Is Project CARS 3 An Arcade Racer? (Video)
In late November 2019 Codemasters announced that they acquired Slightly Mad Studios, the team behind Project CARS and Project CARS 2. Fans of the franchise wondered what this would mean for the next time in the series. Questions abounded but answers were scarce.
Then a few days ago Project CARS 3 was officially announced and a trailer was released. Though, admittedly something was…different. Project CARS games are known as firmly within the hardcore simulator category.
Yet, this trailer had an “arcade racer” vibe to it. I couldn’t quite put my finger on why it did but I knew I wasn’t alone. One glance at comments section confirmed to me that I was definitely not the only one who felt like this trailer leaned more towards an arcade presentation.
Eventually I figured out what I think caused this reaction but I’ll get to that later. What I want to get into now is the intended goal of Project CARS 3. There was obviously a ton of speculation but luckily we all got some answers straight from the source.
GameSpot recently did an exclusive interview (you can watch it below) with Pete Morrish (Production Director) and Joe Barron (Marketing & eSports Manager) from Slightly Mad Studios.
In the roughly 24 minute video the duo provide some insight as to what they are trying to accomplish with Project CARS 3. The answer it seems is that they are trying to please both hardcore sim racers but entry level racers in the same game. A risky prospect, but we shouldn’t forget that Slightly Mad Studios is full of individuals who have tons of experience making racing games.
Pete commented that based on their research and feedback, they think there is a sentiment that hardcore sim racing is “elitist” and “not fun”. To combat that sentiment the team decided to try and take everything that fans liked about the previous Project CARS games and “democratize” it.
“We suspect there are people ready to take their first steps towards a more serious racing experience. We want to be a ‘gateway drug’ for those people” stated Morrish.
They didn’t go into details about all the ways they plan to accomplish that goal but fine tuning controller handling and making assists “less intrusive and better for console players” were among the few things mentioned.
So, to answer the question I asked in the title of this post. Is Project CARS 3 going to be an “arcade racer”? According to the team, it seems like it will not be. Though at the same time it seems that they are mounting an effort to make Project CARS 3 less intimidating for those who generally shy away from hardcore sim racing games.
Project CARS 3 trailer:
By the way, getting back to the trailer. I think I figured out why people were getting such strong “arcade vibes”. The Project CARS 3 trailer (which you can watch above) focuses almost entirely on a street car progressing through different levels of customization before ultimately ending up as a full-on race car. The way its shot is also very stylized and other cars shown have very “tuner-like” custom liveries.
There are no proper race tracks or authentic motorsport racing action shown until the “third act” of the trailer. I didn’t really notice this until I went back and watched a Project CARS 2 trailer from 2017. That trailer featured authentic race cars and tracks almost exclusively.
It is only when you watch both trailers that it becomes clear. Yet, I think it is important to remember that this is just a trailer and it is the first trailer. While Project CARS 3 is set to release this summer, I am sure there is still a lot that Slightly Mad Studios has to show us which will provide a better picture of what to expect.
For now, I highly recommend checking out GameSpot’s interview with Pete Morrish and Joe Barron below. Afterwards, let me know what you think. Are you excited for Project CARS 3? Or is it too much of a departure from its roots?
Sound off in the comments below or tweet to @MotorworldHype.
GameSpot Project CARS 3 interview: