rFactor 2 – Roadmap Update September 2018

Studio 397 published the September 2018 Roadmap Update for rFactor 2. As usual, they are bringing us up to date with the latest progress and upcoming content for the rF2 racing simulator.

Furthermore, community members who aspire a job in the sim racing industry should scroll to the bottom of this post. Studio 397 is looking to strengthen their track building team. So if you have a good knowledge of modeling tools, and you are an expert in building accurate tracks, then here’s your chance to make your dream come true.

For more details, check the full Roadmap Update below.

Roadmap Update (Quote)

Material and Lighting System

Our final announcement at the expo was a new material and lighting system, which is currently in progress and is based on physically based rendering (PBR). We’ve been working on it for the last couple of months, and its release is still a few months away, but the results so far have been very good. We showed some examples of our new car paint material that simulates a multi-layer paint job, featuring a body or primer, a base coat that is possibly metallic or two-tone, and finally a clear coat – each with parameters that allow you to specify in great detail the specifics of each layer.

We did not stop there though, as our cars, in general, come with templates that allow users to create their own liveries. We now support up to six different materials that can be used on different, configurable regions of the car. This allows people to create liveries with vinyl wraps, shiny metallic bits, carbon parts and many other things all on the same car body.

We are already looking forward to the unique designs our community can create with all these new possibilities. What we’re working on in the months ahead are other materials. Arguably the car bodies are very important, but we would also like to improve our cockpit interiors, the way rubber tyres look, and also our road surfaces. Obviously we will make sure that what we do stays compatible with all current content, but what’s more important, we aim to make it very easy to upgrade to these new materials. We’re committed to updating all our own content, and we expect the community to do the same.

  

Nürburgring

As we told you in the announcement, the scan is done, and both the Nordschleife and GP track are up to 2018 standards. We’re finalizing the important processing of the data now, which – as you might imagine for such a large track – takes some time. In the meantime, our track team already started the huge task of modeling all the details that are visible when you drive around the track: trees, houses, audiences, camping grounds, and many other things.

We are aiming for a release at the end of Q1 of 2019. In the meantime, we are also looking at our options for the Südschleife. Quite a few people have responded and pointed out available information about this classic track. We have not yet made the decision to build it, and if it happens this layout will certainly be done as a separate project. We’ll keep you posted.

Botniaring

We’ve included some screenshots of a new-final version of Botniaring. As the track was officially licensed, we got extensive opportunities to survey the asphalt and its surroundings, which allowed us to accurately reproduce every little detail of the track. Like many of our other tracks, we will provide the different layouts and we are sure this relatively unknown track will o

UI and Competition

The UI and Competition are two areas with a constant buzz of diverse development activity. We’re now at that point where the two teams merge and start to work on getting the competition functionality into the UI itself.  So in short, we’re currently integrating UI and competition and preparing for a launch of both systems ‘together’. You’ve probably seen and even participated in the multiple competitions we’ve put on over the last year, where joining and viewing stats was through our web page. We still want to offer to join via our webpage, but our ultimate goal is for you to find and join a competition straight from the UI, making it that much easier and that much more tempting to take part!

Of course, we do have some new UI functionality to share with you as well. First, we now have that spiffy animated track map you always wished for  This track map highlights the leader as well as the current driver you have selected (in white). You can click on any number on the track map itself and the list auto-scrolls to and expands that driver. Next, we have a brand new expanded standings pop-up function with color-coded best sectors.  Finally, we’ve added a simple minimal graph to the standings, this gives a quick overview of your progress lap by lap as compared to the other drivers around you.

  

We’re hiring!

Some of you might have seen this post on our forum. We’re hiring! Specifically, we are looking to strengthen our track building team at Studio 397. We’re expecting you to bring your experience and knowledge of modeling tools, and of course, you should be an expert in building good and accurate tracks. We will provide you with the necessary hardware and software, a good working environment and an education in tools you are not yet familiar with. If you’re up for a new challenge, check out the post and get in touch here.

That’s all for now, enjoy the remaining rounds of the McLaren Shadow competition and remember to keep it on the black stuff!

Official Webpage – www.studio-397.com