This has taken up time so I haven't been playing too much this week. But I have been a bit consistent with this last week. I have posted in a previous blog about me getting the nitro buggy out of storage. While I enjoyed that, there is just not much space to run a 1/8 nitro buggy here at home. So if I can't go outside to the tracks, let's bring the tracks INSIDE with Virtual RC!
VRC Pro is an RC Simulator, you can find and download it here. The game has RC cars from buggies to touring to pan cars and short-course, and tracks of all sorts. It has a free-to-play mode where you can do unlimited race and practice sessions with 10 cars though with limited modifications you can make and some usable 10 tracks. Getting a membership opens up all features of the game. I am still on Free-Play, but I am sure that with membership comes all the nitty-gritty stuff that goes with real-life RC.
The QCRCCC club - which is the club in my previous playground in Circulo Verde, has been holding some official races here during this ECQ under the VRC-Ph banner, though I am part of the group chat, I am in spectator mode, learning from their chats and videos of the race. They really are good, whether in real RC or virtual RC!
Going back, what's good about this game is that the actual transmitter and receiver can be used to play! Although the game allows the keyboard and a controller as well. But using the transmitter IS the best way to go. Good thing I have a spare receiver (Again, two is one, one is none) so I didn't have to remove the one in the buggy.
Connecting the transmitter/receiver in the PC requires a USB Adaptor. VRC sells these in the site bundled with a membership which is I think is a great deal. But I got mine locally, from an ingenious RC enthusiast. I got myself a Tignotech RC USB adaptor. Actually, anyone with a knack in basic electronics can make one. Though I didn't go through that anymore as I suck bad at soldering! 
Connecting the USB Adapter is easy, its as if you are connecting cables from the real thing. Here's how the connection goes with the Airtronics (Sanwa) receiver.
Once everything's set up, turn on the game (Oops before that, just to let you know that its best to allow enough time to install the game. The installer is just an installer and would have to download about 1.5GB of game files) and hook up the USB Adapter. Your receiver should light up to let you know that it is paired with your transmitter, just like how the real RC does.
I won't do a heavy step-by-step on the game proper, its pretty straightforward - choose your preferred RC vehicle from the free ones, maybe do some modifications if you like (me I didn't, I just wanted to race!), then choose a track. The track will ask you for the level of play, I just chose the middle with some in-game racers for a little bit of action. When you're done, just hit start.
I will recommend though that you calibrate your controller first to make sure that it is zeroed out. Then make adjustments as you go along. Then during the game, familiarize yourself with some keyboard shortcuts, I'm sure the one you'll get to use more at first is the Space-bar (marshall assist) and the L-button (to refuel). I've heard that 4-channel USB Adapters can assign buttons in the remote, I don't know about that, I am using 2-channel.
I like the game. I think with more practice and if I dedicate time to play, I can go get a membership to get the full game features, and maybe give the VRC-Ph tournament a try. We'll see about that. So far in my one week of play, I am seeing a slight improvement in my driving. For now, I can say that I am consistently BAD in driving both the real RC and virtual RC. But hey, I still love to play!
Here's a little bit of gameplay, if you're into RC, its a no-brainer, try this out. Just get a USB adapter and connect your existing hardware. If you're thinking of getting into RC, this is a good way to try it out. Buy a used transmitter/receiver and a USB Adapter and start racing - its a bit similar to the real thing, only the real thing is a lot better with all your senses in play. Enjoy the game!
