have ever gotten and most realistic NFS have ever gotten.

[Toshiro]

It's probably because you have the "Casual" game mode on. This does a lot of things for you, including showing you racing lines, and helping you brake. as someone above mentioned, try it on "King."

[snoopdogg879]

it wont make any difference ti me because i suck at drifting anyways
i mean its more like a lets see how many times i can hit the wall challenge

but try what ^he said^ above me

[Kaerar]

Actually you can apply real drifting experience to ingame drifting. Only thing is you have to remember its a game.

To change direction just pump the throttle (like lift off transition) and it goes pretty quickly. Don't use brakes (the only braking drift should be the first initiation). During transitions as soon as the car gets straight again go full throttle (inertia will keep the direction change happening) and you get the max points out of it.

As for being a sim its not. But it is fun and closer to real life than most. However UG1 still holds the drift crown.

[RotaryHead]

Yes UG1 had the best drifting so far in all the games, Im still trying to get the hang of it in this version, guess i have a habit of doing the same as i would do in the street. But the brakes play an important roll in keeping you in the direction you need to go. You cant even floor it without goin the direction the car is facing and not the directino the tires are facing.
They sould of did it like UG1. At least it was a little more realistic.

[Kaerar]

I understand but IRL you don't need to use the brakes to drift. All brakes do is send you in a straight line along the axis of movement.

Ingame however it overly wants to drift the whole time so to compensate all you need is throttle control and handbrake use at certain times. The throttle is everything for turning and transitions between turns. The handbrake can briefly extend a drift to allow you to drift around long sweeping or double apex corners you wouldn't normally be able to make in a single drift.

However some courses are just total crap and nothing can be done about that. Something UG1 didn't suffer from actually

P.S. Rotaries forever I have an RX-7 Series 4 with S5 mods throughout IRL

[heracles]

I just finished Juiced 2, and coming from that the drifting in this was really hard to begin with, but now that I've got the hang of it, it's a lot more enjoyable and realistic

[snoopdogg879]

Actually you can apply real drifting experience to ingame drifting. Only thing is you have to remember its a game.

To change direction just pump the throttle (like lift off transition) and it goes pretty quickly. Don't use brakes (the only braking drift should be the first initiation). During transitions as soon as the car gets straight again go full throttle (inertia will keep the direction change happening) and you get the max points out of it.

As for being a sim its not. But it is fun and closer to real life than most. However UG1 still holds the drift crown.

the only thing is i dont brake the entier race and i still hit the wall billions of times

[vellu]

the only thing is i dont brake the entier race and i still hit the wall billions of times

You're going too fast then. Or perhaps have too high steering response: does the car "whip" around to the other direction too much when you countersteer?

I've tried a couple of different cars on drift mode and noticed very clear differences on how fast they turn in. For example a 350z reacts relatively fast to steering (in other words, stays in control when one can do minor adjustments), but a Viper seemed to not want to react to countersteer initially at all, and when it eventually does it tended to oversteer violently.

(tuned roughly the same way with comparable performance numbers)

[Gavh2]

I dont think we are going to see realistic drifting for some time to come. Unless we all owned those $350 wheels that come with a clutch and multiturn it's hardly possible for a game to cater for everyone. The drifting in PS is not the greaest but, its not the worst I've ever played.

Makes me wonder, I hope EA did not think that that chick drifting in Tokio Drift was drifting! Drifting looks smooth on the outside, but take an in cabin video shot of a drifter, he's insanley busy behind the wheel!!!

Makes you wonder why EA even bothered to go collect data at the Porcshe test track (or wherever it was) when they go and make drifting physics largely AI controlled. They should rather just watch "Drift King: Drift Bible", maybe then they would learn that there is more to just e-brake drifting...

[alexL]

ive played on king mode from the start and it still seems like someone else is driving sometimes.. its strange, especially in speed challenges when my car just randomly drops 30km/h on a straight flat part without me turning my wheel at all

but i love the drifting, i just dont get why the hood view on the silvia seems to have you on the left side but in the skyline its on the right (since theyre both right hand drive cars)

[Danyutz]

whorse? i have a maxed out Silvia and it rocks .. I did a 5027pts drift.

[KammyworldRacerGT4]

I don't know how people say Drift Modes on NFS keep getting worse. Either they hate the NFS series altogether or they just don't plain know how to play.