Assetto Corsa Evo and the Mod Dilemma

We finally know the title of the Assetto Corsa follow-up, but the question remains as to whether it will feature what has made the original such an icon in the sim racing space, mods. However could that cause issues?

Assetto Corsa Evo was teased during the release of the Nürburgring 24H to Assetto Corsa Competizione before being finally officially revealed.

The original Assetto Corsa is a much beloved title due to its mod compatibility. Therefore you can drive just about anything.

Want to drive Targa Florio in a 1934 Maserati? You can do that. Maybe you want to drive an F1 car on one of the tracks that never made it onto the F1 game like the Sakhir Outer Layout or a future track like the Madrid Street Circuit. You can even race a dinosaur or a banana on Rainbow Road from Mario Kart if you wanted to.


The possibilities are endless on AC, with the playerbase's imagination running wild. Unsurprisingly, after Kunos developed a GT-focused licenced title in Competizione, many of the original's players continued to play AC. Now though, Assetto Corsa Evo is promised to be a true follow-up to the 2014 released game and it is set to release in early access this Summer.

But with that comes the burning question of whether or not it will be mod-compatible. While this is undeniably one of the factors that keeps the original AC alive and kicking for those that drive on a PC - almost ten years after its release - things are not quite as easy when it comes to Assetto Corsa Evo.

Developers vs. Modders​

Remember when rFactor 2 became available on LowFuelMotorsport, an automated matchmaking website that became prominent thanks to its inclusion of ACC? Since rFactor 2 launched its own automated matchmaking system, LFM has closed down its rF2 servers.

But if you played LFM's rF2 races in that time, you will have noticed that they used third party mods. In contrast, the only content in rF2's own automated matchmaking that was not official and could be found in the rF2 Steam Store were mods from ISI.


Many of our own community members have asked why Kunos do not formally embrace modding which makes their game so appealing. Well, it could come down to one simple fact: modding is kind of the biggest grey zone legally when it comes to our beloved sim racing titles.

Modding and legal implications are extremely complex topics, with factors like IP rights of real-life cars, tracks, logos and more, playing a big part in it. Players appreciate the immense amount of content available in the original AC including official DLC and community creations - but the question remains how it is going to be handled in Assetto Corsa Evo.

Mods vs. DLC​

During the original Assetto Corsa's lifespan, eleven sets of DLC packs released for the game with the most recent one being the Ferrari Pack, released 19 September 2017. In this pack are the likes of the 330 P4, which is a Le Mans icon, the modern and road-legal 812 Superfast, and Formula One cars like the championship-winning F2004 and the SF70-H from 2017.

The danger there is that an unofficial third-party mod that either costs much less or are completely free could sway a potential buyer of a DLC pack to getting that instead. The world of mods made by amateur hobby devs can fluctuate in terms of quality, but a mod that is of high enough quality can pique curiosity and channel interest away from official content that the studio spent enormous amounts of time and resources on.


What would keep players purchasing official content and not automating to fan-made mods? Image credit: Kunos Simulazioni

In essence, both sides are facing different challenges. For a studio, the standard has to be equal across the board, meaning every car and every track has to work in every possible scenario (such as rain, night, dusk, dawn, etc.). It also has to work on consoles, if the title is supposed to be released on these systems.

Modders, on the other hand, face way less of these variables. To put it bluntly, they do not have to take care that their creations work in any hardware environment the rest of the game does, or is compatible with other content. But take the Nordschleife for ACC, for example - the eagerly-awaited official version has seen player numbers shoot up to a record high, not at last due to its immense level of detail Kunos were able to produce.

Lack of Enthusiasm​

When we covered the announcement of the Nordschleife coming to Assetto Corsa Competizione delaying the release of the now-named Assetto Corsa Evo, there seemed to be a good amount of people who were not too disappointed. For instance, @Hoksu left the following comment on the article:

"Imo there's no particular hurry to release AC2, AC1 with the huge modding community is a great title that constantly improves, ACC is magnificent for racing modern GT cars and it's about to get a lot better. Delaying AC2 a bit is perfectly fine to me"

Of course, there are plenty of people who did not pick up ACC and many who only are eager to play Evo. But the sentiment of Hoksu is a surprisingly common one. The sustained lifespans of AC and ACC have raised the expectations of players, but Kunos has made sure to put out high-quality products that brought elements to the table that have not been found before - so we can probably expect as much with Assetto Corsa Evo.

Would no mods in Assetto Corsa Evo be a dealbreaker for you? Let us know on Twitter @OverTake_gg or in the comments down below.

UPDATE APRIL 9, 21:00 UTC: Due to inaccuracies, we have updated the article.