Assetto Corsa Evo rolls out Update 0.5 amid Career Mode controversy

It comes with seven new cars and 2 new tracks along with some improvements, physics tweaks, and DLSS/UI updates.

Kunos Simulazioni and 505's Assetto Corsa Evo launched into Early Access just a year ago, and in that time it has evolved together with the community with added content and a good number of changes, but some of those changes haven't been very welcomed by fans.

Today the title has been updated to version 0.5, which brings a bunch of new cars and tracks, but more importantly tweaks handling and physics. Before we test drive the latter, here's the list of the former:

New cars and tracks coming to Assetto Corsa Evo v.0.5

New road cars

Audi Sport Quattro (1983)

BMW M2

Caterham Seven 485 CSR Final Edition

Toyota AE86 + Tuned version

Volkswagen Golf MK1

New racing car

Dallara EXP

New GT car

Porsche 911 GT3 RS (992)

New Tracks

(Allowing for multiple layouts and player challenges)

Watkins Glen International (4 layouts)

Circuit Paul Ricard (4 layouts)

Players will also be able to enjoy the first iteration of the Free Camera mode, meant for further exploration and more cinematic replays, while the team keeps working on a dedicated photo mode. In terms of graphics, ACE now uses DLSS 4.5 for better performance and scalability. Finally, the HUD and the UI have been refined and in-race systems such as track limit penalties and blue flags logic have been tweaked.

Where did Assetto Corsa Evo's Career Mode go?

However, all this comes just when part of the community has become very angry at the recent changes to the game's Career Mode and single player progression system. What was known as Career Mode is no more, as the studio has removed the traditional model involving economy management, experience points, and virtual currency. At the same time, developers are steering towards more competitive features, the Driving Academy, and support for mods.

While some users appreciate the more "pick up and play" approach without the good 'ol XP grind and limited starting garage, others were already backing the initial push for a traditional Career Mode, and now feel disappointed. Kunos hasn't provided any comment on this decision, nor data to support claims that Career Mode wasn't really grabbing much attention in terms of actual playtime.

The 0.5 trailer below already teases the upcoming Assetto Corsa Evo's 0.6 update, with a clear nod to the 12 hours of Sebring.