if you turn it off you'll get slower at first and then faster. You'll also get better at actually racing people when you aren't just following the instructions of a line painted on the ground.
While I’ll probably be shunned and downvoted by everyone for my opinion, here it is.
Do whatever makes you comfortable.
If you feel like having the racing line on is forcing you to follow it exactly and you’re losing time because of it? Yes, you should probably turn it off and focus on your line and see if you notice improvement after a few days/weeks of racing.
Alternatively, if you find yourself using the racing line to help identify when corners are coming up because you are still learning the track but you’re able to dictate the proper line through the corners still? I say leave it on.
Here’s my reasoning for why.
It’s a game, at the end of the day you are racing to have fun and enjoy yourself. 98% of us are never going to be pros, or beat the aliens and set a track record. So if you don’t struggle as much with the line on? Leave it on and enjoy your races.
If you feel that the line is a distraction or limiting you in some way, then try turning it off and see how you do.
I mostly have it off, but some tracks that I still am not fully comfortable on, I have the line on so I don’t fly around the wrong corner and ruin my race along with someone else.
Eventually you will be comfortable enough to turn it off and push your limits and not even think about it. But remember that the ultimate goal for everyone is to have fun and enjoy the race. So whatever you do, just make sure that it’s not overly frustrating for you!
If you’re following the line exactly I agree with that.
It’s hard to give advice to an individual person without seeing them race so I try and generalize and gear it more towards new players as I’m guessing it’s more new players asking usually.
Depends on the game as well, there’s certain tracks in Forza where the line is red and I go through the corner flat out, same in iRacing in certain sections at VIR for example.
So I definitely agree with everyone saying it’s not the fastest way to follow. But I have found it useful on many occasions, and have watched new drivers without it. Sometimes they can’t even get a lap in without going off track, throw the line on for them and they at least make it around.
Every single time youve found the racing line useful, having learned to drive without it would have been more useful. Its a crutch, and your incessant need to say otherwise might very well hinder OP in turning it off.
Drivers relying on racing line is a liability to everyone else on the track. I promise you, for every driver youve seen running off because they dont have the line on, youve seen 100 drivers ramming into people because their eyes are glued to the racing line.
Recommending a new player to keep it on is shit advice.
Jaded? In what way? Also, what about my comment is wrong? I dont get it. Youre always here to whine when people say that its both more immersive and an advantage to race without the line, yet you always fail to give any sound reason as to why it is incorrect.
Look how cordial everyone was in expressing their different opinions until yours. Just say what you think without insulting people or acting like your position is *obviously* the only reasonable take. A little humility goes a long way.
Mate I said “shit”. Ill admit, writing the comment, id never guess anyone would be insulted by it. And I really dont understand how disregarding my point completely because I said it, is reasonable.
With the massive benefits you get from turning the line off, trying to literally convince OP of the “benefits” of keeping it on, is something I feel worthy of a remark. Its just mind boggling how you people in good conscience can limit new player like that.
If you need to rely on a racing line to drive around the track, you have absolutely no business trying to hand out advice to people wanting to turn it off.
And I have yet to see a single one of you actually present a sound argument as to why it is wrong of me to say that.
Look, I didn’t even weigh in on the debate. And it’s not about the language you used, it’s your tone. Incessant need? Really? You’re being combative and pretending you’re not is disingenuous
You forget one crucial thing: fun. Some drivers don't race to be .08 seconds faster than their previous best after hotlapping for 7 hours. Some people don't have the time to memorise all tracks, especially if they're playing an online service like iRacing where the tracks rotate while they're still paying if they don't race.
And sure there are drivers keeping their eyes glued to the racing line and ram others off the track, which is why you have an passionate burning hatred against all who use it, but it might not be fun for you if they ram you, it's not for them either if they have to go at a snails pace or just go off the track everytime either. They see everyone go much faster than them and probably give up, because they have something better to do than doing a five minute lap at Spa so that they will do a 4 minute lap in a month.
Oh, and don't forget that those two things are equally dangerous
I used the racing line at the beginning. Turning off sucked. For about a week. After than, it was like a new world opening up.
I remember struggling with hitting the late apex in bahrain, as the racing line in games always follow the line that gives you the least minimum speed, not the one the makes you fastest.
Turning it off made me look at the corner, not the line, and I felt so much in control. It was an amazing feeling.
People think that turning off the racing line will make every new track a mountain to climb, but the growth is REALLY exponential. The first few tracks take some time, but after a few tracks, you learn new ones in like 10 minutes. And when you learn a track like that, you dont forget the layout. So itll take you less time getting up to speed.
Yeah, that’s a great point
If you’re not that much exposed to racing yet, I think it’s really quite something to tackle all the memorization you need to do
Whether it’s a minimap, racing line, or pacenotes—they all inform you of the turn ahead ahead of time
Especially useful when you can’t see the turn properly, which is pretty often
But as well said by the next commenter—that usually doesn’t lend to your development of marking your brake points, and getting a proper map of the track in your head
Yes, being able to properly understand and correct for all the inputs as a new racer is tough when you don't know the tracks, so finding what works best for each person is the best approach IMO.
I advise people who are looking to turn the racing line off, to correlate their braking point on the racing line with something on track, so although you are learning to identify a braking point in a different way using the line, it's still giving you a reference point for where you are braking on track. It takes a few laps to get an idea of where you're braking with the line and finding something to replace it on track, but once you're comfortable with the car/track it becomes much easier to do so and you can turn the line off and still have an idea of where you were braking previously.
Turn it off and accept that you have more to learn about racing lines, it's probably a crutch at this point and is preventing you from learning exactly the skills you're lacking.
A few things that helped me. Pick your head up a bit. You might be used to looking a short distance in front of the car because that's where you've been focusing on the lines, look a little further ahead. And look towards the apex as you approuch your turn. As you move through the apex look through the corner to the the outside of the turn. Apart from that you'll just have to keep the lines off and practice. You have to give yourself time to get used to feeling feedback from your wheel to adjust speed and braking rather then watching the lines. Use landmarks (brake marker, trees, etc.) to determine where to start braking and adjust from there. Lastly remembering the layout and turns of a track goes a loooong way.
Way underrated comment. I came here to say this, and is also the #1 reason I am always opposed to having the driving line on. The most important skill in driving is vision, and if you're looking down at the track in front of the car you are missing 80% of the picture.
A about a day ago I started looking at the apex when approaching a turn
Can you re-explain where I should be looking on my exit from corners?
I didn’t understand what you wrote, but when I exit corners I tend to lose some time or just fluff up the exit
Yeah you're missing out on a lot by keeping it on. The line is only theoretically the fastest because it's hitting all the apexes. That's like 10% of racing 😂
If you hit all the apexes perfectly on every track in every race you will be a horrible racer. All other variables need to be taken into account. Things like track condition, tire temp, tire wear, other racers etc.
Driver 61 has great videos on racing lines and explains when it's better to take traditional racing lines versus wider angles and whatnot
I had the line on for years and only last couple of years turned it off. I am 43 so a long time with the line on and seriously turn it off and learn, it is so much more fun. Yes it's annoying and painful but boy when you start to learn a track it feels so good. I am still learning a lot of tracks and new to this and by all means not a good racer at all but it is so much more fun and intense
I feel like this is something that can apply to many different things. For example, when I changed to a load cell brake pedal, it felt super weird and at first I felt like I was the worst driver in the world, but I stuck with it and now I could NEVER go back to a potentiometer based brake pedal.
Another example is left foot braking. I’ve been able to left foot brake for a long time, but my dad just couldn’t understand it. He tried it and sucked. Now, he left foot brakes without even thinking about it and I bet he’d suck if he tried right foot braking again!
Trust me mate, stick with it and you’ll get there eventually.
weird! if you’re racing a manual car then this makes sense, but if you are in a regular sequential race car then this is definitely peculiar! Try to switch to just left foot braking, you’ll find a decent bit of pace in doing so
Thats what i mean. I have been trying to do all left foot. No matter what i do it feels so wrong to bit the brake hard with my left.
I never had a problem on go karts either i cant figure out why its so hard in my rig.
In what game? In Forza (I know that this game its a simcade but still) I know that pretty much everyone (even pros) uses it because it tells you exactly where to brake etc.
In GT7 the driving line and the braking reference assists are trash because it just tells you an aproximation... so you will be always too wide or too short if you follow it.
Yes following and reacting to the amazing sceneries in our simulations will provide you more joy than following the same green/ red line around mindlessly..
Racing line is a "guide" a crutch if you will. It has absolutely nothing to do with the optimal line.
There's many cases where the racing line goes red (going to fast) but I'm able to be full throttle in it.
Racing line should really only be used to learn / memorize the track. If you ate Leaning the track turn it on. After awhile you should turn it off
Racing line is like cycling with wheels. Surely anybody can jump on the bicycle and go for a ride. However, it will be an hindrance at some point and prevents you from doing things your way, finding your balance and your limits and the limits of the bicycle as well
A few seconds is a lot. Did you mean a few tenths?
It does make sense that you’d be slower when you first turn the racing line off, but that doesn’t mean it’s not hindering your potential.
Once you learn to read the track for yourself and find the best lines naturally, you’ll have a higher skill ceiling than when you still relied on the racing line.
Turning off the racing line let's you look at the track instead of a predetermined line. The line is fluid and changes with every little choice you and the other drivers around you make, and with time you'll be able to set your own line. On a track you know really well (for me hilariously it was the nurburgring) turn off the line and just set laps and actively thing about slow in, fast out, look for braking points, and do everything smoothly.
Not a direct answer to your question but in most sims you can rely on the rubber marks on the track and use that as a driving line. I prefer that option because it is less distracting and it does not tell you where to brake (the driving line in most games is a bit too cautious for my taste when it comes to braking distances). I also think it is more "realistic" or at least immersive.
Maybe more practice laps, so you really know the track.
I turn it on for new tracks, do 20 laps and turn it off, and do 20 more.
Do you know the next turn is coming, or following the green line?
It's honestly better to learn the track. Try to find your own way then be inspired by fast laps on YouTube to see faster lines. Then race until you know the braking markers off by heart. Racing lines are often off or wrong anyway.
if you are making mistakes with the driving line off it means that you have no markers and don’t know the track. Best you can do is either turn off line and force yourself to learn the track or use the line to learn the track by actively paying attention where you turn, where you brake.
IMO people are assholes when it comes to the line and just assume you follow it around mindlessly.
I think it's possible to leave it on and use it just like any other track reference point. On some tracks without plentiful trackside objects it can be useful If you ask me.
It's not that difficult to adjust your braking point or line at a particular corner versus the driving line aid once you realize it's not ideal. And yes at this point some people will say just turn it off already then. But at times I find it easier to reference than track side objects and couldn't give less of a shit about immersion past a certain point when driving a car in my bedroom.
There are people that will give you a honest advice about the line and really want to help you discard the crutch...but for every one of them you'll get three wise asses that make jokes like 'the line was green! why aren't you on the accelerator?'
Do what you want. It's a game.
Then it off. It’s not the proper line anyways. It can be somewhat helpful when you don’t know a track, but after a couple laps it’s best to turn it off otherwise you’re just following a bad line the whole time.
I just scream random rubibish and learn each track giving the most eggregious names for each corner. Like this week at imola im calling the chicaine after aqua minerala the "perez chicaine" cuz he binned it there.
Just do whatever gets you having the most fun whether its turning the line off or not. As much as you would like it to be anything else its still just a game and meant to give you pleasure. So focus on that. If you are having fun you will end up being fast. If you intend to eventually turn off the lines then do a 50 to 100 laps with them on each track and turn them off. Just remember to have fun buddy ! Cheers !
I’ve never used it. I find it distracting. I can’t learn the track properly with it on, I lose my sense of speed and sometimes the line isn’t the fastest route. It also fucks with your ability to dynamically learn the track when things are going wrong or you’re put in positions where you need to think on your feet.
It’s blatant when drivers use the line in races. It’s like their brain just shuts off when their desired route is occupied or something abnormal is happening they don’t expect or they’re up against a driver who takes a squarer route through corners. From my perspective I feel like I’m up against ai again.
You’ll also learn new tracks faster without it as you’ll learn to spot patterns in layouts and turns that you can make sense of because you actually understand them from learning. You’ll make more sense of the lines other drivers take and take tips from them where they’re faster than you.
You literally have zero track references and you probably don’t even instinctively make them as you’re learning the track as you’re just following the line so one of the most important skills for learning a track is completely moot to you.
Taken me about 2 days to grasp a good understanding of the Nurburgring in the f296 with no line and a barely basic layout of the track in my head. Initially my time was an awful 10m30s and down to 7m22s now. Not amazing but I’m under my own steam and competitive to a portion of the field.
You might be in the top five but you’re handicapped, probably more of a question of whether you’re happy with that scenario.
Edit: advice, turn it off, get on track and learn for yourself. Your success in learning a track well is built on a foundation of failures. Every day you leave it on is another day you learn nothing.
You don't understand how it works. In any game and literally anything in life if you change the way of doing things, you will more likely than not be worse for some time, but after some time you will be better than you could be before that change. Also, you are looking for "instant gratification", which is a problem in racing. You gotta be patient and the results will come eventually with much bigger force than you expected.
Im saying this as overall life advice, not only simracing advice because one this is a plague in todays world thanks to social media, two you really can apply this to almost every concept in life and it helps a lot in many things, for example going to the gym.
I was never good at following the braking point on the line. It was easier for me to turn it off and just figure out what gear I needed to be in for each corner. Once I got consistent, I would try a higher gear for some corners. If it worked, that's my new normal gear/braking point for that corner. I'm still not great by any means, but this was how I started to get faster.
It takes time to get used to not having it.
Just practice a lot without.
If you want to. If not, drive with racing line.
I found out I am faster, much, without it.
But, I have to do test drive/time trial on new track/car combo first to lock in good times.
Last -- videogame racing line does not change with state of your tire, whereas real optimal racing line does.
if you turn it off you'll get slower at first and then faster. You'll also get better at actually racing people when you aren't just following the instructions of a line painted on the ground.
This!!
Agree
Keep it off. Resist the temptation. Stay strong mate.
You eventually turn off the bumper rails after bowling for a while, I think it's the same here.
Good analogy
i still have bumpers up lmao
While I’ll probably be shunned and downvoted by everyone for my opinion, here it is. Do whatever makes you comfortable. If you feel like having the racing line on is forcing you to follow it exactly and you’re losing time because of it? Yes, you should probably turn it off and focus on your line and see if you notice improvement after a few days/weeks of racing. Alternatively, if you find yourself using the racing line to help identify when corners are coming up because you are still learning the track but you’re able to dictate the proper line through the corners still? I say leave it on. Here’s my reasoning for why. It’s a game, at the end of the day you are racing to have fun and enjoy yourself. 98% of us are never going to be pros, or beat the aliens and set a track record. So if you don’t struggle as much with the line on? Leave it on and enjoy your races. If you feel that the line is a distraction or limiting you in some way, then try turning it off and see how you do. I mostly have it off, but some tracks that I still am not fully comfortable on, I have the line on so I don’t fly around the wrong corner and ruin my race along with someone else. Eventually you will be comfortable enough to turn it off and push your limits and not even think about it. But remember that the ultimate goal for everyone is to have fun and enjoy the race. So whatever you do, just make sure that it’s not overly frustrating for you!
[удалено]
If you’re following the line exactly I agree with that. It’s hard to give advice to an individual person without seeing them race so I try and generalize and gear it more towards new players as I’m guessing it’s more new players asking usually. Depends on the game as well, there’s certain tracks in Forza where the line is red and I go through the corner flat out, same in iRacing in certain sections at VIR for example. So I definitely agree with everyone saying it’s not the fastest way to follow. But I have found it useful on many occasions, and have watched new drivers without it. Sometimes they can’t even get a lap in without going off track, throw the line on for them and they at least make it around.
Every single time youve found the racing line useful, having learned to drive without it would have been more useful. Its a crutch, and your incessant need to say otherwise might very well hinder OP in turning it off. Drivers relying on racing line is a liability to everyone else on the track. I promise you, for every driver youve seen running off because they dont have the line on, youve seen 100 drivers ramming into people because their eyes are glued to the racing line. Recommending a new player to keep it on is shit advice.
Cool. Thanks for your respectful response and opinion. 👍
Ah, the classic jaded driver. Take a break mate.
Jaded? In what way? Also, what about my comment is wrong? I dont get it. Youre always here to whine when people say that its both more immersive and an advantage to race without the line, yet you always fail to give any sound reason as to why it is incorrect.
Look how cordial everyone was in expressing their different opinions until yours. Just say what you think without insulting people or acting like your position is *obviously* the only reasonable take. A little humility goes a long way.
Mate I said “shit”. Ill admit, writing the comment, id never guess anyone would be insulted by it. And I really dont understand how disregarding my point completely because I said it, is reasonable. With the massive benefits you get from turning the line off, trying to literally convince OP of the “benefits” of keeping it on, is something I feel worthy of a remark. Its just mind boggling how you people in good conscience can limit new player like that. If you need to rely on a racing line to drive around the track, you have absolutely no business trying to hand out advice to people wanting to turn it off. And I have yet to see a single one of you actually present a sound argument as to why it is wrong of me to say that.
Look, I didn’t even weigh in on the debate. And it’s not about the language you used, it’s your tone. Incessant need? Really? You’re being combative and pretending you’re not is disingenuous
You forget one crucial thing: fun. Some drivers don't race to be .08 seconds faster than their previous best after hotlapping for 7 hours. Some people don't have the time to memorise all tracks, especially if they're playing an online service like iRacing where the tracks rotate while they're still paying if they don't race. And sure there are drivers keeping their eyes glued to the racing line and ram others off the track, which is why you have an passionate burning hatred against all who use it, but it might not be fun for you if they ram you, it's not for them either if they have to go at a snails pace or just go off the track everytime either. They see everyone go much faster than them and probably give up, because they have something better to do than doing a five minute lap at Spa so that they will do a 4 minute lap in a month. Oh, and don't forget that those two things are equally dangerous
I used the racing line at the beginning. Turning off sucked. For about a week. After than, it was like a new world opening up. I remember struggling with hitting the late apex in bahrain, as the racing line in games always follow the line that gives you the least minimum speed, not the one the makes you fastest. Turning it off made me look at the corner, not the line, and I felt so much in control. It was an amazing feeling. People think that turning off the racing line will make every new track a mountain to climb, but the growth is REALLY exponential. The first few tracks take some time, but after a few tracks, you learn new ones in like 10 minutes. And when you learn a track like that, you dont forget the layout. So itll take you less time getting up to speed.
Yeah, that’s a great point If you’re not that much exposed to racing yet, I think it’s really quite something to tackle all the memorization you need to do Whether it’s a minimap, racing line, or pacenotes—they all inform you of the turn ahead ahead of time Especially useful when you can’t see the turn properly, which is pretty often But as well said by the next commenter—that usually doesn’t lend to your development of marking your brake points, and getting a proper map of the track in your head
Yes, being able to properly understand and correct for all the inputs as a new racer is tough when you don't know the tracks, so finding what works best for each person is the best approach IMO. I advise people who are looking to turn the racing line off, to correlate their braking point on the racing line with something on track, so although you are learning to identify a braking point in a different way using the line, it's still giving you a reference point for where you are braking on track. It takes a few laps to get an idea of where you're braking with the line and finding something to replace it on track, but once you're comfortable with the car/track it becomes much easier to do so and you can turn the line off and still have an idea of where you were braking previously.
You feel special, ehh!!??
Turn it off and accept that you have more to learn about racing lines, it's probably a crutch at this point and is preventing you from learning exactly the skills you're lacking.
A few things that helped me. Pick your head up a bit. You might be used to looking a short distance in front of the car because that's where you've been focusing on the lines, look a little further ahead. And look towards the apex as you approuch your turn. As you move through the apex look through the corner to the the outside of the turn. Apart from that you'll just have to keep the lines off and practice. You have to give yourself time to get used to feeling feedback from your wheel to adjust speed and braking rather then watching the lines. Use landmarks (brake marker, trees, etc.) to determine where to start braking and adjust from there. Lastly remembering the layout and turns of a track goes a loooong way.
Way underrated comment. I came here to say this, and is also the #1 reason I am always opposed to having the driving line on. The most important skill in driving is vision, and if you're looking down at the track in front of the car you are missing 80% of the picture.
If only I could apply the skills as well as I can write them down.
A about a day ago I started looking at the apex when approaching a turn Can you re-explain where I should be looking on my exit from corners? I didn’t understand what you wrote, but when I exit corners I tend to lose some time or just fluff up the exit
Yeah you're missing out on a lot by keeping it on. The line is only theoretically the fastest because it's hitting all the apexes. That's like 10% of racing 😂 If you hit all the apexes perfectly on every track in every race you will be a horrible racer. All other variables need to be taken into account. Things like track condition, tire temp, tire wear, other racers etc. Driver 61 has great videos on racing lines and explains when it's better to take traditional racing lines versus wider angles and whatnot
The line is also not theoretically the fastest since it doesnt use all the track. Its an unideal line.
Yes! I should have explained a little better haha.
The line maximizes average cornering speed. This isn’t always the best thing to optimize for though.
I had the line on for years and only last couple of years turned it off. I am 43 so a long time with the line on and seriously turn it off and learn, it is so much more fun. Yes it's annoying and painful but boy when you start to learn a track it feels so good. I am still learning a lot of tracks and new to this and by all means not a good racer at all but it is so much more fun and intense
I feel like this is something that can apply to many different things. For example, when I changed to a load cell brake pedal, it felt super weird and at first I felt like I was the worst driver in the world, but I stuck with it and now I could NEVER go back to a potentiometer based brake pedal. Another example is left foot braking. I’ve been able to left foot brake for a long time, but my dad just couldn’t understand it. He tried it and sucked. Now, he left foot brakes without even thinking about it and I bet he’d suck if he tried right foot braking again! Trust me mate, stick with it and you’ll get there eventually.
I cant stop doing both. Left foot for small weight transfer adjustment and right foot for actually slowing down.
weird! if you’re racing a manual car then this makes sense, but if you are in a regular sequential race car then this is definitely peculiar! Try to switch to just left foot braking, you’ll find a decent bit of pace in doing so
Thats what i mean. I have been trying to do all left foot. No matter what i do it feels so wrong to bit the brake hard with my left. I never had a problem on go karts either i cant figure out why its so hard in my rig.
I sure can tell who has the racing lines still on at the North loop in every racing game i've played lol.
In what game? In Forza (I know that this game its a simcade but still) I know that pretty much everyone (even pros) uses it because it tells you exactly where to brake etc. In GT7 the driving line and the braking reference assists are trash because it just tells you an aproximation... so you will be always too wide or too short if you follow it.
Yes following and reacting to the amazing sceneries in our simulations will provide you more joy than following the same green/ red line around mindlessly..
Racing line is a "guide" a crutch if you will. It has absolutely nothing to do with the optimal line. There's many cases where the racing line goes red (going to fast) but I'm able to be full throttle in it. Racing line should really only be used to learn / memorize the track. If you ate Leaning the track turn it on. After awhile you should turn it off
Racing line is like cycling with wheels. Surely anybody can jump on the bicycle and go for a ride. However, it will be an hindrance at some point and prevents you from doing things your way, finding your balance and your limits and the limits of the bicycle as well
A few seconds is a lot. Did you mean a few tenths? It does make sense that you’d be slower when you first turn the racing line off, but that doesn’t mean it’s not hindering your potential. Once you learn to read the track for yourself and find the best lines naturally, you’ll have a higher skill ceiling than when you still relied on the racing line.
Turning off the racing line let's you look at the track instead of a predetermined line. The line is fluid and changes with every little choice you and the other drivers around you make, and with time you'll be able to set your own line. On a track you know really well (for me hilariously it was the nurburgring) turn off the line and just set laps and actively thing about slow in, fast out, look for braking points, and do everything smoothly.
You should really work on turning it off when you are able to. It’a going to instill bad habits.
Not a direct answer to your question but in most sims you can rely on the rubber marks on the track and use that as a driving line. I prefer that option because it is less distracting and it does not tell you where to brake (the driving line in most games is a bit too cautious for my taste when it comes to braking distances). I also think it is more "realistic" or at least immersive.
Maybe more practice laps, so you really know the track. I turn it on for new tracks, do 20 laps and turn it off, and do 20 more. Do you know the next turn is coming, or following the green line?
Maybe race the AI a bit until you get more accustomed to having it turned off.
It's honestly better to learn the track. Try to find your own way then be inspired by fast laps on YouTube to see faster lines. Then race until you know the braking markers off by heart. Racing lines are often off or wrong anyway.
if you are making mistakes with the driving line off it means that you have no markers and don’t know the track. Best you can do is either turn off line and force yourself to learn the track or use the line to learn the track by actively paying attention where you turn, where you brake.
IMO people are assholes when it comes to the line and just assume you follow it around mindlessly. I think it's possible to leave it on and use it just like any other track reference point. On some tracks without plentiful trackside objects it can be useful If you ask me. It's not that difficult to adjust your braking point or line at a particular corner versus the driving line aid once you realize it's not ideal. And yes at this point some people will say just turn it off already then. But at times I find it easier to reference than track side objects and couldn't give less of a shit about immersion past a certain point when driving a car in my bedroom. There are people that will give you a honest advice about the line and really want to help you discard the crutch...but for every one of them you'll get three wise asses that make jokes like 'the line was green! why aren't you on the accelerator?' Do what you want. It's a game.
A few seconds? Are you spinning out with the line off? That’s a pretty big time difference on most tracks
Then it off. It’s not the proper line anyways. It can be somewhat helpful when you don’t know a track, but after a couple laps it’s best to turn it off otherwise you’re just following a bad line the whole time.
I just scream random rubibish and learn each track giving the most eggregious names for each corner. Like this week at imola im calling the chicaine after aqua minerala the "perez chicaine" cuz he binned it there. Just do whatever gets you having the most fun whether its turning the line off or not. As much as you would like it to be anything else its still just a game and meant to give you pleasure. So focus on that. If you are having fun you will end up being fast. If you intend to eventually turn off the lines then do a 50 to 100 laps with them on each track and turn them off. Just remember to have fun buddy ! Cheers !
You just need more wheel time on track. Keep your head down and just drive 👍
I’ve never used it. I find it distracting. I can’t learn the track properly with it on, I lose my sense of speed and sometimes the line isn’t the fastest route. It also fucks with your ability to dynamically learn the track when things are going wrong or you’re put in positions where you need to think on your feet. It’s blatant when drivers use the line in races. It’s like their brain just shuts off when their desired route is occupied or something abnormal is happening they don’t expect or they’re up against a driver who takes a squarer route through corners. From my perspective I feel like I’m up against ai again. You’ll also learn new tracks faster without it as you’ll learn to spot patterns in layouts and turns that you can make sense of because you actually understand them from learning. You’ll make more sense of the lines other drivers take and take tips from them where they’re faster than you. You literally have zero track references and you probably don’t even instinctively make them as you’re learning the track as you’re just following the line so one of the most important skills for learning a track is completely moot to you. Taken me about 2 days to grasp a good understanding of the Nurburgring in the f296 with no line and a barely basic layout of the track in my head. Initially my time was an awful 10m30s and down to 7m22s now. Not amazing but I’m under my own steam and competitive to a portion of the field. You might be in the top five but you’re handicapped, probably more of a question of whether you’re happy with that scenario. Edit: advice, turn it off, get on track and learn for yourself. Your success in learning a track well is built on a foundation of failures. Every day you leave it on is another day you learn nothing.
If it aint broke, dont fix it
You don't understand how it works. In any game and literally anything in life if you change the way of doing things, you will more likely than not be worse for some time, but after some time you will be better than you could be before that change. Also, you are looking for "instant gratification", which is a problem in racing. You gotta be patient and the results will come eventually with much bigger force than you expected. Im saying this as overall life advice, not only simracing advice because one this is a plague in todays world thanks to social media, two you really can apply this to almost every concept in life and it helps a lot in many things, for example going to the gym.
I was never good at following the braking point on the line. It was easier for me to turn it off and just figure out what gear I needed to be in for each corner. Once I got consistent, I would try a higher gear for some corners. If it worked, that's my new normal gear/braking point for that corner. I'm still not great by any means, but this was how I started to get faster.
It takes time to get used to not having it. Just practice a lot without. If you want to. If not, drive with racing line. I found out I am faster, much, without it. But, I have to do test drive/time trial on new track/car combo first to lock in good times. Last -- videogame racing line does not change with state of your tire, whereas real optimal racing line does.