Plaion announced that it has signed a publishing deal with Straight4 Studios for its upcoming racing sim game.
Straight4 Studios is the new studio led by Ian Bell, founder of Slightly Mad Studios the developer behind the now-defunct Project CARS series and the two Need For Speed Shift games. Bell’s experience in making sim racing games goes further back with credits under the likes of GTR.
“Our vision for this new game is a hardcore racing sim with a commitment to bringing the community the kind of simulation and modding tools they want,” said Ian Bell, CEO at Straight4 Studios.
“Plaion immediately understood our ambition and potential and we have every confidence that this new partnership will play a defining role in pushing the sim racing industry to a whole new level of realism and fun.”
“We’re always on the lookout to find new partners to work with and bring something truly special to our audiences. Straight4 Studios has a fantastic vision and a team with an outstanding list of games under their belt. Racing Sim fans, this will be one to look out for,” said Klemens Kundratitz, CEO at Plaion.
Based on Bell’s Twitter, this unnamed racing sim was at one point in time called GTR Revival, as a follow-up to GTR 2 (which is still spoken highly of by sim racers who got to experience it back in the early 00s). But that was also the time when Bell was referring to his new development team as Mildly Annoyed Studio before properly being named Straight4 Studios.
Whatever may be Straight4’s new game’s name will be, it’s targeting the current Gen 9 consoles (PS5, Xbox Series X|S) as well as PC and “will be the spiritual return to the glory days of sim racing’s past while featuring a new, bespoke physics engine and cutting-edge graphics.” So hopefully more Project CARS and GTR rather than Project CARS 3 and Need For Speed Shift.