Project CARS
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EA now owns Codemasters and its many, many racing games
EA has completed its $1.2 billion acquisition of Codemasters, giving it an edge in racing games,
'Project CARS GO' finally comes out on March 23rd for Android and iOS
Slightly Mad Studios’ motorsport series heads to Android and iOS devices on March 23rd.
EA moves closer to $1.2 billion Codemasters purchase
Shareholders of the racing game studio approved the deal.
Take-Two is buying F1 developer Codemasters for almost $1 billion
The mega-publisher behind 2K and Rockstar now owns Codemasters.
'Project Cars 3' trailer has some sim racing fans worried
Fans are debating whether the next 'Project Cars' game is realistic enough to be a real race sim.
'Project Cars' developer bought by racing sim giant Codemasters
There's mixed feelings for racing game fans this week as publisher Codemasters announced it will purchase Slightly Mad Studios, the developer of the Project Cars series. Codemasters will pay $30 million for the acquisition, as reported by GamesIndustry.biz.
Behind the wheel of Logitech's G29 Driving Force controller
While gamers are still waiting for any official word on a PlayStation 4 entry in the venerable Gran Turismo series, there's still plenty of racing to be done on Sony's current-gen console. The recent release of Project Cars and the steady maturation of Driveclub (following its botched launch) are just two examples of the PS4's racing options. Into this growing genre comes Logitech with its $400 G29 Driving Force Racing Wheel -- the latest in its long-running G series of steering wheel controllers. While owners of the older (and non-PS4-compatible) G27 wheel may be disappointed that the company has opted to replace it, Logitech's latest entry (released alongside an Xbox One-focused sibling called the G920) could be worth the sizable asking price.
Building a high-end racing sim setup with $1,800 in gaming accessories
When it comes to racing games, and especially simulator-style titles, using a standard controller is fine for casual, laid-back play. But the genre really comes into its own with a dedicated wheel/pedal setup. There are a number of affordable options out there, as well as higher-end wheels like the Thrustmaster T300RS we checked out earlier this year. Meanwhile Logitech recently announced the $400 G29 and G920 (for the PS3/4 and Xbox One/PC, respectively). But if those wheels just aren't quite high-end enough for you, Fanatec is happy to help you out. I've been using the company's modular ClubSport line to see if it can help me tame the vehicles on offer in the racing sim Project CARS. It's about as top-of-the-line as racing wheels get, but I'm warning you right now: The best doesn't come cheap.
'Project Cars' will finally come out on May 6th, we hope
Remember Project Cars, the beautiful sim racer from the team behind Need for Speed: Shift? Well, it's finally coming out, and relatively soon. Or at least that's what developer Slightly Mad Studios is promising, anyway. After three embarrassing delays, we've got a new release date for your calendar: May 6th. The game will be available first on PC (via Steam) in the US before a staggered international release on PS4 and Xbox One: it'll arrive in Europe and Australasia on May 7th, followed by the UK on May 8th and North America on May 12th. There's no word on the Wii U version though, which is a little worrying.
Drive through this Project Cars trailer
Bandai Namco offered a new trailer for Project Cars today, the upcoming racing game from World of Speed and Need for Speed: Shift developer Slightly Mad Studios. In development for PC, Xbox One, PS4 and Wii U, the game features both competitive and asynchronous online multiplayer as well as a "freeform career mode" in which players sign endorsements and complete historical challenges. It also supports Oculus Rift, the nVidia Shield and Sony's Project Morpheus on PC and PS4, respectively. Project Cars was delayed in October to March 2015 following a number of changes to the game's destined platform choices. Its Wii U version was revealed in January 2012, then Project Cars' Xbox 360 and PS3 versions were scrapped in November 2013. The PC, PS4 and Xbox One versions of the game are confirmed to launch on March 17 in North America and March 20 in Europe and Australasian regions, with the Wii U game set to arrive sometime this year. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Project Cars delayed to March 2015
The launch of Project Cars has been delayed to March 2015, Bandai Namco announced today. It will now arrive on March 17 in North America and March 20 in Europe and Australasian regions. The delay affects the game's Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC versions, which were previously scheduled for November 18 and November 21 in North America and Europe, respectively. The decision "positions the title away from the competitive holiday scene dominated by household names while affording the team at Slightly Mad Studios additional time to extend and polish" the game, according to the publisher. Slightly Mad Studios also has a Wii U version of Project Cars on the way, though it was already planned for 2015. It's currently unknown if the Wii U edition will align with the others in March 2015; we've asked Bandai Namco as much and will update as we learn more. The Wii U version was announced in January 2012 prior to Xbox 360 and PS3 versions being cut from the developer's plans in November 2013. Update: Bandai Namco says "the announced date is still 2015" for Project Cars on Wii U. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Project Cars targets 1080p on Xbox One, PS4
Visual fidelity has always been important to players, especially when the resolution between two versions of a game doesn't match. A class-action lawsuit was even filed over a multiplayer game that failed to live up to its promised resolution. With that in mind, racing fans will be happy to know that Project Cars is aiming for 1080p and 60 frames per second on PS4 and Xbox One. Slightly Mad Studios' Andy Tudor told Eurogamer that while recent Xbox One demos of the racer were "not quite 1080p at the moment," the developer is "still aiming to get there." "Towards the end of the game you're always optimizing, and during development it's a rollercoaster. Sometimes you look at the game and think oh god, that's not working, that's not working. But other days you hit 60 fps, and it's awesome," Tudor said. He explained that the "physics underneath runs at 600 times a second," and that the developer calculates "the input you're doing on the controller 250 times per second." The racing sim will launch on the next-gen systems as well as PC on November 18, arriving in 2015 on SteamOS and Wii U. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Project Cars racing to NA on Nov. 18, EU on Nov. 21
Slightly Mad Studios' sim-styled racer Project Cars will make its worldwide debut in November, publisher Bandai Namco announced today. Initially seeking support via crowdfunding, Project Cars picked up a publisher earlier this year, shifting its previous release plans to the current console generation. A Limited Edition bundle accompanying the release includes a behind-the-scenes collector's book and five additional in-game vehicles. Project Cars will premiere in North America on November 18 and Europe on November 21 for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC platforms. A Wii U port is set to launch in 2015. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Amazon: Wii U game pre-orders up following Gamescom
With all the news that surfaced last week during Gamescom, it makes sense that video game pre-orders would increase at retailers like Amazon. As it turns out, the biggest winner coming away from the show is Nintendo, as Wii U games saw the biggest boost in pre-orders on Amazon (8.67 percent). By comparison, pre-orders for PS4 games rose 5.16 percent and Xbox One games increased 2.81 percent. The largest increase for a single game was 42.3 percent for Slightly Mad Studios' Project Cars. Bandai Namco announced a limited edition version of the game last week, which likely spurred new pre-orders. Rounding out the top five are Rise of the Tomb Raider (30.25 percent), Bloodborne (16.08 percent), Hyrule Warriors (11.77 percent) and Quantum Break (10.77 percent). You'll find the full list of the top ten games whose pre-orders increased on Amazon after the break, courtesy of MCV.
New Project Cars screens want to take you for a ride
Slightly Mad Studios shows off the many shiny vehicles it has in store for Project Cars in the screenshots below as its sim-styled racer speeds toward a launch later this year. The former Need for Speed series developer presents its featured racing machines in astounding detail, and players will be able to put tire to track for the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Wii U, and PC platforms in November. [Video: Slightly Mad Studios]
Project Cars' Limited Edition parks five cars in your garage
Bandai Namco revealed a Limited Edition version of Project Cars today, which will include a copy of the game, collectible book and five drivable legendary cars. The collector's book, titled "Project Cars: By Racers 4 Racers," offers a behind-the-scenes look at the game's development and influence from its community during Slightly Mad Studios' crowdfunding process in 2011. The five cars featured in the collector's edition are: The Ford GT40 Mk IV, the BMW M1 Pro Car, the McLaren F1, the Sauber C9 and the Mercedes-Benz AMG C-Coupe DTM. Those that pre-order either the Limited Edition or standard versions of the game will also receive the Modified Cars Pack, which includes three cars: The Ruf CTR3 SMS-R, the Pagani Zonda Cinque Roadster and the Ariel Atom 3 Mugen. Project Cars will launch in November on Xbox One, PS4 and PC. The Wii U version of the racing game, which replaced the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions in November 2013, was previously delayed by the new publisher to 2015. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Bandai Namco to distribute next-gen racer Project Cars
Slightly Mad Studios' next-gen racing game Project Cars now has the support of Bandai Namco. The publisher agreed to distribute the game globally on Xbox One, PS4, PC for Windows and SteamOS as well as Wii U. Project Cars is slated to launch in November. The realism-fixated racing sim began as a crowdsourced World of Mass Development project in September 2011, two years after Slightly Mad Studios launched Need for Speed: Shift. It was originally planned for PC, Xbox 360 and PS3 before the developer added the Wii U to its list of platforms in January 2012, then ditched Xbox 360 and PS3 in favor of their next-gen counterparts and SteamOS in November 2013. One year later, Project Cars will arrive as one of the PS4's first Morpheus games in addition to its support of the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. [Image: Bandai Namco]
Project Cars takes drivers on 'the ultimate journey' in November
Need for Speed: Shift developer Slightly Mad Studios announced that its sim-styled racer Project Cars is due to hit the Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Wii U, and PC platforms in November. Project Cars demonstrates its slick presentation and advanced damage modeling in the newly released trailer above. Slightly Mad recently announced that Project Cars will be one of the first games to feature support for Sony's upcoming Project Morpheus virtual reality headset. [Image: Slightly Mad Studios]
Project Cars will launch as one of the PS4's first Morpheus games
Slightly Mad Studios' crowdfunded racing game, codenamed Project Cars, will launch as one of the first PlayStation 4 games to support Sony's Project Morpheus virtual reality hardware, the developer announced this week. "Virtual reality is a perfect fit for racing games since the game world literally comes rushing towards you from the distance and the increased sense of depth and speed that stereoscopic vision affords you makes this incredibly real and tangible," the developer said. "Project Morpheus also allows you to see detail you might have otherwise missed... Via our interior cameras not only can you look around the cockpit and see everything from a first-person perspective, but using head-tracking via the PlayStation Camera you can also now move around the cockpit too -- peer closer at some intricate detail or turn around and look out of the back window." Slightly Mad Studios' previous work includes Need for Speed: Shift and its sequel, Shift 2: Unleashed. The studio announced last year that it was ditching proposed Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions of the game in favor of Xbox One and PlayStation 4 development. Project Cars will hit consoles and PC platforms in November. [Image: Slightly Mad Studios]
Project Cars ditches PS3, Xbox 360, adds Xbox One, PS4, SteamOS
Slightly Mad Studios, the British development house perhaps best remembered for Need for Speed: Shift, is working on a new racing game called Project Cars. Today the developer has announced three new platforms for the game: Xbox One, PS4 and SteamOS. Project Cars, which was originally due to launch this year on PC and later on Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii U, has now been pushed back to Fall 2014. This delay also means that Xbox 360 and PS3 have been left by the wayside - those ports have been canceled - and so the updated platform list includes Xbox One, PS4, Wii U, PC and SteamOS. The "Cars" in Project Cars stands for "community-assisted racing simulator," a nod to Project Cars' crowd-funded and community-driven development plan. Those who have committed cash to Slightly Mad Studios have had access to frequently-updated builds of Project Cars and have helped steer the game's progress since late 2011.
