rFactor 2 – Q4 2022 Update and New Content

Studio 397 has released the Q4 2022 update for the rFactor 2 simulator, adding four new tracks and two new cars. Alongside a good number of fixes and tweaks, the update also contains improved AI code for a better offline racing experience, and a new streamlined in-game store that is easier and quicker to use.

Release Note: Due to the conclusion of the licensing arrangement with Formula E, the Monaco E-Prix Circuit will be removed from sale within the rFactor 2 Steam Store during this launch. The new London E-Prix will be added to the existing Formula E pack for new purchases going forward. 

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Official Webpage – www.studio-397.com – The rFactor 2 Racing Simulator is available via Steam for €29,99.

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Studio 397 Quote:

New Content – Cars

New content is always nice, and seeing as we are all very much fans of motorsport here at the Studio, we enjoy bringing new and exciting content to the simulation almost as much as you all enjoy driving them! For this Q4 release, we continue our quest to complete the 2021/22 British Touring Car Championship field, as well as introduce our first of the new Hypercar class – even before the car gets to race in the real world! Without further ado, let’s take a look at the shiny new machinery we’ve got on offer with this new release…

BMW 330i M Sport

BMW 330i M Sport BTCC | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

Our latest British Touring Car Championship content is here, as we introduce the incredible BMW 330i M Performance to the rFactor 2 – a car that has enjoyed much success in the world of the premier tin top touring car series in the UK. A nice new rear-wheel drive car alongside the previously released Infiniti, the BMW should be another great addition to our expanding tin top collection in rFactor 2, and offers a very different, but equally rewarding experience for those who venture out onto the virtual track.

Vanwall Vandervell LMH

Vanwall LMH | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

Developed by Vanwall Racing, this car marks a welcome return for the once-dominant British marque. The Vanwall LMH has undergone significant amounts of real-world testing as the team continues in their quest to gain entry into the leading World Endurance Championship for the years ahead. Developed fully by the Vanwall team in collaboration with Studio 397, this car is the definition of benefitting from real-world data, and collaborated by Vanwall drivers, so the experience should be as close as possible to get to put yourself behind the wheel of one of these outstanding new breed of race machines. 

New Content – Tracks

New cars are great, but without tracks, these little beauties can’t really do anything – so as we’ve tried to achieve in previous quarterly updates, we’ve worked hard for this Q4 release to ensure we’ve got a nice collection of new venues on which to race, and in all honesty, we couldn’t be more delighted with this great collection of very different circuits on which to try your hand.  

Bahrain International Circuit

Bahrain International Circuit | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

Starting out with the big hitter, Q4 sees a public release of the beautiful Bahrain International Circuit for rFactor 2. As well as being a great high-profile track in its own right, what makes this release particularly special is the fact our Bahrain track will be the very first laser-scanned version of this circuit in sim racing, really putting you, the driver, absolutely in the heart of what it is like to tear up the tarmac on one of the better modern race circuits that feature in such series as Formula One and WEC. What’s more, the track comes with four unique configurations – including the crazy outer loop layout!

Croft Circuit

Croft Circuit | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

Based in North Yorkshire, and probably little known to anyone outside the UK and BTCC fandom, Croft is an incredible national club racing circuit that promotes outstanding racing opportunities, whilst providing an exceptionally enjoyable experience for drivers behind the wheel. Short, sharp, technical, and in parts very quick indeed, Croft isn’t just a touring car track, but a circuit that is an absolute delight for any kind of racing car, fast or slow. As always with new track content in rFactor 2, Croft benefits from a detailed laser scan and reference materials, meaning this digital version of the British circuit is the most accurate and up-to-date version anywhere in sim racing – a true delight to drive and race. 

Thruxton Circuit

Thruxton Circuit | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

When you think of fast circuits in Europe, you probably imagine Monza, right? Well, maybe that should be revised a little, as Thruxton is an incredible layout that the bravest drivers can take on full throttle for much of the lap. Despite being so exceptionally fast, unlike Monza, the track surface is far from smooth and flat, meaning anyone who ventures out for a drive on this circuit will have to have every bit of their skills on display – go too fast, lose concentration, and you are heading for a monster shunt! Such an incredibly exciting layout to drive and another one that promotes exceptional racing, this laser-scanned version of Thruxton is of the highest detail, and is also certain to provide a lot of fun in any type of car. 

London E-Prix

London E-Prix | Steam Store: CLICK HERE

Developed directly by Formula E themselves, the new ExCeL London circuit is one of the more technical, fast, and challenging layouts on the modern Formula E calendar. Exceptionally unique thanks to the part indoor section at the start of the lap, and featuring some fearsome corners that need nothing less than total commitment in order to squeeze out a competitive lap time, the London E-Prix circuit is a Formula E track, but not quite as you’ve come to know it. 

Take out the Gen1 or Gen2 Formula E car, or even something low-powered, and you will be in for an incredible rollercoaster ride of thrills, one not to be missed! 

Known Issues
Thruxton: AI has a tendency to experience issues on curbs with rolling
Vanwall: Excessive sparks from AI in certain situations.

So, let’s take a look at what is included in the new November 2022 build: 

The Update

Client: 9873443 

Dedicated Server: 9873452

General

• Enabled Alt+F4 and X closing the game
• Fixed a rare crash when changing cameras
• Fixed game crashing with “null” in controller.json
• Fixed game crashing when pressing escape to monitor
• Added Key Assignment to toggle Freelook Mouse Control
• Improved package install speeds
• Updated DRS regulations to be restricted in all zones by default and not allowed if there are no drs zones.
• Added RFM parameter “RearFlapNoZonesAllowed” to allow DRS when no zones are available.
• Fixed online temp car not lighting correctly at night.
• Improved visibility of pitbox marker at night.
• Fixed anonymous steam IDs being reported in the results.xml when players left the server before the file gets written.
• Sped up Race Event creation in MAS Tool regardless of size/age of pkginfo.dat
• Fixed premium content unavailable offline

Track Limits

• Added Relaxed Track Limits Mode
• Added Penalties Only display mode
• Added Test Day support for GDB Settings (via Practice settings)
• Increased penalties for passing illegally and increased time to return place.
• Made it possible to change modes in Dev Mode
• General improvements to pit lane, removing unnecessary reports inside the pitlane, and fixing pit exit line cut detection if content is setup correctly.
• Reworked Track Limits dialogue to use HUD Font and add indicator strip
• Updated track limits display, showing all warnings and penalties via messages.
• Fixed AI editor adding connections from pit lane to main path where the game should not (in some cases due to waypoint locations)
• Fixed an issue where going off track again before penalization would not continue the investigation.
• Added ability to configure Track Limits display in HUDs, but fix to set display if not configured.
• Added “HUD” option to Display position options for Track Limits Info, when set at this it will be placed where the HUD configures. You can manually adjust the position otherwise.
• Added sample parameters to default HUD
• Removed loose fonts from ModDev and fixed font loading from mas files
• Added HUD editor support for Track Limits element

Headlights

• Added Headlight Pulse. Defaults to J key. On activation headlights will pulse 4 times for a second. Previous headlight state is retained and this will not cause issues with headlight requirements.
• Set Auto Headlights to turn on at night even if not required.
• Fixed an issue with Headlight assignment not being kept after a driver swap.
• Fixed Max Headlights PLR value not being respected
• Updated Headlights to be culled based on the position of selected vehicle. Note in Freelook mode to make sure you have selected the vehicle you are focusing on if you are having issues with the headlights not being rendered.

Graphics

• Improved in Game Exposure in VR
• Fixed omni lights being falsely applied to objects with Omni not enabled
• Added ability to set an emissive map on the Terrain shader. Intended for baking distant lighting into terrain.
• Fixed delta not resetting correctly after a driver swap
• Fix crash when trying to display the game in borderless on a third monitor with a different solution than the first.
• Fix using the resolution of the first screen when displaying on any other using borderless.
• Fixed a crash when changing monitor when in fullscreen.
• Fixed changing resolutions in windowed mode.
• Fixed reverting resolution picking the wrong resolution to revert to. Used to pick the first with the same width.

UI

• Settings across the UI can now be adjusted more quickly:
• Right mouse button: 10x multiplier
• Middle mouse button: 50x multiplier
• Holding down left mouse button:
• 5x multiplier after 2 seconds
• 10x multiplier after 4 seconds
• Greyed out setup settings (including the name and value) that cannot be adjusted
• Fixed camber setup setting description
• Ambient and track temperatures in the event screen are now shown in Celsius of Fahrenheit based on the selected units
• MultiView monitor side angle setting has been limited to 90 degrees in graphics settings
• Updated refreshing of setup list
• Fixed subscribing to “All” content collection in the First Launch Wizard
• Fixed setup settings becoming greyed out when one of the step values is “N/A”
• Fixed multiplayer admin session controls
• Fixed setting next race length (note: new race length will be displayed after switching to another session, e.g. practice → qualifying)
• Fixed restart race button being disabled during a race session
• Fixed showing percentage for the singleplayer “Race time” setting when “Race criteria” was set to “% Track Time” or “% Track Default”
• Fixed “Torque split” setup setting description typo (read wheels → rear wheels)
• In multiplayer session controls, fixed selecting spectators when there are more than one
• Fixed selecting driver/spectator in multiplayer session controls when there’s a driver and spectator with the same name on the server
• Fixed not being able to delete the first replay in the list

AI

• Fixed erratic throttle and brake inputs
• Fixed waypoint lookahead to fix jerky steering motion
• Fixed an issue with driveline noise that could cause AI to brake partially off track and spin, or cut too much
• Fix for problematic behaviour introduced in RC where AI would lose track of the target waypoint or get stuck driving the wrong way.

Physics

• Refactored engine code

Sound

• Minor fixes
• Fixed an issue with sounds disappearing (other, similar issues still exist!)
• Fixed a rare crash when loading AI cars using the new sound system
• Fixed issue with sounds disappearing

Live stream overlayModding

• Added the ability to animate any maps UVW via Scroll and Step options on IBL Standard and IBL Standard Blend shaders.
• Fixed buggy background on telemetry debug screens in ModDev.
• Added OnScreen ModDev Tweakbar for debugging Car Cockpit readouts and debugging of LED values. 
• IBL Road Shader: Added the ability to blend out alt normal map via RDT.b
• IBL Vegetation Shader: Added optional detail map with extended blend options.

Known issues

• Skip updates button on package install is unresponsive
• Going off track and returning on track with a return pass message visible will reset the counter to 5 seconds
• There are some issues around track limits violations being converted into time penalties if you finish the race before the violation is evaluated.
• Transmission sounds don’t play correctly
• Setup list doesn’t work correctly in mod dev

AI Updates

AI Improvements | More Details: CLICK HERE

Probably one of the most popular changes to rFactor 2 we could have done, improving our AI has been something we have long had on the internal ‘to-do list’ here at Studio 397, and now we finally have some enhancements to share with you all. It would be fair to say that underneath the noise, the base rFactor 2 AI is already a very solid offering with some powerful features, however this always proved to be a little too buried behind the obvious issues around how the AI controls the cars – issues that have been introduced to the simulation in historic updates, and further regressed in the years since. 

Well, with this new update, we have very much looked at eradicating these problems, so now the AI should accelerate and brake realistically, with much smoother and more controlled behaviour behind the wheel, leading to cleaner, smarter and more sensible racing against the computer controlled opponents – a big plus for offline players. These changes, plus a substantial cleaning up of the admitted messy legacy code, should act as a superb base for us to build from and move forwards in the weeks and months ahead. 

New Store

In Game Store | More Details: CLICK HERE

One of the main goals for the new store page is to help our players identify the best deals for any given content combination. What we want to achieve is to help our players avoid duplicate purchases, and give you the power to make smart buying decisions, that reduce unnecessary expenditure and content fragmentation, whilst providing the tools to very easily gain a full overview of everything you own, have in your basket, and have available to purchase in future. 

With a snappy new design and the ability to purchase, download and install within the simulation itself, we think this new store is a great step forward in the rFactor 2 user journey, and one that should make navigating your way through the various content offerings of the simulation easier than ever before.  

Headlight Flash Button

AT LAST! Nothing more to really add here – for the longest time we’ve had it in the back of our minds to include the ability for our drivers to quickly flash their headlights and let the car in front know they are being lapped, and now, finally, we are here, and it is available as part of this new build. Not normally something we would feel is significant enough to put in a special mention on the release notes, but seeing as it’s been such a long time, and so heavily requested, it only feels right we have a few words to celebrate the moment… 

Car Updates

As part of the continued push to enhance and develop not just the core simulation, but the content within as well, within this new Q4 2022 update and content drop we have a few changes to some of our previous content releases – starting with some of the cars found within rFactor 2….

Cadillac DPi v1.11

• Adjusted LOD distances
• Fix for inters
• Minor cam tweak
• Corrected Team names
• Updated sounds to new engine
• Fix for suspension bug

Ligier JSP 320 v1.19

• Added ability to turn off position display
• Various sound updates
• Added custom brake pressure smoothing
• Added new traction control system
• Fixed drivers face on lower LODs

Ligier JSP 217 v1.19

• Fixed ripple file and raindrop file
• Added new sounds for new sound engine
• Added new traction control system
• Updated TC and pit limiter sounds to new standards
• Fixed collision model not being solid

Norma M30 v2.53

• Added new sounds for new sound engine
• Added new traction control system

Caterham Academy v1.09

• Set default caster to 6 degrees(max)
• Fixed missing wheels in cockpit
• Made cockpit labels show at night
• Fixed issues with rims
• Made gauges visible at night
• Adjusted gauge glass material
• Update tires with stiffer sidewalls and less grip delta from track rubber
• AI revised significantly
• Added new camera to match real onboards
• Fixed missing basemat material

Hyundai i30 BTCC v1.19

• Fixed normals on left mirror indicator light
• Updated showroom viewing distance
• Slight fix on body AOS map
• New onboard sounds
• Updated windows material
• Changed year to 2021
• Fixed driver names
• New aerodynamics (including recalculated drag, downforce, ride height sensitivity)
• Updates to brake system performance, mainly different brake pad compounds, recalculated braking torques and heating/cooling
• Removed gearshift protection
• Additional differential ramp angles and preload options
• Removed 20mm steering rack lock limiter that is required for FWD cars by BTCC regulations to make leaving garage easier
• Small adjustments to weight distribution and CoG height
• Forced restriction for tyre compounds to be the same on front and rear axle
• Removed rear brake cooling options
• Front brake duct adjustment has now 5 settings
• Small tweaks to clutch parameters
• Recalculated engine longevity
• Small volume changes on onboard sounds
• External Sound update
• Adjusted telemetry information
• Fix for incorrect aero balance
• Force BTCC class tyre restriction for BTCC series tracks
• Fix for wet compound texture now showing up correctly once on a track for restricted tyre compound options
• Fixed cockpit position
• Fixed base material
• Fixed camera clipping

Toyota Corolla BTCC v1.35

• Fixed milky look on some windshields
• Slight fix on body AOS map
• Updated sounds to latest standards
• Small volume corrections
• Adjusted cockpit camera clip planes
• Adjusted cockpit camera position
• Fixed driver names
• New aerodynamics (including recalculated drag, downforce, ride height sensitivity)
• Updates to brake system performance, mainly different brake pad compounds, recalculated braking torques and heating/cooling
• Removed gearshift protection
• Additional differential ramp angles and preload options
• Removed 20mm steering rack lock limiter that is required for FWD cars by BTCC regulations to make leaving garage easier
• Small adjustments to weight distribution and CoG height
• Forced restriction for tyre compounds to be the same on front and rear axle
• Removed rear brake cooling options
• Front brake duct adjustment has now 5 settings
• Small tweaks to clutch parameters
• Recalculated engine longevity
• Adjusted telemetry information
• Fix for incorrect aero balance
• Removed AI downforce bias tweak
• Force BTCC class tyre restriction for BTCC series tracks
• Fix for wet compound texture now showing up correctly once on a track for restricted tyre compound options
• Adjusted sound volumes
• Fixed camera clipping
• Fixed base material

Austin Mini Cooper v1.09

• Removed 20th onboard cam
• Moved head position lower and slightly forward
• Minor tire revision, more wet grip, less realroad sensitivity
• Made shift times slightly slower
• AI tweaked to better match player
• Forcing clutch use for valid shifts
• Fixed AI CRR
• Removed shift protection sound
• Slightly better wet grip
• AI correlation tweaks in the wet
• Onboard idle sound loop fix
• Small volume changes to opponents from outside and cockpit views
• Fixed base material

Dallara IR-18 v1.69

• Updated track names in upgrade file
• Fixed spelling mistake in HDV

Formula E 2022 v1.11

• Enabled omni lighting on body
• Fixed spelling mistake with driver name
• Fixed “misc” object popping on max detail

Ford Focus BTCC v1.17

• Added new onboard sounds
• Fixed some mesh issues
• Changed year to 2021
• Fixed driver names
• New aerodynamics (including recalculated drag, downforce, ride height sensitivity)
• Updates to brake system performance, mainly different brake pad compounds, recalculated braking torques and heating/cooling
• Removed gearshift protection
• Additional differential ramp angles and preload options
• Removed 20mm steering rack lock limiter that is required for FWD cars by BTCC regulations to make leaving garage easier
• Small adjustments to weight distribution and CoG height
• Forced restriction for tyre compounds to be the same on front and rear axle
• Removed rear brake cooling options
• Front brake duct adjustment has now 5 settings
• Small tweaks to clutch parameters
• Recalculated engine longevity
• External sound updates
• Fix for incorrect aero balance
• Force BTCC class tyre restriction for BTCC series tracks
• Fix for wet compound texture now showing up correctly once on a track for restricted tyre compound options
• Fixed cockpit camera position
• Fixed base material
• Fixed camera clipping

Infiniti Q50 v1.17

• Updated sounds to latest standards
• Small volume corrections
• Fixed driver names
• New aerodynamics (including recalculated drag, downforce, ride height sensitivity)
• Updates to brake system performance, mainly different brake pad compounds, recalculated braking torques and heating/cooling
• Removed gearshift protection
• Additional differential ramp angles and preload options
• Small adjustments to weight distribution and CoG height
• Forced restriction for tyre compounds to be the same on front and rear axle
• Removed rear brake cooling options
• Front brake duct adjustment has now 5 settings
• Small tweaks to clutch parameters
• Recalculated engine longevity
• Fix for incorrect aero balance
• Remove AI downforce bias tweak
• Force BTCC class tyre restriction for BTCC series tracks
• Fix for wet compound texture now showing up correctly once on a track for restricted tyre compound options

Track Updates

Cars aren’t the only content to get the update treatment. In this new release drop, we’ve also taken the time to put together a few improvements to Spa-Francorchamps – although the 2022 layout update isn’t available yet, but stay tuned for that one in future…

Spa-Francorchamps V1.43

• Updated Road, Grass and Foliage materials
• Track Limits refinements and fixes
• Adjusted AI to reduce chances of AI trying to pass in unrealistic places
• Various terrain gap fixes
• Fixed collision gap inside Malmedy
• Fixed Armco material inconsistencies at night
• Fixed minor animation issues with marshals
• Minor optimizations for performance and loading times

Competition System Season 7

Competition System | Season 7: CLICK HERE

A new quarter drop has arrived, and that means it’s time for a new season of Competition System races! That’s right, the in-game rFactor 2 Competition System has been refreshed with a new collection of interesting and exciting content combinations for you to enjoy. As always with the Competition System here in rFactor 2, we have looked to curate a collection of races and series that offer a mix of totally free and paid DLC content, with differing types of cars and tracks that should appeal to all preferences and experience types. From the popular and exciting Rookie Cup races in the Caterham Academy (don’t be fooled by the ‘rookie’ title, these cars are a blast to race), through to our scheduled racing events in more powerful machinery, if you like taking your rFactor 2 experience online, then we should have something for you!

Entry to the Competition System in rFactor 2 is easy, just click on the ‘Competitions’ tab on the front page, browse the available events, and click on register – and don’t forget, entry into the Competition System is totally free, all you need is a copy of rFactor 2 and the relevant content and you are all set to race!

You can check out the latest offerings in Season 7 of the Competition System on this link, however, please find below a brief summary of the upcoming schedule for this new season of racing: 

Rookie Cup Hourly

Car: Caterham Academy (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: Daily, at the beginning of every even hour (00, 02, 04, 06, etc)

Format: 10-minute practice, 5-minute qualifying, 20-minute race

Rookie Cup Weekly

Car: Caterham Academy (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: Weekly, Mondays at 21:00

Format: 10-minute practice, 10-minute qualifying, 20-minute race

Open Wheel Spring Hourly

Car: Tatuus MSV F3-020 (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: Daily, at the beginning of every even hour (01, 03, 05, 07 etc)

Format: 10-minute practice, 5-minute qualifying, 25-minute race

Open Wheel Spring Weekly

Car: Tatuus MSV F3-020 (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: Weekly, Wednesday at 21:00

Format: 10-minute practice, 5-minute qualifying, 25-minute race

Touring Car Challenge

Car: BTCC (Steam Store: CLICK HERE)

Qualifying: 1x Hot lap split qualifying Monday 7 – Thursday 10 Nov / LRP

Times: 1 x Race every Friday at 21:00 CEST

Hot lap qualifying: This sets the split for the season – points awarded each race will determine the split for races 2-6

Format: 10-minute practice, 10-minute qualifying, changed to lap count (roughly 25 mins)

Stock Car 2018x

Car: Stockcar 2018x (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: 1 x Race every Sunday at 21:00 CEST

Format: 10-minute practice, 10-minute qualifying, 45-minute races

BMW M4 Class 1

Car: BMW M4 Class 1 (Steam Workshop: CLICK HERE)

Times: 1 x Race every Thursday at 21:00 CEST

Format: 10-minute practice, 10-minute qualifying, 45-minute races

Hotlap Fixed

Week 1 hotlap Fixed (except, tyres, brake bias, steering lock, and fuel) 

That’s it then folks – Q4 2022 is here at long last. Buckle up, turn on those rigs, and we will see you out on the virtual race track very soon indeed – have fun!