AMS 2 Announced - MADNESS Engine Confirmed!

[Paul Jeffrey]

The announcement is here! Read on for some very big news regarding the next racing game project from Reiza Studios.

Having earned considerable good will from the sim racing community thanks to their outstanding work on GSCE and Automobilista, Reiza Studios confirmed they planned on developing and releasing a new racing title in the very near future. For various reasons that "very near future" turned into a couple of years or so, and the original working title of 'Reiza '17' quickly became obsolete.

Well folks, wait no more - the announcement is here!

Let’s be honest, we expected this to be good... and good it is. Firstly, let’s talk about the surprise aspect of the announcement today – the game engine.

Most folks would be willing to throw down money on Reiza taking hold of the rFactor 2 ISI gMotor2 and bolting on an external graphics engine… but Reiza have surprised us all with an announcement we didn’t expect – AMS 2 will be using the Slightly Mad Studios developed Madness engine!

So what does that mean? Well it means day-to-night transitions. It means dynamic weather and it means VR! Yes, all those things that sim racers ask for, wrapped up in an impressive graphics engine that gives good framerates. Oh, and with the Reiza magic touch regarding physics and force feedback thrown into the mix. Awesome.

So, what else do we know? Well looking at the new trailer, we see the now legendary StockCar Series and Interlargos circuit, giving us a couple of exceptional pieces of content, and leading me to believe that AMS 2 will once again have a focus on the Brazilian racing scene at its core – which is excellent news in my opinion.

Other highlights from trailer has to be the incredible 1991 Ayrton Senna McLaren Honda! The Brazilian legend, a legendary Brazilian development studio - how awesome is that!

All in, this announcement sounds like fantastic news from Reiza, and well, well worth the wait!

The Reiza announcement in full:

Automobilista 2 is the culmination of a project developed over the course of nearly a decade. At its core, it is a comprehensive simulation of the Brazilian motorsports scene, featuring all major Brazilian racing series, race tracks and manufacturers.

Automobilista 2 will also celebrate Brazilian motorsports heritage by featuring some of the country´s most iconic heroes and achievements through its rich history in the sport.

Packing an even larger roster of diverse cars and tracks than its predecessor, Automobilista 2 will venture further into the best of international motorsports, including prestigious brands such as McLaren and BMW along with iconic venues such as Brands Hatch and Imola, at the same time continuing to explore the more exotic and exciting forms of motorsports from around the world.

Boosted by a new technical partnership with the developers of the award-winning Project CARS series, Automobilista 2 is built on the MADNESS engine, providing incredible graphical quality, the most advanced dynamic weather and track condition systems in a racing simulator and superior VR support, to deliver a substantial realism upgrade and a fully immersive visual experience.

With Automobilista 2 we aim to combine the strengths that made its predecessor unique with major evolutions in all areas. The sim will offer some exclusive features for both single player and multiplayer, which we look forward to sharing over the remaining months of development!


AMS 2 is set to release December 2019.

For the latest news and discussion items in relation to the newly announced new racing simulation from Reiza Studios, head over to our brand new AMS 2 sub forum, and never miss a thing again!

Like what we do at RaceDepartment? Follow us on Social Media!

 ​

 

[Bob Gnarley]

Underwhelmed...

 

[grirvan]

WOW!!! Can't wait! That looks amazing!

 

[FeltHat]

@Renato Simioni Super Trucks are back, right?

 

[CMGARAGE]

@Renato Simioni Super Trucks are back, right?

It's called the madness engine, no?

 

[kamackeris]

I just did a sex wee

 

[Constantin Grimminger]

Waiting for all the physics, FFB and other details not graphics-related. Reiza will need to polish Madness to the same extreme extent they did rF to match what we already have in AMS. AMS 2 (PCars 2.5) could be awesome with the right attention to detail and consistency (that PCars 1 and 2 sorely lack). A logical next step after rFactor 1.9 (AMS).

Completely with you at all things you mention. Huge step forwards for Reiza aswell, as they'll finally have solid weather & day/night cycle.
However: is it moddable? A lot of stock content is great and such, but if there's nothing of your choice you'll leave it pretty much to rot in your Steam libary.

 

[GTAce]

Yuuuuuuuus, Reiza with a modern engine? Hype!

 

[kamackeris]

But yeah.... Modding?

 

[The Walker]

PC2 engine, PC2!!!

 

[Nick Gregory]

@Renato Simioni Super Trucks are back, right?

Formula Truck did appear in the trailer, so I would assume so.

 

[Jan Mikuž]

The words in the announcement sound like they made sure it wasn't going to be "just" a visual upgrade. Cautiously optimistic atm, but by all means good luck to Reiza and wishing it works out for them.

 

[Marc Collins]

But yeah.... Modding?

Will depend on the licensing arrangement. No modding for AMS (which happened anyway) was part of that deal. Unlikely it would be supported on a platform that could be cross-modded with PCars 2, but who knows. Many, many important details yet to be revealed.

 

[Shovas]

*jaw drop*

 

[Jan Mikuž]

Wonder if Niels is still onboard...

 

[Wedge]

Madness Engine?

I hope they copy everything from AMS, like the physics, FFB, AI, sounds, literally everything... but the graphics.

 

[numbersevenhull]

But yeah.... Modding?

While that might be unlikely and disappointing for some we'll have to wait and hear. But I think you've got to allow Reiza to move forward and break out from having a niche hit and that might be the cost. No modding in iracing, ACC keeps their multiplayer user base tight and doesn't by necessarily hold a game back. It creates space for others in having a USP such as rF2 and AC. Importantly it would be more concerning if Reiza didn't have a remarkable history of being generous with content and looking after their babies long after release.

Besides, Brazilian V8's in VR, who needs modding when you are sitting on gold dust

 

[David Wright]

have they confirmed their own physics is in this one? people are assuming this

Physics is always a combination of the physics engine and the numbers you put into it. People tend to focus on the former but the latter is just as critical - perhaps more so. Reiza will be putting their own numbers in and so in that sense it will be their own physics. As to the engine, remember SMS began with same ISI physics that AMS began with. The big difference is probably the SETA tyre model, which, whether you like the end results or not, is a very sophisticated tyre model. But it does model the tyre physically like rF2 and in the past Reiza have expressed a preference for the "older" rF1 type tyre model so it will be interesting to see if Reiza do opt for SETA or not.

 

[EIREXE]

Damn, this is like a dream come true, a game with excellent physics running on the pcars 2 engine.

 

[Dethrone1427]

Incredible news!! They will make an absolute gem, I truly loved AMS but whenever I hope back into AMS from ACC it just looked a bit cartoonish. This will remove the issue for me! Weather AND day to night transitions AND vr???? Well there goes the last of my social life... thanks Renato!!!

 

[daceaki]

Will Niels give us some insight on why choose the Madness engine? I saw the Heusinkveld logo on that MCR race car, hopefully Niels is still working for AMS 2! Last time he said on Youtube he was not involved in the rF2 DLC development, and I smelled something fishy! Either he would no longer work with Reiza or there was something unannounced!