It seems that you have just purchased rFactor 2, the simulator previously developed by ISI and recently acquired by the company Studio 397. Therefore, in this guide I will try to help you in those first steps when starting the simulator. Let’s get started!
I just started the game, and I’m in the menu, what do I do?
You have just started the game, but you are not in the game menu, you are in the “launcher”. A launcher that contains many options, but they are somewhat complicated to understand.
Once inside the launcher, on the left side of the application, you will find a set of icons. Right now you are in the main screen (“house logo”), where you will find the latest news associated with the simulator, such as: competitions, new content or future updates (published once a month).
The second icon, “the open box”, indicates the contents you have installed inside the simulator. Note: It is recommended to access the simulator workshop to install the mods you want to use, in addition to the cars/circuits developed by Studio 397. Both are installed automatically by restarting the simulator.
How to install mods on rFactor 2?
If you want to install an external mod, you must go to the root folder of the game, for example: D:/SteamLibrary/steamapps/common/rfactor2, and access the Packages folder, where you must leave the .pkg file you downloaded. Inside the launcher, select the content (open box) and click on “Install” in the corresponding file, at the bottom left. That’s it, you have now installed the specific tracks and cars you want to use.
Single Player & Online Mode
The next icon, which are “two helmets”, is the online mode, where people place their servers for you to access them, although we will leave that for another time.
The icon just below is the single player mode, click on it and you will access the simulator as such.
The rest of the icons in the launcher are for mod creation/server creation. For now I don’t recommend it, since you need an expert level in the simulator to use it.
I`m in the main menu, now what?
Once you are inside the game, you will see 6 options: Content, Track, Car, Race, Options and Exit.
- Content: Select the content you want to be shown to select. Personally I recommend the All Cars & Tracks option, where you will have access to all the content you have downloaded.
- Track: Select the track where you want to race.
- Car: Select the car in which you want to compete.
- Race: Once you have selected both car and track, it takes you to the track.
- Options: Shows a list of options, we will detail one by one below.
- Exit: You return to the initial launcher.
Within “Options” several options are shown, but we will highlight: Display, Graphics, Video, Controls and HUD.
- Display: Selects options such as: visible cars, fixed or moving steering wheel, etc.
- Graphics: Allows the graphic configuration of the game. It adjusts to the power of the computer of each one.
- Video: Selects the resolution at which the game will emit on your screen, as well as the refresh rate of the monitor and if VSync is activated or not.
- Controls: Allows you to assign the different actions to be able to go out to the track.
- OnScreen Display: Allows you to select the HUD with which you will visualize the information. In the workshop there are several, and of high quality.
Now, let’s talk about the “Controls” tab. Depending on the steering wheel you use, by clicking on the Load tab, the game has pre-assigned settings to each of the steering wheels. Once you find yours, you load it and adjust the buttons to each one of your steering wheel, at free choice. From there, you will find several parameters, such as: degrees of rotation, FFB multiplier, if the force gives it in a rough or smooth way, etc..
The first of these parameters is the degrees of rotation, assigning them next to the degrees of rotation. Just below, we find a symbol of an x or a well (a tick, to understand us). If there is the tick, it means that the game will assign the degrees of rotation that work best for the car. Personally I recommend to deactivate it, since it bothers when driving. Just below, we find the FFB multiplier. Depending on taste, it will be increased or decreased, as well as the FFB smoothing.
I have everything configured, now what?
Now the easiest thing is to go out on track! But this goes further, since rFactor 2 is configured by sections, divided into 3 sections: Settings, Standings and General.
- Settings: Allows you to configure previously configured options, as well as to adjust steering wheel turning degrees, soften or harden force feedback, etc.
- Standings: Shows how many drivers are in the room, the times and other data, such as track and ambient temperatures, remaining time of the session, etc. If a driver is in white, it means he is in the pits. If he is in dark blue, he is in the pit lane, and in green, if he is on track.
- General: Here we can modify the whole car. It is subdivided in 5 sections: Setups, General, Suspension, Chassis and Advanced. In the first one, it allows to assign the fuel to the car, as well as to program stops. In the second one, it allows adjustments of the gears, as well as the distributed power modes. Suspension and Chassis allow to modify parameters in the car.
- Advanced: lastly, it allows tire configurations, as well as brake settings.
Within the track screen there are 3 other options: Select car, voting and leave track.
- Select car: In multi-class championships (VEC, e.g.) allows to choose a different car than the one selected when entering the track (only in online mode).
- Voting: In online mode, allows (in case of being track administrator) to include AI, expel someone from the server, send setups, restart the session, etc.
- Leave Track: Exit to the main single player menu or to the initial launcher (online mode).
I’m already on track, now what do I do?
Well, once everything is configured, the important thing is to configure everything to your liking. First of all, let’s talk about the help. From F1 to F11 keys configure the help, being:
- F1: Direction help
- F2: Opposite Lock
- F3: Brake Assist
- F4: Stability Control:
- F5: Spinning recovery
- F6: Invunerability
- F7: Gear Assist
- F8: Traction control
- F9: ABS
- F10: Auto Pit-Lane
- F11: Auto clutch(prevents the car from stalling)
After configuring these aids, I recommend also to add other data, from the keys 3 to 6, being
- 3: Mirror configuration
- 4: Position of the drivers on track
- 5: Show/Hide HUD
- 6: Show/Hide “Black Box”.
I want to race online, how do I do it?
It’s easy! When you enter the initial launcher, select the two hulls, and you will see a list of servers. From there, in case you are part of a league, look for the server of your league and access with the corresponding password. The server will in most cases download the corresponding contents, and you will enter the server. This is repeated in 99% of the cases.
Well, that’s all! I hope this guide will help you to start competing in what is, for me, the most difficult simulator of all. If you have any more specific questions after this tutorial you can write me on Twitter: @Dossantss, where I will try to help you as soon as possible.
See you on the track!
