Founder and CEO Ian Bell Announces Departure from Slightly Mad Studios

Ian Bell Leaves Slightly Mad 01.jpg
Ian Bell, who founded Slightly Mad Studios more than a decade ago, has announced that he is leaving the company.

It’s been a rocky past couple of years for game developer Slightly Mad Studios. The third installment of their successful Project CARS series, along with a licensed game adaption of the Fast & Furious movie franchise, were released in 2020 to tepid reviews. More recently, development work on the mobile version of the Project CARS series was shut down. And now, CEO Ian Bell is departing the company.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1454016780850974720

Slightly Mad Studios, which was purchased by Codemasters in late 2019, was founded in 2009. Best known in the sim racing world for their work on the Project CARS franchise, SMS also brought us Need for Speed: Shift, Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends, and Red Bull Air Race among others.

What Ian’s departure means for the future of the studio remains to be seen. As CEO, his vision for the company he started more than a decade ago strongly shaped the organization’s focus. The award-winning Project CARS game series trended away from its Community Assisted Racing Simulator theme over time, specifically in the most recent installment, to the dismay of many fans of the series. We’ll have to wait and see whether the new ownership and management structure will mean a return to the original intent of the series.

Also unknown is what lies ahead for Bell. His Twitter handle at the moment simply reads “Free Entity. Look out for TherapyGlobal”. Although many releases under the SMS name have been polarizing, his marketing and business development skills have been instrumental in building a successful business out of a niche passion, so expect to see Ian’s name in the gaming industry again soon.

Let us know your thoughts on this move. Was Bell the linchpin that made Slightly Mad as successful as it has been, or does the move away from his leadership hold the possibility of better things to come?
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About author
Mike Smith
Mike Smith
I have been obsessed with sim racing and racing games since the 1980's. My first taste of live auto racing was in 1988, and I couldn't get enough ever since. Lead writer for RaceDepartment, and owner of SimRacing604 and its YouTube channel. Favourite sims include Assetto Corsa Competizione, Assetto Corsa, rFactor 2, Automobilista 2, DiRT Rally 2 - On Twitter as @simracing604

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Comments

M
Hipp-E said:
Mostly fits, except one thing : we already payed for the product, with season passes, that actually is a pcars2 heavy modification format thing at the moment. Please don't promise, don't tease - just do it. If you are selling it - do it. Hello games are doing it, with a far more complex systems - without teasing and pr sh*t
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Even the story of PC2 heavy modification is a bit of an urban legend: it was explained here and in interviews many times that the only thing that gets used from PC2 for cars is 3D models of the shells and that is only some times and in most cases still with heavy modifications and for tracks some of the trackside objects. The track itself including its mesh is done from scratch every time.
It's not about teasing, it's about having a plan that fits a developer with limited financial reach instead of one supported by the money of big corporations that have nothing to do with the simracing market. Developers said that to enlarge the roster of cars it would take time both for financial and technical reasons and that is the plan they are sticking to.
Season pass valid for two years means content will deployed in two years if no delay. No one ever promised that all content of the pass was going to be released on day 1.
 
Calsonic 876
Project CARS Franchise was my favourite sim saga. It was Indie, it was rich of cars and tracks and enjoyable even with only medium graphics settings. However i disliked the lack of support by SMS to his customers. They left the three chapters buggy, and no answer arrived form dev department neither from the mods of their ridiculous forum.
In Italy we describe this uncomfortable situation with the sentence "To crash against a rubber wall".
I searched his forum again ad again to solve the problems, they NEVER gave tweaks, workarounds, tips, tricks, or anything else. The snobbing of SMS about the most important bug for me, the real weather mechanism, and the noisy silence from them is simply grotesque. It can be solved by adding or renewing the OpenWeatherMap API key, instead leaving the game to God's mercy.
I complain SMS about not having care the customer satisfaction at all. And looking for how Ian Bell presents himself on his twitter profile, a free entity (as OPPT theory supporters describe themselves), it's enough for flee from him without looking back and damn the days and the money wasted.

So long, Ian, and "thanks" for all the fish.
 
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MadDriver11 said:
Even the story of PC2 heavy modification is a bit of an urban legend: it was explained here and in interviews many times that the only thing that gets used from PC2 for cars is 3D models of the shells and that is only some times and in most cases still with heavy modifications and for tracks some of the trackside objects. The track itself including its mesh is done from scratch every time.
It's not about teasing, it's about having a plan that fits a developer with limited financial reach instead of one supported by the money of big corporations that have nothing to do with the simracing market. Developers said that to enlarge the roster of cars it would take time both for financial and technical reasons and that is the plan they are sticking to.
Season pass valid for two years means content will deployed in two years if no delay. No one ever promised that all content of the pass was going to be released on day 1.
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Yeah, right, 18 months spent on dlc content, luckily made from scratch. For the developer with which you said, "limited financial reach" it's freakin strange to act like EA - no work on the engine, no mod support, dlcs are highest priorityp .
Only words man, only words - we are player and community oriented developer we are releasing payware tracks and cars blahblahblah....
No, you cannot play your replay from the spot you need, no you cannot just enable radar, no you can not have a test session with ai.... don't want to even search for more no's.
Strange way to get community love and respect
We're growing another sms, for our money
 
DC WOLF
Hipp-E said:
blahblahblah....
No, you cannot play your replay from the spot you need, no you cannot just enable radar, no you can not have a test session with ai.... don't want to even search for more no's.
Strange way to get community love and respect
We're growing another sms, for our money
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our money?????
I don't think you spent one cent.
You're just here to spread wierd rumors about something you read from other trolls :laugh:
 
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Alex72
Eckhart von Glan said:
earned some unexpected pocketmoney by supporting / crowdfunding C.A.R.S. which turned into Project Cars the very first week it came out. Could still kick myself for investing only 10 Euros, I think over the years I got somewhere between 150 and 250 Euros back on the initial investment, should have gone for the 10,000 Euro investment that was on offer as well ;) fun fact: never bought a copy of the game, though, as development clearly went in a direction I did not support. Still rmemeber testing the very first car (Gumpert Apollo) on some fancy mountainous test track. Don't even know if either of them made it into the final release.
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Kinda like when i was looking at Bitcoin when it was like 1 dollar per Bitcoin at the very start, and then i said "naaaah" and spent the money on whatever.
 
C
F2020 said:
I dont understand why so many people dislike him, its very odd, he really hasnt robbed your house or stolen your wife.

He has done a lot for our hobby and his work over the years has really helped shape and push things forward.

Hes a successful guy, he has a passion for motorsport and sims and he seems like someone that would be great fun to go for a beer with, i say respect to Ian Bell :)
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You do realise that your thoughts are a two way street.
For example I don't understand why so many people like him.
See?
You can't stop people thinking anymore than they can you.
He was very deliberatly devisive, he certainly like to use his cult of the personality followers as attack dogs.
He and SMS were no worse than many other devs in leaving and ignoring bugs from one game to the next.
But he chose very deliberatly to place himself firmly at the centre for a lot of bile from both sides.

He very much was and is the Trump of the games industry.

Like Trump much of what he said i'd agree with, but they way he went about it....nope, not for me, i'm sure hes loved by family and freinds, but no one can be universally liked playing the role he took on.

He could of stepped back many times but chose to engage, like he enjoyed the attention.

He said right at the start that PCars 1 was going to be constantly developed and he'd do away with the Forza style 1,2,3,4,5 etc etc..... yearly update but full price title....

He soon back tracked on that, got people to fund the game made money then made PCars2 but severed links to original backers.....

Shrewd? Yes....... domething i think is worthy of adulation?
Nope...IMO.

PCars1, 2 and 3 were and are just NFS Shift, even have the same bugs...
He won. He pulled the wool over everyones eyes...
He must wake up everyday laughing.
 
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H
DC WOLF said:
our money?????
I don't think you spent one cent.
You're just here to spread wierd rumors about something you read from other trolls :laugh:
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Снимок экрана 2021-11-04 194350.png

No, i'm not afraid of having my own opinion, i'm not feeling shame for it, i'm feeling a little shame for humanity when the hyenas like you appear
 
H
DC WOLF said:
you should read the title of the thread.
This is NOT a AMS2 bashing thread. Its about Ian Bell and his history.
You're hunting in the wrong area . Shame on you :roflmao:
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i'm not hunting, just "influenced by the music" :)
this man spins his tested scheme - port gran turismo to pc, the result is always pretty much the same
another effective blow-sell manager
 
F2020
cpubound said:
You do realise that your thoughts are a two way street.
For example I don't understand why so many people like him.
See?
You can't stop people thinking anymore than they can you.
He was very deliberatly devisive, he certainly like to use his cult of the personality followers as attack dogs.
He and SMS were no worse than many other devs in leaving and ignoring bugs from one game to the next.
But he chose very deliberatly to place himself firmly at the centre for a lot of bile from both sides.

He very much was and is the Trump of the games industry.

Like Trump much of what he said i'd agree with, but they way he went about it....nope, not for me, i'm sure hes loved by family and freinds, but no one can be universally liked playing the role he took on.

He could of stepped back many times but chose to engage, like he enjoyed the attention.

He said right at the start that PCars 1 was going to be constantly developed and he'd do away with the Forza style 1,2,3,4,5 etc etc..... yearly update but full price title....

He soon back tracked on that, got people to fund the game made money then made PCars2 but severed links to original backers.....

Shrewd? Yes....... domething i think is worthy of adulation?
Nope...IMO.

PCars1, 2 and 3 were and are just NFS Shift, even have the same bugs...
He won. He pulled the wool over everyones eyes...
He must wake up everyday laughing.
Click to expand...
I am a positive person and really think people should just chill out on things like the above, life is short, enjoy it and dont get wound up over silly little things like you are stating above, essentially its a computer game that costs virtually nothing to buy.

Just take a step back and focus more on your life as opposed to getting angry over none situations & things you have no control over.

"He won. He pulled the wool over everyones eyes...
He must wake up everyday laughing."

Surely you have better things to use your grey matter on than worrying about Ian Bell waking up and laughing.

:)
 
C
F2020 said:
I am a positive person and really think people should just chill out on things like the above, life is short, enjoy it and dont get wound up over silly little things like you are stating above, essentially its a computer game that costs virtually nothing to buy.

Just take a step back and focus more on your life as opposed to getting angry over none situations & things you have no control over.

"He won. He pulled the wool over everyones eyes...
He must wake up everyday laughing."

Surely you have better things to use your grey matter on than worrying about Ian Bell waking up and laughing.

:)
Click to expand...
Yes i do in other contexts, but this is a forum for people who play with pixelated cars.
I'm sure if i'd come on here and replied about how terrible Joe Biden is
and he's just yet more of the same in the world system that protects itself no matter what, hence tht in 2008 (world crash) the top richest 1 percent got richer, and during the covid pandemic the top 1 percent got richer...

So yeah.... i think its better in this context of silly games, to talk about those silly games...right?
It doesn't mean i am not in the back of my mind thinking about what take away i'm going to get in a bit...
Perfectly happy thanks.
 
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G
Bell is not the only one who left the studio, another key figure and founder left: Andy Garton. Not sure when though.
The SMS are now just one of the many small companies bought by EA and ready to be slowly dismantled.
Not bad for someone who spent all that time ranting against EA and the time that they tried to destroy his company.
 
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Highbank
I still haven't figured out what PC3 is supposed to be or who it is supposed to be for, but then I don't even own a controller
 
GTR233
thanks a million for what you did in simracing for us the last 20 years @Ian Bell and I wish you at least the same success for your next challenges in your life :)
 
cangrejin
as I have read in this thread ... ian bell contributed to GTR2 (an excellent game) ... and supported the development of Project Cars (1,2 and 3) at the time, NO game had the great amount of features that they have these games (such as variable weather, day-night, physics other than arcades, many cars and categories, and many circuits)
... even today the closest thing to this is GTR2, and ACC (asseto corsa competition ... NOT the original AC, that is very lacking in features, it is only for walks without AI)

even in the list of names of the credits that appear in F1 Challenge 99-02 is his name. did anyone else see it?
did he contribute to that game?

I don't know why they criticize him so much, he made and supported many of the best and most complete games we have today. (gtr2, f1c, and the controversial but very complete PC2)
 

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