Welcome back! That was before my time, but it's cool to see more of the old rFactor guys come out of the woodwork. Be sure to check out or discord, that's where most of the chatter is these days. There is usually some one around who will run with you on the server.
It might be worth while taking some sort of survey of the regular players to see what their specs are and what frame rate they get. Maybe then we could get a better idea of what it takes to currently run the game well beyond the vague "decent gaming PC".
Easiest way to race with other people is to join the official UHL server 'www.uhlhydroplanes.com'. I believe there is a way to set up your own server but it's a hassle and above my skill level.
@rileyroo1997 Join our discord (and message a mod admin on discord when you do so they can give you a role so you can see and post stuffer in the channels) and feel free to ask. The main guys that are really good at making boats Matt Johnson, Craig Montgomery, and Chris Porten, though there are others who know how as well. Discord is where most of the community is rather than the forums these days.
We sort of had the 2014 one, it was made for the old rFactor mod and didn't fit the version of the hydroplane model used in HydroSim. The cockpit texture would be all messed up. It's one of a number of old rFactor schemes no one has gone back and re-done, though a new version would probably be doable by one of the multiple boat-painters we have in the community if you request it, especially if it's a scheme you wanted to race.
Fun fact: the scheme did win the first ever organized race on HydroSim, before we ever did a season on the game.
You can race in VR, but I wouldn't recommend it in a league unless you have a spotter. As for future VR stuff, the new GP boat model has a really well-made cockpit model thanks to Kallen Washburn, so that'll look really nice in VR once its finished.
With water effects, we used to have some splashes on the screen but they never worked in VR and I believe were tied to the old water system. Details like that are probably lower priority than other things, like GP boats and race courses for them.
Best place is to join our discord server, usually you can use the voice chat there to hang out and race with people. There is usually some one there online to play with, and lots of experienced people to show you the ropes. Our next big league season starts in late September and has sign ups open.
I don't have much experience with Xbox controllers on this game but from what I know they can be pretty finicky. Generally PS4 controllers seem to work better. I have a made-for-PC controller based off a PS controller. This one: https://www.amazon.com/Controller-Gamepad-Computer-Windows-Android/dp/B00OAYHIRA
Welcome back! That was before my time, but it's cool to see more of the old rFactor guys come out of the woodwork. Be sure to check out or discord, that's where most of the chatter is these days. There is usually some one around who will run with you on the server.
We have a non-season race tomorrow night. You can join our discord to channel, which is generally where announcements are made, plus it's where everyone hangs out during races.
What kind of controller are you using? Also be sure the input is just "Rudder" and "Canard", not "Rudder(+)" or "Rudder(-)".
I use a controller, specifically a made-for-PC controller, but PS4 controllers work with the game just fine in my experience. Xbox controllers can be finicky. You have to put the input for the joysticks yourself. Go to the input tab and bind "rudder" to a joystick axis. Same with "canard" with the 2nd joystick.