Spring has sprung, the birds are singing, the bees are buzzing, and we've been buzzing with excitement to finally show you what we've been up to the past several months. So buckle up and don't forget your sunglasses 'cause it's gonna be blooming bright over here!
ETK Refresh
First up, the ETK is getting refreshed for the spring season! While not as comprehensive as our typical revamps, the team has dedicated significant effort to update key areas of both models. This ensures that they maintain their distinct identity while offering a more complete and engaging driving experience.
Throughout the development process, our primary focus has been on expanding the selection of available parts, which not only serves to give the vehicles a more unique and distinguishable feel across the board, but also to increase the variety of configurations available to drivers.
The lineup is getting a shiny new V8 engine with naturally aspirated and twin turbo options, as well as an overhaul of all other engines. Also included among other things are several new gauge options, interiors, and wheels.
We’ve updated all existing configurations with improved meshes and materials, and added several new ones to the revamped models. The ETK 800-series is getting a new sedan body style, as well as widebody ttSport models. There are several new engine options and skins, and a set of “Rennspecht” parts. The ETK K-series is getting much the same treatment, with new widebody ttSport models, a new “Turbo Rabbit” widebody kit, new engine options, skins, a modern race steering wheel, and “Rennspecht” parts.
Openable Doors
We’ve also added openable doors and panels to most vehicles, like the Bruckell Bastion, Autobello Piccolina, and Gavril Grand Marshal, among others – check the patch notes for a full list, or experiment and find out for yourself!
IMPORTANT: We've resolved a problem related to manual transmissions and how they respond to clutch input!
Previously, even if the clutch assist feature was turned off and players expected full control over the clutch, this was not the case. Shifting gears only required a brief clutch input, resulting in perfect clutch timing every time, which is unrealistic. This issue has now been addressed, which is excellent news, however it also means that players will need to adapt to the new clutch behavior, as shifts may feel slower due to the removal of the unintended "God Mode." Despite this, actual shift times remain the same or may even be faster due to other improvements and changes.
Automation Test Track Renovation
On the levels side, we are happy to report that Automation Test Track has received a fresh coat of paint. We've updated and added detail to the buildings and various structures, revamped vegetation, and updated terrain and asset materials to PBR, bringing Automation Test Track in line with other maps.
Additionally, Johnson Valley now offers several new trails to explore. Many smaller issues were fixed, and improvements made to Utah, the Garage, Italy, and the Gridmap (v2) map.
Prototype – Stats Tracking
We’re adding a Stats tracking system that will track how long you’ve spent on a given map or driven a particular vehicle. It will also support tracking rollovers and j-turns. Please note that this is still very much work in progress and the system will be improved and expanded in future updates.
Missions
With this update to the game the missions team has introduced several changes and improvements to the system. There are 18 new missions available across different maps, including Automation Test Track, East Coast, Johnson Valley, and Italy. Players now have the ability to enable the automatic recording of mission attempts, although this feature may impact performance. The Missions backend code has also been improved and cleaned up, allowing custom placement of police vehicles at the start of Evade missions. Moreover, ground markers can now be customized for several mission types.
User Interface
On the UI side of things, the Overview Map is getting some polish in this update. The player icon has been updated to an arrow that indicates the vehicle direction, and players can now skip the transition animation by pressing the map button again. To improve the selection process, the POI merge range has been adjusted and the visible distance increased to address artifacting in some maps. Additionally, the camera speed and gamepad controls have been fine-tuned, Parts Manager has been updated with new icons and consistent layout, and we have resolved issues related to translation system, among other various smaller UI bug fixes.
Mod users will be delighted to know that we have included an ability to spawn modded vehicles in the garage mode.
Last but not least, we’ve added a new tool on the bottom of the Repository – Mod Manager tab. It’s called “List possibly broken mods’ and if you guessed that it does its best to figure out which mods are conflicting with either the game itself or other mods, have a gold star! For regular players, this feature should help narrow down the search for which enabled mod may be breaking the game after updates, or when installed alongside other mods. For modders, it can help figure out which specific file in a mod is causing problems with the base game, or with files from other enabled mods. The more files a particular mod overwrites, the easier it is for a mod to cause conflict after game updates or when other mods are installed.
And more!
As if all that’s not enough, we’ve given some love to the powertrain settings, fixed several controller issues and implemented support for Logitech Trueforce effects with supported Logitech wheels among other input fixes and features. Game audio also received a handful of improvements, including several new sounds to add more realism. Likewise, game engine and traffic code received various optimizations.
Though this update may appear rather compact compared to the mammoth that was v0.27, we wanted to highlight that it also comes packed with foundational behind-the-scenes efforts that will pave the way for future improvements.
To see the complete list of changes, check out the patch notes here!