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Meeting the Unique Demands of Sim Racing Broadcasting
Sim racing’s popularity has increased in recent years, not just in terms of player participation, but also as a viewership spectacle. Much like motorsport in the real world, sim racing streams and broadcasts are enhanced by knowledgeable and enthusiastic commentators to guide viewers through the event.
However, while the demand for sim racing commentators has increased, it’s still a competitive market. To succeed as a sim racing commentator, you must understand the nuances of sim racing, be knowledgeable about the drivers you are commentating on, and navigate the unique challenges of finding work in the broadcasting space.
Furthermore, commentating in the virtual world can also provide unique opportunities, which broadcasters should seek to take advantage of. This guide will help you level up your sim racing commentary.
Challenges of the virtual world
In the real world, racing broadcasts provide viewers with frequent opportunities to see and hear the personalities of the paddock, be they drivers, team bosses and other personnel. This may, for instance, come in the form of on-camera interviews with drivers before and after a race, or cutaways to team bosses and engineers hard at work.
This generates unique human interest, which is all the more immersive for viewers. However, the virtual world provides very few opportunities for this. In some instances, broadcasts may be able to cut to webcam footage of sim drivers behind the wheel or may include post-race interviews over voice or video call, but this is not always the case.
More often than not, sim racing viewers will never see or hear any of the competitors they’re watching, presenting a unique challenge for broadcasters. However, telling an interesting story under these circumstances is by no means impossible.
Know your drivers
Many of the leagues that you will be broadcasting for as a commentator likely have a history. Doing your research is always important. Driver profiles, league results archives and previous race broadcasts are valuable tools that you can use as a commentator to craft interesting stories that your viewers may like to know about.
If you are commentating for a larger league with a website, it may have a driver profile page containing the previous results and racing history of its participants. You can use this information to identify the strengths and weaknesses of any given driver. For example, a driver may be fast at Laguna Seca but historically weak at Suzuka. Furthermore, sim racing leagues will usually keep an archive of previous race and championship results, which can also be used to identify storylines like past rivalries, whether a driver had a good or a bad season previously, etc.
Watching previous races that your league has broadcast can also help you find past noteworthy moments that you can reference in your commentary. For example, a good strategy call may have won a driver a race in a previous season, or an on-track incident may have spelt the end of a championship challenge for another.
Using this information will allow you to tell a more compelling story in your commentary, helping you to level up as a broadcaster.
Why Strong Technical Understanding can make you a better commentator
Screenshot by Jack MacKenzie taken in Assetto Corsa Competizione
Track knowledge
Much like real-world motorsports, the chosen track plays a substantial role in any sim racing event. Every track is unique, both in terms of history and technical characteristics. As a broadcaster, it is important to have an understanding of these attributes to enrich your commentary.
Referring to real-world records, races and moments from the chosen circuit can add to your commentary. For example, if you are commentating on a Formula 1 sim race from Monaco, it would be worthwhile to touch on the illustrious history of that circuit.
Technical knowledge of the track is important too. This could include attributes like overtaking opportunities, what gear a corner is to be taken in, what kind of setup may be favourable for that particular circuit, what curbs you can and cannot take, etc.
Given that these circuits are virtual recreations, they may have unique sim racing nuances when compared to their real-world counterparts, and it is important to be across these. In modern sim racing, most circuits are laser-scanned, meaning that most virtual circuits are almost 1:1 replicas of the real thing. Even still, sim racing circuits receive updates from time to time, such as new textures and visuals, which are sometimes worth mentioning. Virtual circuits may also have slight changes like different track limits and pit lane speed limits compared to their real-life counterparts, which can have an impact on how the drivers interact with the circuit.
Sim racing also provides the opportunity for anyone to drive these circuits at any time, including prospective commentators looking to learn more about the track, something that would be almost impossible in real life. As a commentator, it’s worth getting some first-hand experience of the circuit before a broadcast to enhance your understanding further.
Car knowledge
Another unique opportunity provided by sim racing is that broadcasters also have the opportunity to test-drive the cars that will be racing in the event they intend to broadcast. Even if an event is single-class, the behaviour of cars of different makes and models can vary substantially, and each car may have drastically different setup requirements.
For example, one car may be more stable through the corners when compared to its competitors, another may be faster down the straights and another may have better fuel consumption, all of which could impact the dynamics of a race in ways that are relevant to your viewers.
By putting yourself in the virtual driver’s seat, you can gain a valuable understanding of what the competitors you are commentating on are experiencing at any given moment throughout a race. This will allow you to inform your viewers better and improve your commentary.
Platform knowledge
Any given sim racing platform may have the same cars and tracks and similar features to another, but whether it’s Assetto Corsa, iRacing, rFactor or any other platform, each of them has their own specific nuances that impact the races that you will be commentating on. These can include different tyre models, weather simulations, handling models, physics engines and other subtle differences as well.
Take the time to get to know the platform you are commentating on. You can do this by driving in as many different situations as possible. For instance, try out different weather conditions, different times of (in-game) day, different levels of tyre wear, different fuel loads, in clean air, in traffic, etc.
By understanding how drivers interact with each facet of the simulation, and how they impact races, you will be able to better inform and immerse your viewers through your commentary.
How to find the right work
Finding work presents itself as a challenge to every prospective broadcaster in the world of sim racing. While it is certainly true that sim racing commentary gigs are more accessible and abundant than those of real-world motorsports, regardless of how talented you are as a commentator, opportunities are unlikely to present themselves if you are not proactive.
If you are just starting out as a commentator, you will likely have to do at least some broadcasts for free, generally offering your services to smaller leagues. Any experience on the microphone is invaluable. Working to build an online presence will also help your prospects. A good way to do this would be to start a YouTube channel covering sim racing or motorsports to build your portfolio and bolster your reputation.
By taking opportunities to get behind the microphone you will build a body of work to show to leagues and broadcasting firms who may be willing to pay for your services. Like any paid employment, you should also actively search for commentary opportunities; the internet is an excellent way to do this. Even a simple Google search presents numerous possible commentary opportunities.
It is unlikely that the paths of any two prospective commentators will be exactly alike, however, as the connections and opportunities you make will always be unique to you. But by working to accumulate your body of work, building your reputation and being proactive in looking for opportunities, the likelihood of finding the right work for you in sim racing commentary will substantially increase.
By being as knowledgeable as possible, both about sim racing and about your series, making yourself a competitive prospect in the pool of prospective broadcasters, and being proactive in creating opportunities, you will be able to level up your sim racing commentary and create a more lucrative career for yourself in the broadcasting space.
