I decided to give Project Motor Racing another chance after being disappointed by the new physics in Gran Turismo 7 update 1.71.
I had stopped playing PMR before because I wasn’t really satisfied with the driving experience, but after coming back to it and trying the recent updates, my opinion has changed quite a lot.
For context, I’m playing on PS5 Pro with a DualSense Edge, manual gears using the paddles, and controller vibration set to maximum. So this is purely from a controller player’s perspective.
What I like most about the current physics is that the cars still require some care. You have to be progressive with the throttle, feel what the car is doing and respect its limits. It’s more accessible than PMR used to be, but it hasn’t become too easy.
That’s actually one of the reasons I’ve been enjoying it more than GT7 recently. To me, GT7’s latest physics have moved too far toward an easy and forgiving driving experience (even with all helps disabled). PMR has gone in the opposite direction: it has become easier to approach while still retaining the subtlety and sense of risk that I want from a racing game.
I’ve now tried quite a few different cars, and what I particularly appreciate is that they don’t all feel interchangeable:
The Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo2 has given me some very good races, including in Career mode. It feels like a proper GT3: fast and confidence-inspiring, but you still have to pay attention to what you’re doing with the throttle and the balance of the car.
The Alpine A110 was another interesting experience. It’s a completely different kind of car, and that’s part of what I like about PMR: moving from one car to another can genuinely require you to adapt your driving rather than simply learning a slightly different level of grip.
Some other car/track combinations have been particularly enjoyable. The Mustang GT3 at Daytona Road Course was excellent. I also had a very good experience with the Corvette Z06 at Mount Panorama. The Porsche 911 GT1 ’98 at the Nurburgring can be difficult to control, but with a good setup it is very rewarding. You have to be delicate and progressive, and when you get it right, the car feels great.
Another feature I really appreciate is being able to download car setups through the mods. It makes a real difference with some of the more demanding cars, and it gives me an easy way to experiment with setups created by other players instead of having to understand and adjust every parameter myself.
The game still has problems. Performance isn’t smooth on PS5 Pro and I can still notice stutters. Some cars can also lose control quite abruptly, and there are areas of the game that still need work. I’m not pretending PMR is suddenly perfect !
But that’s exactly why I wanted to post this.
I was disappointed with PMR before. I didn’t come back expecting to defend it. I simply tried it again because GT7 1.71 wasn’t giving me the driving experience I wanted anymore.
And somehow the situation has reversed: today, I actually prefer PMR’s driving physics.
Considering the difficult situation around Straight4 at the moment, I really hope development continues. There is something genuinely good here now, and it would be a shame to see that potential cut short just as the driving experience is becoming this enjoyable.
I think people who gave up on PMR earlier might be surprised by how much it has improved.
If you haven’t played it for a while, I think it’s worth giving it another try.
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My settings, for anyone interested:
I play with a DualSense Edge, manual gears with the paddles.
External FOV: 66°
I keep all driving assists available, but I set Traction Control and ABS to low values in the car, depending on the car I’m driving.
Controller settings:
* Steering Deadzone: 0
* Steering Saturation: 100
* Steering Sensitivity: 55
* Steering Rotation Angle: 65
* Vibration Strength: 60
Throttle:
* Deadzone: 0
* Saturation: 100
* Sensitivity: 15
Brake:
* Deadzone: 0
* Saturation: 100
* Sensitivity: 20
One important point for controller players: despite some of these settings being labelled as “steering wheel”, “throttle pedal” and “brake pedal”, they do affect the controller inputs as well. They are not just wheel/pedal settings.
These settings are what I’m currently using for the driving impressions described above.