Dedicated BTCC Title Delayed Until 2024, Using rFactor 2 Until Then

(Header screenshot from rFactor 2).

Motorsport Games today announced the delay of the previously announced BTCC title until 2024. I can’t really say this wasn’t expected (though I would have hoped 2023), as Motorsport Games came on the scene with a ton of big-name licenses, spread themselves thin, and obviously struggled to bring NASCAR 21 to market in an acceptable state. Maybe this means “lessons learned”? BTCC, although an amazing series, is most likely to be the least profitable of those announced so it does make absolute sense to prioritize other titles… However upsetting that might be to fans.

In the meantime, Motorsport Games will continue to use rFactor 2, releasing BTCC content and doing on-site race weekend fan engagement events during BTCC races (as they did with Miami F1 and the Indy 500).

The press release (below) also includes a quote from Alan Gow, CEO of the British Touring Car Championship:

“While we understand that our fans are eager to get their hands on the BTCC game, I can assure them that the expanded development efforts that Motorsport Games is pursuing through the game’s 2024 launch will make it well worth the wait. So, we invite all of our fans to attend activations at selected BTCC events later this year to get a first look and to provide their feedback, so as to help make the new BTCC game the very best.”

Press release:

MOTORSPORT GAMES AND BTCC ANNOUNCE FUTURE PROMOTIONAL PLAN TO UPCOMING OFFICIAL BTCC GAME
The development teams will continue refining the user experience while both companies will offer multiple brand activations and gameplay content in the lead-up to full release

EMBARGOED UNTIL: JUNE 2, 2022 AT 9AM EST/6AM PST

MIAMI, FL – JUNE 2, 2022 – Motorsport Games Inc. (NASDAQ: MSGM) (“Motorsport Games” or the “Company”), a leading racing game developer, publisher and esports ecosystem provider of official motorsport racing series throughout the world, announces today a promotional plan update, including activations, content releases and ‘first-play content’ tech demos through rFactor 2, to its planned British Touring Car Championship (“BTCC”) official game, which will release in 2024, as previously disclosed by the Company. A link to the trailer for the rFactor 2 content can be found here.

Motorsport Games and its developers are expanding and reinforcing their BTCC development efforts to optimize the user experience, offer a better value proposition to the end user and enhance product differentiation within a robust racing games marketplace. By expanding their development efforts, the Motorsport Games development team will fundamentally overhaul the platform, allowing for a cleaner codebase with more robust features. As part of these efforts, Motorsport Games will leverage the improvements it made to the rFactor 2 platform, developed in its work on KartKraft, to strengthen the BTCC offering, unifying the title with the Company’s current and future product portfolio to create the best possible user experience.

George Holmquist, Vice President, Publishing and Marketing, Motorsport Games: “We are expanding our development efforts on the BTCC release to create the best experience possible for all players, with the full support from our partners at the BTCC. Both Motorsport Games and the BTCC are committed to bringing this famous and popular motorsport series to life within the virtual world. We remain excited by this project and look forward to the many activations and content releases we have planned for the BTCC game.”

While these development efforts are ongoing, Motorsport Games and the BTCC will have multiple activations for fans to participate in. This includes on-site BTCC Fan Zone events at selected BTCC events in the second half of the 2022 season, at the Autosport International Show and future BTCC events during the 2023 season. At those races during 2022 and the majority of 2023, the BTCC Fan Zone will have between two to four racing simulators with BTCC ‘first-play content’ tech demos through rFactor 2. As the BTCC game development progresses, each activation will include the official BTCC game via demos at the tracks. Fans who participate will be able to provide real-time feedback for the new game’s development. As development approaches full release in 2024, more content is planned to become available through first playable demos.

Further, Motorsport Games plans to add additional BTCC branded content into the rFactor 2 simulation platform, which would also host regular BTCC esports events. Motorsport Games and rFactor 2 added the Infiniti Q50 and Toyota Corolla BTCC cars into the simulation for fans to drive as part of a first content rollout. Daily BTCC competitions through the rFactor 2 competition system will be open to all users, allowing for statistics-driven benefits to each driver’s rating. All content released via rFactor 2 will be utilized as a technical test bed, allowing consumers and official drivers to provide feedback for the development team and help build the best experience upon full release.

Alan Gow, CEO, BTCC: “While we understand that our fans are eager to get their hands on the BTCC game, I can assure them that the expanded development efforts that Motorsport Games is pursuing through the game’s 2024 launch will make it well worth the wait. So, we invite all of our fans to attend activations at selected BTCC events later this year to get a first look and to provide their feedback, so as to help make the new BTCC game the very best.”

Motorsport Games will announce additional information on select BTCC events featuring test versions of the game closer to each activation date. Fans are encouraged to keep up-to-date on the status of the official BTCC game through the social media channels of both Motorsport Games and the BTCC.

To keep up with the latest Motorsport Game news, visit www.motorsportgames.com and follow on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.

About Motorsport Games:
Motorsport Games, a Motorsport Network company, is a leading racing game developer, publisher and esports ecosystem provider of official motorsport racing series throughout the world. Combining innovative and engaging video games with exciting esports competitions and content for racing fans and gamers, Motorsport Games strives to make the joy of racing accessible to everyone. The Company is the officially licensed video game developer and publisher for iconic motorsport racing series across PC, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and mobile, including NASCAR, INDYCAR, 24 Hours of Le Mans, rFactor 2, KartKraft and the British Touring Car Championship (“BTCC”). Motorsport Games is an award-winning esports partner of choice for 24 Hours of Le Mans, Formula E, BTCC, the FIA World Rallycross Championship and the eNASCAR Heat Pro League, among others. Motorsport Games is building a virtual racing ecosystem where each product drives excitement, every esports event is an adventure and every story inspires.

About the British Touring Car Championship:
The British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) was formed in 1958 and is Britain’s most popular motor racing spectacle with its race season comprising ten events at top circuits across the UK. It is contested by professional racing drivers in competition versions of everyday road cars, giving it tremendous public appeal. Over 380,000 watch the BTCC trackside each year and it receives widespread UK terrestrial TV exposure on the ITV network, with all ten events broadcast live across ITV, ITV4 and itv.com.

The 2022 campaign marks the start of the BTCC’s Hybrid Era, as the championship becomes the first touring car series in the world to integrate hybrid power into all of its race cars.