I didn't see this posted and am wondering if it's something with my system or just part of the 2010 PCM quirks. I currently have the 1.0.2.2 version but updating it to 1.0.3.0 while I write this.
Issues that I haven't seen on the forums..
- Attack function: Either it's functionality has changed from PCM 09 or it's just strange. You still use it to break away and attack but it's actual result is quite different. To establish a break away I can counter attack someone who's trying to make the gap and once the game says we're the lead group I can change it to hold position or dot with a 50 effort and conserve a ton of energy while very very slowly sliding back in the breakaway group, if at all. Counter attacking during this time spikes the heart rate while the follow or dot will keep it below 170 and with the same result.
Attacking up climbs, I made a godly chr (85 across the board) for kicks just to see and at the end of the stage after being on hold position the whole stage (full bars basically) I tell him to attack up the last climb to a hilltop finish. The Astana team was pushing it up the climb but my chr heart rate was around 165, so I figured that when I hit attack I'd fly up the last 4k of the climb. I was wrong! He dropped about 30 places with his heart rate spiking all the while the rest of the team (who were above avg climbers) stayed in their positions with no change in heart rate. I dropped myself instantly by attacking. I'm guessing the whole 'wind up' physics failure here.
In the end the attack function seems to be really weak in this version and the wind up seems to have a top speed which can actually drop you. Never happened in older (only played 08 and 09 though) versions.
- Breakaway: For whatever reason there's a bunch of times when I'm part of a 7-10 man breakaway which has around 2 minutes on the peloton right after establishing itself but for whatever reason there's single attacker that wants to do the last 100km alone. That's fine, if I chase him down the whole breakaway uses me to draft off of and re-establish. Then another rider (not the original) will pull the same move. I decide not to chase this time and to wait, only to see the entire breakaway form on me (be it hold position or relay) to the point where I can move the slider to 0 and have the 5-8 riders behind come to a complete stop and put their foot down along with my rider. What's this?? I've never been enough of a daredevil to leave it at 0 and see if all those riders will abandon with me though.
- Relay: This has to use way too much energy. Holding position in the echelon with the relay on (be it 30 or 99) energy spikes the heart rate like no other in a climb even with a good climbing character. You can have him @ 60 relaying and he's at 190 heart rate burning though his energy while not even in the front. Set the same guy to 65 dot and he'll lead the peloton up the hill like a champ while burning 1/10th the energy.
- Computer cheating: I honestly don't remember it being this bad in previous versions but in a 1 day race (I forget which one, not a CTT) there was a good hill climb with about 25k to go in the stage. Probably around 7-8k long, so I had a decent classics/hill team with a 6 good hill and mtn climbers (74+ with 80+ fitness) so I decide to put my team on the front (relay... dumb!) of the climb and gun them at 93-99 to drop some of the sprinters. To my dismay my leader (78,79 hill mountain) nearly burns out while on dot and sliding a little bit while people like Cavendish, Ferrar and such stay right behind my team, get up and over and Cav ends up winning the stage. While my entire team is burnt from the hill including my leader who didn't do any work. Doesn't seem to make any sense.
Issues I've seen on the forums
- Sprints: No team trains by AI, but even after establishing my own and putting my sprinter at least 5 lengths in front of the PACK (Spartacus @ 99 from 4k to go) and not the other sprinter I've lost stages with good sprinters (81 flat, 79 sp, 80 acc) after being launched from 1.2k to go with at least 10-15 lengths on Cav only to see Cav (or other marquis sprinter) make up that distance and win the stage in the replay.
Now I've only been playing this game about a week so there very well may be other issues that I haven't encountered enough yet. Assuming that all these haven't been patched away in 1.0.3.0, and it doesn't seem like it in the patch notes how do you all deal with it? Does the PCM database really help this or is it just one of those live with the new engine and quirks or go back to PCM '09? What else have people been dealing with in '10?
