Greetings everyone!
As announced in our previous catch-up in March, the team have since been completely immersed in the work for what is promising to be the biggest AMS2 update yet – as with previous milestone updates, V1.6 will introduce major developments to every front of the game, the collective effect of which to constitute a leap that should surmount event that of V1.5 last year – the game will look, sound, feel and race better than ever, wrapped by a completely overhauled user interface and boosted by some of the coolest premium content we have ever worked on.
The depth of the changes in AMS2 V1.6 is such that we couldn´t possibly cover it all within a single dev update – given we are still several weeks away from its release, we will instead break the news in parts to give everyone the chance to digest all the features and content incoming with this update.
Please keep in mind the above in case you don´t see news you were most looking forward to just yet – there is plenty more about the V1.6 update to cover beyond what you will read in this Dev Update.
At Least Seven New Premium Car Brands to Join AMS2 in 2024
We begin with what to expect on the content front for v1.6 and beyond in the remainder of 2024 – as announced in the last dev update, we have struck a very exciting new partnership with IMSA to feature most if not all of the 2024 WeatherTech SportsCar Championship represented in AMS2, and it is partially (but not exclusively) in pursuit of that target that we have signed new licensing deals with no less than seven premium car brands, with a few more still being pursued.
As a result of these deals, not only will a large portion of the models competing in this year´s championship be present in AMS2, but several classes shall also have their grids boosted with new competitors, as all of these brands produced models with strong context within classes already represented in the sim.
While this was always the plan – such is the reach of AMS2 that the classes represented within it would inevitably need to be filled over time rather than all at once – having so many premium brands join the sim within a relatively short period of time is further demonstration of AMS2´s growing profile within the virtual motorsports scene, something we are immensely proud of.
Quite a few of these brands will make their AMS2 debut already in v1.6, and in time we´ll name them all as well as detail the models you may expect from each – read on to confirm the first one!
Audi to Arrive in Automobilista 2!
We are thrilled to announce a new licensing deal with Audi AG to officially feature several models from the famous Four Rings in AMS2 – the first few models of a fairly sizeable list already arriving with V1.6 as both free base game content as well as part of ensemble DLC packs.
Much like its Bavarian counterparts already featuring in AMS2, Audi possess a rich and diverse history in motorsports, producing some of the most iconic racing cars for Endurance and touring car series in particular which we are eager to feature in AMS2.
It doesn´t get much better than the Audi Quattro V8, the AWD that rocked DTM in the early 1990s, winning two championships on the trot with Hans-Joachim Stuck. The car will be added to our Group A as free base game content.
The original Audi R8 LMS GT3 will also arrive as free base game content, bringing some V10 flair to the GT3 Gen1 class
Finally, the Audi R8 LMS Evo II which along with four other GT & Prototype models will be part of the Endurance Pack Pt2, also planned for release alongside with V1.6 for an estimated price of US$ 9.99.
Road Atlanta Incoming!
Moving on to the race tracks – it would be impossible to do IMSA justice without featuring the remaining hosts of some of their most traditional and exciting events. AMS2 already features Daytona, Laguna Seca, Long Beach and Road America, and one of the most obvious names to add to that list is that of the Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta - we are thrilled this roller coaster track is one of three tracks making up the IMSA Track Pack which is planned to be released with the V1.6 update – the pack is estimated to sell for US$ 14.99
AMS2 V1.6 Physics Revision
Content news are always welcome and surely most will agree those are some formidable new cars and track to see arriving for AMS2. But the value of new content in a racing simulator only goes as far as the quality of the simulation itself –and there is no shortage of efforts going into delivering on that front too, with physics once again getting major updates.
Last year´s V1.5 update featured a major physics overhaul in which a critical tire modelling issue got rectified, along with a number of specific aerodynamics and suspension modelling refinements to various cars in the sim. This set up a far more advanced and reliable physics baseline which we have continued to incrementally polish over the remainder of 2023 and into 2024.
There were still some SETA breakthroughs for our physics devs to crack, and as it turns out it heavily relates to a common feedback, we´ve been receiving from real drivers and hardcore users alike – that of AMS2 tires still seeming relatively forgiving and tolerant of over-driving. With that under consideration, the devs poured more time into tire hysteresis, which as we covered in the last dev update is a key element in this equation- to briefly recap, hysteresis is the loss of energy through tire distortion, and its modelling determines how deep a specific rubber compound can sink into the asperities of the track surface, and thus sustain peak adhesion for longer. Initial tread revisions for more detailed hysteresis modelling already features in the updated physics of the F-Ultimate Gen2 and Stock Car Pro Series 2024 as of the last update, but even these classes have been further developed since.
While not as comprehensive as the V1.5 revisions, the physics revisions of V1.6 net an evolution that´s at least as significant as that of v1.5 last year – tires feel more connected and responsive than ever while remaining thoroughly organic; once they start to slide however the window to keep the car under control is significantly smaller.
The tires´ thermodynamics properties along with flat spotting, wear and degradation rates have also been thoroughly revised for both dry and wet tires (the latter of which undergoing an overhaul of their own right).
While tires as always are the critical component, the V1.6 physics revisions don’t stop there – brakes have also received a thorough thermodynamic pass, and ERS modelling has been further developed to better simulate the properties of LMDh prototypes as can be seen in the preview below:
Opinions will certainly vary as they always do amongst sim racers as to what sim “gets” physics right and we don´t foresee reaching unanimity with the release of v1.6 - our brains are not all wired the same and even amongst real racing drivers it´s natural for different people to have different sensibilities to what may be lacking in a sim vs the experience of driving a real race car. All we can realistically aim for is to be meet our own targets for the depth and sophistication of the physics in AMS2, and with v1.6 we will take another decisive step towards delivering on that goal.
Visible Tire Wear & Damage
If tires and tire management will be more critical than ever with V1.6, so is the need for the driver to monitor their state – in real life that´s much easier to do in open wheelers in which drivers can see them with their own eyes. As of V1.6 that will also be possible in AMS2, with visual representation of tire wear & flat spots.
This is something we had already done in AMS1 but in less sophisticated manner – in AMS2 the tire tread is physically modelled in a grid of 22 longitudinal segments by 6 lateral ones, each with their own dynamic wear and damage properties which can to one section of the tire band receiving more wear than the other depending on factors such as tire pressure and camber angle as well as the nature of the track, and if that is the case you´ll be able to visualize that pattern yourself.
The same applies to flat spots, which in AMS2 can be accumulated in different segments of the tread, each with different depth and causing their own specific deformation of the tire, to varying repercussions on its performance and what you´re feeling through the FFB. In V1.6 we´re revising all flat spotting dynamics of every tire so that the amount of damage induced from a wheel lockup appropriately corresponds to the surface, the loads on the tire and its compound properties, and also so that the visual representation of the damage is accurate.
There is more to come on this front – future updates will see other types of tire damage also represented both physically and graphically and a new option to limit the number of new tire sets available on given race weekend will make driver management of tires even more critical, but these will come after v1.6.
Further V1.6 Developments
Before we cover some other valuable V1.6 updates, let me reinforce again this is just some of the ground we have already covered for it – besidrd the aforementioned extra unnanounced content and the UI overhaul, we have a number of substantial AI developments (including much improved defensive & blue flag behavior) and some Multiplayer wins already in the bag, but these fronts (and much more) we will cover in a follow-up dev update once the work on them is completed.
Even the list of changes already in the Beta is a bit overwhelming so to let’s focus on some of the most relevant improvements so far:
Pit entrance and exit for all tracks will now feature pit lights to signal when the pit is open or closed as well as inform drivers exiting the pits of incoming traffic.
The racing line is receiving several realism adjustments so that it´s both grippier when dry as well as more slippery in the rain - its visuals in both conditions are likewise being revamped to better represent its relevance:
All vehicles in the sim are also being extensively revised for a richer level of detail - one of the areas being tackled is that of vehicle windshields which have been revised to a cohesive level of tint and reflections, and which now feature varying levels of visible scratches and even fingerprints - check it out:
We have also added support for various types of new vehicle lights, ranging from extra headlights to blinking warning LEDsas well as purposeful LEDs such as the P2P status lights in the Brazilian Stock Car Pro series.
Improved particle effects - the last update already saw some great progress to water spray particles, and work on this front has continued with mechanical failures now potentially leading to some glorious (and blinding!) clouds of white smoke in case of more catastrophic failures. Tire smoke has also been revamped for a more realistic look. - previews of these developments in the video below:
That covers it for Pt1! There is a lot more for us to go over before V1.6 is due for release, but those will be topics for Pt2 at some point in late June :)