Gaming News - December 2003

New York, NY (December 11, 2003) - Codemasters announced today Race Driver 2: The Ultimate Racing Simulator. The game is slated for release in Spring 2004 for the Xbox and the PC.

“The depth of Race Driver 2 is unparalleled,” said Steven Lux, senior vice president of U.S. marketing for Codemasters. “The game features a completely new physics model, deformation system, and graphics engine. Couple these with Xbox� Live, and Race Driver 2 delivers the ultimate online racing experience.”

From Codemasters:

Race Driver 2 boasts an incredible variety of motor sports, including Street Racing, Stock Car, Open Wheel Grand Prix, Truck Racing, GT Sports Car Racing, Rally, DTM, V8 Supercars, Global GT Lights, Rally Cross, Formula Ford, Classic Car Racing, and more.

"Visually, Race Driver 2 is going to be stunning,” said Gavin Raeburn, head of Codemasters’ racing development studio. “Our new rendering engine features complex dynamic lighting, perspective mapped shadows, multipass textures, procedural standing grass, and a host of post production techniques including true motion blur, depth of field, and iris effects – all at a rock steady 60fps.

“Race Driver 2 also features our most advanced and intuitive handling model to date,” continued Raeburn. “Every physical nuance of each vehicle type is accurately modeled, from tire deformation when cornering to the centrifugal engine forces and complex aerodynamics.”

Race Driver 2 will feature officially licensed tracks and championships as well as some of the world’s most powerful racing and street cars, including Ford (Mustang Cobra R, Ford GT, GT90, Falcon BA, F150 Lightning Pickup), Aston Martin (V12 Vanquish, DB7, DB5), Jaguar (XJ220, XKR, and E-Type), Mitsubishi (3000 GT, EVO 7), Subaru Impreza WRX, ABT-Audi TT-R, AMG-Mercedes CLK, and more.

The game will feature 52 racing circuits including Texas Motor Speedway, Pikes Peak International Raceway, Laguna Seca, Surfers Paradise, Euro Speedway, Donington Park, Kyalami, and Road America.

Race Driver 2 will continue the pioneering use of cinematic plot in racing games with the narrative being played out completely from the first person perspective. The player will see what the lead character sees, and will be able to create his own history. A “reality style” eliminator story will capture the competitive intrigue of 12 drivers battling their way to win the ultimate racing experience: a drive as a Masters Grand Prix professional. Visually, the cinematics will triple the detail of Pro Race Driver with characters now created from over 12,000 polygons.

Race Driver 2’s core development team began work on the title in summer 2002 and now includes over 40 of Codemasters’ finest motor sport game engineers. Gamers can register for development and game updates online at www.codemasters.com.

Race Driver 2 features officially licensed tracks and championships as well as some of the world’s most powerful racing and street cars, including, Aston Martin, Jaguar, Mitsubishi, Subaru Impreza WRX, ABT-Audi TT-R, AMG-Mercedes CLK, and more.

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