Battling with the AI

[SomeFishyStuff 1]

Hi!

I am a big F1 fan and I watch every single race. I like it when there is action (who doesn't?) and the battling you see between the drivers. I wanted to experience it myself so I bought the F1 2019 game last year. I've been playing two seasons on career mode and I like to explore the game through single races.

I play usually on 90-95 AI difficulty. I use an automatic gearbox and full traction control. On races I find it only a little challenging to catch up on others, which is okay for me. But when I get to overtaking, it just feels off. The overtakes are too easy. Like the hard work I used on catching up on the driver in front gets rewarded with a position higher. I get to the slipstream on the straight, pull closer and get to the inside line for the corner, brake a bit later and turn into the corner, exiting by crossing the defending AI's line. The AI just gives up and lets me go, and won't even try to get the place back. I can get away easily and start hunting down the next car. I can even overtake using the outside line. I'll just make my way through and the AI will make way for me!

I want to feel the sensation of the battle, me making a move to the inside, side by side into the end of the straight, I brake a bit late, but the AI brakes much earlier to get a better exit to the next corner to get the position back. Side by side again, through the next corner the AI makes it to the inside, leaving me only a bit space so I have to lift off a bit. This should be racing, not just making a simple move and getting past a car.

You say: "Why won't you turn the difficulty a bit up then so the AI will be more skilled?" Well, the AI will be faster and I won't even catch up to it. Then they'll catch up to me, where I'll get to defending action. I can hold them up for some but I'll just lose time and positions.

I hope we could see more Bahrain 2014 Hamilton vs. Rosberg kind of stuff in this game.

Also the AI is too perfect battling each other. They won't make mistakes, causing them to crash into each others, go wide into the gravel, hit the walls and make the race more colorful and unexpectable. On wet tracks they always find the traction, never lock up, go wide, hit the walls etc.

In my opinion there is lot to fix in the next updates and when making F1 2020 (if one is even going to come out this year because of corona)

Best regards

[2Pacalypse 108]

because the AI has only 2 parameters: braking zone and aggresiveness.

the speed on the straights is the same AI level 0 or 110, the only difference is how quick they are in the braking zones and how quick they accelarate.

20 hours ago, SomeFishyStuff said:

I get to the slipstream on the straight, pull closer and get to the inside line for the corner, brake a bit later and turn into the corner, exiting by crossing the defending AI's line. 

thats because AI is using wrong ERS Mode. If they are in front of somebody they never use "overtake" to defend.

The first 1 or 2 laps they are in Hotlap mode 5 and then go to 0 or 1. Only if they are behind someone then they go to "4" no matter if the battery is low (under 10%) or not...and stick with it as long as they are behind someone.

20 hours ago, SomeFishyStuff said:

Side by side again, through the next corner the AI makes it to the inside, leaving me only a bit space so I have to lift off a bit. This should be racing, not just making a simple move and getting past a car.

and thats my friend will never happen, because AI is sticking with the racing line!

[brsteg 35]

Everyone has different gripes.  I have an issue where AI isn't spatially aware and chops me in corners when I try to out brake.

Now I am an admittant dive bomber (working on becoming more skilled); but there are several times I felt I was there and did a proper out brake and not a dive bomb and the AI still goes for the normal racing line and  turns into me like Schumacher on Villenueve (or Hill if you prefer).   Really like to see AI be more spatially aware.

Could they be better at defending?  Maybe.. but I think that awareness and AI somehow getting the intelligence to take a wider line when 2 or 3 wide, and lifiting to avoid an incident would be better spent.  In my career mode I was 3 wide with Weber and Butler into the hairpin at China, and Weber in the middle turns into me like he's taking the normal line, then we all wash out and push Butler wide (who took the normal AI side by side line).  Butler uses the access for a bit but as it goes from paved run off to grass, instead of lifting and taking a bit of grass to get onto the circuit Butler's AI turned right into the gravel trap. (Did not get pushed, turned right.. it's in the replay still.)

This is a nice photo endorsement of Codie's story mode though!

Edited March 30 by brsteg

[SomeFishyStuff 1]

22 hours ago, 2Pacalypse said:

Thats because AI is using wrong ERS Mode. If they are in front of somebody they never use Overtake mode to defend.

The first 1 or 2 laps they are in Hotlap mode 5 and then go to 0 or 1. Only if they are behind someone then they go to 4 no matter if the battery is low (under 10%) or not... and stick with it as long as they are behind someone.

I agree, maybe Codies should make the AI energy management better?

15 hours ago, brsteg said:

Could they be better at defending?  Maybe... but I think that awareness and AI somehow getting the intelligence to take a wider line when 2 or 3 wide, and lifting to avoid an incident would be better spent.

There has been lots of improvements to the AI from previous games of course. I think one of the next steps could be better defending. That will take time and much work making all the alternate racing lines, but by small steps I think it's pretty achievable. I would be pretty satisfied.

Also the fact that AI never really make mistakes. I see them locking up only when I am overtaking them into a corner. In my opinion they should make a little more mistakes, like hitting a wall, going wide, getting bad traction off a corner sometimes. I hope they don't boost this up so much or else we will just see them making mistakes in every corner and making it too easy. And in the wet conditions this should be a bit more likely because of the slipperiness. They are just too perfect.

[Aexcaliber 1]

Yep. Mistakes would be a great improvement. But a high functional mistake AI is not that easy, i think.