BeamNG has gotten stale

Last several updates, it seems all we're getting is vehicle remodels, some new scenarios, UI changes that aren't necessarily good (like moving scenarios menu to the 2nd page), etc. How about progress on some long-requested, major improvements? The last one I remember were the mirrors which were long overdue. That was nice but we need much more.

How about realistic soft terrain like sand and mud? They are currently very basic. Fixed depth pretty much everywhere, static surface, no dirt on vehicles, and sand is way too easy. For example in Johnson Valley, it's impossible to get stuck even with a 2WD while going off the trails. That's very unrealistic. Mud is pretty boring too. Static, mostly fixed depth and just gives you some slip, not even dirt on vehicles gets splattered and again, it's almost impossible to get stuck.

Actual racing mode, basically time trials but with competing AI vehicles, has also been forgotten/dismissed, even though that should be a fairly easy addition.

I used to play BeamNG a lot and have hundreds of hours on it, but these days I rarely touch it.

 

you have to realize it might take years for these to be implemented the game is still in early access note from the devs
“We are a small team with big ambitions" and
"Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access"
“It is difficult to give an exact number, but probably at least 12 months before we could call the game "beta" (feature-complete). Even then, development will probably go on for years, as the potential of our engine is extremely vast.” the game will never be perfect no game is but you've gotta give it a chance
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plus this game still has so much you can do especially with mods if you just crash and nothing else it can get stale but you can do nearly anything off-roading trucking rallying racing ect

 

I somewhat agree with you, I think that the majority of the community is realising that we've had a lot of remodels recently, however I still think the updates have been good.
First of all, the new UI is definitely controversial within the community but people will come around to realise that it was needed, and they will all come around to know it off-by-heart soon enough, like the old one. I know you didn't mention the radial menu, but if you're having problems navigating that, you can just set the buttons to be in the format of the old one.

Realistic soft terrain is definitely wanted in the game by the community, but that's going to be so hard for the devs to implement without completely ruining the performance on the game. Better off-road physics for normal cars (such as 2WD ones) would be wanted though (although do you remember when we got like 3-4 off-road styled updates in a row and everyone got sick of it).
Think about Mudrunner/Snowrunner, they are great games, and the off-road physics are great, however it's a game about off-roading, so naturally massive corners are cut in other places (such as racing, or crash physics), so for BeamNG to implement these types of off-road physics, the same corners would have to be cut and that would just ruin the game.

Edit: I’m not saying the devs can’t, I’m sure they are able to do some kind of thing (like Tdev said above), what I’m saying is that they will probably take a longer time to do so, because it is such a hard mechanic to implement, and they’ve got a whole host of other issues to deal with.

 

I'd much rather have outdated vehicles brought up to standards before more are added. This probably also makes it easier for the devs.

 

Realistic soft terrain, realistic tire low pressure, and a windowed auxiliary settable camera. This would be so nice for offroading.

Recent offroad cars do have auxiliary camera, 360° camera system, as well as cameras in a low position to see whats going on near the frame or tires.

This is so useful.

 

Wait, where did you find that estimate for how long the game will be in early access?

 

I totally realize that. Look at my forum join date. I've been here before most of you. And you don't have to explain to me what all I can do in BeamNG. I have over 700 hours on it, and it's been a great value of entertainment for me. I'm just saying in the 7+ years I've had, it's gotten stale for me, and things like those I mentioned in the first post are things that were discussed / requested years ago.

No one should take this the wrong way. I'm definitely not trashing the game. Just trying to provide some constructive feedback on what kind of stuff would breathe new life into this awesome vehicle simulator.
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Ha! The Steam store page is definitely out of date! 10 years in early access already. Time flies.

 

Wait for what comes, take it as it is and look to the future. One can't really imagine the effort it takes to make a game like Beam the best it can be, especially when you're not a game designer yourself.

 

I believe in you guys. Eventually, I hope you guys figure out how to make the water more dynamic and add official boats and stuff... NOW THAT.... Would make everything feel so absolutely amazing.

 

Yeah I totally agree, I love seeing the new remasters/refreshes or whatever you want to call them, it makes the game much more professional-looking if everything is the same quality. All I was trying to say is that sometimes the community gets impatient, and, like with the off-road styled updates, might start complaining, because that's what humans do best.
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I don't think the devs want to make anything other than road vehicles, to be honest. BeamNG is a car game, and they probably aren't going to ruin that image by adding boats. If you want a boat game, play something like Rigs of Rods I guess

 

Actually water saw some nice improvements in the last few years. That was much appreciated. Updates like that is what I'm talking about. Of course vehicle remodels are nice too, but it seems like that's mostly what we've been getting lately.

 

To build a mad game like this, it takes time, so it may all feel a little stale at the moment but more exciting things are to come isnt that right?

 

I haven't played Beamng since the last couple of updates because I am waiting for some real additions to be made to the gameplay, but I think that is part of the normal development process for such a game and the team is far from showing signs of desertion. Some problems just take much more time to resolve than we can imagine.
Don't forget that there is a devblog in preparation so we'll get a clearer view of what's to come and devs vision for the future, I hope.

 

The game is still in early access, more things will come in the future

 

Well of course, I know that. I just hope it's not going to be all vehicle remodels and the occasional new vehicle or map.