How will Le Mans Ultimate be saved?

[@harleyHDz]

After hearing the news about everything, it prompted me and reminded me that not all game studios are backed by giants like microsoft/EA/riot/tencent etc, and that we should be supporting small studios like this that make amazing games, I can't be more obsessed with this game right now, its netcode is voodoo magic, graphics S-tier, sounds amazing, FFB better then RF2, the tracks might as well be 1:1 with real life. Lmu in my opinion is the most under appreciated game to come out in recent years.

[@MichiHoyer]

I can only agree in many ways here mate. Its a shame we are sitting here and hoping for its "survival". As a community we now need to stand together and try help solving the business issue as good was we ca.

[@virtualapex83]

This is the best report I have seen regarding LMU. Personally, I bought the full season and original game purchase on day one. It has some of the best racing I have experienced todate

[@MichiHoyer]

Thank you very much for your kind words! Why would you consider this report being the best compared to others, if I may ask :) curious on what you think.

[@mysilbergsprekken239]

I bought the game on early access release and the moment they released the seasonpass i bought that too. Really enjoyed my time in the game and have been one of the lucky ones who had very few bugs and crashes (AMD cpu/gpu combo for me). Unfortunately It sounds as if im not gonna be able to enjoy the game for long and I have had almost no time at all since summer to sit down in the rig and enjoy this amazing game. I really really hope with all my heart that S397/MSG can pull through and find a sponsor or benefactor so that LMU will be there for all of us for a long time to enjoy. Personally I would 10/10 crowdfund the game if possible and I think many others would too. Good luck to S39

[@SurfsideStraganov]

@@mysilbergsprekken239 haha. Mug supporting msg. What did you think was going to happen? 😂

[@MichiHoyer]

Thats awesome to hear you had a blast so far with the game. Lets hope either the community or MSG itself can resolve the issues, as I am with you that the game needs to survive - somehow.

[@SimCarGeezer]

I'm buying the DLC. rF2 and LMU feel better than anything else.

[@AdrenaLukeYT]

But it's not DLC. DLC is an expansion of an already finished game. Which LMU is far from it.

[@rkwjunior2298]

So you're gonna pay for the DLC and still watch it disappear from steam ...lol

[@Jonny._.]

I have both. I Still think rFactor 2 is the better game. LMU devs have work to do but im not supporting them with more DLC`s before i see some real progression.

[@MichiHoyer]

SimCarGeezer thats great support! IMO its irrelevant if a DLC is a real DLC or a not real DLC. We get content additions which improves the immersion of the game after all. But at the end of the day its everyones sole decision and judgement whether its value to the person or not.

[@SurfsideStraganov]

Shills throwing their money away is nothing new.

[@darwinLee81283]

Once the GT3 hit the sim. It can succeed. They need to focus on this and Knock it out the park in order to rebuild the foundation of this game

[@MichiHoyer]

I assume That GT3s are highest priority on their list currently. As you said its important to the community and furthermore, I think its the easiest to bring this content over features that may break LMU even further.

[@TypeRTeg]

Before buying the game I knew the situation with MSG but still purchased the season pass. For me LMU makes all other sims feel average now and I honestly don't want to play anything else anymore. There is nothing really on the horizon that I think will compare with LMU for driving feel, only my opinion but I cant see how it could be topped. Its the only game I would gladly spend more money on with the current situation in the hope I could make a small difference. Even if the studio goes under I would of had more than my moneys worth out of the game by that point so wouldn't feel cheated in any way. I can understand peoples concerns but I think not buying the game will only be a bad thing long term for sim racing. Its such a niche genre with very few options really. LMU looks stunning, runs well (for me) has great FFB and physics and the sound blows me away. I think it would be a real shame for such a good title to go unfinished with the potential this game has.

[@haxorcomputerservices]

A title I'm waiting on is The Last Garage. From ex rF2 developer Marcel and being more of a game engine than a complete title I think it might have the right feel and might get used by other studios as a base for a new title. Once it's ready, I'd like to attempt creating content for that. I have a lot of respect for what Marcel is doing. I am hoping LMU will get completed too, as currently rF2 is my main sim. I host endurance series using rF2 and it's brilliant. LMU could also release mod support early, then the community could help finish it sooner.

[@matthiasgrunwald895]

I am proud to support MSG and all the people there!

[@MichiHoyer]

very lovely feedback of you mate. and yeah I am sharing your opinion. I knew it too, and to be fair to me there is diffrent ways to throw out like 100e and say... yeah might not be worth it for whatever reason. However here with MSG, I have said that in the very beginning of the release days already. With tyre model, feel and the immersion of actualy driving a car, not drifting or tintoping it aroung, it IMO has set an unprecedented standard in the simracing industy. To me any other racing game cannot match that either.

[@MichiHoyer]

100 % Marcel's Sim "The Last Garage" is going to be a very intresting project and I cannot wait tasting it too, I would expect it to match LMU from the feel and the physics at least since he knows sooo much about rF2 and Le Mans Ultimate of course. He might start on a fresh piece of paper which may result into his sim being a very succesful one in the end as it doesnt carry the burden of bad project management from MSG

[@MrDantte]

I'm really enjoying LMU, and to help keep the game going I will continue too buy dlc. when they come to steam store.

[@MichiHoyer]

Thanks mate, lets keep push forwards here :)

[@johnduncan5117]

As an Rf2 player for a few years, I was kind of sad when development of that game stopped due to LMU. I felt RF2 was making great strides in the last two or three years. The problem is that S397 is a small studio and can't really develop two or more games concurrently, not unless there was a bigger market. I can understand why they developed LMU and I know that many people enjoy it. The problem now is that LMU does not cater to players like me who mostly prefer single seater. It's a niche product within a niche market where iRacing dominates. The best way forward imo is for a bigger company to buy s397 from MSG and raise the profile of the games. What is frustrating is that both RF2 and LMU are so good at what is ultimately the most important part of sim racing - making you feel you're in the car. If nobody takes over the titles, and the physics model dies, it's a step back for sim racing as a whole. Although I have enjoyed other titles, nothing really matches the experience of RF2 for me.

[@Jonny._.]

rFactor 2 is amazing and my favorite. I feel LMU`s FFB have been better in older patches so i have lost the interest for the game. I play Iracing now because of online. If only rFactor 2 had solid online, that would make me ditch Iracing.

[@johnduncan5117]

@@Jonny._. that's a bit the frustration - just as RF2 online was taking off a bit, with the new system put in place, they pivoted away to developing LMU. I felt their online system worked really well. There were even lots of people racing on there.

[@Jonny._.]

@@johnduncan5117 I felt that rFactor 2 online was going somewhere too. Even LFM set up races for it but then of a sudden LFM cancelled. I never needed LFM to find decent online for rFactor 2 though. If i had known LMU was going to kill rFactor 2 i would newer have bought it to support the death of my most beloved sim.

[@godwindracing6056]

MSG and S397 should thought this through when they brought the license for Indycar, NASCAR and BTCC, including WEC, at the same time LMU is a niche product only appeals to the smallest minority of fans like sports car racing has always been. Okay, Le Mans may sell out but how many of these will go out to watch the other WEC rounds. The Fuji rounds look unremarkable compared to Super GT rounds. The non-European rounds look miserable in comparison, as miserable as Formula E now. Also, do anybody remember any of those drivers there? As with rF2 online, the writing was on the wall with Max Verstappen last year. They had all that time to fix a broken product and they p it all up on the wall. Will I buy LMU? I thought about it but I dislike the LMHs as much that I’m not too keen on the GT3s. Seeing the hybrid systems in the game turned me away from them. As with S397 and MSG, that is the end of the road for them unfortunately. I see bankruptcy is the best way to go for them - coming from a former ardent supporter of rF2

[@MichiHoyer]

Im not sure what to all answer on you guys comments. I feel they are (most of them, not all) correct and fairly understandable. Personally I think most people are into SingleSeaters or Sportscars when it comes to racing. However, I believe WEC and its licenses was meant to be a standalone game and not an addition to an existing rf2. Maybe it was also easier to take rF2 and deviate in the code for latest additions somewhere. Who knows. Personally, I am also sad that rF2 does not get any further love at this stage. However, I am also having hopes for an rFactor 3 that contains a correct Hybrid mode in multiple ways and many more features from LMU that rF2 never had.

[@user06220]

LMU is my main sim, i bought the season pass, hopefully lmu will survive.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hope so too, so we need to keep playing it.

[@74-Sim-Racing]

I have LMU for a while now and I must say this is the best SimRace game I ever played. I come from ACC on console, just got a PC. A world has opened up for me...

[@MichiHoyer]

Oh wow thats intresting feedback. Just in case, and I dont think it would be smart to do it, but have you tried ACC for PC aswell? if you did, did you encounter differences to what you had on the console?

[@74-Sim-Racing]

@@MichiHoyer Yeah I could feel very good the differences between pc and console. PC has more FFB then the console...

[@001AAR]

Thank you very much, Michi, for this video that radiates your love and passion for this fantastic game. I of course bought it, have the season pass and I am very much looking forward to a great future. Those who are still waiting for feature X or Y to be implemented before committing any money: give yourself a push and join the community. Your commitment to the game now will help get the features developed that you are missing. It costs about two pizzas and two beers to jump on board - and you will have much longer fun with the game already today than digesting your meal…

[@MichiHoyer]

Very nice way of saying it! Thanks for your positive feedback. Literally. the only way that we can help the situation ist: play the game, spread the news how great it is - despite having bugs and issues. Whenever we say how great the game is we cannot neglect the fact that it is also containing issues at all times.

[@snick9314]

I picked up the game last week (had no idea about all the drama) and im really hoping it suceeds. Im sick and tired of having so many complicated steps to play online racing or insane costs of iracing. Ive loved everymoment of playing this game and i really hope it suceeds as it is currently bringing my sim racing joy back.

[@MichiHoyer]

Thanks for your answer & feedback. I'm hopping we will indeed succeed and can enjoy this game for much much longer! Great to hear you are on board here :)

[@darrencopeland6736]

Hi guys, I've been playing the game since day one and yes it still has some bugs but they are being worked on but not completely gone, understandably with the current situation. But let me say this, I loved ACC when I 1st got it but I am definitely struggling to go back to it as the cars definitely feel more connected to the road on LMU it's what keeps the game alive for me as well as the huge potential the game has overall. If you are still on the fence I'm not going to tell you buy it but hope my words will at least make you strongly consider it, would be a complete waste of a fantastic sim not to give it a proper chance😁👌

[@MichiHoyer]

So then reading your comment I might recommend buying the game for those that are still waiting on the fence. For me its important that you guys have enough credits for your decision for sure. I might be biased towards it and of course all of you need o believe its the right call for you personally.

[@haxorcomputerservices]

I love rF2, it's my favorite sim. I think I have the best feel over other Sims. I have not bought LMU yet and was on the verge of buying it when they started to release the DLC and that put me off. I have no issue with the dlc or the pricing but I have a big issue with a early access game focusing more on DLC than finishing the base game. What that says to me is they don't need to finish the game and feature list because they can just drop more DLC instead to get money. It's the reason so many people don't enjoy rF2. It's the lack of polish the lack of effort. Playing ACC I see why it's popular, it's so easy to get going...feels worse but for the masses it's less time to get in and enjoy. Now LMU to me seem to have gone the same route as rF2 for financial gain. To save LMU and get more buying it, they need to finish the base game. If that requires crowdfunding or what I'm not sure but they need to finish it, not focus on dlc.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hear you and accept & respect your opinion on this. However, I would like to state that I think the biggest issue is not having the funds to finish the game in time, and therefore they parallely try to bring out DLC - yes to lure in money but also to guarantee there is enough time to finish the game. Again, I can understand about your "issue" with that.

[@SAdamuSBin]

I'm moving from ACC to LMU, bought it in day 1 of early access, bought the season pass, I love it. WEC is amazing, LMU is amazing, I really hope it can have the future it deserves. Anytime I can play it, I do it, no hesitation, unlike ACC on the last years

[@MichiHoyer]

Thats awesome to hear. I am the same as far as I can get it under my time belt :)

[@aweston4865]

Tbh I’m not surprised based on whats happened in the past with other licensed series. I love this game and purchased it day 1, but i don’t trust MSG to finish it. It puts me off fully engaging. Hopefully they will prove me wrong as there is a lot to like there.

[@MichiHoyer]

Yeah its surely sad. The MSG stamp of being a bad company is way too huge and also keeps investors off im sure. As much as they communicate bad about the situation, they were clear though that they want to sell the company. Which to me means - they really want. Lets see what happens.

[@schigara]

I bought into Project Cars 1 in the crowd funding and I think I remember getting 3 payments back that returned about 300% on my investment and it was a pretty crap game, as far as ffb and tire model compared to RF2 so I rarely ever used PC1. I took 4-5 years off from sim racing and just recently got some nice hardware and got back into it and absolutley love LMU!! RF2 was my go to but always seemed like a sand box sim with too much stuff to choose from and no real direction. LMU fits my type of OCD perfectly. It does one thing extremely well and I am in love. I would definitely pay to crowd fund this absolute gem of a sim!

[@MichiHoyer]

Great to hear you are hooked into the game. So am I :) I am not sure if crowdfunding is a thing on that simulatior. If it becomes a thing, I will be down for it for sure!

[@bobby_paceman]

Top video! I bought the sim. I bought the season pass. I support them! I really hope LMU will go on, further development… It is by far the best sim, the best simulator! Fascinating! Intoxicating! Awesome!

[@MichiHoyer]

Thanks a lot mate! Much much appreciated for your feedback.

[@EricW6800]

The community... I've been in it over 25 years and it has never been as toxic and manipulative as it is right now. The weird thing is that we are destroying it all by ourselves this way.. The simracing hardware industry also has a huge blindspot imho. It's getting more advanced every year. And meanwhile there's less and less development possible in the software market to use the technical level of that hardware. Who wants to drive a arcade game with it? The stupidity is baffling. Everyone with just a little common sense needs to understand that buying a simulaton game keeps your hobby alive, just go get it!!! And the industry needs to wake up and work together.

[@MichiHoyer]

This is an intresting PoV. I share it to an extend if I am entirely honest. I think its incredibly crazy developments over the past 5 years. simracing hardware manufacturors go all in - active paddles, buttkickers, high fidelity direct drive wheels, rigs and wheels with all sort of gimmicks. at the same time simracing software manufacturors are suffering: high costs, high personnel, low sales, not enough monay floating in (apart from iRacing maybe) to maintain a simracing gaming product sustainable. Fast drivers believing ESport being a sustainable business. I was always in a team trying to achieve this too. Not as a business to live from but as a sustainable source of side income. Have I succeeded? Not really. Did I fail, not really as well. I keep mentioning that the die hard-simracing environment is a expensive nieche in gaming. If you would consider there is 1 billion of people intrestedi gaming, then you have 50 million people loving racing games, and from that roughly 1 million people are interested in die hard racing / simracing content if you look at the likes of Jimmy Broadbent as a meassurement. Yet these 1 million peope would look for gaming equipment (beyond PC) in 100x of value than a gaming keyboard or gaming mouse - just for the thrill. That of course also means the costs to operate in such a field for companies is highly risky and highly competetive too as we dont have just 1-2 manufacturors but like 15. Logitech, Fanatec, Heusinkveld. Moza, GSI, Simucube and many more. So its a highly competetive environment in a nieche. Furthermore. LoL or WoW or Fortnite - its 1 Game, 1 type of game 1 type of esport and competition. Simracing has like 8 diffrent titles. F1. Rf2, iRacing, RaceRoom, AMS, AC/ACC, LMU, probably even more than 10 even. They compete within their own environment too, which does also not help. Soooo much competetion of soooo little market share. all very very specific. Maybe should do a video about this too...

[@EricW6800]

@@MichiHoyer Thanks for your thoughts on this Michi. I see this happening with high levels of unbelieve. And most of all with compassion for very talented people who get layed off while trying to bring us the joy of driving high level simulations. All car manufacturers, official race series, and hardware manufacturers need to realise it's up to them to keep this alive. Imho The amount of cash grabbing is suffocating and self destructive in a sense.

[@jamesleegte]

I play in VR only and I’m waiting for the proper native release. I bought the base game on day 1 to show support and I knew the risks. The risk being that the sim racing community is very tribal and that MSG have a very low reputation score. They need to get GT3 and VR native released asap, they need to fix the bugs and get out of early access! To bring in more revenue from selling base game and DLC, they need to check the above boxes.

[@fingers68]

VR is running fantastic now, bar a couple of things which will be fixed very soon.

[@MichiHoyer]

VR is available in a kinda of early access stage or beta stage too. Not optimal and certainl ynot finished for sure, but its possible. I agree with the GT3 and VR pressure is on indeed!

[@RacingWithChuck27]

First thing, I’ve been a sim racer since the beginning. Have run about all sims and they all are different, all have their pros and cons. MSG has done enough damage where most sim racers have been mad at, hate them. Myself being an Indy car sim racer, the debacle with the license was huge disappointment . I waited a few weeks before coming aboard with LMU, $32, that was a no brainer. Once coming aboard I’ve enjoyed the “feel” Better than rf2 and iracing. Bought the big season pass. I’d also support a subscription, but most “gamers” won’t be the hardcore sim racer will. I’ve had a lot of expensive hobbies, sim racing isn’t. LMU needs to succeed,, that’s great for sim racers. Also, Been with iracing since the inception, the leagues with the ir18 is really the only thing that keeps me there. As far as them going out of business, if that happens, all sims will be done. Backed by John Henry. I’m not loyal to any one sim, I couldn’t care less if msg goes under as long as LMU survives. Who buys msg, that’s the million dollar question. As well as LMU has become, 9 months in, the momentum has tailed off some. Getting the GT3’s in would be huge but too many bugs to do that. I for one haven’t had any until the last build with the stutters but that’s been fixed with the patch.

[@MichiHoyer]

Intresting comment. Great to see you have overcome the bad image of MSG and went for LMU and that product regardless of the image of MSG. Your concerns are all valid though. I am also massively dissapointed by the overall situation. But I'm afraid that only time will tell whats gonna happen. You are correct with the GT3 - they might cause a hype again. Lets hope that does not further break the game.

[@fingers68]

One of the streamers did a video I managed to see before he took it down for some reason. He has an investor tool which looks deep into the financial state, it's in the best looking place it ever has going back years from what I seen. Steve Hoods recent statements also sound positive to me. Videos and streams from people who recognise how good this SIM is and also getting better very quickly now are what's going to help. There are many from ACC getting into it already, when the GT3 are released they will flood in. VR is already working absolutely fantastic now MSAA has been fixed by the way.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hear you. It sounds indeed a bit - unsure how to word it - weird to see the company being in best state yet struggling harder with keeping the business than 2 yrs ago lets say. To be honest. I think a lot of polishing of the financial reports was done. Nothing illegal but you have some "political decisions" as in how you want to show a certain circumstance on your Profit & Loss or your balance sheet. And I think that is what has happened with that guy in the video showing: the company looks the best way while still looking bad indeed. Have you asked him why he took it down?

[@fingers68]

He's put it back up now after asking, GS SIM Racing.

[@fingers68]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4PPpnufnKuWsLcsi=VE11zhgQWEB6vm-L

[@fingers68]

Bloody YT just deletes links!!

[@fingers68]

Titled **my estimates may be low here**

[@GSSimRacing]

The main issue is the controlling ownership of Driven Lifestyle LLC. They won't let go of MSG and even created a class B share to keep interest. Rather than a merger, I think driven lifestyle would need to fully let it go. This is the only way crowd funding or any finding would work. Their latest financial statements still have their former ceo clearing life, 570k and a 50k bonus (he's on the board still according to the latest proxy). A few things still need to happen to clean up the rot here. Love LMU.

[@johnduncan5117]

570k ???? wtf that is insane money for the revenue of the company

[@GSSimRacing]

@@johnduncan5117 Yep 569,669 salary in 2023 and 554,999 the year before. And in 2023 he had 50k bonus. So increases in salary. The current CEO went from 123k to 170k...but that is reasonable for a CEO. Dmitry Kozko is the lads name (former CEO), I need to look more into that one. Also, Driven Lifestlye seem to have a very tight grip, 80+% of the controlling interest. They created a class B share when doing funding rounds, and the class B share has a voting right of 10x the class A ordinary share, so there is still a lot going on that would worry investors, unless Driven Lifestyle were willing to cut losses entirely. S397 are keeping all of this mess afloat.

[@MichiHoyer]

Sounds like you have some knowledge in finance too :)? tell me more. I think it was hyper expensive to get Dmitry off the board. and then there are still other liabilities. ITs a shedload of money, much more than you would need to pay in a month to S397 people sadly...

[@godwindracing6056]

They also control MSN too from going. I think the best way for LMU is for the entire MSN to go bankrupt

[@sparrow6ix710]

i bought this game as soon as it came out. i remember not buying games my friends wanted to play together because i was saving for it. The game has the best FFB and driving experience i have ever had. But the problem i have is the game is an enduro game but no driver swaps. No actual enduro special events. So i have the game but it lacks some basic features i'd expect from a WEC based game

[@MichiHoyer]

I agree with you. There is soon coming a video out where I also smash up about the fact that we are having a enduro game with key eatures such as driver swaps still missing and not et being released. Very much agreeing with you there

[@RakomkaRacing]

Я считаю, что одна и самых больших проблем, так это цена LMU. Можно посмотреть на Ready or not , эту игру делала небольшая студия без издателя. Ready or not тоже рассчитана на определенную аудиторию, но за счёт цены и хорошего качества, игра продалась большим тиражом и о ней узнали многие игроки, которые также решили попробовать эту игру. Я считаю, что S397 сделали очень хорошую игру и дополнительно адаптировали для игроков на геймпаде. Но, о ней также могут не узнать, так как она действительно дорогая и у неё своя специфика. Многие игроки могли бы начать свой путь в SIM racing благодаря LMU.

[@kevbarber]

I bought the game 3 minutes after it's release and thought it was a bargain for £25. 2 cars and a track per DLC is also still very good value if you compare it to iRacing.

[@MichiHoyer]

I agree with that. However, at the end of the day we are mostly limited to WEC content in the first place so that obviously limits the deepness of the game in terms of content fidelity.

[@kevbarber]

@@MichiHoyer yes I think the GT3s will be great but then they need to find a way of getting a lot more tracks into the game. I know it's WEC but people will just get bored of 10 approx tracks.

[@pietroconvertito3491]

Le crash ultimate. Bought it and can't finish a single race due to bug that disconnect from race. Onestly they can explode.

[@MichiHoyer]

what 3rd party software are you using while racing, there might be interference with these and the send in of crashlogs is highly important for the devs to pick up on it. Because of course everyone shall be able to enjoy LMU

[@pietroconvertito3491]

@@MichiHoyer I did my homework but noting seems to change. A friend of mine never had a crash and we have more or less the same setup and gears.

[@schigara]

I upgraded from 16 to 64 gig of ram and all of a sudden LMU started crashing while loading tracks where it never crashed with my original ram so I took out 1 of the 32 gig sticks of ram and no longer crashed and then put in the other 32g stick and it crashed every time. I then ran a benchmark program on each stick of ram and the same 32g stick would crash ever single time. I returned the ram and got 2 new 32g sticks and LMU has been crash free ever since then.

[@pietroconvertito3491]

Even i thought that this game have some problems with ram. I found out that it crashes earlier with XMP enabled. It's unplayable so I'm gonna wait for 1.6 of ams2 and EVO. Rf2 and lmu rip.

[@MichiHoyer]

Maybe the 32GB rack was broken then. Glad you got a replacement. SO great to hear you can enjoy the game.

[@bspowersports6453]

Hello Michi, long time no see.... thank you for sharing your thoughts. I hope just like you that S397 and LMU will make it. The simulation is really great and I enjoy driving it, even as a single player. And of course I have the Season Pass :-). As far as the future and the financial situation are concerned, I could well imagine that the WEC or even ASO will recognise the great potential of the simulation and get involved in order to secure it.... But what makes me most confident is that a driver in our World Ex community is a core developer of LMU and he exudes a lot of confidence. Best regards to the beautiful south of our country Björn

[@MichiHoyer]

Hi Björn, thanks for your comment. I think Devin has to stay positive for his own sake and his own motivation. During the lay offs we saw the people that got layed off having high confidence in the project and are sadned to no longer be part of it. which is remarkable to me. However, I fear if ACO/WEC had enough intrest, they would have funded the project further to minimize these lay offs. Lets see what happens after all.

[@georgma87]

Im playing Racing Games since 28 Years now. I played a lot PC, Consoles… but LMU is by far the best Racing Game in terms of tire modell and FFB. I would be happy to Support the Sim

[@MichiHoyer]

Thanks to let me know about this. Have you had any experience with iRacing too? What is your take on that. Since that is the most played sim in the simracing scene so far.

[@georgma87]

@@MichiHoyer Hi Michi, I was driving ACC for about 3 years. I also played AMS2 and yes I was also driving iRacing for a couple of months. I tried GT3 and also Hypercars - it wasn bad but not that Advanced in my opinion. Hard to discribe but driving in LMU feels just right. The Physik feels predictable, you can push and feel what the car is doing.

[@hyperdrives]

Hopefully it gets bought by a company that will let S397 continue development without strings attached. And I'm hoping for a dedicated server release at some point.

[@MichiHoyer]

Hyperdrives I hear you. I feel absolutely the same about it. As soon as strings get attached we may lose a good core of the game that we love to day.

[@Arcanomarcio]

Concordo que uma outra grande empresa investidora poderia ajudar a salvar o LMU... E uma mudança positiva não pode demorar para acontecer pois, se a nova atualização 1.6 do Automobilista 2 for bem aceita e o Assetto Corsa EVO entregar uma nova e boa experiência, ficará quase impossível do LMU sobreviver ... Sem esquecer que iRacing está continuamente oferecendo novos conteúdos a sua base de jogadores, Raceroom também tem feito melhorias e logo chega o Rennsport...

[@MichiHoyer]

Its for certain that "we" need a solution to the entire issue rather sooner than later for sure. And then we need to hope that this takes off pressure and enables smooth operations at LMU. I agree that many other games on the market are still developped and are pushing out on their new features etc.

[@patrickkleine9954]

if it breaks down maybe there wil be other option what we can do with lmu

[@MichiHoyer]

What option are you refering too in that regard?

[@otheslo]

I love the driving, i love the sounds, i love the gamification characteristics, BUT Im missing the real fun aspects Im interested as a team simracer which is endurance races with driver swap and individual liveries. Until this is not here Im not buying too much. Just driving alone in some repeating races isnt fun for too long. What would also help getting my buy in would be to be more transparent with what funding is still left necessary to get the game development going. like star citizen always did on their home page.

[@MichiHoyer]

Maybe thats a good suggestion for them. However, I am unsure if they can definitely say how long X and Y features will really take to develop and have it bug free. I hear your concern about the liveries and such. But I am confident, we are getting these fairly soon as soon as more updates are announced.

[@petertong3156]

We can become the share holders

[@MichiHoyer]

Depends on what "everyone" would be up to pay for the share... lets say we invest 100€ each, we need like 50.000 people to kinda get somewhere I assume!

[@petertong3156]

@@MichiHoyer I'm interested if they work out a system.

[@MichiHoyer]

lets see - I hope subscription is comming in time so we can help saving the sim.

[@rkwjunior2298]

LMU needs GT3. Thats the most popular genre of racing. Layoffs aren't a good sign. Don't get your hopes up. Whomever is running the show isn't doing a great job

[@MichiHoyer]

I agree about the GT3 facts. Hoewever, Im slighly diffrent with the opinion on Stephen Hood. He was erased in 2022 and then brought back in 2023 after top management got rid of the big guy at the top. And I think Stephen now tries to clear up the mess as good as possible. Sad story is he needed to shrink the company so small that they have a chance to surive a few more month for the sake of finishing LMU. Beyond that line you are obviously right. a lot of bad management was done that lead to this situation indeed.

[@ayrtonsgdelima]

From the beginning they should have made the cars in RF2, it would have been better, especially because they lost licenses for categories with much more financial return like NASCAR.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hear you, but as I mentioned on another comment, I think with doing it on rF2 we would not have had the tyre model and the additional features - or otherwise they would have broken Workshop content from 3rd party people as they would have had altered the general code that all the other workshop creators used.

[@RATTMAN]

I bought the early access game but refuse to put more money into DLC for an early access title. Unfortunately, this is a bad business practice. Launch a game title before it is finished then focus on releasing additional DLCs to get more money. This is just kicking the can down the road.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hear you about that man. But don't you think thats going to be a "new" practice, just as all sports in TV move behind a paywall in the longterm?

[@RATTMAN]

@@MichiHoyer Sports subscriptions is a different issue entirely which I can go on about that. I also have no issue paying for DLC content for add-ons after a game has been to market for some time. This is more about how the gaming industry in general has been going and has had tons of backlash from customers. Gaming devs are not incetivised to deliver a finished product anymore. They are launching knowingly broken unfinished games to market with the public being paying beta testers. They should be more focused on bringing the game out of early access as a completed game with the base content being more than what was in early access. Since they are now selling DLC content but still have the game itself under the label as early access is an issue for me. Keeping the label of early access gives them excuses for issues and lack of content the base game has itself. The “early access” banner in steam may also hurt them as new customers do not want to buy unfinished games anymore.

[@Evets_79]

I bought LMU in February and it's a great simulation... that's why I bought the season pass. People always complain about the "high" prices despite EA status... but they have no problem having a Netflix subscription and watching shitshows like squidgame and paying the same price monthly as a single DLC price on LMU. 🤔😁

[@MichiHoyer]

Thats a well said point here. We have one-time costs to enable to play our content forever :) we just have to grab it once.

[@dennisparker505]

To be honest I believe the struggle was the game didn’t bring enough content and reason to play. Like with Iracing the reason for me playing is Irating and SR and to get better at driving bc I want to become a real life racer

[@MichiHoyer]

Whats your current iRating right now? I hear your concern about the amount of content in a way. What do you think it takes for you to make the jump to the real racing world?

[@dennisparker505]

@@MichiHoyer that’s a good question one I would like to know but I’m mainly using iracing to get better at real life driving and start karting the chase for irating tho is difficult bc of how many aggressive slow drivers that end up wrecking you 😂 so my current irating is at 1980

[@virtualrealitymotorsports9158]

Hi Michi, I have an idea and your channel has the reach to save LMU. I would suggest that you do a costing analysis on how much it would cost people to replicate LMU using iRacing, e.g buy all the tracks , cars and so on in iRacing and compare the total cost to the LMU Season Pass cost. Then consider the superior physics LMU has over iRacing, especially the tyre model and the Hyper car physics all wrong in iRacing. And last but NOT least is the fact that if you buy iRacing content it is always on loan based on your subscription , the moment your subscription elapses you CANT drive it anymore. LMU you get to own the content for ever. LMU graphics are better, physics are better and all tracks are Lazer scanned. It’s a no brainer LMU is the cheapest and most authentic way to experience WEC, end of story. I hope you consider to put a video together to explain all the issues I have talked about. Cheers

[@MichiHoyer]

Honestly, that is a super amazing suggestion. And I think I should indeed be able to do that for sure. I will take that on my list of things to do. I appreciate the suggestion mate. Big shout out to you

[@virtualrealitymotorsports9158]

@@MichiHoyer I can’t believe that people who love Sim Racing can’t understand that supporting LMU is a benefit to them at a one time cost of $60 , and they own the content. Thank you for all that you do Michi. My name is George. Looking forward to your next Stream as always my friend 👍

[@patrickkleine9954]

iracing facet also the same problem you do wee need rf2 ? i think not focus on the new game lmu acc is also struggeling i also bought all

[@MichiHoyer]

what issue was iRacing facing you mean?

[@williamfrederick6173]

Le Mans ultimate should have been DLC for Rfactor 2. That is where they made their mistake.

[@MichiHoyer]

Yes & no. I get why you say it but at the same time we need to consider that core lines of the code had to be changed for the new tyres and new features. That would have been something that surely may have broke hundreds of mods and cars that have been published by 3rd party workshop content creators... so yeah. They had to take a decision.

[@daviddanser8011]

Hopefully GT3 will save the game, I guess a lot of people are waiting for that.

[@MichiHoyer]

Yeah I assume so too. Lets see what they will do after all.

[@HOn-ee2wo]

Hi Michi, wollte dich fragen inwieweit Feedback angebracht ist? Vielleicht kannst du folgendes Feedback überbringen. Virtuell Safety Car bei Crash. Jedoch nur wenn wirklich ein Fahrzeug DNF ist.

[@MichiHoyer]

Hi, denke das ist eines der Features, dass da durchaus auf der Liste steht. Allerdings denke ich eher mit geringeren Prio. Mal sehen, was wir kommendes Jahr noch an features bekommen :)

[@Pallam1993]

Well done said. But, the selling of the assets to EA might be the most stupid ideas which comes into my mind. EA destroyed a LOT of smaller studios in the past. That would destroyed the development plan of S397. GT3 needs to be done. And most important. Endurance has to come (because that is what WEC is about!). I hope that WEC might get a bit more open and say that more good tracks are allowed to the sim. We need a bit more content to keep the players alive. An possibility would be maybe also to get ELMS into the game. There is a huge potential here. And seeing the last numbers in the reports doesnt show that hard struggle. I´m more concerned about the fact of the press news from 10 day ago. I really hope, they wont touch S397 with more money saving, because good development needs also a decent amount of money.

[@MichiHoyer]

Hey pallam, thanks for your comment I hear your concern about EA. it is totally valid indeed. Yet I fear EA might perhaps be on the list of potential investors here. And yeah I am concerned about MSG being able to maintain S397 personnel at the current rate too. Lets see how this will end up. I will have my fingers crossed heavily

[@george8926]

No opinion on the topic, just.. beautiful haircut mate.

[@MichiHoyer]

Bro haircut is due :D looks very bad tbh :D

[@AL.farmlife]

Can you create video how to setup buttcker with LMU

[@MichiHoyer]

I think sadly I cannot, as I dont have every had any buttkickers

[@AL.farmlife]

@@MichiHoyer alright 🙏

[@AL.farmlife]

@@MichiHoyer I got spoiled by Iracing because of this device 😂

[@AL.farmlife]

@@MichiHoyer but RF and LMU is best ffb on the market

[@patrickkleine9954]

with the EA was also my toughts don,t need to be bad

[@MichiHoyer]

I think its a 2 faced sword - knowing how EA has treated the F1 games, I fear that it would just mean they cannot even mobilize the assets they would get correctly and therefore destroy the titles with that unreal engine BS

[@sebastyx974]

I think it's too late to ask people to, sort of, "crowdfund" LMU. I'm afraid the funding/business model choice and fate of LMU are no longer in hands of MSG nor studio 397 nor its community...it's just too late By the way, I bought the season pass. The only thing I hope is that they complete the season DLCs and keep the servers running for at least a year after full season released, but if they don't, just refund people that bought the season pass.

[@MichiHoyer]

I hear you. However, I assume they will run until the last drop of money has been used up by personnel trying to finish the game. Lets just hope we find external money and goodwill somewhere to help finishing and afterwards maintaining the game on a solid basis.

[@pokiou]

They need to allow people to make their own servers ASAP... Not everyone wants to race the LMP cars or wait 2 hours for a the GTE session. Alot of the failing is from their end they need to take ownership of this. The roll out has been smooth but not enough features have been given to us to play with.

[@MichiHoyer]

Yeah thats indeed something that needs fixing on their end. However, I am sure that they are willing to deliver!

[@matthiasgrunwald895]

Elon Musk should buy MSG and support them financally to finish LMU! Or we start a simracing community crowdfunding!

[@MichiHoyer]

Not sure what is more easy to make it happen. I fear that Mr. Musk might not be interested haha

[@AL.farmlife]

I wish they would implement lfe support direct in the game without simhub similar what Iracing did Direct from the physics❤❤❤❤

[@MichiHoyer]

I am afraid I have not fully understood this. What is iRacing doing compared to other sims with simhub, what is LFE?

[@AL.farmlife]

@@MichiHoyer SIMhub is slow and not feels like road surface etc

[@MrKram56]

I love LMU but I hate multiclass.

[@MichiHoyer]

hahaha thats a fun one to an extend. What do you hate on Multiclass? Which cars are your favourite to drive in LMU or even non-multiclass series?

[@MrKram56]

@@MichiHoyer I appreciate that WEC is multiclass and therefore, if I don't want to drive multiclass then the sim isn't for me however, IMHO LMU is the best sim available today. I watched your video “How to race Multiclass in Slower Class Cars”, several times and to the best of my ability adhere to your recommendations. In my experience the faster drivers in HC or LMP2 do a good job however, if they are "racing" they are going to send it (admittedly in a controlled manner). The slower drivers are a different story, they will always send it and generally in an uncontrolled manner often resulting in contact. I assume because the GTE has less downforce when contact occurs its generally the GTE sent flying into the barriers resulting in significant damage or a DNF. In your last stream (90 minutes at Algarve), you noticed that my car had damage and you assumed that I had rolled the car. In fact I had simply been hit hard from behind by a HC in T9 by a guy off the pace who I assume simply misjudged the pass. I just don't get to 'race' because every other lap I have to go out of my way to avoid the faster classes who have no respect whether I am in a battle for position or not. I even reinstalled rFactor last evening, after a night sleep I came to the conclusion that I need to be patient for league racing so that I no longer have to endure multiclass.

[@darwinLee81283]

It will be saved if Motorsports games sells S397

[@MichiHoyer]

Yeah but which company you think would pick it up`?

[@darwinLee81283]

@@MichiHoyer Sell it back to Marcel Offermans. The issue is Publicly traded companies run day to day in the red (at a loss) with profitablity being propped up by shareholders and the stock market. I don't see Motorsports games just selling off S397 they want someone to buy all their debt!!

[@jassonco]

...but iRacing is going nowhere. My personal issue with LMU, and I have the updates is the overly complicated busy UI.

[@MichiHoyer]

You think there is too many buttons on a page or that it just works too slow? Whats your biggest concern regarding the UI

[@jassonco]

@@MichiHoyer I'm a hardcore simracer, not a game developer. LMU is a nice "pay to play beta" and break from iRacing, but also the overly amped up everything, like ACC, is cringe.

[@FireHerbstreit]

I’m done with other sims. DONE! You hear me iRacing??

[@MichiHoyer]

no iRacing will always haunt us :D

[@RandyMagruder]

Feel like Elon Musk should give these guys about $5m as an investor. I'm pretty sure that's pocket change for him?

[@MichiHoyer]

Might be a pocket change for him indeed. But I would wonder if he would just let S397 do what they should do then in regards to the way how its done etc

[@artemouse2007]

i would happily pay £5 a month just to play lmu. the occasional new car/track at the current rf2 track/pack pricing structure, is fine too. just needs the bugs fixed and a stable game.... "just" haha XD

[@MichiHoyer]

Just... indeed :D - however on that note. you spend 5quid a month or even more on stream donations here: first of all thank you very very much of that support bro! and then, I happily don't receive a dono if you fund MSG with a sub service :)

[@Mrpercy1987]

Yesterday i had 2 crashes after the quali. This is so frustrating!!

[@MichiHoyer]

Yep it is frustrating. But we need to keep going on and reporting and keeping that boat affloat to fix it all.

[@Themisterfly85]

you look high haha

[@MichiHoyer]

I know, I may have been a bit tired after all :D

[@FrederickRincon]

Well said, Michi. I do believe sim racing could be a little more expensive these days. Some compare pricing but forget the physics, looks, or unique cars that are built over laser data. ✌ rF2 can become a pure modding simulator eventually while LMU would be the official only content platform, if they would give a bit more insights some modders can code what MSG has no money for. Both games are united as we see many people jump between them, so each way it would offer some extra content and experiences for those going for both. You probably know that I have been busy the last 3 years with some HQ mods, and like with the Cayman those projects need a lot of time to bring it close to realism. I would do a subscription and maybe some early access for a fair yearly price setting. If 10K people pay 29 extra for this early access plan, we basically have 10 devs that can have a monthly income each year, if this doubles it can almost secure the positions of those at S397 ;) With a bit of good cash flow, it would change things massively.

[@MichiHoyer]

Hey Frederick, nice to hear of you mate!. Yeah I am well aware of what you are doing and how hard you are working for the rF2 Community. Maybe it is a good idea to approach MSG and note them hey: as much as you dont want to further develop rFactor 2 physic wise thats fine, but if you take 2 or 3 weeks time and create a little more thorough documentation about the ecosystem of rFactor 2, modders can bring new content and improve the game that way - just like AC1 has done it (there though i dont think devs sent out notifications). Either way, I agree with you. Personally I'm ready for a subscription service, even if you call it the MSG survival tip contribution hahah

[@javacupracing]

ACC to LMU convert here and I know there are others. The sim is excellent; I hope it survives.

[@MichiHoyer]

I'm looking forwards to the GT3 as much as any other driver I guess. How much do you think ACC players will ditch ACC for LMU after all? 4k people playing ACC on a daily basis.

[@Yamahaonboardmovies]

LMU hat von Anfang an die Com belogen. Erst hieß es 2024 kommt LMU.....danach hieß es LMU kommt als Early Access....dann ging es weiter 2024er Content als kauf DLC. DLCs in einem unfertigen Spiel sind für mich ein noGo. Als nächstes kam die Nachricht das sie eine art Paywall wie iracing machen wollen. Sie haben ihr eigenes Spiel noch bevor es im EA Steam war gekillt. Hätten sie von Anfang an reinen Tisch gemacht hätte das die Com vielleicht anders aufgenommen. Es hat ein halbes Jahr gedauert Server crashes die von rf2 übernommen wurden "halbwegs" in Griff zu bekommen. Bevor die Fixes kamen haben sie aber erst mal pay DLCs rausgehaun. Alles falsch gemacht, mit ACC das selbe nach 1.8 ging es nur noch berg ab "Hymo MinMax Settings TC off Bullshit..." Hab erst am WE wieder Onboards von GT3s gesehen da fährt niemand mit TCoff oder im regen mit TC1 Kunos hat jeden Bezug zu einer Sim verloren... Beide Entwickler drängen ja die Leute förmlich zu iRacing. Ich selbst bereue den kauf von LMU mittlerweile und bin froh die 2 letzten dlcs nicht gekauft zu haben. Vielleicht haben sie aber Glück und die WEC selbst buttert da rein und kauft das ding.

[@MichiHoyer]

Schade das so zu hören, aber ich respektiere die Ansicht darüber natürlich. Kann auch verstehen, wenn man das so sieht oder aus der Sicht wert darauf legt. Ich persönlich finde es natürlich lange nicht so schlimm oder schwierig. Aber ich habe vielleicht schon ein wenig damit gerechnet, weil ich weiß dass für ein Unternehmen derer Größe und mit einem Spiel mit so überschaubaren Verkaufszahlen (weil aich recht kleiner Markt) es fast nicht anders machbar ist.

[@cesarsc971]

They have to contact one of these to finance the project: Elon Musk Arab Sheikh Tencent Warner Bros Games LMU is the best simulator in the world

[@MichiHoyer]

Not sure if all these investors would see what we see in the game though dont you think?

[@cesarsc971]

@@MichiHoyer You're right, but it would be worth trying. Arabs will finance almost anything if they like it. The hard part is getting someone to put you in touch with them. I really don't understand the world. I have all the simulators, and comparing LMU with AMS2, as many people do, it seems offensive to me. The two simulators don't play in the same league. And I race with the Xbox controller and still notice a huge difference. LMU is a work of art.

[@MrKram56]

LMU is the best sim on the market at the moment, I've bought the available DLC's and even bought them for my son who doesn't have time to race at the moment. I hope that S397 will stay afloat and I have every confidence in their abilities. If iRacing bought LMU it would kill the sim, personally I wont be giving them a penny. EA games I have zero confidence. Konos have their new physics. Crowd funding is great however, with a regular base of 1000 players I doubt it could raise enough money. Could sponsorship from WEC or teams be possible, if no then they clearly don't care about the game so why keep the licence. Past Errors (I appreciate hindsight is 20/20) 1/ From day 1 the priority should have been a stable game. 2/ GT3's (no GTE's). 2025 Goals (Before AC Evo) 1/ Stable game 2/ Private Hosting 3/ GT3's 2026 Goals 1/ 2026 cars and tracks

[@MichiHoyer]

I agree that they should get things out and fixed ASAP. However, I am pretty sure they wont make it all before ACE gets released. I hope we get a good bunch of GT3s very soon.

[@motelghost477]

Copium.

[@MichiHoyer]

think we are still going tho ;)

[@Gdad-20]

Sorry if no one likes this suggestion, but if LMU and other pc sim titles want more longevity, then they need to come to consol. Simple. 👍

[@MichiHoyer]

generally I think there is truth in that. And one of the reports also stated that they are trying to find investors to achieve this step towards consoles.

[@ldplays9431]

Its a shit game. Were all moving on to Assetto Corsa Evo. Endurance Motorsport Series is also on the horizon. GT8 will be massive. I bought this game day one, put 140 hours into it in a very short time. Gave it good feedback which of course no one cared for or replied to but the one time I have legitimate technical criticism the team members make fun of me and are just cringe. This game and company can get Fd. It had potential and that's all it had.

[@MichiHoyer]

For most of the part I have to disagree with your opinion but I respect it if you feel it that way. i think S397 has not replied to people specifically but took the feedback and went on with trying to fix the issue. Why do you consider it is a shit game though? Like did you even dislike the driving experience.

[@ldplays9431]

@@MichiHoyer You’re disagreeing with my personal experience? 😅 It just had too many inconsistencies. When they introduced the improved starts update I constantly got drive through penalties from other cars spinning out. Then net code/driving physics issues. For example I would do a certain event in a certain car and the car would lock up constantly then I recreated the same event and car in single player the issues were gone. I had to lower the break pressure so much to get rid of the lock ups that the car would barely stop. So to this point is where devs/community mods said skill issue but I have 140 hours in the game. I won several races in too split etc. where was the skill issue then? Edit: I also remember lowering brake pressure and still lockups