But the OP was GT5 and Forza 3. GT5P was added as a smokescreen due to the lack of comparitive evidence for GT5.

You didn't read the OP then, it was about Forza 3 being the new graphics king. The thread was just derailed by a bunch of fanboys.

You can't be serious.

Automatic in racing games means either one of 2 things;

1. The car is actually changed to an automatic transmission in which case there is no need to reach down to shift, unless of course the transmission is tiptronic, this is usually used in low-quality arcade style racing games as it is unrealistic because most high performance cars don't have the option of being built with automatic transmissions.

OR as is the case with most realistic racing games/sims including GT5:P;

2. Every car in the game is equipped with a manual transmission (or tiptronic if the car was never built with a manual i.e McLaren SLR), turning the option to automatic makes the game do the shifting for you, but the car itself is still manual, its very easy to tell as you can clearly hear that even in automatic mode the cars are still shifting manually. They usually do this because the manual transmissions not only sounds the best but is also the better performing transmission. Most of the cars in GT5:P never had the option of being built with automatic transmissions, so this was the most realistic option. It would be stupid and highly unrealistic to put an automatic transmission in a car that was never built with one.

With all your claimed "extensive" knowledge of racing games I thought you would know this.  Besides, who the hell plays on automatic anyways?

I did a test last night with GT5P. Indeed it does visually change gear with automatic setting, but ONLY when you drive a car with the H-gear like the EVO IX, M3, etc.

If you drive a car with the paddle shift like the Ferraris and the GT-R, the hands won't move weather you drive auto or manual.

Personally driving with auto is not fun at all. You don't feel the full control over the cars. Manual usually gives you better lap time.

There are other some features people love but I don't understand. Such as the custom sonudtrack. I don't care about any soundtracks. I tune them down all the way and boost the effect sound to 150. I rather hear the engine screaming in a car than some linkin park or black eyed pea.

Exactly, as I mentioned there is no need to move the hands with tiptronic/dual-clutch paddle shifted transmissions.

EDIT: I watched the video of the Porcshe GT2 racing in Forza 3, and that generation of GT2 only came with a 6 speed manual. So yes, Forza 3 is infact missing the shifting animation, unless the person was playing on automatic and the devs actually put in an automatic transmission for that car, which would be lame and unrealistic. I don't think its in auto though because you can see unnecessary upshifts and downshifts and burying the redline, so I'd hope its on manual mode, or else the Forza 3 automatic mode is just really shitty and needs to be fixed.

Shifting? this is the new argument? who really cares if the "driver's" hand moves to shift the car? You aren't watching the driver when playing the game are you now. Seriously, stop grabbing for straws, you are still coming up empty handed.

Umm...actually Oniichan was just making an astute observation. People complained about the same little shit when GT5:P was first showed, like the side mirrors being all blurry.

Considering they called their game the "definitinive racing game of this generation" about 400 times, you would expect it to at least match GT5:P in realism, but in this aspect so far, it doesn't. It's a legitimate complaint.

If you are using the incar veiw in GT5P you would be checking your mirros, I could see where that would be annoying. You know what else is annoying? People complaining about a "driver" in a fake car, that is in a video game, not "shifing" with his hand. I mean come on! Forza 3 is so far ahead of gt5p that the "drivers" use The Force to shift!

I have yet to meet a person who actually utilizes side mirrors in a racing game as you can't see the passenger side one and the driver side one is often only halfway on the screen or not on the screen at all depending on the car, its a lot easier to look at your rear view mirror or just press the look backwards button.

That said however, it was still a legitimate complaint considering GT claims itself as "The real driving simulator".

Just as with Forza 3 the driver not moving his hands is a legitimate complaint as they called themselves the "definitive racing game of the generation".

I fail to see how the driver not shifting is as noticeable as blurry mirrors.