Arguably the most hotly-anticipated update in sim racing in 2024, Automobilista 2 v1.6 has seen a very successful launch. While developer Reiza Studios are pleased with this, they also know that their work is not done yet.
It took longer than anticipated for Automobilista 2 to have its big update to v1.6 deployed, but on November 29, it was finally time. With the new version came exciting new content, a plethora of new features and adjustments, the integration with third-party competition website Low Fuel Motorsport - and a new peak concurrent player record.
To be precise, it was three records, even. The previous best was set at 2,547 in December 2023 when the first batch of Hypercars and the Le Mans track were released. Following v1.6 being deployed, that number first went up to 3,624 on Friday, then 3,809 on Saturday, and finally 3,855 on Sunday. Plenty of multiplayer servers could be found, and as @Michel Wolk and I tried the LFM integration, we even found some events closed for registration if you were not quick enough, as they were at capacity already.
Lots of sim racers enjoy the update, with plenty of positive feedback - and some negative as well, of course - found here on OverTake, YouTube, or social media. "We are very pleased with the release of v1.6 - we set a very high goal for ourselves for this update, and it has not been easy to clear that bar. But by and large, we did that, end even exceeded goals in some aspects", a happy Reiza Studios Founder and Lead Developer Renato Simioni told OverTake.
Indeed, the online portion of Automobilista 2 provided great racing over the weekend, although not without issues here and there - occasionally, a session would not advance to the next, and once, I hit an invisible car that mostly ended my race, but once a session gets going, there have not been any issues in the vast majority of cases.
As a result, plenty of sim racers who had been unsure seem to have at least given AMS2 a solid look over the 1.6 launch weekend. Despite the many positive reactions, there have been some negative ones as well. "We know AMS2 isn't for everyone, and we don't expect it to be. By its very unique design, it's not ever going to cater to everyone", said Simioni. "Generally speaking, those who already liked it like it even more now; many of those who were on the fence or even slightly negative towards it are now more into it, and those who strongly disliked it by and large still do."
The update did take longer to be deployed than anticipated - initially, the goal was Summer of 2024, most likely referring to the northern hemisphere. That soft target may not have been met, but that was for good reason, as Simioni explained: "For this update, we knew we needed to deliver less potential and more reality, so that's what we went all out for irrespective of how long it was going to take - and even though it took longer than we'd foreseen, it's still a whole lot of progress for just seven months worth of development."
The release of v1.6 concludes a very intense 2024 for the Brazilian studio, and despite the initial success of the update, the team knows it cannot just sit back now. While AMS2 may now be in a position where its physics model is largely what it should be like, according to the devs, Simioni promises: "The push continues - there is still plenty to achieve, so our sights are already focused on these next steps."
Another element that could mean another big step forward would be online driver swaps. Currently, endurance events with real teammates are not possible, as Automobilista 2 does not support driver swaps other than with AI drivers yet. The addition of the feature coupled with the day-night transitions and weather system the title already offers could make for some very memorable endurance action - and considering the IMSA licensing deal, it would only make sense.
What are your wishes for Automobilista 2 in 2025? Let us know in the comments below and join the discussion in our AMS2 forum!
It took longer than anticipated for Automobilista 2 to have its big update to v1.6 deployed, but on November 29, it was finally time. With the new version came exciting new content, a plethora of new features and adjustments, the integration with third-party competition website Low Fuel Motorsport - and a new peak concurrent player record.
To be precise, it was three records, even. The previous best was set at 2,547 in December 2023 when the first batch of Hypercars and the Le Mans track were released. Following v1.6 being deployed, that number first went up to 3,624 on Friday, then 3,809 on Saturday, and finally 3,855 on Sunday. Plenty of multiplayer servers could be found, and as @Michel Wolk and I tried the LFM integration, we even found some events closed for registration if you were not quick enough, as they were at capacity already.
Lots of sim racers enjoy the update, with plenty of positive feedback - and some negative as well, of course - found here on OverTake, YouTube, or social media. "We are very pleased with the release of v1.6 - we set a very high goal for ourselves for this update, and it has not been easy to clear that bar. But by and large, we did that, end even exceeded goals in some aspects", a happy Reiza Studios Founder and Lead Developer Renato Simioni told OverTake.
Squasing Bugs & Treating Teething Issues
Meanwhile, Simioni knows that the AMS2 player base has indeed grown considerably over the four years the title has been out, but it might not always be online at the same time. "With that said, one of the big moves of v1.6 has been a harder push towards making it a viable multiplayer platform, and for that to flourish, sustaining a high number of concurrent players is critical", adds Simioni. "That has worked rather well, and the initial weekend has been mostly solid, but some teething issues and bugs have popped up - it's on us to get on top of as many of them and as quickly as possible to keep that positive momentum going."Indeed, the online portion of Automobilista 2 provided great racing over the weekend, although not without issues here and there - occasionally, a session would not advance to the next, and once, I hit an invisible car that mostly ended my race, but once a session gets going, there have not been any issues in the vast majority of cases.
As a result, plenty of sim racers who had been unsure seem to have at least given AMS2 a solid look over the 1.6 launch weekend. Despite the many positive reactions, there have been some negative ones as well. "We know AMS2 isn't for everyone, and we don't expect it to be. By its very unique design, it's not ever going to cater to everyone", said Simioni. "Generally speaking, those who already liked it like it even more now; many of those who were on the fence or even slightly negative towards it are now more into it, and those who strongly disliked it by and large still do."
"More sim racers start to 'get' what we are going for"
In that sense, Simioni sees parallels to previous milestone updates. However, "the most important thing for us is that it keeps finding its audience more and more, as it's not typical for a game going into its fifth year to continue to do that in large leaps. But as we bring it all together more and more, more sim racers start to 'get' what we are going for, and we do a better job of delivering and more of them come to see its value", Reiza's Founder stated.The update did take longer to be deployed than anticipated - initially, the goal was Summer of 2024, most likely referring to the northern hemisphere. That soft target may not have been met, but that was for good reason, as Simioni explained: "For this update, we knew we needed to deliver less potential and more reality, so that's what we went all out for irrespective of how long it was going to take - and even though it took longer than we'd foreseen, it's still a whole lot of progress for just seven months worth of development."
The release of v1.6 concludes a very intense 2024 for the Brazilian studio, and despite the initial success of the update, the team knows it cannot just sit back now. While AMS2 may now be in a position where its physics model is largely what it should be like, according to the devs, Simioni promises: "The push continues - there is still plenty to achieve, so our sights are already focused on these next steps."
Career Mode & Online Driver Swaps Next?
One of them certainly is a Career Mode: Once v1.6 introduced the new UI, a greyed-out Career Mode option appeared in the main menu, and this has been on many players' want lists for quite some time. Reiza has previously stated that they wanted to bring all content in AMS2 to a coherent level first, so it might be one of the next big things.Another element that could mean another big step forward would be online driver swaps. Currently, endurance events with real teammates are not possible, as Automobilista 2 does not support driver swaps other than with AI drivers yet. The addition of the feature coupled with the day-night transitions and weather system the title already offers could make for some very memorable endurance action - and considering the IMSA licensing deal, it would only make sense.
What are your wishes for Automobilista 2 in 2025? Let us know in the comments below and join the discussion in our AMS2 forum!
