
GTPlanet Weekly Rewind: Racing Games Continue to Raise Standards in 2017
What a week this has been. The racing game genre has grown to the point where a bombshell can be dropped at a moment’s notice and change everything. At a time like this where we’re analyzing every detail, trying to understand what makes the genre tick and how it can continue to grow, it’s these moments of genuine surprise where we can all sit back and say “wow”.

Jann Mardenborough to Compete in 2017 Super GT Season
The driver slots for the 2017 Super GT season are steadily filling up. Although the class GT300 remains to be fully completed, drivers for the class GT500 are already known. One of them is Jann Mardenborough, the talented GT Academy alumni who will compete under supervision of the Team Impul Calsonic. With the help of his co-driver Hironobu Yasuda, Jann will be steering the wheels of the Nissan GT-R (#12), painted in highly recognizable blue livery.

Project CARS 2’s New Online Championship Mode Detailed
Earlier this week, Slightly Mad Studios released new details on the “Online Championship” mode in Project CARS 2. This new feature allows players to create a league-style format championship consisting of several rounds. Players will have the ability to set each session’s details, along with the race duration, condition of the track, and schedule.

Gameplay Video: Assetto Corsa’s New Scottish Highlands Track
The much teased Scottish Highlands circuit and Audi Quattro S1 have made their way to the Steam version of Assetto Corsa. Update v1.12 launched on February 14 as a surprise Valentines Day gift to PC players everywhere. The update may have included quite a few fixes and tweaks, but the true stars of the show are the new track and car.

Next Level Racing Introduces F1GT Simulator Cockpit
Sim-racing accessory manufacturer Next Level Racing has announced their latest competitor on the market of versatile rigs — the F1GT Simulator Cockpit. By allowing highly adjustable settings for both Formula 1 and GT style of racing, drivers will be able to find the best setup for immersion, regardless of what and where they drive.

Join The Project CARS 2 Q&A With Ian Bell, Head of Slightly Mad Studios
Head of Slightly Mad Studios Ian Bell has been answering questions related to Project Cars 2 here in the GTPlanet Forums. In collaboration with Ian and SMS, we have created a dedicated Q&A thread to make it easier for members of our community to ask him questions and to organize his responses.

Jann Mardenborough Drives the Legendary Nissan R92CP
Nismo holds annual festivals to celebrate Nissan’s history and presence in the world of motorsports, allowing people to meet famous drivers and get closer to the company’s most famous racing machines. At this year’s festival, Jann Mardenborough was given the opportunity to drive a lap around Fuji Speedway behind the wheel of the monstrous Group C Nissan R92CP.

Milestone to Announce New Racing IP at GDC 2017
Milestone will bring an entirely new racing IP to the table at this year’s Games Developers Conference in San Francisco. The Italian developer will add to their existing line of racing IPs including Sebastien Loeb Rally, Moto GP and MXGP. The title will even be playable at the event hosted between February 27 – March 3.

DiRT Rally For PlayStation VR Launches Friday, February 17
Following an initial announcement in January, DiRT Rally is ready to add it’s anticipated PlayStation VR support with the Virtual Reality upgrade DLC launching very soon. According to a post on the European PlayStation Blog, players who own the PSVR headset will be able to experience a whole new aspect of the 2016 racer this Friday, February 17 at a price of £9.99/~$12.49 USD.

Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Ignore Your Girlfriend While Racing in VR
https://www.facebook.com/natalietran.communitychannel/videos/10154433238387831/

Highlands Track and Audi Quattro S1 E2 Arrive in Update 1.12 for Assetto Corsa on PC
This is shaping up to be an action-packed start to the week for fans of Assetto Corsa. What began yesterday with the release of the third and final Porsche Pack and a new update for PS4 owners, continues today with release of the previously-teased Scotland-based fictional track and the Audi Sport Quattro S1 E2 for PC players.

New Details About The Fittipaldi VGT Emerge
After legendary Italian coach builder Pininfarina’s surprise announcement that they would be collaborating with Emerson Fittipaldi to create a new Vision GT car, we’ve eagerly been waiting the latest news on it’s reveal. The car has been tipped for an official debut at the Geneva Motor Show in March, but in the mean time, small factoids and a new teaser image have been shared online.

Forza is Now a Billion-Dollar Franchise
Microsoft just posted a sales update for the Forza series, confirming the franchise has reached an incredible milestone, with total retail sales exceeding one billion dollars.

Behind-the-Scenes Development Screenshots of Assetto Corsa’s New Scottish Track
Marco Massarutto, head of Kunos Simulazioni, has shared some insight into the development stages for the yet-to-be-released Scottish track headed to Assetto Corsa.

Assetto Corsa Porsche Pack 3 and Update 1.12 Now Available on PS4
After a lengthy trial of patience, PlayStation 4 players will be the first to have access to the third and final Porsche Pack for Assetto Corsa. Arriving alongside the final volume is update 1.12 for the game, adding 40 new special events in addition to the following racing machines (and sports cars) from the German marque:

Teaser Video Offers First Look at iRacing’s Dirt Oval Track
For those looking to get just a sample of what iRacing’s upcoming dirt expansion will contain after last week’s screenshot, you are in luck. More footage of the update has been revealed thanks to a new video uploaded to YouTube.

Interlagos Is Coming to Project CARS 2
The Autódromo José Carlos Pace, better known as “Interlagos”, is on its way to Project CARS 2.

The Weird & Wonderful Race Cars of Gran Turismo 2
Gran Turismo 2 was the host to an impressive number (and variety) of racing machines, and whether the vehicles be race-modified to emulate their real-world counterparts, or the tried and true machines themselves, there’s quite a bit more to these cars than one would expect.

Assetto Corsa Teasers Show off Lotus 3-Eleven, Porsche 911 RSR, Ferrari 250 GTO, and More
Looks like things are going to heat up very soon in Assetto Corsa. After the team outlined plans for the game at the end of 2016, Marco Massarutto has taken to his usual role on his Facebook page, and has once again begun teasing a wealth of upcoming content for the racer.

Fanatec ‘Direct Drive’ Powered Wheel to Arrive This Year
The latest in high-end racing wheel technology will be coming to the Fanatec line of wheels, according to a post by the company’s CEO on the private iRacing forums. ‘Direct Drive’ has been the focus of much attention in the sim racing peripheral space recently and Thomas Jackermeier ensures that Fanatec has not been unwise to this – with products of their own planned.