Studio 397 has been launching monthly news updates for their development of rFactor 2, and we have the latest news update for the month of December. The update teases the new UI, and a new licensed car coming to the sim.

The first, and one of the more significant announcements for rFactor 2, is that it will be condensing down to a single pricing model. Studio 397 will be doing away with the “Online Subscription/Lifetime Pass”, so anyone who owns rFactor 2 will be able to race online for free! I think this is the smart move for the team to go, as it could greatly expand the online racing possibilities.

In addition, we have our first preview of the new menus for rFactor 2. The menus are admittedly one of the weakest parts of the sim, and it looks like Studio 397 is doing a great job gussying it up. This is just an official concept, but I am enjoying the clean, streamlined look.

One thing that also makes me curious is the “Watch” and “Community” tabs. I believe we could potentially see more community elements coming to the sim in the near future.

The next announcement from S397 is that they have licensed the 2016 Corvette C7.R race car! A partnership with General Motors has been struck, and that will not only bring the C7.R to rF2, but it should also contribute to improving the physics engine of rF2 all around.

Some other exciting developments:

DirectX11 is progressing faster than planned, and builds are already being tested.

NOLA Motorsports Park is in the final stages of development, and will likely see a January ’17 release.

The current car in development is the Radical. They are waiting on data from the manufacturer to finalize the physics.

The next build will be coming December 20th, Build 1108. It will be the first Steam-Only build.

Studio 397 will still grant free Steam keys to Non-Steam rF2 owners until January 31st, 2017.

