Assetto Corsa Rally’s early development secrecy was “a leap of faith”
Assetto Corsa Rally Game Lead discusses how a tiny team worked and recruited in secrecy for four years, and how it plans to support the project for many more years to come.
It’s the night before the 2025 SimRacing Expo on the Fanatec stand.
Invited media are having the German peripheral manufacturer’s latest products showcased to them, including the long-anticipated Podium pedals, a first for the Landshut-based outfit.
Then Marco Massarutto enters the stage.
The erudite Italian, in a crisp white shirt (as ever), is buzzing with nervous energy. He starts talking about a new chapter in the Assetto Corsa franchise.
But… isn’t Assetto Corsa EVO already that?
Yes, it is. The circuit (and road)-based simulation, previously created under the codename Assetto Corsa 2, is created by the original Kunos Simulazioni team.
This new title will use the known brand name, but be created by a new company, Supernova Games Studios, using the Kunos physics technology.
Onto the aforementioned stage enters said team, and Assetto Corsa Rally is finally public knowledge.
Well, not quite; the embargo lifted the next day. But nearly, following a four-year journey, and one that had to be conducted in near-secrecy.
“We had to stay under the radar without revealing too much, making noise, or drawing attention to ourselves,” explains Assetto Corsa Rally’s Game Director, Irvin Zonca, to Traxion.
“The Assetto Corsa brand was a tremendous asset. We approached racing drivers, teams, and manufacturers with little more than a vision we truly believed in and the Assetto Corsa name.
“The strength of the brand, combined with our determination, opened many doors during that stage.
“We also had to avoid relying on external partners for quite some time to minimise the risk of information leaking.
“From a creative standpoint, this meant staying firmly committed to our vision, trusting that our combined experience as game developers and dedicated sim racers was leading us in the right direction, which, in the end, it did.”
As it stands, Supernova is around 30 people who work remotely. The majority of the team is based in Italy, but there are key development team members in the United Kingdom, India, Canada and the Czech Republic, among others.
Supernova Games Studios, with Marco Massarutto, at the 2025 SimRacing Expo
That wasn’t the case in those early days.
“Back in 2021, we were just three people: myself, Studio Manager Mauro Notarberardino, and Technical Director Alexander Lebertre,” Zonca discusses.
“We had to build everything from the ground up: the team, the technology, the pipelines, the data structures and production workflows, the design, and above all, the people who would bring the project to life.
“Fortunately, our Studio Director was able to attract international talent and convince them of the project’s long-term potential.
“Looking back, it was both incredible and inspiring. Seeing people willing to leave established companies to join us, at a time when we were just a tiny, unknown studio with everything still to prove, confirmed that what we were building was something solid, meaningful and exciting.
“People placed an enormous amount of trust in us, in Digital Bros, and in the Assetto Corsa franchise. In many cases, joining us was, in every sense, a leap of faith.”
A dream since 1984
You know earlier when it was mentioned that work started on Assetto Corsa Rally in 2021?
Well, Zonca was born in 1984, and it could be argued that work began then. He shared his hometown, Borgomanero, with two-time Italian rally champion Piero Longhi and was surrounded by mountain passes.
Mind you, speaking of leaps, I may have gone too far there suggesting that this rally sim was in his mind from his first day on planet Earth.
However, growing up close to the sport of rallying, in a nation that has a deep passion for motorsport, and living through an area that witnessed the likes of Sega Rally, Colin McRae Rally and Mobil 1 Rally Championship released clearly fueled his desire to make his own rally game:
“Even when I was just a kid, I used to tell everyone that one day I would work on a rally game myself and somehow, that dream came true.
“I went on to work on four official WRC titles and Sébastien Loeb Rally EVO, but I feel that my own creative vision has finally been able to fully express itself with Assetto Corsa Rally.
“One of the best things about working at Supernova is that 505 Games gives us both creative and technical freedom.
“It trusts our decisions, and I believe that trust is reflected not only in a game that players are enjoying, but also in a team that is genuinely passionate about building it.”
Zonca follows real-world rallying to this day, and attends rallies in his native Italy as a spectator.
Speaking of present-day rallying…
The Jon Armstrong effect
Jon Armstrong won the official WRC Esports competition in 2018. He then went on to finish runner-up in 2019 and worked for the (now sadly defunct) Codemasters Southam creation team on DiRT Rally 2.0 and EA SPORTS WRC.
But he’s not best known for that. No, this season, he embarked on a first full top-flight Rally1 WRC career for M-Sport, regularly scoring points and setting a fastest stage time during Acropolis Rally Greece.
Recently, he competed in the Grampian Forest Rally as preparation for the nation’s WRC return in 2027. He won, taking his maiden gravel rally victory and beating a talented field.
“Despite reaching the very highest level of world rallying through his extraordinary talent, he has remained incredibly humble, approachable, and a pleasure to work with.
“Naturally, he has a very busy schedule, so he can only dedicate a few days each month to the project. Even so, his feedback is invaluable for several reasons.
“First and foremost, because he actually drives these cars at the highest level and brings an immense amount of real-world experience, something that almost goes without saying. But he’s also a rally coach and tutor, an esports world champion, and a game developer, so his feedback is always clear, focused, and immediately actionable.
“When working with us, he applies the same methodology he uses when testing real rally cars. He starts by analysing what the car is actually doing, then explains what it should be doing instead and why. He’s very pleased with the progress we’ve been making together.”
Version 1.0 is not the finish line
Recently, Zonca provided a brief update on virtual reality development and openly discussed some of the constructive criticism the project has received.
After the overwhelmingly positive initial early access launch nine months ago, Steam reviews remain strong, but there are concerns about the title’s physics and force feedback by some owners and commentators.
When asked about the current mood in the creation team, Zonca states that it’s “a mix of emotions.”
“The response has been extremely positive across the board. Overall, the game’s reception has been very strong, and that has been incredibly important in helping it reach new players and gain visibility on Steam, something that’s essential for us.
“What’s especially encouraging is that even when players have criticisms, they almost always express them in a thoughtful and constructive way. That kind of dialogue benefits everyone.
“As a team, we constantly read Steam reviews, follow discussions on our official Discord server, keep an eye on Facebook groups, forums, and other community channels.
“Every piece of feedback is valuable. It reassures us that our development priorities are on the right track, and sometimes it helps us identify issues we weren’t aware of or fine-tune future design decisions.
“We’re incredibly excited to be working on a rally simulator we’ve long dreamed of creating, one that we genuinely love playing ourselves, that we have a great time with, and that brings together our passion for both video games and cars. We’re also deeply grateful to our community.
“At the same time, we’re definitely under a lot of pressure. We’re deeply passionate about our game, and we’re fully aware of how much work still lies ahead. We want to deliver all of it as quickly as possible, without compromising on quality.”
Early access work continues, with recent confirmation of further external research projects to assist with tyre and throttle model behaviour. Even after the upcoming Version 1.0 launch, where the title will leave early access, the team is committed to the platform.
“From day one, we committed ourselves to a long-term vision,” highlights Zonca.
By following a “quality first” philosophy, our goal is to make Assetto Corsa Rally a game that will be supported for many years and continue to evolve over time. We invested a tremendous amount of time in laying the foundations for a solid, sustainable project, and we stayed on the course for years because we believed in our vision.
“To give a concrete example, in our roadmap, Version 1.0 is not the finish line; it’s simply another milestone. Even after reaching it, we intend to keep expanding and supporting the game with new features and content.”
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