Time is running out for Rennsport...

Added: 2026-05-07

[00:00:00]We are 127 days into 2026 and yet sim racing game Renport has yet to release a single update. Not a hot fix, patch or piece of DLC. No new mod converted tracks or shiny animated liveries. And that is deeply concerning for a title that was released in November last year and published a grand plan for the year ahead. So what the heck is going on?

[00:00:24]Well, a lot as it turns out. And it's just another stumble in a fraught and fascinating journey so far. Time is running out.

[00:00:36]Heralded as more than a racing game during its unveiling, Renport should have been an innovative new player in the sim racing space. It was trying to push the envelope of competition, graphics, and realism. That hasn't been the case, at least not yet. And nearly every step of the way from its 2020 inception to the precipice it faces presently, mistakes have been made, market tastes changed, and roadblocks have been placed on its path. Let's run through the biggest stumbles to help us understand how it ended up in its current scenario, unable to release meaningful changes and facing an everinccreasing lack of relevance.

[00:01:14]NFTts.

[00:01:16]5 years ago, a fresh startup outfit was formed called Competition Company. A year later, it published a website that promised digital gasoline, real adrenaline. Prisaic wording aside, what really caught the eyes of discerning sim racers, however, was a section entitled real digital ownership. With Renport, you can build your own legacy with individual cars, custom tracks, and much more. Your assets will be owned by you, and you can trade them through the marketplace of your choice. Vehicles would also be assigned their own unique EIN. Ah, yes, that sounds remarkably like non-f fungeible tokens or NFTts, digital trading items such as images.

[00:01:57]According to Weeks, this is no longer a hyperdriven market, but things went wild in late 2021 and early 2022. OpenC recorded an all-time high trading volume of $3.7 billion in January 2022, for instance. Also during that time, however, research by Elliptic claims that around $100 million worth of NFTts were publicly reported as stolen between July 2021 and July 2022, in part leading to a dramatic market downturn. Slapbang in the middle of this fury came an unknown, untrusted operation with no gameplay and a website that promised something that sounded a lot like a scam. Scam is a term that's too often banded about by hyperbolic social media commentators about games, but Renport really did feel like it could be one at the start. Does traction believe it was one? However, no. We think it was misplaced intentions trying to find a unique element against the likes of iRacing while tapping into a trending topic. Like trying too hard to look cool at a high school reunion. Only this case, instead of a nose lift and a convertible car, the aim was to tempt possible investors. Ineptitude as opposed to malice. Which leads us to the launch event held inside a former coal bunker in Munich towards the end of May 2022. It started with co-CEO, yes, Rensport has two CEOs, Morris Becker, telling the room that Renport was not a [ __ ] NFT game. One of our favorite quotes among the traction team, it was a bold, emphatic rebuttal to the naysayers. Whether it was a poor explanation on the website or a pivot following fierce feedback, when quizzed about NFTts, HBecker told traction that digital ownership was more about giving mod creators, community-made cars and tracks, a legalized path to revenue.

[00:03:42]really dream of me is uh uh bringing these guys opportunity to legalize these content so that we could help not having these content in a gray uh part gray area uh of of of publishing really making it official content and giving them the chance to monetize these things are um digital ownership for me >> but as it stands there's not no plans for tokens or blockchain >> definitely not >> despite this about turn the project had dented from the off, although at this point a mere blemish.

[00:04:15]Lack of progress.

[00:04:18]It was at this inaugural event that we got to see Renport in action for the first time and even test a work in progress build. We were told that it has been in development since sometime in 2020, and we could test a couple of GT3 cars around the Hawenheim Ring, plus an electric Porsche up the Goodwood Festival of Speed Hill Climb. It felt okay, actually. If this was the embriionic early stages ahead of a proposed release between a year and 18 months from this launch, we were cautiously optimistic.

[00:04:46]>> And the key takeaway for me is it is a brand new simulation for racing cars.

[00:04:51]And I do think the industry needs an additional member to push everybody forward. Whether or not Ren Sport is that game, however, does remain to be seen. There's a lot of potential and all the ingredients are there for something spectacular. However, until we try AI racing, if there's any wet weather, tire wear, pit stops, fuel strategies, online net code stability, all these things right now remain an unknown.

[00:05:16]>> A year on from that launch, and we visited Munich once more, but to a different venue. By now, our cynical side has started to appear. Progress seemed slow.

[00:05:25]>> Five tracks, seven cars. Is that really enough after a year of development? I'm not so sure it is. However, that doesn't mean there aren't significant things coming just around the corner. There was at least a lot of talk about modding, and we were actually able to test two point-to-point routes originally created for Asetto Corsa converted into Unreal Engine. Visitors were informed that a series of mod tools had been created, and these were possibly even showcased behind closed doors. The potential for userenerated content piqued our interest, but then nothing.

[00:05:59]Well, that's a slight exaggeration, but here we are in the middle of 2026, and the expected flood of modded content isn't here. In the base game, there are so far Quest of Chorus by Nuke Drop and Orchard Road Street Circuit by Legion of Racers. Meanwhile, the mods we tried in 2023 are still not playable at home.

[00:06:18]Now, to Renport's credit, it recently outlined a plan to open up the modding to more creators later this year for tracks, and such circuits would then be crossplatform. But we're talking over 3 years since we were led to believe mod tools were on the way. There isn't exactly a vast swath of tracks currently available, just 14. Admittedly, with more on the way, such as Sebring and Laguna Secika, but if the mod system was up and running by now, we're in little doubt it would help the player numbers.

[00:06:45]It still all feels relatively far away.

[00:06:47]The aforementioned revenue generation for the creators now also seems like a pipe dream.

[00:06:53]The esports rabbit hole.

[00:06:56]Way back near the start of the project, a partnership was announced between The Sim and esports giant ESL, a company purchased by the Saudi Arabian public investment fund Savvy Games Group in 2022. We witnessed a test competition that same year using a circle of LAN connectnected sim rigs and some of the best virtual racers around. 9 months later and the ESL R1 competition began with a ginormous $500,000 prize pool.

[00:07:22]Some of the world's best teams and drivers flocked to what should have been the turbocharge button for sim racing competitions, ditching drives in more established competitions in the process.

[00:07:32]Live broadcasts, in-person finales around the globe, and gobs of money.

[00:07:36]What could possibly go wrong? Well, again, a lot. To begin, following the CO 19 accelerated boom post pandemic, sim racing esports was naturally contracting. Although admittedly that was not necessarily too predictable at the time from within the sim racing bubble at least. Rensport and Saudi Arabia doubled down on their respective partnerships with the title used for the sim racing portion of the gamers 8 competition. Again there was an oversized prize pool this time $1 million. This was rebranded to the esports world cup a year later. And yet there was a fundamental flaw. Viewers couldn't drive the game themselves because it wasn't finished. Unlike football where anyone can have a kick about on a field with friends to get a hint of what it must be like to compete in the Premier League, ESLR1 was resolutely offlimits, it felt less relatable. It also felt elitist as there was no way for those at home to climb a sim racing ladder to maybe one day compete. Although that was always the publicly stated plan, it's just that the game's gestation took too long.

[00:08:40]>> R1 is the the pinnacle of our sporting system. So when when it comes to the release, all the people jumping into Renport have the chance uh to to step uh in in the in the sporting system and reach R1 at the end. So for us, it's super important. That's the pinnacle of our sporting system. And so there is a long long-term vision definitely.

[00:09:02]>> Now for 2026, the R1 competition is still going and there is a route for players to enter via in-game qualifications. A welcome change, but we're talking 3 years since the first formal ESLR1 round in Poland. Oh, and note the name change. ESL and Renport parted ways in 2025. The esports World Cup, meanwhile, has replaced sim racing with Track Mania for this year's event.

[00:09:27]Put simply, we get the sense that too much emphasis, development time, and money was put into what Renport calls the sporting during its gestation. The prize pools and lavish production seem like a proflegate distraction.

[00:09:42]Opaque ownership from the off. Many speculated that it was a game backed by Porsche.

[00:09:49]Several of the early cars were from the German manufacturer. The brand also entered an official team in ESLR1.

[00:09:57]And then there's also the fact that many staff members actually had ties and connections with the German constructor.

[00:10:03]It all had more than a whiff of nepotism about it. And then there's a Saudi Arabia connection through both ESL and the Esports World Cup. Even today, people speak to traction about Renport as if it's some sort of Porsche Saudi collab. However, last year the company did go on record to refute this.

[00:10:22]Rensport is fully privately owned, privately backed, said a spokesperson.

[00:10:26]Not Porsche, not Saudi. What I can tell you is that competition company is owned by the founders themselves. together with a small group of private investors.

[00:10:35]If that's the case, it just seemed too late with industry rumors and Reddit threads claiming the exact opposite for several years. It wasn't the only curious investment related case in relation to the platform either. Towards the end of 2023, Traction spotted a public LinkedIn post to an open tech investment presentation where Habbeeka talked about the company's targets for the years ahead. I've just stuck my car in the wall, but that's a good thing because you're going to need to be sitting comfortably and still when I tell you what I'm about to tell you. The targets were 670,000 paid subscribers and over 5 million active users by the end of 2027.

[00:11:17]Now, back then, Rensport was aiming for a free-to- subscription model, and there are still over 18 months until the end of 2027. So, we can't write off these aims just yet. Despite these caveats, with the benefit of hindsight, they do seem wildly unrealistic physics to battle.

[00:11:41]Still, if Renport's funding was the fulcrum of many in industry gossip section, the alleged physics system wranglings were much more public and much more damaging. forum posts and website Race Sim Central claimed that it was using some of the same physics parameters as Studio 397 and motorsport game simulation RF factor 2. This was set against a backdrop where members of Renport developers Tayon subcontracted by competition company claimed that the physics in use were groundup original.

[00:12:10]>> We are having here uh our custom physics engine uh and that's working in parallel with all the Unreal stuff uh that that in place. So yeah, that's correct. and they speak to each other, but it's technically a separate thing. It all feels like one thing for the player at the end of the day.

[00:12:26]>> And on the tire model then, is that unique to Renport? Is that something that you've created?

[00:12:31]>> Uh, this is a custom tire model, but it's based on some existing models that you can they are described on in very smart physics books and you can read about them. Uh, maybe let's not get into the details uh for today, but uh yeah, that's that's a definitely a simulation uh pretty complex one. Uh yeah, it led to an unprecedented statement published by Studio 397 which explained how it had not licensed technology to anyone else before Renport fought back, stating that everything was licensed appropriately. A day later, Rensport confirmed that it had indeed used off-the-shelf ISI motor technology, but that it had the ambition to create custom physics in the future.

[00:13:13]As it stands today, it's not yet been confirmed whether these custom physics have been implemented. Traction doesn't want to get involved in any potential legally. So, for now, I'll park this section and allow your imagination to do the rest.

[00:13:28]Late console and single player change.

[00:13:31]Following more drama than an episode of East Enders, last year it appeared like there was light at the end of a tunnel.

[00:13:38]A significant change in strategy witnessed French gaming giant Nikon come on board as publisher for a PlayStation and Xbox version which was in development with cross-platform multiplayer. This also meant a change in pricing model following a bizarre roll out that included a closed beta with very limited access then a somewhat flat open beta release with optional founders packs that put the Nurburgring Nordifa behind a payw wall before early access.

[00:14:02]Version 1.0 O would follow a traditional upfront pricing model with the betas and early access versions struggling to find an audience on PC and the console market largely starved of sim racing titles.

[00:14:14]These additional versions made sense on paper. However, this decision came relatively late in the day and so did the creation of a single player campaign with computer-controlled rivals. It was a very demanding technical challenge crossplatform and also on short notice with the console decision to squeeze everything in, said co-CEO Marco Oasi to traction recently. Long story short, from a technical and from a team perspective, performance was good.

[00:14:40]Consoles were worth it because we saw the gap in the market there and it paid off. Honestly, the release on console didn't go too badly. We have to catch up a lot on PC, but on console it was an okayish start. Heading into the sim racing expo last October, Rensport had a sizable presence with a historic Alpha Rome 155 that had raced in the DTM, signaling that future content won't just be contemporary race vehicles. But we also tried a workin progress version of the single player AI and it was concerning so close to the full release.

[00:15:10]That just seems to be an inconsistency there between qualifying the race. We've got a massive crash in the back there for BMW. It's ended up on its roof.

[00:15:19]The BMW's still on its roof over there.

[00:15:22]>> Still no matter as in November it left early access on PC and was released on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S.

[00:15:31]Renport existed. The team had shipped a game and it was riddled with bugs and in many places clearly not finished. But given the trials and tribulations to that point, it was an achievement to hit three platforms. The crossplatform systems and online net code were actually good too, which must have been a herculean effort. That single player experience though, ouch. By far and away the most egregious issue right now is the performance of the single player rivals. The AI is completely and utterly crazy, simply unracable. In our review, we handed out a lowly 5 out of 10 score, and since then, the rate of patches and bug fixes was rapid. No less than four updates were pushed out across all three platforms after the November release and before the end of December 2025. The changes too felt appropriate. It looked as though the team were truly listening to feedback. All was not lost.

[00:16:30]Nikon Insolveny.

[00:16:32]This year started off strongly too with the announcement of a new free track, Quoala Loomper Street Circuit. Another mod conversion no less to boot. A campaign of unveils began in earnest with a couple of short track layouts and the first in-game shots of the first DLC, Endurance Classics Part One. It was all slowly building to one large patch with fixes, enhancements, and new content slated for March. Well, we're in May and it's still not been released. In February, Traction was invited to Munich to the same coal bunker venue as the very first Renport Summit 4 years prior.

[00:17:08]It was a full circle moment. Now, instead of the bold claims, a cool, calm, understated team greeted the assembled media. We were shown a road map which explained that following the major March update, Laguna Secika and Sebring will be added for free in April, and an allnew singleplayer AI system was in development. There was a renewed plan for community-made tracks with a sensible rollout goal and talk of price cuts. Renport was back, and the team knew it. Except a day before we traveled, we'd heard that Nikon was in trouble and the relationship between them and Rensport had broken down. On the 25th of February, Nikon filed for insolvency and just hours later, Rensport announced that its publishing deal was over. This is a seismic event after everything Rensport has been through to release a game, start patching it, and then fall over again.

[00:18:02]No matter, it would now be self-published. But that's not the work of a moment. We've actually played the DLC and update originally slated for March, which was then moved to April with an adjusted road map, but that has been scrapped, too. And instead, there's hope the update arrives this month in May. With a bit of luck, maybe it arrives just after this video is released. But even then, surely it impacts the rest of the plan. May is our most important goal for the near future, said the company in a statement. We are done with best case scenario dates. We will only announce specifics when the code is verified. We have taken full responsibility for the path behind us, and we are now choosing the steady precision of an endurance racer over the noise of short-term hype.

[00:18:49]We can't help but think this game story is one of mystery, intrigue, cataclysmic mistakes, a lack of development resources, and some unfortunate events.

[00:18:59]The pinnacle of sim racing esports became less relevant. The switch to a cross-platform release was a noble decision, perhaps executed too late in the day, and the console publisher encountered financial challenges. Yet, poor messaging around digital ownership, curious investment tactics, and straight up lying about custom driving physics also played significant roles.

[00:19:20]Certainly, without the ability to release patches, the player base isn't going to grow. Without releasing DLC packs, revenue will stagnate. This is far from an ideal scenario, but it's not over just yet. Yes, digging through the past must be painful for the people working diligently behind the scenes on Renport, but it's important context and elements that we hope can finally be put to bed if it can manage to self-publish and start delivering the tweaks and content it has planned. Having another sim racing title out there is generally good for our niche. Competition pushes everyone forward. For Renport though, everyone else moves while it remains still. The clock is ticking.