Codemasters announces Grid Autosport, cockpit cam returns
Motorsport-focused game coming to Xbox 360, PS3 and PC this June.
Codemasters has announced Grid Autosport, a new standalone title that's coming to PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 on 27th June - and a game that puts the emphasis firmly back on motorsport for the series.
Developed in Codemasters' main studio, Grid Autosport is a response to some of the feedback received after the release of Grid 2 last year, and an attempt to placate some of the series' traditional fans.
To that end there is now more authentic motorsport racing, with open-wheel cars ranging from F3 to IndyCar, tin-top action plus GT and endurance action as well as returning drift and supercar content. Like in the original Grid, the campaign is structured around the running of a team, with the player able to acquire sponsors and teammates as they work across five separate disciplines included in Grid Autosport.
While the name - which is shared with a long-running motorsport magazine - doesn't mark an official partnership, the editorial staff at Autosport have lent their expertise to the game, alongside racing drivers such as BTCC contenders Matt Neal and Andrew Jordan.
Most importantly for many members of the community will be the return of the cockpit view which was famously excised for Grid 2. It's now available in two flavours, with one view showing the drivers hands and another offering a closer perspective on the track.
As to why there isn't a version for the Xbox One and PlayStation 4, Codemasters' Clive Moody told Eurogamer it's all a matter of timing.
"We're working really hard on our next-gen Ego engine right now - and when we roll it out, we want it to be the best racing engine out there," the producer said. "That takes time, and it's not as if we haven't been working on it for some time. It wasn't really where wanted it to be, I don't think, to produce what I would class as a truly competitive next-gen game coming out in the window we're coming out.
"The second factor is when we were talking to our community, it was one of the first questions we asked them. What about next-gen? When are you planning to upgrade? And no-one in the room had any urgency to move on to those new consoles."
We'll have further impressions on Grid Autosport, plus extended video footage, later today.