We’re getting ever closer to Assetto Corsa EVO’s V0.8 build, and developer Kunos Simulazioni has revealed three new cars set to join the previously announced Kyalami.
The Italian studio has outlined exactly what to expect in the game’s latest update, with two variants of KTM’s X-Bow sports car joining the fray (GT4 and GT2), alongside the Mk.8 Volkswagen Golf R hot hatch.
But there are more back-end changes, including the ability to create custom liveries, use modded cars online, and graphics and physics improvements.
New cars
KTM X-Bow GT2
Austrian manufacturer KTM has lent GT2 and GT4 racecar variants of its X-Bow to the game, both of which featured in its predecessor, Assetto Corsa Competizione.
GT2 is a category designed for so-called ‘gentleman drivers’, most often wealthy amateur pilots looking to race powerful sports cars minus the aerodynamic stresses of a GT3 car, for example. Uniquely, for the GT2 European Series, the KTM is powered by a five-cylinder engine derived from an Audi RS3 road car, which outputs around 600 bhp.
The GT4 equivalent is less powerful, however, and uses a four-cylinder Audi motor to produce over 400 bhp. GT4 is a Pro-Am category designed for younger, up-and-coming drivers to get to grips with top-level sports car racing before progressing to GT3, with the enormously successful GT4 European Series showcasing these road-car-based racers in their best light.
The KTM joins the Audi R8 LMS GT4 Evo and the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport in the game’s growing GT4 class.
Volkswagen Golf R Mk.8
Finally, the Mk.8 Volkswagen Golf R adds a spicy, four-wheel-drive version of the Wolfsburg marque’s popular hot hatch to the game,
A favourite of tuners and criminals alike, AC EVO will offer players a chance to legally thrash its 330 bhp four-pot replete with plenty of DSG parps.
VR improvements
As well as new cars and the Kyalami track, Kunos has confirmed it will be bringing a ‘major step forward for VR’ implementation, adding support for foveated rendering and a series of performance-enhancing scaled settings to play with.
Foveated rendering essentially reduces the fidelity of the surrounding image while preserving the clarity of what the player is looking at, helping maintain stable frame rates when driving.
Mods allowed in multiplayer
V0.7 of AC EVO introduced a rudimentary modding system to the game, which will be expanded upon for V0.8. Players will be able to bring their creations online, with server admins given new tools to help maintain fairness and define entry lists and grid order.
Multiplayer stability is also being enhanced, with instances of game crashes when joining a server addressed.
Graphics and physics updates
Players can expect to see graphical performance improvements in V0.8, thanks to ‘enhanced VRAM reporting’, with ‘supersampling and enhanced windshield rendering’ also added.
The game’s road temperature model has received some attention alongside dynamic track maps, so players should experience more ‘consistent grip evolution’.
Rear-wheel steering and assisted braking systems have been tweaked, with excessive smoke generation said to be a thing of the past.
These items, plus the usual array of bug fixes and optimisations, should appear in-game shortly, with a release date for V0.8 still to be confirmed.
For a more comprehensive rundown of what’s coming in AC EVO’s V0.8 build, check out Kunos’s accompanying Steam post here.
What are you most looking forward to in AC EVO’s V0.8 build? Let us know in the comments below.
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