iRacing Arcade development shifts teams, original creators scale back
Original Fire Games, contracted to create iRacing Arcade, has confirmed job losses as project has been “fully handed over to iRacing” with the shift “planned from the start”.
iRacing Arcade development has been taken over by iRacing Studios directly, as the contracted creator, Original Fire Games, now considers its future.
The game’s initial development team shared an update yesterday, 5th October, explaining that it has let go of four team members, reducing the outfit to just three.
“The road ahead is uncertain, and after years of hard work and consequent burnout, we need time to recover and figure out what’s next before taking on risk again,” said Founder and Studio Lead, Carolina Mastretta.
“After seven years and three games, including Circuit Superstars and iRacing Arcade, Carlos, Alberto and I have made the difficult decision to scale Original Fire Games back to its founders.
“Saying goodbye to this team is by far the hardest part of that decision. These are some of the most talented, kind and dedicated people we’ve ever worked with.”
Continued iRacing Arcade support expected
A public statement from the entire Original Fire Games team (full statement in the image) also stated:
“To our players and community, thank you for racing with us and cheering us on. Our games will remain available to play, and we hope you keep enjoying them for a long time.
“As planned from the start of our partnership, iRacing Aracde has now been fully handed over to the fantastic team at iRacing, who will continue supporting it going forward.
“Thank you to everyone at iRacing. Working with you on iRacing Aracde has been one of the highlights of our journey.”
iRacing takeover “was always the plan”
Traxion contacted iRacing, which reaffirmed the development shift.
“iRacing Studios taking over development eventually was always the plan,” said a spokesperson.
“Any future updates of the game will now be done in-house. We have a great relationship with the Original Fire Games team and plan to keep in touch.
“We appreciate the entire OFG team’s contributions to iRacing Arcade and wish them well as they transition to their next chapter.”
The game did recently receive a significant free update, with local split-screen multiplayer, new cars and additional tracks.
iRacing Studios is the sim racing’s platforms umbrella organisation for its more accessible games, with World of Outlaws Dirt Racing, ExoCross, NASCAR 25 and 26 and an upcoming IndyCar game sitting alongside iRacing Arcade.
Original Fire Games’ journey so far
Founded by three family members, the aforementioned Carolina, Carlos and Alberto
From there, it created the early access and self-published Karting Superstars, spinning up the project in record time as it was ‘make or break’ for the diminutive outfit.
Circuit Superstars was Original Fire Games’ first release, and used a top-down perspective
Midway through that project, a deal was struck with iRacing to create what would become iRacing Arcade, announced in July 2024.
It takes the cute visuals of the team’s prior titles, changes the perspective to a third-person chase camera and includes licensed content from iRacing’s portfolio. It also features a neat single-player career centred around building facilities.
In our review, we said: “The rough and tumble racing, stylish visuals and daft AI combine to put a smile upon your face, and for video games, that’s all we ask for.”
Discussion