Kunos Marco Massarutto Responds to Assetto Corsa Console Criticism

Paul Jeffrey

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Assetto Corsa Console Response.jpg

Kunos Simulazioni's Marco Massarutto has offered a lengthy response to criticism from some sections of the sim racing community, regarding the perceived asumptions that Kunos plan to "water down" Assetto Corsa to appeal to a more broader console audience.

Although a move to consoles for Assetto Corsa is widely considered a good thing for the sim racing genre, allowing the hobby we all enjoy to spread to a wider audience and perhaps inspire players who wouldn’t normally consider serious driving sims, Massarutto has felt the need quash several common assumptions and worries of a section of the Assetto Corsa fanbase.

Massarutto took to Facebook with a lengthy retort explaining how Assetto Corsa for PC will not be diluted in any way by the move to console, and perhaps more interestingly he stated that the console version of the game will be every bit as simulation as its PC relative. Kunos are looking at the console market to see how popular a thoroughbred racing simulation can be, and personally I think that can only be a good thing for the sim racing genre as a whole.

One other interesting item came from the post by Massarutto, a sneak preview cockpit shot of the Porsche 911 RSR 3.0, due to join as part of one of three Porsche DLC packages in the coming weeks.

AC Porsche Preview.jpg


See the full Marco Massarutto quote below:

"Some thoughs and answers to assumptions and theories I read on forums about the launch of Assetto Corsa on console, the future of AC, the neverending question “will Kunos turn it in an simcadish on PS4/X1 to sell more?”, or -even better- “will Kunos turn the PC version in a simcadish to please a wider audience?"

Usually I don’t get bored to read hundreds (thousands?) of times the same questions people ask me, since I understand that everyday lot of people hear about Assetto Corsa for the first time. But when the same people ask the same questions or they underline the same points, sometime can be boring. Even because, no one needs to believe us. Just see and evaluate by yourself what there is out there.

Assetto Corsa console -> will be a simplified/simcade version of AC?
Since last January, on the internet there are a lot of “hands on” and previews of the console version, always played using a steering wheel. We showed it during the European tour, during the Vallelunga event last May, and the conclusions of the players/journalists have been always “it feels like the pc version”.


Another clue: what is the most known and appreciated characteristic of Assetto Corsa? Its car handling, and driving feeling. Which is the best reason why console gamers may decide to play Assetto Corsa, rather than Forza, or Gran Turismo? The number of cars? The graphics? I would say the fidelity of the simulation, the unique handling, the laserscanned tracks, the depth that a PC simulation can perform. If we subtract these factors, Assetto Corsa can’t compete with these titles, because it couldn’t offer nothing more these titles (created by talented people) feature at their best since years.

The most annoying question: now that AC console is ready for release, is going Kunos to make the PC version of AC more arcadish?

The console version of Assetto Corsa has been announced in mid 2015, the team started to work on it in late 2014. Since then, the PC version has been constantly improved, updated, expanded, with 7 major builds, several new tyre models (now we are at version 10 – TEN) adding features asked from SIMracers, and now we are going to release the 1.8 version on August 26th. The popularity of AC on PC is at the maximum level, it’s often in the Top chartz on Steam, people love it and enjoy it everyday, and they support us each time we release new features and content. Please give me a logical reason why we should change this, after 18 months of HUGE development brought ahead on PC after the 1.0 release. Simply, there is no reason why we should do this. So, ask yourself: in the last 18 months, on PC, did we converted AC 1.0 in a simcade, or we gave it even more depth?
We decided to bring AC on console to give ourselves THE answer to the question: “there is any potential on console market for a simulation like AC?”. As company that runs in this business, we have to know it. And we’ll know it soon. And the only way to answer this question is to bring on console the same experience people appreciate so much on PC, at the best we can. Period.


So, keep calm, don’t worry. The only way we can change the soul of our most successful creation is to make it even stronger."

Assetto Corsa will be available for Xbox One and PlayStation 4 on 26th August (EU) and August 30th (NA). Check out the recent console trailer here.
Check out the Assetto Corsa forum here at RaceDepartment for the latest news and discussion items regarding the simulation. Have a look at our new Modding Discussion forum, a place for modding teams and those interested in the world of content creation for AC to come together and discuss the process. Looking to download? Check out the Assetto Corsa mods section, a vast archive of top quality Assetto Corsa cars, tracks, apps and skins!

If all that isn’t enough, come visit us at the Assetto Corsa Racing Club. We have loads of informal racing events and serious top quality leagues for you to enjoy.

Does the latest statement from Kunos give you confidence in the ability of the team to still deliver a top quality PC product despite the move to console? Let us know in the comments section below!
 
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Standard practice doesn't mean good practice - what's the point of being an indie dev if you just ape the behemoths you're trying to take down?

Caveat emptor

Anyway, not long to wait until we see what's hiding beneath the veil of secrecy.

Right. But somehow Kunos is suddenly shady and suspicious and hiding something for following standard practices, and wanting to join the console party somehow equals "wanting to take down behemoths".

Ad hominem strawman.
 
So much energy wasted on changing someone else mind...when the seed of doubt has long been planted.
And to think that all of this started with the wrong foot when the ""question"" was asked...
People often forgets that we are on someone virtual property and act like they are in their own back yard...we are guests here..or there (twitter) and we need to keep a sense of respect for the owner..
If someone will disrespect me in my home...i`ll react the same..or show him the door...
People started to demand more and expect even more but in return give assumptions,accusations and misbehavior. instead of support and understanding..patience is something we should use more often and speak about things when we actually have a clue,wait test and review...
My 2 c/...had to spill it.
daumen3.jpg
 
So much energy wasted on changing someone else mind...when the seed of doubt has long been planted.
And to think that all of this started with the wrong foot when the ""question"" was asked...
People often forgets that we are on someone virtual property and act like they are in their own back yard...we are guests here..or there (twitter) and we need to keep a sense of respect for the owner..
If someone will disrespect me in my home...i`ll react the same..or show him the door...
People started to demand more and expect even more but in return give assumptions,accusations and misbehavior. instead of support and understanding..patience is something we should use more often and speak about things when we actually have a clue,wait test and review...
My 2 c/...had to spill it.

I couldn't agree more. People are completely entitled to voicing their opinions in hopes that the devs will take their comments to heart. The issue is that, along the way, some people have forgotten the motto "respect others if you want to be respected". There is a way of bringing up an issue properly but some have turned their "issues" into personal attacks because they feel like they haven't been "heard" or whatever. Marco and Stefano do a fantastic job at keeping us in the loop. I've watched quite a few of Stefano's streams and he never hesitates to deny a request/question/opinion if it has no future in the game. For the most part, you know what you are getting when a new AC update comes out.

It's unfortunate that this whole witch hunt has been amplified recently because of a few comments. Kunos are a very small studio with limited staff and they work extremely hard to release what they have. They will be the first "sim" to introduce Porsches since GTR2, that's huge.

Just a reminder that just because you assume something, it does not mean it is true. I'm sure if everyone started making more constructive posts written in an orderly and respectful fashion, without stating assumptions as facts, the relationship between us and the devs would be much stronger.
 
I like that Assetto appears to be using servers instead of P2P on the console, but someone better get the word to Kunos that if private lobbies are not happening (so, no league racing or even racing with friends) upon release (which they confirmed) this game is going nowhere fast unless they get them w/o much delay. Console users may not be hardcore SIM people, but they are nothing if not social creatures.
 

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