The Racing Breed

[Pumpy Tudors]

I'm at work, so I can't check the demo right now, but does Starters Orders allow you to play using dollars instead of pounds? Just curious. It wouldn't affect my buying decision one way or the other.

[PurdueBrad]

Originally Posted by Pumpy Tudors

I'm at work, so I can't check the demo right now, but does Starters Orders allow you to play using dollars instead of pounds? Just curious. It wouldn't affect my buying decision one way or the other.

Yes it does and this was a selling point for me. It also allows you to list horse's weights as lbs. and odds as fractions, also selling points.

Overall EARLY impressions, it is a deep horse-racing game. I feel like it really is a new version of Omni Play as it even has handicapper tips that you can request. I haven't gotten deep in it yet, but I'm started on hard, sold off my horses cheap, and am starting with a one horse stable. I'm impressed at the ways you can upgrade your stables, pick your trainers, jockeys, etc. So far, I couldn't be more happy. There is a bit of screen-clicking that goes on but it is not overly annoying, that's probably the worst thing I can say about the game.

I'm actually starting a dynasty with it I believe. It has been a while since I've written one (last big one was The Rudy Cox Diary over at OOTP) but this looks perfect for it, particularly given the ability to stud your horses.

[weegeebored]

Originally Posted by path12

I don't think 3D is needed either. Hell, FM is dots moving around the field, and that is by far the most immersive sim I've ever played. What you need is a nicer and/or customizable 2D race screen, maybe with a better visual representation of the turns.

Having never played FM I don't know excatly what you mean by "dots" but how does it compare with Racing Breed's graphics? The reason that I ask is that I could probably design a horse racing game and write the code for a good interface/sim engine with plenty of features/options (especially if this thread keeps going with pros/cons of existing games ), but could never code the 3D graphics. I mean this would be a year long project (or more) but I think that I could pull it off.

Well...maybe.

[QuikSand]

One comment for those who are interested in the game play.

By way of background, the standard for me right now is Quarterpole Plus. It is a deeply flawed game, but it does play pretty well in many respects. The mechanics of the races work fairly well, and with some house rules, I have been able to play a few entertaining careers, some documented here to varying degrees.

But the fatal flaw for QPP is the completely absurd management of horses in the background. The thousand plus horses that are under AI management are not managed with any sort of realism at all -- some will be raced literally 8 or more times in one month... horses will go out and win a $40K allowance race, and will next be entered into a $15K claiming race... an obvious sprinter who has done well at 5 or 6f will next be sent out to hopelessly run in a 14f (?) marathon... it's just embarrassing.

I am glad to report that I see very little of this in The Racing Breed. By and large, the management of AI-owned horses seems pretty logical and rational. I haven't looked all that closely (I'm mostly just betting races right now) but I'm not seeing crazy anomalies like are widespread in QPP. It might not seem like it's that big a deal, but I assure you, it's terribly frustrating with QPP (a game that does many other things awfully well).

So, that's one specific thumbs-up from me on the new game. The racing universe seems to have some overall sense to it. When I was racing my one horse in a certain level of race, I got to where I was seeing certain similar-level horses for a second and third time -- that's encouraging, to me.

[bbor]

Any more reviews of starters orders3?

[Blade6119]

Originally Posted by bbor

Any more reviews of starters orders3?

We havent had one yet, though purdue seemed to indicate he would give some impressions whenever he gets around to playing. Hes the only one that purchased so far if im not mistaken.

[moriarty]

Bump

The failed triple crown bid piqued my interest. Any more feedback on racing breed or starters orders 3?

[path12]

I'm still playing the hell out of Racing Breed. Finally got my first grade 1 winner. Sort of embarrassing how cool that was.

[PurdueBrad]

Originally Posted by moriarty

Bump

The failed triple crown bid piqued my interest. Any more feedback on racing breed or starters orders 3?

Starters Orders is very solid. I'm 13 years into a career and actually bred a horse that has put together an amazing run (2 grade 1's, 1 grade 2, and 4 grade 3 wins). He's on the verge of being put out to stud. The game is, IMHO, about 95% stable and they continue to work on the bugs that are out there. I've played it a ton and find it to be well worth the money.

[billethius]

Originally Posted by moriarty

Bump

The failed triple crown bid piqued my interest. Any more feedback on racing breed or starters orders 3?

I played around a bit with the demo for SO3 and I had the same problems with it that I've had with all versions - they just don't handle US based racing well enough for me. Seeing the first 1/4 of a 7f allowance race go in :26 just kills me (final time of 1:25). The first 5f of a 1 1/4 graded race went in 1:11. That kind of stuff completely takes me out of the game, which is unfortunate because the game has so much other good stuff in it.

I'm still loving The Racing Breed, though. I started a new game with the intention of focusing mostly on colts and trying to get a Derby winner. Still hasn't happened. I had a 2yo by A.P. Indy that I spent way too much money on get hurt in his first stakes attempt, which was disappointing. On the other hand, I had a different 2yo by Forest Wildcat (no hope for the Derby there - I knew he'd never get the distance) have a Favorite Trick type season. He won his first 7 starts going into the game's version of the Breeder's Cup. And he won them all in wire-to-wire fashion in very fast times. Unfortunately, he shin bucked in that race and finished next to last. Still, he was 2yo of the year thanks to his other races.

[cartman]

I wonder if what happened in the Belmont yesterday happened in a computer game, how many people would point to the game being hopelessly flawed.

[TCY Junkie]

Probably, one announcer said it shouldn't even be a betting event. I bet there are many that feel that way now.

[billethius]

Originally Posted by cartman

I wonder if what happened in the Belmont yesterday happened in a computer game, how many people would point to the game being hopelessly flawed.

Not many. Even great horses run bad races occasionally - especially the ones who attempt all 3 races of the triple crown.

[Capital]

Top athletes in other sports can have a bad day - and it's accepted by the media. Why can't a horse?

I have seen a lot of horse races where the favorite just didn't fire that day. It happens...it's just that there's a lot of people watching the Triple Crown that do not follow actual horse racing.

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Capital

Top athletes in other sports can have a bad day - and it's accepted by the media. Why can't a horse?

I have seen a lot of horse races where the favorite just didn't fire that day. It happens...it's just that there's a lot of people watching the Triple Crown that do not follow actual horse racing.

There's probably a very, very short list of horses that were undefeated after 5 or more races that ended the winning streak finishing last.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by cartman

There's probably a very, very short list of horses that were undefeated after 5 or more races that ended the winning streak finishing last.

But still, there's a list right?

[cartman]

Originally Posted by Axxon

But still, there's a list right?

Off the top of my head, I couldn't think of any. But if there wasn't a list before, one got started yesterday.

[Axxon]

Originally Posted by cartman

Off the top of my head, I couldn't think of any. But if there wasn't a list before, one got started yesterday.

Don't worry. I believe there's a list. I have no clue who's on it but there has to be a list.

To inappropriately steal one of my favorite lines "Of course there's a van."

[RPI-Fan]

So I downloaded Racing Breed demo and was actually pleasantly surprised. I see what others were getting at with regard to the interface, but I seemed to get enough used to it. It does seem the game is rather "solid" and sensible underneath, especially based on some of the things posted over on their (inactive) forums.

So those of you that bought the game about a month ago... are you still playing and enjoying? For $35, if I get a good month out of the game it'd be worth it for me.

[billethius]

Originally Posted by RPI-Fan

So I downloaded Racing Breed demo and was actually pleasantly surprised. I see what others were getting at with regard to the interface, but I seemed to get enough used to it. It does seem the game is rather "solid" and sensible underneath, especially based on some of the things posted over on their (inactive) forums.

So those of you that bought the game about a month ago... are you still playing and enjoying? For $35, if I get a good month out of the game it'd be worth it for me.

My dad and I have both been playing it pretty consistently since I found it last October or November.

[Blade6119]

Originally Posted by cartman

Off the top of my head, I couldn't think of any. But if there wasn't a list before, one got started yesterday.

Im sure the injury played a part, irregardless of what they may say. It clearly affected him, if only to remove that extra gear from his arsenal.

[Blade6119]

Originally Posted by billethius

I played around a bit with the demo for SO3 and I had the same problems with it that I've had with all versions - they just don't handle US based racing well enough for me. Seeing the first 1/4 of a 7f allowance race go in :26 just kills me (final time of 1:25). The first 5f of a 1 1/4 graded race went in 1:11. That kind of stuff completely takes me out of the game, which is unfortunate because the game has so much other good stuff in it.

As someone who doesnt follow racing in real life beyond the triple crown, and as such dont know that those #s are apparently way off, it doesnt bother me at all. Since that appears to be the big complaint i hear about SO3 in comparison to Racing Breed, im strongly leaning to purchasing SO3. If someone can tell me other areas RB is better, id love to hear. But so far all i have heared is that SO3's times are a bit off, which i can live with as long as its universal for all horses and not just races i watch.

[path12]

Originally Posted by RPI-Fan

So I downloaded Racing Breed demo and was actually pleasantly surprised. I see what others were getting at with regard to the interface, but I seemed to get enough used to it. It does seem the game is rather "solid" and sensible underneath, especially based on some of the things posted over on their (inactive) forums.

So those of you that bought the game about a month ago... are you still playing and enjoying? For $35, if I get a good month out of the game it'd be worth it for me.

I've been playing it almost exclusively since I got it. It is totally a "one more turn" game for me....

[weegeebored]

They should give you some kind of commission path12. I'm on the fence with this game because of the graphics, but getting that G1 winner must have been pretty exciting (from a gamer's PoV).

Plus, lately I've been playing a lot of DDS:PB and I don't know if I want to spend the $$$ on a new game.

[path12]

Originally Posted by weegeebored

They should give you some kind of commission path12. I'm on the fence with this game because of the graphics, but getting that G1 winner must have been pretty exciting (from a gamer's PoV).

Plus, lately I've been playing a lot of DDS:PB and I don't know if I want to spend the $$$ on a new game.

Heh. I try to not be too much of a fanboy because I can absolutely understand not liking the game because of the interface and graphics, but the engine is solid enough to really make me want to tell people about it.

The G1 news got better: my 4 year old colt Full Force Eyes was the 2009 Horse of the Year and Sprinter of the Year. Woo!

[dxtrfn1980]

I got the game and I cannot install the game and like to now how do I install the game? I use Vista.

[path12]

Originally Posted by dxtrfn1980

I got the game and I cannot install the game and like to now how do I install the game? I use Vista.

I don't use Vista so I have no idea. You might want to ask on the website forum?

[path12]

Just checked their website and saw this:

We have received many requests for a version of the game that runs on
the Vista operating system. It is now complete and available for sale.

If you have purchased the XP version of the game, and would like a
Vista compatible version, please Email: [email protected]
or call (702) 617-7899 with your name and address and we will send it to you free of charge.

Thank You
_________________
Post Time Software

Hopefully that will get you started.

[TCY Junkie]

I played this game way too much for a couple moths when I got it last year.

I posted on here that my horses kept getting trapped inside. Since I posted that, I haven't seen it more than handful of times. I feel like things happen just to make me look bad, kinda like when my parents got together.

[Schmidty]

Is this game going to be fun/understandable for someone that knows nothing about horse racing?

[TCY Junkie]

I really enjoyed it, but probably liked it more because I tried all the other crappy horse racing games. The demo gives you a very good idea of what to expect and would definitely try it before you buy it.. If you like a challenge then I would recommend it, that probably is the be best selling point of the game.

[Blade6119]

Bought Starters Orders 3 and have been having a blast. Havent had a single bug or issue pop up, and its been a blast. Had one horse who had all the talent in the world, but would only bring it half of the races he ran in. It was maddening watch him go from taking the huge win in dubai as a 3 yo to finishing dead last as a 4 year old. Or winning the Kentucky derby to finishing mid back in the preakness to dead last at the belmont. Maddening, but fun

And also, retiring him to stud only to watch him fail too many times to count as i drained away the money he won trying to breed him. That was fun, my little impotent pony.

[DaddyTorgo]

omg! a blade-sighting!

[Blade6119]

Have i been away?

[DaddyTorgo]

idk *shrugs*

[Blade6119]

Well its good to see you to either way!

[RPI-Fan]

Been playing the hell (well, by my standards, which means a few hours a week...) out of The Racing Breed since I got it a few weeks ago. So for me, even if I never play it again, it was $40 well-spent. I'm 4 seasons in... have only had 1 stakes winner so far... currently a 4yo filly (about to turn 5yo). She's getting really inconsistent though and probably won't do much to finish off her career.

I have been building a decent bankroll and will start to be able to take multiple gambles at the auction which should be nice. Although in my newest 2yo crop I went 0-for-4 as far as stakes horses go (which was refreshing given I was relatively successful with my first auction).

I made a big betting score on my 4yo who I'd been moving around to different types of races and she couldn't find her spot. Then, I returned her to a low-stakes race in her conditions but because of her recent struggles (with the wrong distance, surfaces, class, etc.) she was a 14-1 shot. There was another horse that had raced competitively with her in higher stakes races also at 3-1 so I put a big bet on a boxed exact and it hit which bumped my bankroll nicely. I guess the cool thing is that's one of the few times my horse has been a longshot and actually hit. But it really made perfect sense -- any normal bettor would have had trouble seeing past her recent difficulties and it looked like she was over the hill... but of course I knew that she probably had something in her at this distance, surface, and class. I don't think that I've ever otherwise had one of my horses be a 10+-to-1 shot and win...

I imagine that if you start getting a barn with quality horses in it (like I hopefully will!) and follow the major races from 2yo to 3yo to 4yo the game will get really interesting.

Overall I'm very pleasantly surprised. If the developers make a new version I'll be on it instantaneously. There are very few flaws in the game... its features are limited (no searching, no homebreeding, limited stats, etc.) but what it does it does VERY well (kind of the opposite of all other horse racing games). If they clean the game up, including the interface, it could be awesome... it's already very close to the online SimulatedSports horse-racing game in terms of features and if it adds homebreeding and a decent interface it will be amazing. I really hope these guys put something new out soon.

[TCY Junkie]

Originally Posted by RPI-Fan

Overall I'm very pleasantly surprised. If the developers make a new version I'll be on it instantaneously. There are very few flaws in the game... its features are limited (no searching, no homebreeding, limited stats, etc.) but what it does it does VERY well (kind of the opposite of all other horse racing games). If they clean the game up, including the interface, it could be awesome... it's already very close to the online SimulatedSports horse-racing game in terms of features and if it adds homebreeding and a decent interface it will be amazing. I really hope these guys put something new out soon.

Yeah, I think this game has great potential. I feel the same way about their next release.

[path12]

Massive milestone -- won the 2010 Derby. Woo! Funny thing was that I spent a ton of money on a horse that is turning out to be just average, while the winner was almost an afterthought picked up at the 2YO in training sale.

[path12]

Dola, the Winstrol injections really helped.



Take THAT, 14ers!

[billethius]

Originally Posted by path12

Massive milestone -- won the 2010 Derby. Woo! Funny thing was that I spent a ton of money on a horse that is turning out to be just average, while the winner was almost an afterthought picked up at the 2YO in training sale.

What was the breeding? I'm starting to think I tend to go after bloodlines that develop late. So I end up with a lot of horses having great 4yo and 5yo seasons, but the only time I have a good 2yo is when he is a pure sprinter.

As an aside, I have a fantastic 3yo filly right now. Like you, I picked her up in the 2yo in training auction for a fraction of what I spent on some of the others in my stable. As a 3yo (through May so far) she's 5 for 5, with 3 straight grade 1 wins, all by 5+ lengths.

[path12]

He's by Cherokee Run out of a Chimes Band mare. $140K. My $750K AP Indy colt is having problems getting past seven furlongs.

[QuikSand]

I have my first promising 3yo colt as well, in 2010. I claimed him for $50K after seeing him run into terrible traffic and finishing 4th in an allowance race that he probably should have won. Since then, he has won an allowance race and the Grade 3 Hickory Stakes in Kentucky. Best speed figure is a 95 so far, and I'm aiming him for the classics -- why the heck not?

I have only been running a very short stable (usually only one or two horses) to get a feel for things, and this is my first meaningful success. It has gotten me out of the poor house, though - with $300K in cash, I can probably make some thing happen for down the road now, even if this guy never earns another buck.

I had to put this game down for a while, but it's proven worth coming back to -- decent praise, coming from me, as most games don't get that far.

[QuikSand]

Well, it looks like my colt isn't really a classic contender after all - two 1 1/8 mi races seem to have confirmed that. His great moment will probably be sitting in the garden spot behind the eventual winner of the Seattle Slew Stakes at the quarterpole, from which he promptly faded to 5th. Looks like a nice middle distance colt who can make me some money, but not millions.

[RPI-Fan]

What kind of pace are you guys playing at? I started with the $300k and am in 2010 right now, which seems pretty far given that I don't play THAT much and have had the game for much less time than you guys. I basically just sim up until it's my horses' turns to run. By the time they've all run (usually takes 2-3 weeks) they're rested enough to start scheduling another "cycle" of races (I've only had one horse to this point where I really planned out her schedule around the various stakes races... and to be honest I didn't do enough of that with her).

The majority of my horses, I get via the 2yo yearling auctions. I've been picking up a few lately in claimers, but I'm just dabbling with that for now. I really have to echo what Quik commented about this game at first, though... they AI is almost amazingly sensible. I ran in a $50k 3yo(F) claimer and claimed a horse in there I liked. My horse ended up getting claimed too. So, the one I like had a bad outing and I had no worries about entering her in a similar race 2.5-3 weeks later. Who do I see in that race? Yep, the horse I'd had claimed before. On top of that, at least 2-3 OTHER competitors from that prior race were also in there.

[path12]

I'm in 2010, but I started at the top with a million because I wanted a big stable and have had 40 horses since the end of my first year. I also tend to be kind of neurotic and have to watch every race my horses run in -- it's so hard at times to find what a particular horses preference is that it helps me quite a bit to actually watch them run to get clues as to what they want/can compete with. That is also kind of a testament to the AI, I guess.

[QuikSand]

I started with $10,000, and had to bet my way to have enough to even make a single claim. I'm playing with a very sparse stable of only one or two horses most of the time, though after a good run from last year's colt I had enough around to claim a 3yo for this year's prep season and several yearlings from last year's December sale. But I'm basically running the stripped-down game, and with a little time to kill, flew though about two years of play in a few hours yesterday.

[QuikSand]

I'm still playing this intermittently. I'm still running a small barn, but I got good runs out of two high-dollar claimers and put each of them past the $1m earnings mark, including a 2nd in the CC Sprint, and a 3rd in the CC Turf, giving me around $1.5m in the bank now, even after doing some reckless spending in the yearling auctions.

In 2014, it looks like I have my first Derby horse. Purchased him as a 2yo in training last spring, he was by an excellent in-game horse turned stallion, and was fairly cheap (like $50k). He only has one win in his 9 career races but since then he has finished in the top four in five straight graded stakes races, including a hard-charging 2nd place in the G1 Seattle Slew. He's got $230K in earnings, andd seems to want distance - so his ticket is definitely punched.

[path12]

Originally Posted by QuikSand

I'm still playing this intermittently. I'm still running a small barn, but I got good runs out of two high-dollar claimers and put each of them past the $1m earnings mark, including a 2nd in the CC Sprint, and a 3rd in the CC Turf, giving me around $1.5m in the bank now, even after doing some reckless spending in the yearling auctions.

In 2014, it looks like I have my first Derby horse. Purchased him as a 2yo in training last spring, he was by an excellent in-game horse turned stallion, and was fairly cheap (like $50k). He only has one win in his 9 career races but since then he has finished in the top four in five straight graded stakes races, including a hard-charging 2nd place in the G1 Seattle Slew. He's got $230K in earnings, andd seems to want distance - so his ticket is definitely punched.

I'm really trying hard to get into OOTP but I do keep coming back to this. I'm in 2012 now I think. I've never done a dynasty before, but I've set up a couple of new games just in case I decide to try one. I just hate feeling like I've got to really take notes.......though it would be fun to have an interactive thing where yearlings can represent people and see how they progress.

BTW, I saw your message on their board about the end of race dynamics. I had never really thought about that before but have taken a closer look the past couple of nights. I don't really have a problem with the way it comes out -- I think of it more as just representing the strength of finish down the stretch -- if you're passing tired horses I'm not going to think much of it -- if you're battling with other ralliers the horse will get more credit.

I think my only quibble after all this time with the actual race engine is that there seem to be an awful lot of horses that have trouble getting past five furlongs -- I don't know if in real life that happens and I just don't notice it. Also I do have to have a house rule about claiming horses -- only through April when one of mine get claimed, and then I roll a die to tell me which day/days I have to claim one back.

The real issues in my mind are almost all interface/ease of info related:

Need a race finder.
Par time range for classes would be good to know.
Lifetime records of horses, sires and dams.
A NOTE SCREEN FOR EACH HORSE TO COMMENT ON THE RACE!!
Skip to next race tag -- very good suggestion by you.
Easier access back and forth between catalogs and auctions.
Flag a horse (lost in claim, want to get back, for example).
Listing of race conditions both during race replay and in betting/race screen. (I hate having to go to PP's to find that out).
Moddability of track backgrounds/graphics.
Ability to rename stakes or make a customized schedule of a stakes series.

I know there are a ton of other ones that I can't think of right now, but man, if we could get even some of these that would be awesome.

[TCY Junkie]

Originally Posted by path12

The real issues in my mind are almost all interface/ease of info related:

Need a race finder.
Par time range for classes would be good to know.
Lifetime records of horses, sires and dams.
A NOTE SCREEN FOR EACH HORSE TO COMMENT ON THE RACE!!
Skip to next race tag -- very good suggestion by you.
Easier access back and forth between catalogs and auctions.
Flag a horse (lost in claim, want to get back, for example).
Listing of race conditions both during race replay and in betting/race screen. (I hate having to go to PP's to find that out).
Moddability of track backgrounds/graphics.
Ability to rename stakes or make a customized schedule of a stakes series.

I know there are a ton of other ones that I can't think of right now, but man, if we could get even some of these that would be awesome.

I can thnk of so many improvements for this game, its only because it held my attention far more than any other horse racing game. All the great horses I owned where front runners.

I'm having problems with my browser once I log on helpfully it will all be fixed soon.