Cars: Hi-Octane Edition is a community-driven mod for and inspired by THQ's Cars video games. Initially released on September 3, 2014 by Teancum, the project quickly attracted fans and additional contributors, allowing it to become the first large-scale Cars modification.
The mod is currently on version 1.9.2.3 as of July 20, 2018. Download it here! Installation instructions can be found in the "readme" included in the .zip file.
About[]
Cars: Hi-Octane Edition strives to combine the best elements from Cars: The Videogame, Cars: Mater-National Championship, and Cars: Race-O-Rama into one cohesive product. The mod takes root in the PC version of Cars: Mater-National Championship, which acts as the host game because of its ease of access and relative lack of limitation compared to the other games across the other platforms.
The mod incorporates new playable cars and paint schemes, new race courses, new features, and a new and improved user interface, all while improving the quality-of-life of the original experience!
F.A.Q.[]
Are there plans to add additional race courses and cars?[]
There are no additional tracks in consideration. All tracks from Cars: The Videogame and Cars: Mater-National are now complete, and most of Race-O-Rama's tracks cannot be ported into Mater-National, either because of filesize constraints or incompatibility. The only compatible tracks are the Point to Point races, but they do not run well in Mater-National for various reasons, so it was elected not to include them.
All characters from Cars: The Videogame, Mater-National, and Race-O-Rama are now in the game, and we do not have plans to add any more.
Can characters and tracks from Cars 2 or Cars 3: Driven to Win be added?[]
No, at least for now. That’s because of the engine that is different from the THQ games and different files.
Why do characters from Race-O-Rama not have animations?[]
Some animations in Race-O-Rama use a newer, and thus incompatible, version of the MOT/WOT/GOT format. This is why the current build of Hi-Octane does not have complete animation sets for Race-O-Rama characters. However, it has recently become possible to back-port these animations so they can be used. Information about this process can be found on the Animations page. The next iteration of the mod will incorporate the necessary changes to the animations so they can be used in the game.
Why are some characters not, or only partially, voiced?[]
The game only allows for a maximum of 80 character dialogue sets, which has already been met. A workaround for this has been found, and is currently being worked on.
Why are Lightning McQueen's alternate Cars Toon styles from Race-O-Rama not included?[]
|McQueen's alternate designs were programmed as two separate models -- one for the body and one for the tires. Race-O-Rama would load them together so McQueen looked as he should. Mater-National can only assign one model to a character, however; We can only enable one or the other. A workaround is probably possible but it has not been discovered yet, so for now they will remain unselectable. All of their data is included in the mod, however, so players are free to implement them through their own modding. |-
Are there plans to add more paint jobs?[]
Yes! Fortunately, there is no limit on how many paint jobs a character can have, so the possibilities are endless! You can go to the Paint-Job Request forum to share your ideas and look for updates.
Are there plans to edit the story mode?[]
As of now, there are no plans to make edits to the course of the campaign, but there may be smaller changes like more cars driving around in the hub worlds, and different opponents during events. Additional events CAN be added to the story mode, but the process is quite difficult, and work has not started on that as of yet.
Can you expand the hub worlds to open up areas like the nature preserve or Willy's Butte?[]
No, areas like the nature preserve and Willy's Butte are actually separate "scenes" from the hub worlds, and no complete version of Radiator Springs, Ornament Valley, or Tailfin Pass exists.
What will version 2.0 be like?[]
Ideally, v2.0 will be the first build to feature everything we've planned and envisioned since day one, namely all characters, tracks, music, and paint jobs from the three games, and the quality-of-life would meet the standard envisioned by the early project members. But it won't be the end! Future releases beyond that would incorporate all-new content and features, as well as continued quality-of-life updates.
When will v2.0 be released?[]
At this point in time, there is no estimate for a release date. It should not be expected soon or even as the next version update.
To a certain degree, the factors limiting v2.0's development have become less about mechanical reasons. Many of the original roadblocks have been solved or at least adequately worked around, but the project lacks the necessary organization and unification to operate as it needs to.
However, it is currently in development as of January 14th 2023 and major changes have already been made from the latest available version. Development will take a while and many issues can pop up during development, but it's making noticeable progress towards the goal we've set for this version, screenshots as well as videos will be uploaded here on the wiki page showcasing various changes and examples of what the new version will look like.
Version history[]
| Version # | Release date | Changelog |
|---|---|---|
| v1.1 (or just the "test mod") | 3 September, 2014 | Added 2 new characters, Sally and the Piston Cup Racer. Mostly a sampler demo to ensure the uploading process worked correctly. |
| v1.2 | 22 September 2014 | Added all main and secondary characters from Cars: The Videogame and Mater-National as well as six new tracks on four new environments. |
| v1.3 | Unknown | Archived changelog needed |
| v1.4 | Unknown | Archived changelog needed |
| v1.5 | 1 December 2014 |
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| v1.6 | 16 December 2014 |
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| v1.7 | 25 December 2014 |
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| v1.8 | 27 February 2015 |
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| v1.8.5 | 14 April 2015 |
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| v1.9 | 31 July 2015 |
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| v1.9.1 | 7 August 2015 |
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| v1.9.2 | 15 June 2016 | This release includes a lot of new characters, some new paintjobs, improved textures, fixed some important bugs and added voices to some characters from the first Cars game. |
| v1.9.2.1 | 5 November 2016 | This release includes a lot of new paintjobs (including Wii and PS3 versions exclusives), improved some textures, 4 new characters and all toon alts for Mia and Tia and fixed almost all tracks from the first Cars game (fixed bugs like invisible or missed objects and collision data, blinking textures, broken finish line, some crashes and freezes). |
| v1.9.2.2 | 13 September 2017 | There was a lot of new content! Such as the unused mode Time Trial restored, around 30 new paint jobs, around 16 new songs, more texture improvements, more road races such as Interstate 40 and 6 new relay races! Plus some more minor bugs fixes. |
| v1.9.2.3 | 20 July 2018 | It includes such updates as models ported from PlayStation3 version of Cars: Mater-National for the most characters, more Race-O-Rama tracks, less crashes and a lot of minor bug fixes.
An additional "Brake Lights Fix Patch" was released on September 16, 2018. This can be downloaded here. |
| v2.0 |
Xbox 360 Port[]
After years of being exclusive to PC users, the mod was successfully ported to the Xbox 360 in 2020. A mod chip is required in order to install the mod.
Download the Xbox 360 port here!
Credits[]
This is a list of contributors who have worked on the mod at some point in time:
- Teancum (retired)
-- Creator and former project lead. Specialized in general programming and laid out the foundation for the mod, as well as providing ample documentation of his efforts. - Infinikip (retired) -- Former project lead, taking over from Teancum in late 2014. Specialized in QoL changes and general optimization.
- Vladimir29 -- (currently on break) Previous project lead, taking over from Infinikip in late 2015. Specializes in programming and bug fixing.
- Callum273B (currently on break) -- Texture artist, general programming, promotion
- Code -- Current project lead, taking over from Vladimir29 in 2023. 3D Editing, Texture artist, game design
- FabulousMSR2003Productions -- Texture artist, game design
- Jeremy -- Texture artist, game design
- Snot Rod Gaming Productions - Texture artist, game design, promotion
- Robert - NFS (retired) -- Promotion, other help
- SonicSpeedDude -- Texture artist
- Superbaddy4 - Texture artist, promotion
- TeamSpirit -- Texture editing, physics editing
- TheWinnerGuyCJP (retired) -- Texture artist, promotion
- Trackmaniamatt489 -- Texture artist and promotion
- CAHoltz (retired) -- General programming
- CarsHighOctane (retired) -- General programming, bug fixing
- Catquanganh (retired) -- Texture artist
- Nussi03 (retired) -- General programming, promotion
- Timix 91 -- Texture artist, game design
- itsmeft24 -- Reverse engineering (in-game subsystems + file formats), Adding bug fixes and new features to the game
