Racing POV
 

I have become fanatical about racing games. I prefer real racing simulations. Most of my friends who play racing games, seem to prefer to play the games using the chase camera POV. I prefer the cockpit POV. This, I feel adds to the realism of the game.

Sometimes, the cockpit POV is really hard to play with. It's almost impossible to play like that with the Moto GP games.

I normally do one of the chases, it's different on different games how far they go back. I usually end up getting the far one, just so I can see a little further ahead.

I prefer the chase camera so I can see what is coming up on me.

Depends what the game is. I normally play with chase camera, but then I switched to driver-eye view for Project Gotham and it just felt so right. with Apex however, I had to stick with a chase cam, and the same goes for Moto GP -- though when I pick up 2, I will give it a shot in some of the other cams -- how's about the wheel view? ;p

I'm surprised that the cockpit cam is leading the poll right now. I don't like this view because you can't look around you can when actually driving the car. In racing games it is important to know what's all around you...not just in front of you.

I alternate between the chase modes, although I probably use the close chase a bit more.

It depends on the game. If the game is like Gran Turismo where you race the tracks over and over and over again, I like the cockpit view because it adds to the realism. There aren't too many different tracks so I can learn all of them. But in games like Project Gotham where I race many different tracks, I don't have time to do each track over and over again in order to memorize them, so I need the chase camera view so I can see what's coming up on the track.

I chose the far chase cam, but, like Xanager, the chase cam I prefer varies by game. I really don't feel like the cockpit view is realistic. It has the potential to be, but until racing games allow the player to move the driver's point of view like one would in a real car, it's too constricting.

And how would they allow you to look around? I know Pro Race Driver and several other games allow you to use the right stick to look to the sides and behind you, though I rarely use it except to look behind me. But unless you had a full set of monitors surrounding you, or googles that knew which way you were looking, how could you truly simulate being able to look around on a monitor?

I almost always use the cockpit view, and can't stand using anything else. I was just playing Colin McRae 3 today and noticed I use the close chase camera on that - I guess all of the drifitng makes the chase cam work out better.

Hood camera is intense and gives you a better "you are there" feeling than the cockpit cam because the wider field of view simulates reality better. But when it comes to tricky steering or weaving, I switch to the close chase cam.

It's not my responsibility to know how to implement such an idea. I'm just saying that until somebody develops something where you can look around while in the cockpit, I'll stick to the chase view.

Edited to add: I just became a senior member :)

I'll use the far chase cam unless it makes the vehicle too hard to control, in which case I'll switch to the cockpit cam.

Cockpit, I enjoy the realism. I agree with the viewing is limited, but since most games AI is so pathetic when it comes to racing it doesn't really matter. (The AI doesn't make you do anything typically) So unless you are passing them you don't have to worry what they are doing, and if you are passing them you obviously know where they are. I digress...

On the other hand games like F-Zero I don't mind a back view point as the game is already unrealistic.

Can't wait for GT4, might just buy a PS2 instead of using my friends. :)

I like the cockpit view without the dashboard. I find it hard to hit my apexes otherwise and the dashboard takes up too much screen space that I need for visual track information. Also, when using the other views, you cannot see details as far down the track as you can with the cockpit view. Sometimes, like when coming over a hill, you can see farther down the track, but I find it cuts into the realism and doesn't give you enough visual information (due to the distance and pixel limitations) to be very useful. I miss not seeing cars around and near me, but there is usually a rear view mirror, and if you pay attention, you know where the other cars should be. Perhaps I do well at this because my everyday car has huge blindspots that force me to memorize surrounding traffic and not place all my trust in what I can immediately see at any given time.

The only time I use a chase cam is on rally-style games. In those, you need to be focusing on the direction of travel or the apex of the turn. However, because you're sliding most of the time, and your view locked on the front window, you're typically looking at something vastly unimportant. This problem bothers me enough that I simply have to use the chase cam. I prefer having it high and close in. Rallisport Challenge has a really good chase cam (the last default view).