EA abandons Project CARS license

The information had leaked on the specialized site games-industry.biz before the development studio Slightly Mad Studios confirmed the bad news this Tuesday, November 8: the Project CARS license is dead.

https://twitter.com/slightlymadteam/status/1589988617120022529

First bought by Codemasters in 2019 for the sum of $30 million, then by Electronic Arts in January 2021, the British studio is paying the price for a new editorial policy from the gigantic American company.

“Today we internally announced an update to our racing game portfolio. Following an evaluation of the upcoming Project CARS title and its longer-term growth potential, we have made the decision to cease further development and investment for the franchise, indicates an internal EA source to Games Industry.biz.

Decisions like these are very difficult to make, but they allow us to prioritize focusing on the areas where we believe we have the best chance of creating experiences that fans will love. We are focusing on the strengths of our racing game portfolio, particularly our licensed franchises and open-world experiences, and growing our franchises to be more socially focused, with long-term services which will involve global communities. Games are at the heart of sports entertainment and auto racing, and with fan expectations evolving, we recognize the need to evolve our games beyond just playing, providing experiences for fans to watch, create and connect with their friends.

We are working with everyone affected by this decision to place them in appropriate positions within our EA Sports and Racing portfolio, as well as other parts of EA, where possible. Our priority now is to provide as much support as possible to our employees during this transition. »

It is the players who are therefore left behind. Car simulation enthusiasts had a blast playing the first Project CARS released in 2015 following a crowdfunding campaign and four years of development with professional drivers. A sequel, called Project CARS 2, was released in 2017 with an extremely wide range of cars and disciplines. Old racing cars from 24 Hours of Le Mans, Formula 1 and even the Indianapolis 500 were available, as well as legendary circuits like the old version of Spa-Francorchamps or Rouen-les-Essarts.

Unfortunately, a poor arcade direction decided in Project CARS 3 has damaged the reputation of the series.