Dear rFactor 2 community,

We’re excited to share a new chapter in your rFactor 2 racing journey! Coming today, we’re launching a public beta (with “Release Candidate”) of our revamped rFactor 2 online system, fuelled by RaceControl technology.

We hope that this evolution in how online works for rFactor 2 will give you greater access to race against others online, bring skill based matchmaking to find you better races and ensure that drivers are incentivised to play fair against their opponents.

And as part of this new program, we’re gifting the (recently updated) BMW M2 CS to all registered users of the new system 🎉

Not only that but we’re bringing some quality of life fixes to the simulation, including the much awaited fix for those of you on the latest AMD drivers.

To find out more about more, keep reading…

What is the online Beta program? And how do I join?

Importantly, this is system that has been built from the ground up over the last year and therefore we need to thoroughly test this with patient racers that understand it might not all go perfectly! There will no doubt be a few hiccups along the way.

To ensure that you’re up-to-date with development, and so that you can log issues please ensure you’re part of our Discord community and navigate to the rFactor 2 Online section.

To participate, simply right-click on rFactor 2 in your library list in Steam then click “Properties” > “Betas” and select “Release Candidate” from the list and the new version will automatically download.

rFactor 2 Online – Key Features

Ranking System:

• Safety Rank (SR): Represents your track etiquette. Start at bronze and climb to platinum by demonstrating responsible racing behaviour.
• Driver Rank (DR): Based on your racing prowess. Beginning at bronze, compete and beat others to rise to the platinum echelon. Your Driver Rank determines which split you are in if there are more drivers registered than can be accommodated in one race. Note – your DR cannot exceed your SR, so make sure you drive safely!

Note: for a race to count towards towards your Rank, at least 5 drivers are required to be registered for that session.

Daily Races:

These races will be refreshed every week with a variety of content to sink your teeth into. Within daily races, there are different categories to unlock based on your Safety Rank.

Daily Races are designed to be fun, easy to enter and relatively short. They also have minimal impact upon your Driver Rank so you can race without fear of losing too much DR – but make sure you drive safely!

To help you, we also run multiplayer practice sessions for the upcoming race. You can see other racers here, learn from each other and get better without fearing for your SR and DR.

There are three categories for Daily Races:

1. Beginner – Open to everyone and currently every hour – these will always run free content
2. Intermediate – Open to Silver Safety Rank and currently run every 2 hours
3. Advanced – Open to Gold Safety Rank and currently run every 3 hours

Special Events

These events will be happening weekly, they’ll normally be a bit longer and with greater Driver Rank rewards as well. Sometimes they’ll reflect real-life events but mostly they’ll be what our admin team think you guys will enjoy!

Practice sessions run throughout the week and there’s a leaderboard that your practice times will be a part of.

These races also feature real-world weather using API data to create the session so they match the part of the world that event is taking part in.

Driver Profile, Results and Statistics

All your races on the new rFactor 2 Online system are stored against your driver profile. In here, you’ll see where you finished, the impact on your ranks and statistics for your online endeavours.

To access it, click on your name in the top-left of the screen.

Server Hosting

We know that hosting your own server has sometimes been a bit of a challenge in rFactor 2 and through our Hosted Server option, you can use our in-game UI and AWS infrastructure.

You can purchase bundles of server minutes to use. The pricing is as follows:

• 1 hour – €1
• 6 hours – €6
• 12 hours – €9
• 24 Hours – €13

Please do note that servers will take some time to start depending on the type of content you’ve selected. This will normally be around 6 minutes but could be around 12 minutes for circuits like the Nürburgring.

Important: issues with server hosting should be logged at our support desk, available here: rFactor 2

Community servers still work as usual but are now found in Online > Servers > Community Servers. Due to a version bump, you will not be able to access servers on the opt-out branch.

Schedule

Throughout our beta phase, the servers will remain available between 11am CEST and 2am CEST every day.

Depending on popularity we may add more pre or post release.

Join the Beta!

When you first click the online menu item, you’ll be prompted to create an account the moment you access the online section on the beta version. Dive into a more streamlined, user-friendly, and engaging rFactor 2 online racing experience.

Remember, this is only the beginning. As we evolve and fine-tune the online experience and RaceControl, we’ll bring even more features and benefits to the rFactor 2 community. Your feedback, as always, will be the compass guiding our journey forward.

Finally, we would like to thank those of you that dedicated time to testing the program and the development team, led by Andy – this would be possible without you all!

Get ready, racers. See you on the grid!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I access in beta? – rFactor2 Online is in beta phase. To access the new experience, you need to opt-in to the release candidate branch via properties in Steam. 

How do I create an account – Open rFactor2 and navigate to the Online button – a notification screen will appear with instructions how to create an account.

How do I change my name/email/nationality – You can do this in your profile by clicking on your name on the top navigation bar.

How do I Delete my account? – As detailed in the privacy policy when you sign up for an account you can do this through a request here.

I signed up, now what? – You’re free to register for any of the scheduled daily races and special events. Build up your driver and safety ranking to compete in intermediate and advanced races. You can also try out hosting a server and race anytime with your friends.

Do I need to pay to use it? – Everything we’re releasing today for rFactor 2 online is free to use for everyone who owns the sim.

What if I don’t want to register for rFactor 2 Online? You can still access community servers in the online menu > servers > community servers.

What content comes with it? – By registering for rFactor 2 Online, users will be gifted the BMW M2 CS to their workshop. Users will only be able to drive content they own, but can still race others they do not own.  

Did someone say Career mode? – We are intending to develop a more in-depth league system (that we are calling “career mode”) but it does require more time and certainty of an expanded online player base for the sim.

Do I need rFactor2 to use it? – Yes, rFactor2 Online is only available for players who own rFactor 2.

Can I access any of the RaceControl information outside of the game? – Right now we don’t support this but in the future we aim to have a separate hub for this information.

How do I increase my Safety Rank? – Your Safety Rank (SR) is dynamic and changes either up or down depending on how cleanly you race. Rating increases with clean laps and will decrease with collisions and penalties in qualifying and races.   

How do I increase my Driver Rank? – Driver Rank (DR) is calculated by your recent online race results. The system uses an ELO algorithm to determine your performance versus other competitors. Your ELO score is then translated into a rank you can see and then used to calculate which split you should be racing in. 

Can anyone race in a special event? – Different special events may have different entry requirements based on on your safety rating.

Can I race with my own custom livery? – No not currently, you can only race online with official rFactor 2 content. We may explore this feature for potential future updates. 

Can I still race on my friend’s server? – Absolutely, the primary rFactor 2 open server list is still open to access through the online menus. Simply navigate to ‘servers’ to see the open list of official and community servers online.

Can I make my own server for me and my team to practice on? – Yes, you can now host an online server through rFactor 2 Online. Time tokens can be purchased through the game or via the rFactor 2 steam store and redeemed through the ‘Host a server’ button in the server menu.

Other Release Candidate Features

As alluded to in the preamble, we’ve got a series of updates we’ve implemented into this release candidate to improve your rFactor 2 experience:

AMD Drivers – We’ve addressed and resolved a crash issue specific to AMD hardware users with particular drivers.

Mod Management – A change in this department allows you to designate downloaded mods as ‘temporary’ on the client side. This functionality ensures these temporary mods are deleted upon startup. Additionally, clients have the option to set all mods acquired from servers as temporary, providing a more efficient way to manage space and content.

Driving Line Aid Enhancements – We’ve incorporated added options for the ‘Driving Line Aid’, including settings for “Paddock” and “Paddock & Pit Entry” and making it easier for users to find their way onto tracks with complicated paddock areas. The game will default to the ‘paddock’ setting. Additionally, users can now use a specific key assignment to toggle the ‘Driving Line Aid’ within the game.

Track Limits – The system for handling track limits, especially in cases of illegal passes, has been refined. Scenarios where a pass was previously deemed illegal and later recognized as valid have been addressed for more consistent rule enforcement.

“Stabilize Horizon” – This feature feature has undergone modifications using a newly developed filtering method. We’ve added an extra stabilization step, enabled roll stabilization for the ‘High’ and ‘Ultra’ settings, and introduced a full horizon lock option for those requiring a fixed viewpoint.

AI – we’ve fixed an issue that could cause AI drivers towards walls whilst overtaking

Your feedback and patience have been instrumental in these developments. We will continue our efforts to enhance and refine rFactor 2 based on user needs and technical advancements.

Thank you for your continued support!

Release Notes

General

• New feature allows servers to specify that downloaded mods should be treated as temporary by the client
• The client can opt to mark all mods downloaded from servers as temporary
• Temporary mods are deleted on start-up
• Fixed crash on AMD hardware with certain drivers
• Added extra options to Driving line aid for “Paddock” and “Paddock & Pit Entry”. The game defaults to paddock setting for all users.
• Added key assignment for toggling Driving line aid in the game.
• Improved Track Limits handling of illegal passes with regards to when a passed car goes too slow to be counted, but then later becomes valid. This should no longer become valid again.
• Reworked “Stabilize Horizon”-feature using a different method of filtering
  • Added an additional step of stabilization
  • Enabled roll stabilization for “High” and “Ultra” steps
  • Added full horizon lock option
• Fixed an issue that could cause AI to drive towards left walls while overtaking, causing collisions

rFactor 2 Online

• Added Daily Races online mode with practice servers
• Added Special Events online mode with practice servers
• Added Hosted Servers option with credit bundles available through the store
• Added Driver Profiles and Statistics
• Moved Store to the front page
• Moved Servers to Online > Servers

rFactor 2 Online – Known Issues

• If you register for two races, both event pages will receive the first event’s server details when that race begins
• Some circuits, such as Nürburgring may have the server start a few minutes later than expected – you may need to wait up to 4 minutes after a server is due to be started
• Practice servers are becoming too full too quickly and may give a timeout error (we are currently working on this) – Races are unaffected so please still register
• Practice servers not running through the night (reminder – we pause the service at 3am CEST)
• Bottom split has the minimum drivers to make the race official (currently 5 rather than equal size splits)
• Some nationality flags are not showing correctly
• The schedule page does have incorrect times for some users
• Some users are unable to submit reports
• Navigation bar is sometimes not showing updated ranking after a race
• Could not get your split error – for now, please try going back to the previous menu and enter the event page again or restart
• Leaderboard has a bug where does not consider the specific track layout
• Not all mod files being deleted on boot
• The join server button occasionally does not activate – please try leaving and rejoin the event page to get the join server button
• Password on hosted server is not working
• Qualifying results are showing incorrectly
• Incorrect rank shown on post-race screen
• Profile/Email update is not saving

Say hello to a revamped BMW M2 CS experience, bringing the car closer than ever to its real-world counterpart!

For all the BMW enthusiasts and rFactor 2 racers, the M2 CS will be bringing you:

• Performance and Handling Updates:
  • New tyre model, including cooler tires for better grip in prolonged cornering.
  • Refined TC and ABS systems with increased ABS sample rate to 200Hz, ensuring shorter braking distances.
  • The gearbox shift protection system has been added.
  • Noteworthy tweaks like a more aggressive blip, reduced rear spindle friction, updates to suspension geometry, and many more all converge to offer a drive that’s responsive, intuitive, and dynamic.
• Fresh Liveries: The car will now feature an array of new teams, giving you a more varied grid and online racing choices.
• Sound Overhaul: Rev up the engine and you’ll notice the distinctive, new sounds, finely tuned to mirror the roar and grunt of the actual M2 CS.
• Animation & Visuals: The enhanced driver animation now makes every move inside the cockpit more lifelike.
• Driver Assists: We’ve tuned the traction control to be less intrusive, letting you feel more connected to the track. An increase in ABS sample rate to 200Hz should help reduce braking distance. A further minor adjustment to ABS aims to offer a smoother force feedback experience.
• Engine Tweaks: Adjusted fuel consumption for the different engine types (350bhp vs 450bhp).

In the relentless pursuit of realism, every update and tweak, be it major or minute, has been methodically tested and integrated to ensure you get the most authentic driving experience possible.

Coming to everyone for FREE!

Now, for the part many of you have been waiting for. We’re excited to hint that there will be an opportunity for users to get their hands on the BMW M2 CS DLC for free! Yes, you read that right. Stay tuned for more detailed information on this coming your way very soon.

Get ready to burn some rubber, explore the new horizons of racing with the BMW M2 CS, and as always, may the best racer win!

A few other small updates

Both the March 761, Brabham BT44 and McLaren M23 are receiving lighting fixes. The BT44 and M23 will also have some other tweaks to the default gearing ratios and now has more fragile suspension to match our other historic GP cars. Meanwhile, the Vauxhall Astra BTCC car has some minor tweaks to remove phantom teams.

That’s it for now – until next time, keep the pedal to the metal!

Happy Racing,

Studio 397

Full Changelog:

BMW M2 CS v1.47

• Added new teams
• Added new sounds
• Added new driver animation
• Added new tires
• Added new TC and ABS system
• Added gearbox protection system
• Tyre, slightly cooler to reduce grip loss in sustained cornering
• ABS tweak to reduce locking
• More aggressive blip
• Reduce rear spindle friction slightly to reduce ‘rear brake effect’ and improve acceleration slightly
• Increased ABS sample rate to 200hz to improve braking distance
• Updates to suspension geometry, dampers, default setup and ABS parameters
• Split ClubSport and Cup into their own classes
• Removed aid penalty for TC
• Lower default brake pressure
• Tweaks to ABS system
• Longer travel for helper springs
• Latest spec tires
• Reworked suspension, aerodynamics and brakes
• Tune traction control to be less intrusive
• Minor adjustment to ABS to try make FFB less ‘grainy’
• Increase down-shift delay to allow revs to rise fast enough at higher RPM
• Decrease fuel consumption on 350hp engine to be lower than 450hp engine
• Increase base grip of wet weather tyres

Vauxhall Astra BTCC v1.67

• Fixed teams

March 761v 2.15

• Fixed parts not being lit by omni lights

Mclaren M23 v1.58

• Fixed parts not being lit by omni lights
• Fix default gear ratio’s for better performance over a wider range of circuits (mostly taller gearing)
• Break wheels off more easily to match the other 2 classic GP cars

Brabham BT44 v2.69

• Fixed parts not being lit by omni lights
• Fixed upgrades not showing in showroom
• Fixed shift light

Hey rFactor 2 community,

Firstly, we want to address the elephant in the room: yes, we’re aware that the anticipation for new DLC content is high, and we thank you for your patience. While we’ve been channelling our energy into some vital projects, including Le Mans Ultimate, we haven’t forgotten the essence of rFactor 2 that all of you love. We’re returning to our roots by refining our legacy content. These updates, though minor, are part of our commitment to ensuring the game continues to offer a solid and enjoyable experience.

Let’s explore the enhancements:

Introducing the 2023 Class…

For the Porsche enthusiasts among you, we’ve got a special treat. The Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) is now dressed in all the official 2023 Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain liveries. A stylish update for free, making your race weekends even more authentic.

Huge thank you to Stephen Haley for his work on these 🙌

GTE & GT3 Balance of Performance updates

As part of our ongoing commitment to balanced and thrilling racing, we’ve rolled out Balance of Performance (BoP) updates for both GT3 and GTE car categories. This ensures a more even playing field, enabling cars from diverse manufacturers to race neck-and-neck, making for exciting finishes and tight competition. Whether it’s weight adjustments or engine power tweaks, these updates are tailored to bring the best out of each car while preserving the unique charm of their respective models. We will keep collating data and provide more updates throughout the year.

BTCC Car Updates + Balance of Performance

Changes range from AI grip tweaks, brake system adjustments, tire updates, and more. Each model has had multiple version updates for to ensure better parity and performance. We aimed to bring FWD cars into a more competitive state over race runs.

Toban Raceway Park

Visual tweaks for the rFactor classic Toban Raceway include refined terrain, tree, and road materials. Track elements like AI track limits and pit wall collisions have also been addressed.

NOLA Motorsport Park

You’ll spot fresh atmospherics settings and some new ads on the INDYCAR layout. The camera files and rear view also got a touch-up for a better perspective. Some naming irregularities on layouts C and D have also been straightened out.

Mills Metro

Another stalwart, Mills Metro, is now aglow with improved lighting. The AI track limits, especially around the pit exit, have also been refined.

Atlanta Motorsport Park

Atlanta Motorsport Park shines a bit brighter now with refined visual elements. We’ve also streamlined the AI track limits for a smoother experience. 

Loch Drummond 

Loch Drummond has received a minor nip and tuck, notably correcting the track limits at the uphill chicane and the pit entry. 

Others…

Minor materials updates are also released for the Brabham BT44, March 761 and McLaren M23.

Finally, the Formula ISI is receiving an update to include KERS in the simulations for the first time 👀

Changelog

Circuits

• Loch Drummond v1.27
  • Fixed Track Limits at long layout uphill chicane and pit entry
• NOLA Motorsport Park v1.39
  • Fixed naming issue on NOLA layouts C and D
  • Added atmospherics settings
  • New advertisements on indycar layout
  • New camera files
  • Increased rear view clip planes
• Mills Metro v2.22
  • Updated specular, ambient, and atmospheric settings.
  • Improved night lighting
  • AI Track Limits review including pit exit cut detection.
• Toban Raceway Park v1.22
  • Updated specular, ambient, and atmospheric settings
  • Enhanced terrain, tree, and road materials
  • Improved nightlighting
  • AI Track Limits review including pit exit cut detection
  • Fixed Pit Wall Collisions
  • Fixed sector splits not covering whole track
• Atlanta Motorsport Park v1.31
  • Updated specular, ambient, and atmospheric settings
  • AI Track Limits review including pit exit cut detection

 Cars

• Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992)
  • v1.07
    • Added 2023 Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain cars
• Brabham BT44
  • v2.66
    • Updated materials
    • Fixed metallic rim upgrade
• March 761
  • v2.14
    • Updated materials
• Mclaren M23
  • v1.55
    • Updated materials
• Formula ISI 2012
  • v2.25
    • Added KERS
    • Fixed dashboard display
• BTCC
  • BMW 330 BTCC
    • v1.65
      • Slight tire wear increase
      • Normalised AI front/rear grip to make cars more equal under acceleration out of slow corner
      • Minor AI grip tweak
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
  • Cupra Leon BTCC
    • v1.65
      • ~2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Increased AI front tire grip 10% to match RWD cars
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Ford Focus BTCC
    • v1.65
      • 2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • AIGripMult on front tyres to match RWD lap times
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Honda Civic BTCC
    • v1.65
      • 2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Adjusted AI front tire grip to match RWD lap times
      • Fixed windows on 2021 cars
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Hyundai i30 BTCC
    • v1.65
      • 2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Adjusted AI front tire grip to match RWD lap times
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Infiniti Q50 BTCC
    • v1.65
      • Normalized front/rear grip for AI to make them closer to FWD
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Toyota Corolla BTCC
    • v1.65
      • 2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Adjusted AI front tire grip to match RWD lap times
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
  • Vauxhall Astra BTCC
    • v1.65
      • 2% more AI grip
      • Brake system adjustments
      • Higher maximum brake pressure
      • Add front tire grip for AI
      • Updated with cooler tyres
      • Slight tire wear increase
• GT3
  • Aston Martin GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • Audi R8 GT3 2018
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • Audi R8 GT3 2019
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • Bentley GT3 2017
    • v3.61
      • -5kg
  • Bentley GT3 2020
    • v3.61
      • -10kg
  • BMW M4 GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • BMW M6 GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • Callaway C7 GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • Ferrari 488 GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • McLaren 650 GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
  • McLaren 720 GT3
    • v3.61
      • -5kg
      • Fixed HUD font
  • Mercedes AMG GT3
    • v3.61
      • +5kg
  • Porsche 991 GT3
    • v3.61
      • -10kg
  • Radical RXC GT3
    • v3.61
      • No change
• GTE
  • Aston Martin Vantage GTE
    • v3.15
      • -12kg on standard aero package
      • 2% more engine power on Le Mans package
      • Adjusted pitstop times
  • BMW M8 GTE
    • v3.15
      • -20kg on standard aero package
      • Adjusted pitstop times
  • Corvette C7R GTE
    • v3.15
      • Slightly reduced drag
      • Adjusted pitstop times
  • Corvette C8R GTE
    • v3.15
      • Slightly reduced drag
      • 1% more engine power
      • -23kg with standard package
      • -15kg with Le Mans package
      • Adjusted pitstop times
  • Ferrari 488 GTE
    • v3.15
      • +15kg on standard aero package
      • 1.5% less engine power on Le Mans package
      • Adjusted pitstop times
  • Porsche 991 RSR GTE
    • v3.15
      • 16kg on standard aero package
      • 1% engine power increase on Le Mans package

We hope these updates, though modest, elevate your virtual racing. And remember, we’ve got more coming your way soon…

Thank you for riding this journey with us. Stay in the fast lane!

Studio 397

Hello Sim Racers!

As you all know, we have been consistently putting out British Touring Car Championship content over the past year, and we are now bringing that crescendo to its peak as we complete the full 2023 grid with the addition of the Team HARD Cupra Leon into rFactor 2.

The Team HARD squad features 6 fantastic drivers; Dexter Patterson, Bobby Thompson, Jack Butel, Dan Lloyd, Nicolas Hamilton, and Jade Edwards. We are incredibly excited to be bringing all 6 of their 2023 liveries plus all Team HARD 2021 and 2022 paint schemes the the rFactor 2 platform, and we think that you will love driving the Cupra Leon!

Alongside the addition of the Cupra Leon, we have also added all of the official 2023 Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship liveries into rFactor 2 to mirror the current season and increase the immersion of the highest-level virtual tin-top racing experience.

The Cupra Completes the Grid

We know how much our community loves our British Touring Car Championship content, but the Team HARD Cupra Leon has been well overdue. The time is now, and the Cupra Leon is available to buy for only €4.99 over on our Steam Store to complete your BTCC collection.

The Cupra Leon boasts a 350+bhp 2-litre turbo-charged direct-injection engine with ‘fly by wire’ throttle control and an Xtrac 6 speed sequential-shift gearbox and differential. If that doesn’t excite you, then we don’t know what will! And with how close the scuffles and battles are in the BTCC, both in real life and in the virtual world, you are sure to have hours and hours of fun with this new content.

To purchase the Cupra Leon, CLICK HERE!

If you don’t already own any BTCC content, then do we have some deals for you! Also available on the Steam Store alongside the individual Cupra Leon are our BTCC Pack and our BTCC Car Pack.

The BTCC Car Pack costs €19.99 and includes all 8 cars (Hyundai i30 Fastback N / BMW 330e M Sport / Ford Focus ST / Toyota Corolla GR Sport / Honda Civic Type R / Cupra Leon / Vauxhall Astra / Infiniti Q50) plus 3 seasons of BTCC liveries (2021-2023).

To purchase the BTCC Complete Car Pack, CLICK HERE!

The BTCC Pack costs €29.99 and includes all of the content included in the BTCC Car Pack above, plus 4 epic British race tracks – Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Croft and Thruxton. All 4 of these circuits provide unique quirks and challenges which are guaranteed to create exciting racing to all who brave their asphalt.

To purchase the BTCC Total Pack, CLICK HERE!

BTCC 2023 Liveries

Our rFactor 2 BTCC cars look impeccable with any paintjob, but we thought that they could do with a facelift. All of the 2023 liveries are now available in rFactor 2, which are included in both our BTCC Pack and BTCC Car Pack – links to purchase both are above. Please also note that if you have previously purchased some of our BTCC content, you will be automatically gifted the 2023 liveries for each car that you already own.

Here is your full 2023 British Touring Car Championship in virtual form!

#1 – Tom Ingram – Bristol Street Motors with ExcelR8

#3 – Tom Chilton – Bristol Street Motors with ExcelR8

#4 – Colin Turkington – Team BMW

#6 – Rory Butcher – Toyota Gazoo Racing UK

#11 – Andrew Watson – CarStore Power Maxed Racing

#12 – Stephen Jelley – Team BMW

#14 – Ronan Pearson – Bristol Street Motors with ExcelR8

#16 – Aiden Moffat – One Motorsport with Starline Racing

#17 – Dexter Patterson – Re.Beverages and Bartercard with Team Hard

#19 – Bobby Thompson – Autobrite Direct with Millers Oils

#22 – Nick Halstead – Bristol Street Motors with ExcelR8

#24 – Jake Hill – Laser Tools Racing with MB Motorsport

#27 – Dan Cammish – NAPA Racing UK

#28 – Nicolas Hamilton – Go-Fix with AutoAid Breakdown

#32 – Daniel Rowbottom – NAPA Racing UK

#33 – Adam Morgan – Team BMW

#37 – Ricky Collard – Toyota Gazoo Racing UK

#40 – Aron Taylor-Smith – CarStore Power Maxed Racing

#42 – George Gamble – Toyota Gazoo Racing UK

#66 – Josh Cook – One Motorsport with Starline Racing

#70 – Will Powell – One Motorsport with Starline Racing

#77 – Sam Osborne – NAPA Racing UK

#88 – Mikey Doble – CarStore Power Maxed Racing

#96 – Jack Butel – Go-Fix with AutoAid Breakdown

#99 – Jade Edwards – Re.Beverages and Bartercard with Team Hard

#116 – Ashley Sutton – Napa Racing UK

#123 – Dan Lloyd – Autobrite Direct with Millers Oils

Hot-Fix Change-Log

Brabham BT44 v2.64

• Added PBR materials

• Fixed drivers toes sticking out of car

BMW 330i M Sport BTCC v1.63

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

• Fixed visual damage

Chevrolet Corvette C8.R GTE v3.13

• Fix for negative VolumeFract values resulting in fuel regeneration when off-throttle

Hyundai i30 Fastback N Performance BTCC v1.61

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

Honda Civic Type R BTCC v1.61

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

Ford Focus ST BTCC v1.61

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

Infiniti Q50 V37 BTCC v1.61

• Added AI antiroll

Toyota Corolla GR Sport BTCC v1.61

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

Vauxhall Astra BTCC v1.61

• Added 2023 teams

• Added AI antiroll

Vanwall Vandervell LMH v1.31

• Added Michelin tires

• Updated fuel consumption

• Modified gear ratios to be the same as the homologated ones

BTCC 2023 Season so far

What a start to the season it has been in the British Touring Car Championship! With Ash Sutton now leading the standings after Snetterton by just 7 points over Tom Ingram, with Colin Turkington, Dan Cammish and Jake Hill following closely behind, we cannot wait for the season to continue as it’s sure to be an absolute belter throughout!

It is our honour to bring you the only official virtual British Touring Car Championship racing experience on the market, and we hope you enjoy racing with them! But please remember, show respect to your fellow racers as motorsport (especially BTCC) is a non-contact sport…

Happy Racing!

Hello Sim Racers!

We have been chomping at the bit in excitement and anticipation, ready to bring you our Q2 2023 Early Release Update and DLC drop. You may notice that this Q2 drop has slightly less content when compared to previous quarterly drops, but we believe the updates we are bringing are vital to the longevity and continued improvement of the rFactor 2 platform. We have moved this Q2 drop to an earlier date than was once planned to match with fundamental development across many different areas of the platform, such as electric motor systems and the multiplayer experience.

The jewel in the crown of our Q2 release is certainly the Gen3 ABB FIA Formula E car. Our development team has sunk many hours into perfecting every aspect of the car to give the most realistic electric formula racing simulation experience money can buy. Alongside this new addition to the wide library of cars available on rFactor 2, we have also made key upgrades to many areas of the platform which we will go into further detail on later in this blog post.

We hope you enjoy this new update, and love driving the Gen3 Formula E car – which you can purchase for €4.99 from our Steam store. Please continue reading this blog post to find further details on everything included in today’s update, and a full guide on how to get the most out of the new Formula E Gen3 car.

KEY FEATURES

ABB FIA Formula E – Gen3 Car

The outstanding Formula E Gen3 car bursts its way onto rFactor 2, with our platform being the only location to experience the highest level of formula electric racing simulation. This newest addition to rFactor 2 is available now over on our Steam Store for only €4.99, which includes the Series’ show-car plus all 11 of the team’s stunning liveries from Season 9 of the ABB FIA World Championship.

To purchase the new Gen3 Formula E car, CLICK HERE!

The Gen3 car features more power and longevity than its predecessors, making it the fastest Formula E car yet with a top speed over 322 kph / 200 mph. The new design also features around 95% power efficiency from an electric motor delivering up to 350kW of power, the equivalent of 470BHP, compared to approximately 40% for an internal combustion engine.

Furthermore, our ‘Formula E Pack’, available on the Steam Store, has been updated to include the newest version of the Series’ car – with the price increasing minimally to €25. Alongside the vehicles, this pack also includes our 6 Formula E circuits; Berlin, New York, Hong Kong, Rome, Diriyah, and London. These tracks have all received updated trackside branding and sponsorships, which breathes a fresh lease of life into the world famous street circuits in-game.

To purchase the Formula E Pack, CLICK HERE!

Finally, Formula E Accelerate, the official Esports Championship of ABB FIA Formula E, begins tomorrow (Friday 14th April) – which you are able to race in yourself! As long as you are 16 years of age or older, and own rFactor 2 plus all of the necessary content – you’re free to compete. The season is sure to be action packed, with the drivers needing lightning quick reactions to remain at the front of the field (see what we did there!)

But how will the Esport Series work? For each Round (Berlin and Rome), there will be an open qualifying session to decide the top 88 drivers into Qualifying Races. Qualifying Races will be the second stage of qualification into rounds, consisting of 3x races. The top 22 drivers will then proceed to the respective Round event. Each Round will consist of 1x race following hot-lap qualifying and Qualifying Duels to determine the grid order. The top 11 drivers across the Berlin and Rome Round events will be invited directly to the London Finals held in-person at the London ExCel, location of the London E-Prix on the 29th July. If you decide to test your pace and compete in this top level sim racing competition, we wish you the best of luck!

Find out more about Formula E Accelerate HERE! The first session is now live over on the in-game Competition System.

Historic Car Updates

Our much-loved historic formula cars have been given a refresh thanks to rFactor 2 community member ‘Gert-Jan van Osch’!

The Brabham BT44, March 761, and McLaren M23 have all been finely tuned to perform at their maximum potential, and create fantastic single-seater racing for you all to enjoy at home.

Once again, a massive thank you to Gert-Jan van Osch for putting time and effort into improving these unbelievable pieces of machinery! We love the rFactor 2 community! As a thank you, we have created a server for fun races using these three upgraded cars which is available for you to join over on the platform right now.

Formula E Gen3 Car User-Guide

Required Controls

There are two new controls you’ll need to map:

• Increment Electric Motor Map
• Decrement Electric Motor Map

You’ll find these under the electronics tab.

You’ll also need Arm Attack Mode, if you don’t already have that mapped.

Driving Style

For 2023, the races are usually ~100km, so you need to make your battery last. One of the methods will be to lift and coast when you get to a certain speed, usually around 220km/h, because at higher speeds, there’s more drag, and it will require more and more battery power to go faster. Lift, coast, and brake hard, you can regen up to 600kW. Below is a lap at New York, you can see the throttle in green, brake in red, and speed in blue.

It will be important to use the HUD, and new steering wheel display to figure out exactly how much power you can use to make it to the end of the race.

To regenerate power, you must use the brakes. If you coast, you generate no power. Touching the brake pedal even 1% will give you a very light regen amount, around 20kW. The harder you brake, the more your regen. As for normal braking. The car has no physical rear brakes and as such all the braking is accomplished via the rear power unit. A pretty significant front motor, producing 250kW, is capable of doing about 80-90% of the total required braking effort around the typical street circuits that Formula E run. At high speed, the car will utilize some physical brakes on full brake pressure, as the speed reduces the need for this is reduced and eliminated for two reasons: The first is that at high speed, more torque is required to achieve maximum braking due to downforce, the second is the nature of electric motors to produce less torque at high rotational speeds. At higher speeds, at full brake pressure, the physical brakes will do a significant amount of the deceleration effort, and this will blend in to more electrical regeneration as speed bleeds off the car. Coasting therefore can help in two ways, by reducing energy used at high speed and by allowing the motor to stay in the sweet spot. Significant power saving is required to complete a full distance, so all these techniques need to be considered when getting from point A to point B in the shortest possible time on a given allocation of energy.

Dashboard Layout

Going from left to right, we have:
Engine mode. The engine mode is in red, there are four total modes, 100kW, this is for safety car periods, 250kW, this is not normally used, 300kW, this is normal race power, and 350kW, this is automatically used with attack mode.

SoC and Battery bar. This will show your battery amount in a number, and a bar to show how much battery remains. If you change your ‘Battery Units’ setting, it will display the remaining amount in kW, or percentage, depending on your choice.

M Temp, this is the temperature of the motor.

Speed, this shows your current speed.

Brake Temp, this shows your front brake temperatures, there are no rear brakes, so we have no need to display those.

Previous, this shows battery used on the last lap.

Purple box, this will show your current lap time.

Bias, this shows brake torque bias.

Tire Temp, this shows the current temperatures of the tires.

Target, this shows the amount of battery you can use per lap to make the end of the race. Note, this will be blank in practice sessions.

Gear, this shows what gear you’re in.

Batt Usage, this shows the amount of battery you’ve used this lap. The number can go negative if you regen more than you use.

White box, this is the lap time delta.

Regen bar, this will show how much you’re regening.

Full Changelog and Known Issues

General

• Fixed assigned Screenshot button not working in UI in Retail
• Fixed Photo Mode depth option not working
• Linked Photo Mode Screenshot Format and Depth saving to player.json setting
• Removed non functional copy to clipboard screenshot player.json setting
• Disallow assigned Screenshot button in Photo Mode
• Allowed toggling of showroom background in Retail (via key 1 or via button).
• Added player.json setting “showroom background” for default state of rendering background.
• Added Sideview UI showroom for taking screenshots of cars for icons.
• Fixed UI resolution not setting correctly when switching from Windowed to Borderless in Game.
• Fixed crash when changing resolution options in VR
• Fixed intermittent crash when installing content

Configuration Application

• Updated Config file to save last used resolution and refresh rate rather than an enumeration of the used mode for more consistent handling of game resolution when adapters change.
• Setup a VR specific config file. This file will copy from the default file on first run of VR.
• Allowed the option to configure multiple files from the config application
• Fixed various inconsistencies in config app where by changing adapter or monitor would lose any previous setting changes
• Fixed windows version reporting in config app
• Updated displaying of PC Specs to show only relevant information in config app
• Removed various unused settings from config file

Physics

• Ensured that results files / ai report battery state when it’s the primary energy source
• Various fixes for battery energy consumption

Graphics

• Updated Dashboard Elements Shader to use IBL Setup for better lighting
• Added LowLumEmissive shader to replace old Dashboard usage on track assets (Start/Pit Lights etc) and in Car LEDs. The game will auto reassign these.
• Updated Cockpit Readout format to allow offsets, to render multiple readouts to the same background
• Added Cockpit Readout Icon format, which can render texture to background, with configurable number of elements, and options to change colours or uvw islands based on value, with options for Fuel, Battery, RPM, TC, TCActive, ABS, ABSLocked
• Added various extra cockpit readouts: FuelLastLap, FuelFinishAverage, BatteryLastLap, BatteryFinishAverage, CurrentLap, Delta, TCSlip, TCCut, BatteryRegenLevel, ElectricMotorMap
• Updated Moddev Tweak Bar displays for new options
• Updated method for sharing if a rain light is active over network, to ensure better consistency when it is used to show in the pit lane, battery regen or due to the weather.
• Enable rain light when battery is harvesting on throttle. Use CockpitInfo.ini params to configure:
  • RegenLightRequireThrottle=1/0 (requires higher throttle than brake)
  • RegenLightMinPowerWatts=15000 (requires 15kw regen to show the light)

AI

• Reworked AI throttle behaviour
  • Less overshooting, more controlled deceleration
  • Improved acceleration with less wheelspin
  • Improved corner exits
  • Eliminated even more sources of oscillation
  • Improved laptimes for certain vehicles
  • Pit speed limit won’t be overshot
  • Stop positions (grid, pit box) will no longer be overshot
• Reworked AI reaction to other vehicles (road courses)
  • AI will now properly slipstream other vehicles
  • Overtaking occurs if AI can achieve overlap before the next corner, otherwise the AI will save fuel
  • Multiclass: Faster classes will no longer slow down when trying to overtake slower classes
  • Multiclass: Faster classes avoid overtaking unless they can get fully past before the apex
  • Multiclass: Faster classes will attempt to carry more momentum, and lift off early if no overtaking opportunity exists
  • AI will now be more cautious when other cars are around
  • AI can now use more of the space following other cars, for proper drafting behaviour
  • More cautious when yellow flags are ahead or under FCY
  • Player and other cars will no longer be rear ended unless a sudden unexpected lane change makes a reaction impossible
  • When cars ahead are in a fight, AI will now set up for an overtake on corner exit
  • AI won’t hesitate to go 3-wide if the situation allows for it, but will pull out before the next braking zone if an overtake seems too dangerous
  • Less incident prone with large grids

HUD

• Updated Default HUD with multiple options for different element combinations
• Added Battery State & Usage options, as well as LEDs for P2P and Battery
• Fixed HUD only rendering one gauge correctly
• Added Throttle, Brake and Clutch gauge options to HUD
• Added ability to change text colour in MFD in HUDs

UI

• Added Battery Unit setting (Percent or kW(h))
• Fixed multiplayer joining getting triggered again after changing graphics settings and restarting when joining with +connect

Package Management

• Server now verifies that connected clients own the content they are using

Modding

• Map Converter Updates
  • Now checks for file updates every 500ms.
  • -f (force all textures to update) command will only run once and exit.
  • -o (once) command will only run once and exit
  • DDS files are only copied from source folder on first pass.
  • Improved output display with more information.
• Mod Dev\Scene Viewer
  • Added extra lighting debug information for fog and direct light direction
  • Added toggling of shadow groups via shadow key (U) in scene viewer.
  • Only allow one instance of the Scene Viewer to be open at a time (fixes issues with accessing Material Editor when previous instance doesn’t exit for some reason).
• Added missing Limit Path option to Static Cameras in Camera Editor
• Material Editor Updates
  • Added ability to set blend modes per material
  • Added ability to set texture options for chroma and no detail reduction.

Known issues

• AI will fail to line up for FCY
• Formation lap speeds are capped too low, so if the grid gets pulled too far apart, the back will fail to catch up in time
• AI aren’t particularly good at evading cars parked on track and will slow down considerably, sometimes just lining up behind them
• AI behaves badly when there is a large performance delta between cars
• Auto Shifting on the FE Gen 3 will not shift out of neutral

Track Changelogs

Brands Hatch v1.05

• Fixed Rear Paddock Garage 8 no 3 not leaving pits on Indy Layout.

Croft v1.07

• Minor cut corridors adjustments
• Minor adjustment to ai at pit exit
• Fixed camera clipping

Sebring v1.59

• Reviewed track limits at pit entry and pit exit

Berlin v1.37

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed
• Minor Terrain Gaps fixed

Hong Kong v1.93

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed

London FE v1.07

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed

New York FE v1.31

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed
• Minor AIW tweaks
• Fixed start light casing not visible on lower detail settings
• Fixed minor issues with Brake marker materails

Rome FE v1.25

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed
• Minor AIW tweaks
• Fixed inverted digital flag mapping

Saudi FE v1.15

• FE 2023 Branding Updates
• Track Limits Reviewed

Electric Docks v2.38

• Minor AIW tweaks
• Fixed various LOD issues

Car Changelogs

Brabham BT44 v2.64

• General visual update
• Updated backfire animation
• Fixed drivers toes sticking out of car

McLaren M23 v1.54

• General visual update
• Included missing files

March 761 v2.13

• General visual update
• Included missing files

Dallara IR18 v1.73

• Stopped Push To Pass disabling when crossing start/finish line
• Made it so Push To Pass could only be activated after the first lap of the race

Vandervell Vanwall LMH v1.29

• Less rear downforce
• More front downfoce
• More drag
• Braking torque to match brake bias 60%
• Updated body decals to 2023 version
• Renamed tires, soft cold, soft hard. Same tires, but different operating windows
• Medium tires are a little harder, and -1.5% grip
• Tire grip and downforce adjusted to match real data
• Removed tire warmers
• Drag/Power adjusted to match real data
• Lowered tire thermal degradation

Formula E Gen3 2023 v1.03

• Fixed missing shadows on wings

Main Game: 10989730
Dedicated: 10989737

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

2023 is a very exciting year for rFactor 2, and we have plenty more content and multiplayer updates which we look forward to bringing to you very soon!

We can’t let you in on all of the secrets just yet though…

Happy Racing!

Hello Sim Racers!

The major Release Candidate build of rFactor 2 for Q2 2023 has been released, bringing a large number of enhancements to rFactor 2 including some significant AI changes and engine code updates.

Below are the full notes from the main release changelog.

General

• Fixed assigned Screenshot button not working in UI in Retail
• Fixed Photo Mode depth option not working
• Linked Photo Mode Screenshot Format and Depth saving to player.json setting
• Removed non functional copy to clipboard screenshot player.json setting
• Disallow assigned Screenshot button in Photo Mode
• Allowed toggling of showroom background in Retail (via key 1 or via button).
• Added player.json setting “showroom background” for default state of rendering background.
• Added Sideview UI showroom for taking screenshots of cars for icons.
• Fixed UI resolution not setting correctly when switching from Windowed to Borderless in Game.
• Fixed crash when changing resolution options in VR

Configuration Application

• Updated Config file to save last used resolution and refresh rate rather than an enumeration of the used mode for more consistent handling of game resolution when adapters change.
• Setup a VR specific config file. This file will copy from the default file on first run of VR.
• Allowed the option to configure multiple files from the config application
• Fixed various inconsistencies in config app where by changing adapter or monitor would lose any previous setting changes
• Fixed windows version reporting in config app
• Updated displaying of PC Specs to show only relevant information in config app
• Removed various unused settings from config file

Physics

• Ensured that results files / ai report battery state when it’s the primary energy source
• Various fixes for battery energy consumption

Graphics

• Updated Dashboard Elements Shader to use IBL Setup for better lighting
• Added LowLumEmissive shader to replace old Dashboard usage on track assets (Start/Pit Lights etc) and in Car LEDs. The game will auto reassign these.
• Updated Cockpit Readout format to allow offsets, to render multiple readouts to the same background
• Added Cockpit Readout Icon format, which can render texture to background, with configurable number of elements, and options to change colours or uvw islands based on value, with options for Fuel, Battery, RPM, TC, TCActive, ABS, ABSLocked
• Added various extra cockpit readouts: FuelLastLap, FuelFinishAverage, BatteryLastLap, BatteryFinishAverage, CurrentLap, Delta, TCSlip, TCCut, BatteryRegenLevel, ElectricMotorMap
• Updated Moddev Tweak Bar displays for new options
• Enable rain light when battery is harvesting on throttle. Use CockpitInfo.ini params to configure:
  • RegenLightRequireThrottle=1/0 (requires higher throttle than brake)
  • RegenLightMinPowerWatts=15000 (requires 15kw regen to show the light)

AI

• Reworked AI throttle behaviour
  • Less overshooting, more controlled deceleration
  • Improved acceleration with less wheelspin
  • Improved corner exits
  • Eliminated even more sources of oscillation
  • Improved laptimes for certain vehicles
  • Pit speed limit won’t be overshot
  • Stop positions (grid, pit box) will no longer be overshot
• Reworked AI reaction to other vehicles (road courses)
  • AI will now properly slipstream other vehicles
  • Overtaking occurs if AI can achieve overlap before the next corner, otherwise the AI will save fuel
  • Multiclass: Faster classes will no longer slow down when trying to overtake slower classes
  • Multiclass: Faster classes avoid overtaking unless they can get fully past before the apex
  • Multiclass: Faster classes will attempt to carry more momentum, and lift off early if no overtaking opportunity exists
  • AI will now be more cautious when other cars are around
  • AI can now use more of the space following other cars, for proper drafting behaviour
  • More cautious when yellow flags are ahead or under FCY
  • Player and other cars will no longer be rear ended unless a sudden unexpected lane change makes a reaction impossible
  • When cars ahead are in a fight, AI will now set up for an overtake on corner exit
  • AI won’t hesitate to go 3-wide if the situation allows for it, but will pull out before the next braking zone if an overtake seems too dangerous
  • Less incident prone with large grids

HUD

• Updated Default HUD
• Added Battery State & Usage options, as well as LEDs for P2P and Battery

UI

• Added Battery Unit setting (Percent or kW(h))
• Fixed multiplayer joining getting triggered again after changing graphics settings and restarting when joining with +connect

Package Management

• Server now verifies that connected clients own the content they are using

Modding

• Map Converter Updates
  • Now checks for file updates every 500ms.
  • -f (force all textures to update) command will only run once and exit.
  • -o (once) command will only run once and exit
  • DDS files are only copied from source folder on first pass.
  • Improved output display with more information.
• Mod Dev\Scene Viewer
  • Added extra lighting debug information for fog and direct light direction
  • Added toggling of shadow groups via shadow key (U) in scene viewer.
  • Only allow one instance of the Scene Viewer to be open at a time (fixes issues with accessing Material Editor when previous instance doesn’t exit for some reason).
• Added missing Limit Path option to Static Cameras in Camera Editor

Known issues

• Battery Usage in Percentage does not show clearly (always says below 0.01%)
• AI will fail to line up for FCY
• AI tend to try to overtake around the outside, but quickly realise that won’t work
• Formation lap speeds are capped too low, so if the grid gets pulled too far apart, the back will fail to catch up in time

We hope that you enjoy these changes, and please feel free to contact us through our support channels if you experience any difficulties.