KartKraft News

The IAME KA100 class has been added to KartKraft. With 22HP and a maximum RPM of 15,000, the new class uses the medium grip MG Red tyre and requires very precise and smooth inputs to achieve good lap times. We look forward to your feedback!


[h2]Thermal Tyre Model[/h2]
The tyre model has been updated to include a 3D thermodynamic model that simulates the heat transfer between the asphalt, contact patch, tread, pressurised air and rim. No longer static, the entire carcass and tread around the circumference of the tyre is affected by contact pressure and sliding friction which results in localised hotspots and the new ability to overheat the tyre if driving and sliding too hard. Future updates will include different rim materials that allow for better dissipation of heat and more stable changes in pressure. A visualisation of the 3D tread has been added to the HUD. Note: Existing setups will need to be updated to extract the maximum performance from the new model.

[h2]FFB[/h2]
The calculation of forces being applied to the steering column has been improved resulting in a much more refined signal and smoother driving experience.

[h2]GKCV Reverse[/h2]
The reverse layout of GKCV has been added which presents a different challenge with the blind uphill entry to turn 1.

[h2]Fixes/Improvements[/h2]

1. Setup parameters now show their respective units. i.e PSI, Degrees etc
   
2. HUD elements are now zoomable and moveable using mouse wheel
   
3. Fixed crash when changing gear ratios on the KZ2 class of karts
   
4. Kerb response has been improved with a reduced likelihood of flipping
   

And finally, with only days to Christmas, we'd like to wish you all a very safe and happy holiday season from all of us at KartKraft!

Build 0.1.0.2693 is now live! Please restart Steam if you do not see the update



[h2]Fixes/Improvements[/h2]
Improved: Wheel input binding now displays more information and requires a button press to reduce errors caused by timing
Added: Numpad keys can be used in photomode
Added: Can now use left/right keyboard navigation in the input menu
Added: Can now drag and hide the live placings HUD item in time trial mode
Fixedbug where chosen monitor setting was not saved
Fixed bug where ghost volume would be ignored if set in main menu
Fixed occasional motion blur corruption in chase camera
Fixedoverlapping vehicles in post race podium sequence
FixedVR camera rotating incorrectly at the end of cinematic sequences such as the post race restart menu.
Fixed bug where incorrect number of AI drivers would appear in a race

As always, we're reading all of your posts, reviews and comments and are addressing your issues as fast as we can. If you would like to support KartKraft even more and help it turn it into the game we all want it to be, we'd love to read your honest Steam reviews which let's us see where to focus our development efforts.

[h2]Triple Screen[/h2]
We've now added support for triple screen rendering which can be enabled via the camera menu. As this is the first release, we'd love to hear your feedback and suggestions to further improve your experience.
[h2]New input system[/h2]
The input system has been completely re-designed and built from the ground up to make setting up wheels and controllers a seamless experience via a calibration wizard. This has the added benefit of simplifying the UI since we've been able to remove invert/min/max settings for each analogue input (Throttle/Brake/Clutch/Steering).
Please note that these changes mean all players are required to set your controls up again
[h2]Test Drive[/h2]
We've added a new test drive menu in preparation for the release of our upcoming track modding tool. This is the result of a large refactor to the map loading system which can now discover and load tracks dynamically at runtime.
[h2]HUD[/h2]
Individual HUD elements can now be positioned on the screen using the mouse to better accommodate players' preferences. They can also be toggled on/off by right clicking on the screen and selecting the appropriate widget type.
Note that this feature is not available in VR at this time.
Driver numbers are now are now rendered on the placings widget similar to MotoGP
[h2]FreeTrack[/h2]
KartKraft now has support for FreeTrack, the open source equivalent to TrackIR which provides six degrees of freedom (6DOF) head tracking via a webcam. This can be configured in the 'Camera' settings menu.
[h2]Audio[/h2]
We've now added a slider to control the volume of your opponents which some users have reported as being too loud. This is available under the 'Sound' settings menu.
[h2]FFB Defaults[/h2]
The default force feedback strength setting has been increased to be consistent with forces felt in real life. This is particularly important for non direct drive wheel users that spin when applying the throttle out of corners, due to a lack of corrective forces being felt through the wheel when experiencing power-on oversteer. We strongly recommend that players increase this setting to a value as high as they can handle.
[h2]Timing and exploit fixes[/h2]
The method of live delta calculation for the session fastest lap and personal fastest lap has been improved, resulting in much greater accuracy through all sectors. Previously this could fluctuate with a margin of error around 1 tenth of a second.
We've tracked down a bug that some players were unknowingly exploiting to gain time during leaderboard attempts. This was caused by floating point (im)precision that could result in laptimes up to a second faster than real-time when a session was run for an extended duration. i.e 48+ hours
[h2]Crash fixes[/h2]
After implementing automatic crash reporting in the previous build, we have been able to identify and fix a crash that was responsible for 76% of crashes reported by players. This should result in much higher stability for all players.
[h2]Dynamic sky[/h2]
With the introduction of the new sky system in the last update, several groups of players experienced hitches when loading sky resources. We've now implemented dynamic resource loading for the sky resulting in lower memory utilisation and faster map load times.

[h2]Changelog[/h2]
Added new Input System. Wheels are now easier to bind and presets have been removed.
Added the ability to move and hide HUD elements on screen.
Added Freetrack head tracking option. Available in Settings > Camera.
Added a setting for controlling opponent kart audio volumes.
Added driver numbers to HUD.
Added work-in-progress results screens.
Added audio notification when new online session is available to join.
Added: Wheel profiles now support digital inputs to analog actions, so it's now possible to bind camera look, clutch, brake, throttle to buttons/paddles
Added: Sunny/cloudy weather option is now hooked up to time of day
Added: HUD vehicle radar and live placings can now be hidden and moved via mouse
Increased accuracy of all live delta values displayed on HUD.
Increased default FFB gain setting.
Added player name tags in online mode.
Fixed Online practice session lets drivers finish their final lap before ending.
Fixed bug where AI would sometimes fail to load.
Fixed lap and sector timing inaccuracy when running for long periods of time.
Fixed corrupt packages due to shutting down game while write is in progress.
Fixed hitches in dynamic sky loading.
Fixed unwanted motion output when replaying.
Fixed trackside cameras not properly handling karts retiring and entering pits.
Fixed ghost trails following tyres on road surface.
Fixed chase camera look movement.
Changed: Binding process is slightly clearer. Binding menu now displays 'press to bind...' when input is being detected
Changed: HUD sector times now display individual sectors rather than cumulative time
Fixed certain wheel and pedal setups failing to be detected. Increased number of direct input devices from 8 to 64
Fixed crash when changing opponent volume slider while racing
Fixed crash caused by using Oculus Touch controllers in main menu
Fixed bad VR camera post race results sequence
Fixed bug where ghost vehicle would continue driving after being defeated in timetrial
Fixed occasional motion blur glitches in some cameras
Fixed bug which caused only a maximum of ten AI opponents to be available. Up to 15 opponents should now be possible. (this is not quite fixed...)
Fixed bad motion blur on rotating parts

After May's force feedback algorithm update, the start of this month saw the release of the new dynamic sky system in build 0.1.0.2309. Featuring incredible, natural transitions from overcast to sunny weather with rolling cloud shadows, we also took the opportunity to overhaul the lighting and push the photorealism bar even further than before.



We've begun improving the off track experience by showing your kart in the pit area while making setup changes. This will also extend to the main menu, which will see significant UI changes in the next few updates. The future is bright for KartKraft!



[h2]CHANGELOG[/h2]
New: Dynamic skies with improved lighting for all tracks. Weather currently locked to cloudy/overcast.
New: Added new camera view when returning to pits. Placement is temporary until team tents are placed.
New: Added backlights to Alfano and Mychron data loggers.
Fixed: Bug which caused track wear to be invisible.
Removed: Removed FFB skip steps preference as it is no longer required with the new FFB algorithm.
Improved: Adjusted high and ultra shadow quality settings to reduce appearance of floating vehicles. High settings are equivalent to Ultra in previous builds, with Ultra now including extra shadow detail
Improved: Increased friction coefficient on kerbing from 0.7 to 0.8
Improved: NTK mod track has been updated, now with kerb placements.

Build 0.1.0.2139 is now live. Please restart Steam if you cannot see the update.


After months of work behind the scenes, version 1 of our scheduled racing system is here and will be rolled out to players over the coming weeks. While our initial intention was to release a dedicated server and provide an in-game browser for community host races, we made the decision to invest in building a scheduled racing system to provide a competitive, fair, and low-latency racing environment. With advanced skill-based matchmaking, league and hosted session support in development, KartKraft is quickly becoming the premiere online karting experience.
During the soft launch phase, we'll be stress-testing the servers, listening to feedback, and gradually increasing the number of participating players before opening the beta to everyone. Initial events will be restricted to Timed Practice with collision disabled. To be considered for the soft-launch, please register using your real name via the in-game form and confirm your email address.


This update also sees the introduction of the classic PF International layout from the 90s. With an incredibly fast sweeping hairpin that is turn 1, this is the circuit that drivers like Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, Anthony Davidson and Paul Di Resta honed their craft on the way to Formula 1.
Added manufacturer driving suits


We've completely overhauled the trackside camera system in preparation for multiplayer. Much like a human camera operator, our cameras now attempt to predict the trajectory of their tracked vehicle and anticipate their target's position within the frame. The end result is a much more natural, broadcast quality viewing experience with high quality, cinematic, physically-based depth of field.


In preparation for multiplayer, we've reduced the vehicle snapshot size by 72% to minimise packet size. This has had a flow-on effect with leaderboard upload times significantly reduced. As a result, all leaderboard times have been reset to accommodate the new snapshot format.


All manufacturer suits from Arrow, CRG, Deadly, Formula-K, Monaco, OK1, Praga and Sodikart have now been added to the store. They can be equipped by going to Pits->Driver->Suits


NTK has been updated to the latest verson provided by community member and NTK board member 'Hooves'
Added time limit to practice session
Changed photoshoot cameras to use cinematic, circular depth of field. This is now controlled by the camera aperture.
Fixed vehicle snapshot interpolation causing incorrect axle rotation wobble in replays.
Fixed motion blur on tyres. They no longer cause artefacts from tangential velocity.
Fixed camera transition in menu screens causing the vehicle to slide in from out of screen.
Fixed collision for all vehicles. Kerbs can now be ridden with confidence.