| The Crew 2 | |
| |
| Developer(s) | Ivory Tower |
|---|---|
| Publisher(s) | Ubisoft |
| Series | The Crew |
| Release Date(s) | June 29, 2018 |
| Genre(s) | Racing |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 4 Xbox One |
| Predecessor | The Crew |
The Crew 2 is a racing video game developed by Ivory Tower and published by Ubisoft. It is a sequel to the 2014 video game The Crew, and was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in June of 2018.
Gameplay[]
Similar to its predecessor, The Crew 2 is a racing game. In the game, players assume control of a relatively unknown racer, who is trying to work his way to become successful in multiple disciplines. It features a persistent open world for racing and free-roaming across a scaled-down recreation of the contiguous United States. In addition to cars, players can also control other kinds of vehicles including planes, motorcycles, and boats. Each vehicle has their own control physics, meaning that gameplay is different when players are controlling different types of vehicles. The game features four different hub worlds, with each having their own theme and playstyle. These themes include offroad, street racing, pro racing, and freestyle. Vehicle customization will also be featured in the game. Similar to the first game, the game places a huge emphasis on multiplayer. The game features a cooperative multiplayer mode, which allows players to join different rally raid events together. This mode can also be played solo with artificial intelligence.
Development[]
The game is was developed by Ivory Tower, a subsidiary of publisher Ubisoft. Parts of the development was based on the feedback they received on the previous installment. One major critique was that players did not have enough freedom to explore the world and do missions. To solve the problem, Ubisoft overhauled the game's progression system and decided not to focus much on the game's narrative, which would require players to complete missions in a very specific order, and instead divided the game into several hub worlds, with each representing a unique driving style. Players can stay in these hubs to play the missions that interest them and do not need to force themselves to visit other hubs to play through missions that do not interest them. The Crew's downloadable content, Wild Run, which was positively reviewed by players, also prompted the studio to focus more on developing content regarding offroad racing.
As the game features a variety of vehicles, Ivory Tower also needed to improve the game's graphics. According to the game's producer, Stephane Jankowski, these new types of vehicles allow players to explore the open world with new perspectives. For instance, flying a plane means that players can see objects that are very far away. As a result, the engine had to be modified to significantly improve the game's draw distance. The engine was also updated to include other enhancements, such as atmospheric clouds and realistic vegetation. The game's control was designed to be accessible but "hard to master".
The game was announced in May 2017 during Ubisoft's earning's call. It was officially revealed at E3 2017 accompanied with a cinematic trailer and gameplay demonstrations. The game is set to be released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in early 2018. A beta is set to be released before the game's official launch.