Ubisoft announces The Crew Motorfest, takes racers to Hawaii this year

Ubisoft announces The Crew Motorfest, takes racers to Hawaii this year

The Crew franchise of racing games is getting a brand-new entry this year. Following a few leaks, and avoiding Ubisoft's latest axing spree, The Crew Motorfest was announced today, and it is taking players to Hawaii this time. Watch the reveal teaser trailer above featuring in-engine 4K footage.

Developed by Ubisoft Ivory Tower, Motorfest is being described as a new era for the series, which once again goes for an open-world setting. Taking the driving to the island of O'ahu in the Hawaiian archipelago, the title touts racing experiences where players "race through the streets of Honolulu, fly down the steep slopes of a volcano, off-road through lush forests, or chill out on the beach."

While the developer has confirmed 100s of vehicles for this venture, it's unclear if the planes and boats from The Crew 2 will be returning for this entry too. Ubisoft has also announced right off the bat that Motorfest is a live service game, adding that it is committed to bringing new content on a regular basis after launch.

The studio is looking to get community feedback on the game's direction via an Insider Program that's kicking off tomorrow. 2,000 PC players familiar with the franchise will be invited into the initial batch tomorrow, February 1, with further closed tests happening in the coming months. While console players can't get into the Insider Program just yet, Ubisoft will be opening it up on Xbox and PlayStation nearer to the launch.

The Crew Motorfest has a broad 2023 launch window, and is planning to hit PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5, as well as the Ubisoft+ and Amazon Luna subscription services. While Ubisoft has made moves recently to return to Steam, this one will only be available in the Ubisoft Store and Epic Games Store on PC at launch.