Initially expected to be called Assetto Corsa 2, Assetto Corsa EVO is one of the most anticipated racing games in a long time. With state-of-the-art driving physics, dynamic weather effects, and free-roaming elements, the sequel looks set to raise the bar for realistic racing simulations.
From the Early Access release date to the car list and the latest gameplay footage, we’ve collated everything you need to know about Assetto Corsa EVO.
What is is Assetto Corsa EVO?
In development since 2019, Assetto Corsa EVO is the long-awaited follow-up to the original Asstto Corsa and the Assetto Corsa Competizione spin-off. The first entry in the series since 2018, it is a realistic driving simulator with licensed cars and laser-scanned race tracks.
Like the first game, Assetto Corsa EVO is based on a new proprietary engine developed in-house instead of Unreal Engine 4, which powered the Competizione spin-off.
Release date
Assetto Corsa EVO launches on PC in Early Access on 16th January 2025. A release date for the final game is still to be confirmed, but Kunos Simulazioni is targeting an autumn (fall) 2025 release for version 1.0.
The original game’s Early Access program ran for around a year from November 2013 to December 2014.
Trailer
The first Assetto Corsa EVO trailer dropped on 30th September 2024. Voiced by Kunos Simulazioni’s co-founder and executive manager Marco Massarutto, the trailer showcases a variety of cars, circuits, and weather conditions, with shots of model cars seamlessly transitioning into in-game engine footage. The trailer also confirms the Early Access release date.
You can watch the announcement trailer below:
Gameplay
A public demo of Assetto Corsa EVO was shown for the first time at the ADAC SimRacing Expo 2024, allowing visitors to go hands-on with the highly anticipated driving simulator ahead of the Early Access release. You can watch our gameplay footage captured from the expo below.
Career mode will be like “an RPG of the petrolheads”
The original Assetto Corsa featured a light career mode, with curated events, cars and circuits, but the sense of progression was limited. Assetto Corsa EVO will rectify this, with Kunos hinting at a broader career mode that will introduce an in-game economy.
“We want to reach a wider audience, and we don’t give up in terms of realism. So we are working on those aspects that maybe were lacking the first AC titles like a career mode or something like that, [and elements that] give people more reasons and more scope to play the game every day,” Massarutto told Traxion.
During a presentation at the ADAC SimRacing Expo 2024, Game Director Davide Brivio revealed that you will earn credits to buy and customise cars you own. If you want to play EVO as a sandbox like the original, you can rent cars instead. However, only cars that you own can be customised. “Owning a car is all about making it your car,” Brivio explained.
This suggests Assetto Corsa EVO will have a more traditional career mode than its predecessors, similar to Gran Turismo 7. Mercifully, the in-game economy will not have microtransactions according to Brivio.
“We want to create not just a career, but something that is the RPG of the petrolheads,” Massarutto added.
In an interview with Italian publication Multiplayer.it, Brivo confirmed that customisation options won’t be as extensive as Need for Speed, but there will be options to add parts such as skirts, spoilers, air intakes, along with paint and liveries.
Dealership options will also be authentic, meaning configurations will be true-to-life for every car, from engine options to wheel sizes. “For each car, all the configurations and engines that you would find in any dealership will be available. If your favourite car is sold both in petrol and diesel, for example, or in a version that mounts 17-inch wheels with a sunroof, then it will also be the case in our game,” Brivio explained to Multiplayer.it.
Although buying and driving more powerful cars will be restricted to required licenses, players will have the freedom to choose how they want to progress in Assetto Corsa EVO’s career mode. “We didn’t want to force the player to do something they don’t want to do,” Brivio told Multiplayer.it.
“If you want to buy fifty Alpines, in every available colour, you can do it. If instead, you want to save, event after event won, to make a hypercar yours as soon as possible, you will be allowed to. It’s up to you to set goals and decide how to enjoy Assetto Corsa EVO.”
Online multiplayer: Will Assetto Corsa EVO have ranked races?
At the ADAC SimRaacing Expo 2024, Kunos confirmed that Assetto Corsa EVO will feature a multiplayer “companion portal” powered by The SimGrid as part of an outsourcing partnership with Speed Capital Ltd.
This will include a driver profile, race stats and “Daily Racing,” which sounds like Gran Turismo 7’s weekly Daily Race playlists.
Kunos Simulazioni has confirmed that Assetto Corsa EVO won’t have multiplayer in the initial early access launch, with online races expected to arrive in the “second or third” early access build.
Assetto Corsa EVO PC system requirements
You can find the Assetto Corsa EVO PC system requirements below:
Minimum specs:
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel I5 8700k / AMD 1500X
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: GTX 1070, RX 580
- DirectX: Version 12
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 100 GB available space
- Sound Card: Integrated
- VR Support: SteamVR, Oculus VR, OpenXR
- Additional Notes: SSD required
Recommended specs:
- OS: Windows 10 64-bit / Windows 11 64-bit
- Processor: Intel I5 10700k / AMD 2600X
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: RTX 2070, Radeon RX 5600
- DirectX: Version 12
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 100 GB available space
- Sound Card: Integrated
- VR Support: SteamVR, Oculus VR, OpenXR
- Additional Notes: SSD required
Will Assetto Corsa EVO come to consoles?
While Early Access version will be PC-only, Assetto Corsa EVO will eventually come to consoles, most likely the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
A September 2023 financial report by Digital Bros, the parent company of Kunos, confirms that a console release for Assetto Corsa EVO is part of its “long-term publishing plans.”
Console versions of previous Assetto Corsa games arrived around a year after the initial PC release. The original Assetto Corsa was ported to consoles in August 2016, 20 months after the PC release, while Competizione launched on PS4 and Xbox One in June 2020, following the PC version in May 2019. Competizione was later ported to PS5 and Xbox Series X|S in February 2022.
If this trend continues, PlayStation and Xbox owners may have to wait a year or two after the final PC version to play Assetto Corsa EVO on consoles, but a timeframe has yet to be confirmed.
With the PS4 and Xbox One making up 40% of the original game’s sales, a console release of Assetto Corsa EVO is essential. Whether the console port will be handled in-house like the original game or by an external company like Competizione remains to be seen.
Assetto Corsa Competizione was ported to PS4 and Xbox One by d3t studios, with Untold Games handling the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions.
Assetto Corsa EVO car list
A complete car list has yet to be confirmed, but the trailer and screenshots suggest that Assetto Corsa EVO will offer a mix of road and race cars like the original, returning the series to its roots. Production cars were predominately shown in the announcement trailer, showcasing different facets of car culture.
From the Hyundai i20 N hot hatch and the iconic Ferrari F40 Competizione supercar to the classic Rover Mini Cooper and a Morgan Super 3, Assetto Corsa EVO’s car list will be eclectic.
Electric cars will also feature in an Assetto Corsa game for the first time, including the Hyundai IONIQ 5 N hot hatch and Alpine A290 concept.
Speaking to Traxion at the ADAC SimRacing Expo 2024, Massarutto confirmed that the Early Access build will have around 20 cars when it launches in January.
“We’re working to release no less than 20 cars and five circuits in the first early access build,” he confirmed. These numbers will continue to grow in future builds.
Assetto Corsa EVO track list
Assetto Corsa EVO will let you race on real-world circuits, with the Nürburgring Nordschleife, Imola, Brands Hatch, Fuji and Mount Panorama shown in screenshots and trailers. Once again, every track is accurately recreated with laser-scanning technology.
Unlike the first game, all locations will feature dynamic times of day and weather effects, with rainwater accumulating on the track and forming dry lines as cars drive on the surface in real time.
Will Assetto Corsa EVO have mods?
Despite its age, the original Assetto Corsa remains one of the most popular racing simulations thanks to its active modding community.
Mod support has kept players returning to Assetto Corsa over the last decade , with fan-made mods adding new cars, liveries and tracks. This has led to fans wondering if the sequel will support mods like the original.
Thankfully, Kunos has confirmed that Assetto Corsa EVO will have mod support – but not until it leaves Early Access. “Modding will arrive at the end of the Early Access Program,” Massarutto told Traxion. “We think the modders will be happy because they will have a powerful editor.”
However, modding is rife with licensing issues, with some creators lifting licensed cars from other games without permission.
To avoid this, Massarutto hinted that modders will work directly with car manufacturers and track licensors, suggesting that mods will be curated and approved by Kunos.
“We want to give visibility to the talented modders and artists that create amazing content – both in real life and fictional – where the only limit will be the creativity, working on a platform that can give them all the credit they deserve and the chance to work directly with the car manufacturer,” Massarutto explained.
Will Assetto Corsa EVO have VR support?
Fear not, virtual reality headset owners: Assetto Corsa EVO will support VR from day one. Kunos is working with Epic Games engineers and Nvidia to optimise Assetto Corsa EVO for VR, minimising the risk of performance issues that plagued the first two games when playing in VR.
When it launches in Early Access, Assetto Corsa EVO will support PC VR headsets like the SteamVR, Oculus VR and OpenXR. However, PSVR2 support is not yet confirmed.
Triple-screen setups will also be supported from day one.
Will Assetto Corsa EVO have free roaming?
A blink-and-you-’ll-miss-it shot in the announcement trailer showing a Morgan Super 3 cruising down a road as a BMW M4 CSL drives past in the opposite direction has sparked speculation if Assetto Corsa EVO will feature open-world elements on public roads.
“We confirm that what you have seen in the trailer will come, to allow people just to drive for the pleasure of driving road cars on actual roads,” Massarutto confirmed to Traxion, teasing that “it’s going to be amazing.”
This is unprecedented. While cruising on open roads in Assetto Corsa is popular, it’s only possible through mods. Kunos has seemingly been inspired by Assetto Corsa’s popular cruising map mods.
Since the announcement trailer, Kunos has confirmed that the open world will let players drive around the Eifel region surrounding the Nurburgring. It will be available from summer 2025 in Early Access and released in stages, eventually expanding to cover around 617 square miles (1,200 square kilometres).
While cruising around the open world, players interact with local businesses, rent cars, and upgrade vehicles with aftermarket parts. Kunos is even inviting local businesses, such as auto parts shops and car rental companies, to feature their brand in the game.
Available in Early Access from Summer 2025, this expansive area will progressively expand, eventually covering 1600 square kilometres. You will also be able to refuel and recharge cars your car in the open world.
Are you looking forward to Assetto Corsa EVO? Let us know in the comments below.
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