Video game development is rarely about one man, but if it was, then Terence Groening should certainly get a mention for his contributions to the genre as the man responsible for the physics of Sportscar GT, EA’s PC F1 and NASCAR games of the early 2000’s, rFactor, rFactor 2 and every title and rFpro simulator that spawned from ISI’s engine.
This interview with RSC details his early life and career, through to him joining iRacing in 2021.
RSC contains a database of 153 developers, 467 software titles, 374 cars, 42 bikes, 242 tracks and more...Originally working in military simulator design, this Michigan-based studio developed Zone Raiders for Virgin Interactive before moving to Electronic Arts for publishing their second PC title, Sports Car GT, when Westwood Studios (their SCGT development partner) was acquired by the software giant.
Known primarily for their mod-friendly SCGT and rFactor racing platforms, ISI also developed Formula One and NASCAR titles on PC for Electronic Arts, but perhaps their lasting contribution to the genre was the licensing of the isiMotor engine that allowed studios such as 2Pez, Blimey! Games, KW Studios, Motorsport Games, Reiza Studios, SIMBIN Studios, Slightly Mad Studios, The Sim Factory, Tiburon and rFactor 2‘s ongoing developer Studio 397 to begin with or release on an evolution of their software.
Another fork of the isiMotor engine, rFpro, continues to be developed and is used by a wide array of automotive companies for both road and motorsport simulation.
RSC Podcast Episode 7 – Management Simulations, F1 Managers, Always Used To Be Better?Join Jon Denton, Tim Wheatley, Simon Croft and guest(s) as they discuss sim racing and racing games past, present and future.
RSC contains a database of news items. Our #OnThisDay page shows current day and current week of years past...
RSC contains a database of videos back to the 1980s catalogued as intros, laps, trailers, unboxings and more...
RSC contains a database of emulated software you can play in your browser...
The recently announced M-Sport Rally Wheel from Fanatec was apparently the first release from a new partnership with Sparco, according to the new announcement a few days ago (quoted wholly below).
The deeper partnership with Sparco will lead to “an exciting Q4 2023 where Fanatec will also begin releasing replicas of fan-favorite Sparco wheels designed specifically for sim racing.”
The Podium Steering Wheel Monte Carlo Rally can be pre-ordered now, and will be available from December 4, 2023.
View this video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/TLPMrNbYitU and please consider subscribing to RSC’s main channel.
Press release:
Fanatec and Sparco Rev-up Partnership with the Launch of a New Podium Steering Wheel
Landshut, November 22, 2023 – Sim racing giant Fanatec and Italian auto part and accessory company Sparco announce a partnership to further fuse the worlds of track and sim racing.
The first product is the Podium Steering Wheel Monte Carlo Rally, which launched on October 31st, after the WRC Central European Rally 2023.
The new steering wheel combines the official Sparco R383 wheel rim with the Podium Button Module Rally, as featured in the race-winning cars of the M-Sport Rally team, M-Sport UK Limited. The Podium Steering Wheel Monte Carlo Rally is another example of Fanatec bringing actual racing equipment to the sim racing world, further working on their mission to diffuse the line between real-world and virtual racing.
The name is an homage to legendary driver Sébastien Loeb’s unforgettable Monte Carlo rally victory. Loeb won using the same product combination that Fanatec and Sparco are now making available to the sim racing community. With this partnership, all levels of racers will be able to channel their inner Loeb.
With this new partnership, Fanatec and Sparco are looking at an exciting Q4 2023 where Fanatec will also begin releasing replicas of fan-favorite Sparco wheels designed specifically for sim racing.
Fanatec and Sparco are dedicated to developing and releasing further products that bring autosport and sim racing together in the near future.
Founder and CEO of Fanatec, Thomas Jackermeier, said of the partnership:
“Fanatec is extremely proud to work with Sparco. This partnership brings two key brands on either side of the racing spectrum together. It is incredibly exciting that together with Sparco we can once again deliver a product to the sim racing community that is being used in real-world racing, in this case, the Podium Steering Wheel Monte Carlo Rally. In Sparco, we have found an ideal partner for such corporations.”Sparco’s brand manager, Niccolò Bellazzini, is equally excited:
“It was natural for us to find collaboration with a prestigious brand like Fanatec, with whom we share a passion for motorsport and virtual simulation racing. The result of our collaboration could only lead to an excellent product built in partnership with one of the strongest partners in the World Rally Championship, M-Sport. The Sparco-Fanatec steering wheel is the perfect synthesis of the real and the virtual, and we believe it can provide the best driving experience even to gaming enthusiasts.”About Fanatec
Based in Landshut, Germany, Endor AG and its Fanatec brand produce innovative, high-performance input devices for PC and consoles, specialising in force feedback steering systems, pedals, and complete cockpits. Partnering with the F1 Esports Series, Fanatec is in a unique position to strengthen and support this rapidly growing sector of gaming. For more information, visit fanatec.com.About Sparco
Since 1977 Sparco S.p.A. develops and produces equipment for the racing environment and counts, to this day, more than 300 partner teams in various world motorsport competitions (F1, Indy, WRC, Nascar, Dakar and many others) and worldwide clients adopting its products.The Sparco Group, since 2000, diversified its activities to strongly enter the carbon fiber automotive components’ industry for the most important super sports car and luxury car’ manufacturers, while in the last years has expanded its business to the gaming-simulation racing industry and to the safety clothing industry (safety footwear and workwear). The group headquarter is in Volpiano (TO), Italy, and has more than 1600 employees that operate in ten production plants (four in Italy, five in Tunisia and one in the USA). The commercial presence is global.
