Why Kunos is reinventing Assetto Corsa EVO’s multiplayer

• Assetto Corsa EVO’s 0.3 update, with online multiplayer, is available via open beta, 26th August

• For now, the only multiplayer is the Kunos-created server list, but these will be free to race in 24/7 and will exist for the lifetime of the game
• Alongside the free races, a web portal will allow the premium monthly rental of optional, customisable servers
• Pricing structures could open up to those who just want a few hours, depending on community feedback
• Daily racing will be free and use dedicated servers later this year, the race joining process could evolve from initial mockups

Assetto Corsa EVO’s multiplayer is available today, in an open beta form, for those who subscribe to its official email newsletter.

Those who do will be able to download the full 0.3 update, which features new cars and tracks alongside access to a developer-curated server list.

The cars, tracks, weather and length are determined by Kunos Simulazioni, providing a free, consistent list of races henceforth. This is much like in the original AC and the Competizione spin-off.

Once the development team has received feedback and implemented any changes, the update will arrive outside of the open beta to early access owners.

Next, a website portal will open up for those who wish to host events or leagues, allowing them to rent a server as an optional extra. The free servers will remain in use alongside these.

However, in a key change from the first Assetto Corsa, the server hosting can only be done via the EVO-specific platform, and not by third parties.

Server rental portal explained

Traxion has reached out to the Kunos team, which was keen to explain some of the reasons why you can only rent EVO servers from the company and the differences between the server rental process from old to new. It’s worth noting that the new approach is more costly than most existing AC1 providers.

A member of the team clarified that EVO’s process will omit the need to change any config files for what is hoped to be a more streamlined process. Secondly, after experiencing several DDoS attacks while performing esports activities through Assetto Corsa Competizione, Kunos is aiming to protect the server execution further to guarantee better performance, reliability and stability.

It also hopes for less downtime than in recent instances with Assetto Corsa Competizione.

Essentially, the game developers will have more control over its performance. It does mean fewer choices for the sim racer, but on paper, it could lead to improved performance. Time will tell, but this change is similar to Le Mans Ultimate compared to its rFactor 2 predecessor in that server rental is direct only.

Server rental pricing structure

The current pricing structure is around €1 per slot (or driver), on a monthly basis. Initially, purchasing per month will be the only option, but according to a Kunos spokesperson:

“Of course, we are going to look into options for people who want the server up just for a few hours as a practice server, for example – our ears are completely open to the community.”

For now, the driver (and therefore server slot) limit is 16 players, but there are plans to expand this based on how the initial open beta and 0.3 update perform.

Free daily races in 0.4

With the third major update (0.3) launching today (for those who opt into the open beta), the next update naturally doesn’t have a release window.

But, we do know that the ranked daily races – popularised by the likes of Gran Turismo 7, Low Fuel Motorsport et al – will be available for EVO when 0.4 is ready.

In its first form, it will be again via a website portal, not natively in the game. During a recent keynote video, an image of the Daily Race system (made in partnership with SimGrid) indicates that the race entry process involves visiting the website and then copying a code into the game.

However, Traxion has been informed that this may change, hopefully with a button to simply join the race, and then further down the line, the interface could be within EVO, so you don’t have to tab out. The images shown were mockups and not final.

Kunos has also confirmed that the main daily races will be free to players and run on dedicated servers, alongside the free Kunos-hosted server lobbies.

“Of course, with any web portal offering services, you can imagine that there might be additional services in the future that are premium for those who want even more, but if you look at the whole picture, we will be offering the basic daily race service and the server list races for free, 24/7, with no additional subscription, paid for by us” said the Kunos representative.

Traxion was able to test the Open Beta of 0.3 early, and our initial impressions are within our latest YouTube video.