Initial Impressions

I've had closed beta access to Rennsport for some time. After giving it a go, I was initially reluctant to continue on the beta version. At the time, my Fanatec CSL DD was hardly compatible, and it was a real struggle to get it configured properly. That, combined with the initial lack of VR support (which has been added just a couple of days ago), turned me away. My initial feelings were that the game had a lot of potential, and I would wait for further releases.

Fast forward a little bit, and about two weeks ago, I really got into Rennsport. Mainly due to me (temporarily?) ditching VR racing for a 40" curved ultra-wide display. Having to get used to another visual setup had me thinking: "Why not give Rennsport another shot?". The open beta has been out for several weeks, and I was curious to find out how much progress they've made.

Car and Track Selection

Given this is just an open beta, I am more than happy with the already available tracks and cars. Surely, any proper racing game should have considerably more options available. But for the time being, as we're just getting used to the game, it is fine. Tracks like Spa, Nurburgring, and Hockenheim are already available. And they don't feel like early beta kind of tracks either. ACC is more than rivaled when it comes to track details. If anything, Rennsport has seemed to put more time into the track details. And Spa features the updated track (without recent repavement)!

There is a nice variety of cars too. From slightly older GT3 cars (2020) to recent ones. There's a GT4 car, a Hypercar, and several other lower-tier cars for beginners. The details of the cars are perfectly fine. Plenty for even the more observative racers to get along with.

Driving and Handling

From the start, I found ACC a relatively difficult game to master. Being consistent was easy, but being fast was a struggle. The behavior of the cars (whether realistic or not) is often unpredictable. Once you understand how the tire model works and get a base understanding of most cars, it becomes better. Up to a point where you're just 'dialed in'.

Rennsport, however, feels very, very different. Sure, a lot is down to FFB settings, but for the first time in a racing game, my direct drive wheel actually lets me feel the tires. The overall feedback is stronger and harder, but that makes it ever so more controllable. I'm sure I could spend more time in ACC finetuning the force feedback, but I'm just running the Fanatec recommended settings at the moment. For now, I really enjoy (if not outright prefer) the detailed feeling of Rennsport over ACC.

Factoring out the difference in feel, the cars certainly handle differently too. I've spent most of my laps behind the wheel of a BMW M4 GT3. Overall characteristics are similar to ACC. That's a good thing in my opinion. The nature of the beast is similar. I guess a lot of the difference in handling is down to the tire model and track surface. The cars feel far more forgiving in Rennsport, yet, at the same time, harder to save when you do push it over its limit.

Braking is arguably the biggest difference and something I still have to master better. In ACC, I could perfectly trail brake towards the apex and get the better of most. Now, I find myself constantly locking up or applying too much brake pressure too far into the corner. I'm sure more miles and experience will help my muscle memory reprogram itself from countless hours of ACC.

As a result, for the time being, I don't feel the cars in Rennsport handle better than the cars in ACC do. However, I can feel the car better and thus enjoy it more. Another little fun thing is that my CSL DD gets such a good workout that the vibrations transfer into my Playseat Trophy, giving me a more immersive experience altogether.

Conclusion

I sure hope to see a lot more from Rennsport in the upcoming releases. At the moment, I can very much imagine this game overtaking ACC as the king of GT3 racing. Not surprising since ACC has been around since 2018, and we are awaiting AC2 as we speak. From a gamer/sim racer perspective, I can only see this as a win-win. With ACC having some real competition, Kunos Simulazioni will certainly step up their game in AC2.

For the time being, I can truly recommend Rennsport. I am yet to participate in proper online competitions and am curious to find how that feels in comparison. But Rennsport has surprised me, and I find the car feel addictive. Even so much that I have every intention of scraping off tenths and hundredths of my lap time day after day!

(Image from ACC)