TOCA, I mean GRID demo

Only got about an hour with it, and with the controller only—no wheel. So far it's looking REALLY nice. The damage physics are going to create a new style of gameplay: don't crash. Smack a wall with any bit of force and your car will be steering towards that side if your suspension parts were damaged. To top that off, the damage effects are speed sensitive; the amount of countersteer you need to use to offset a damaged suspension differs based on your speed. This is on top of some of the most realistic driving physics to date. It is much less "floaty" than Forza 2. My only nitpick is that the realism of the driving physics goes away when you drop a wheel off the track or even get into a tangle in a corner. I know that they are trying to create a fair game balance so that you can't just bounce off other cars to make your corners at higher-than-possible speeds or run through the grass to beat times, but the way they "punish" you for making a mistake is not realistic at all. I autocross cars, I watch racing in person and on tv a lot. Cars just don't do instant 180s when dropping a wheel off the track. Its so surprising when it happens because the on-track physics are very convincing, I just don't expect it. I had this same complaint with TOCA, but this time they have added instant-180 punishment to on-track scuffles too; physics be damned. An example: I was making a tight right-hander on the europe track when i turned my NOSE into another car, so of course is was perfectly natural for my rear end to step out the OPPOSITE direction, slide exactly 180°, and come to an abrupt stop facing directly against the track direction. Note that I had not applied the brakes AT ALL during this maneuver. Watching the replay, it was like an invisible hand had pushed the car around, almost comical how it defied physics. I'll probably end up buying the game despite this, because I really want to like it. TOCA was great fun and the best online racer before Forza. I'll just remember 2 rules: stay on the track at all times and don't touch any other cars!