Alongside the deluge of Le Mans Ultimate news about its next update, upcoming DLC and future plans you would be remiss for overlooking that a championship mode is on the way.
As it stands, the early access title features single races, ranked online daily and special events, and as of next week, a co-op mode.
But there is currently no way of doing multiple races in the form of a championship or career. While this still appears to be some time away for offline play, publisher Motorsport Games and developer Studio 397 have showcased a work-in-progress version of an online championship feature.
At first glance, it appears to be a combination of the iRacing points system and Gran Turismo 7’s World Series Sport Mode events.
There looks set to be a series of multiplayer races, across different categories and championships. Your results from each race delivers points and there will be a leaderboard, taking into account your performance across a season.
At the start of a championship, you select a car to stick with, and each round should have a maximum number of attempts – although “for more advanced championships, you’ll only get one shot,” said Motorsport Games CEO Stephen Hood.
A multiplayer championship mode was long slated for the developer’s prior simulator rFactor 2, but to date, has not gone further than a ‘coming soon’ message in the title’s RaceControl user interface.
Subscription tier
Access to the multiplayer championship mode is planned to be behind a paywall in the form of a subscription.
“This feature is intended to be available for subscribers, which will fund the increased server usage and also stewarding of racing incidents in these events,” said Hood.
“Do not worry, do not panic, this is not going to become a subscriber-only game, but there are major uplifts to the experience that do require further investment.”
According to the company, the online championships could be used to qualify for future Le Mans Virtual Series events – the esports competition has been absent since early 2023.
Pricing for the subscription tier, and therefore access to the multiplayer championship mode (and possibly Le Mans Virtual Series qualification) is yet to be discussed.
The base price of Le Mans Ultimate in early access will rise by 15 per cent on the 30th September 2024, from $32.99 / €29.99 / £24.99 to $37.99 / €34.99 / £29.99.
Before then, the second DLC pack will be available on the 24th. It includes two new hypercars (Alpine and Isotta Fraschini) plus Circuit of the Americas for $12.99 / €11.99 / £9.99 or part of a $48.99 / €35.99 / £39.99 season pass.