Studio 397 brings DX11 open beta for rFactor 2


Although the ISIMotor engine is still one of the best in the racing simulation market and rFactor 2 has pretty good physics, appearance still had the dated look of the first rFactor days, so new owners from Studio 397 announced a shift from DirectX 9 graphics to DirectX 11 as part of a series of updates planned in their roadmap, and this revolution in the title started this week with the open beta of the new version.

Along with the DX11 update, Studio 397 developers also brought VR compatibility as virtual reality became so popular today that it would be hard to just ignore it, specially in racing simulation, where the aim is for as much realism as possible, as proven by the mixed reality videos by Marcel Pfister, for example. SteamVR is the only device mentioned in the press release but as development advances all the main names may be covered.

As it should be expected from a beta release, some may test to see if the system holds up the graphical improvement or to compare with the DX9 release already in place, and as with anti-aliasing, you can test the new post-processing effects in five different levels from None to Ultra, adjustable in the video settings of the launcher, and if you're not content with the DX11 open beta, you can revert to the DX9 release any time.

At the moment not all cars and tracks were updated, like the Dallara DW12, Howstons G4 and G6, USF2000, Nissan GT-R GT500 and Stock Cars, Atlanta Motorsports Park, Silverstone, NOLA, Mores and Indianapolis. Also, as explained by Studio 397, due to some problems you have to re-subscribe to these items on Steam Workshop before starting rFactor 2.


More explanation on how to implement the DX11 open beta, VR, and what was updated with the new release can be seen on the developer blog post.

PHOTO: rFactor 2 in-game screenshot

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