Homemade Race Simulator
Racing has been a big part of sports and recreation for a very long time. From NASCAR and drift racing to swimming and horse racing, the goal of crossing the finish line is a main aspect of many sports. Homemade racing simulators are a great way to simulate real-world racing, while still competing and challenging others.
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Things You'll Need
- Image creation software
- Game development software
- Peripherals such as a steering wheel, pedals and even a racing seat
Instructions
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Plan Your Simulator
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1
Plan out your simulator. Consider what kind of racing you want the simulator to feature such as, stock-car racing, street racing, go-kart racing, or any others you can think of. Decide how involved and realistic you want the simulator to be. The more detailed the simulator is, the more the racer will feel like they're actually racing.
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2
Research your race. After deciding what kind of racing you want, use books, magazines and the Internet to learn all you can about it and begin to collect ideas of how you want the cars, dashboards and tracks to look.
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3
Outline and organize your software. Decide if you want additional cars and tracks to be unlocked as the racer progresses or if everything will be available immediately. Make a chronological list of how a racer should progress through the simulator.
Design Your Simulator
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4
Draw your dashboards. Use any research you had done and the image creation software to create the look of the dashboards for all the vehicles your racer can choose from.
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Draw your tracks. Whether it's a simple oval shape or a winding road that moves in and out of mountain sides, your racers will want their environment to be well-designed and realistic.
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Draw any miscellaneous objects. Use the image creation software to create menus and the exteriors of the cars for when the racer is choosing a car.
Code and Build Your Simulator
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Code your vehicles. Use the game development software to program your dashboards to reflect what your racer is doing. Be sure to code the speedometer, odometer, RPMs, gas gauge and any other important information.
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Code your tracks. This is really coding the movement of your car. The car should move through the tracks depending on how the racer is controlling it.
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Build the simulator. Program the software to work with any peripherals you want to use with the simulator.
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10
Test your simulator. From the game development software, test the simulator. Make any necessary changes until you have the simulator the way you want it.
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Tips & Warnings
Get really in-depth and code different vehicles to race differently depending on its tires, weight or torque.
Simulators take a long time and a lot of people to create. Don't get discouraged if you don't get it right immediately.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Polka Dot/Polka Dot/Getty Images
