CSR2

Differences from the original CSR Racing[]

CSR 2 is 'all-new', as claimed by developer NaturalMotion Studios. Supporting this claim, a majority of original CSR features are replaced with existing features from rival games(e.g. Racing Rivals) or all-new features.

Live Races[]

Live Races in CSR 2 heavily differs from Race The World featured in its predecessor.

Launch button is added in the regular version of CSR 2. In the fallback edition, due to complaints about the launch button. it is removed.
The win-streak bonus is still available, but instead of cash and mystery cards, bronze and silver keys are given. Also, the streak does not reset when the player gets out of Live Race; it only resets if the player loses.
Compared to Race The World, which is asychronous, Live Races are fully-synchronized online races.
Opponents can reject Live Race invitations. Being rejected does not end the win streak.
People can bet in Live Races. This feature was partially inspired from Stakes in Racing Rivals. However, unlike in Racing Rivals, people can't stake their cars or cash over $200,000

Crew Championships[]

Unlike its predecessor, CSR 2 is better when played as a group, with lots of social features.

Crews can hang out with the built-in text messenger or at Crew hangouts.
Prizes are given out to all members of crews in a group that qualified for the prize, unlike its predecessor, whose prizes are given out to individuals that qualified for the prize.
Crew perks are added.
While respect points are individually earned, RP ranks are now crew-centric and RP rank of crews are counted as the sum of every crew members' RP.
Playing in the storyline also gives players RP, although less than in Live Races.
Car freshness are added. This means that the player should constantly customize the car for maximum RP.
RP bonuses are now only available as crew perks.

Differences from the development version[]

CSR 2 was under development starting the fourth quarter of 2014. Through the soft launch/closed beta launches, a majority of the original plans were changed with feedback.

The Aston Martin Vanquish Carbon Edition was originally planned as a Tier 4 Rare Imports car. This was scrapped in Beta 3.
The Toyota 86 was originally planned as a dealership car. Starting from Beta 3, it was replaced with the Scion FR-S in the dealership. In the launch version, the GT86 was only obtainable from Rare Imports. As of v1.5.0, the FR-S has been removed and the Toyota GT86 now appears in the dealership.
The Dodge Dart GT was originally planned as a dealership vehicle but was removed in Beta 3 and replaced with the Dodge Dart Mopar '13. The Dart Mopar '13 would be removed in v1.5.
The speedometer was set to the Imperial measurement as the default prior to the final release. In the final release, depending on the player's country, the default changes, and Metric was not available prior to Beta 3 along with the redesigned speedometer.
A shifter design inspired from the original CSR Racing was used until Beta 3. After Beta 3, a shifter based on Nitro Nation was used. Shift result fonts were made smaller in Beta 4.
Tyler Shax originally accepted the player instead of rejecting the player. This was because the canonical storyline was made only after Beta 3, in which Tyler Shax became the antagonist from a deuteragonist.
Character and crew logo designs were heavily redesigned in Beta 3.
Prior to Beta 3, crew leader cars are not modified cars in their Tiers. Rather, they are cars from the next Tier. Except for the Ford Focus RS and the Koenigsegg Agera R, all crew leader cars later became available in the Rare Imports vehicle for the next Tier. The Ford Focus RS replaced the Ford Focus ST from the development versions and the Koenigsegg Agera R is not obtainable outside of Tyler Shax's High Stakes.
Until Beta 4, crews did not use unique cars.
Crews and Crew Perks were added in Beta 4. However, its use in Crew Championships was not available until Beta 5.
Infinite Freshness had a reset date like normal Freshness in the Beta versions. This was fixed in the final release.
The Subaru Impreza WRX STI could go up to speeds in excess of 300kph in Beta 3. This was fixed in Beta 4.
The following glitches that happened between Betas 2 and 5 were fixed:
- Stakes going up as high as $300,000
- Disconnecting glitches
- Money and gold loss
- RP not updating

Compatibility Mode[]

CSR 2 is offered in two different versions, the default mode and the fallback mode. Due to complaints to the fact that most mid-high end devices are incompatible, a fallback mode with lower graphics level is introduced at the final version.

The following is removed in the Fallback mode:

Ability to open most car parts, including the bonnet, boot space, and roof(in convertible models). However, the interior is still accessible.
Start and finish visual effects.
Shader effects.
Jess's character panels in the introduction.
Launch button in Live Races.

The following is modified from the Default mode:

The upgrade screen background is black in the Fallback mode. In the default mode, it is the garage.
World screen has became lower-definition.
Background structure is textured, like the original CSR Racing. In the Default mode the background is rendered real-time.
Crews

View Crews/CSR 2 for more details.

Like CSR Racing, CSR 2 features 5 different crews racing in different turfs, and the player have to beat one by one.

One thing more important than the original CSR Racing is that each crew has a backstory which is revealed either by Pit Row Racing(Jerry and Jess), or the previous crews(with the notable exception being Kurtz from Azure Infernos, which tells nothing about the Grand Finals, as he is laying low).

A striking difference is that a majority of the crews drive cars that are not available to the player and they no longer use the colors related to the crews, meaning that not all crews in the crew Gold Rushers will be golden. This also applies to the boss cars, so unlike a boss car from its prequel, all boss cars are now unique to normal cars and has visual differences not available to the player.

Storyline[]

Spoiler Alert! CSR, short for "Custom Street Racing", was initially an illegal street racing organization that was made legal sometime before the events of CSR Racing with the help of Nitro. Jerry, a once a successful CSR racer and mechanic, had a prized collection in Los Derivas. He founded Pit Row Racing with his mechanic Jess and soon became a successful racing team. Sometime later, Jerry was approached & signed a deal by Tyler Shax, founder of Shax Industries, a conglomerate that manufactures aftermarket automotive parts, to use Jerry's cars for research purposes. Unbeknownst to Jerry, Tyler Shax's actual motive for the deal was to steal his entire car collection, with the theft done by the Azure Infernos. The stolen cars were then scrapped for parts and sold off as upgrades.

Having lost his pride and joy, Jerry swears vengeance on whoever was responsible for the theft. Jess, on the other hand, remains calm and tries to recruit talented racers all around the city. She eventually finds the player and gives him/her a test drive, in which she was satisfied with their ability. She tries to get Shax Industries to accept the player as a racing driver, but Tyler refuses, stating that the player should gain more reputation. Meanwhile, Jerry calls the police to start an investigation into the theft but turns up no leads. Jess eventually hires the player as Pit Row Racing's last racer and Jerry gives them financial support, 130 Gold, the last hope he has after having all of his cars stolen.

The player obtains a car and heads to Nu Fangz, to see if they were responsible to Pit Row Racing's heist. Kareem "The Dream" Johnson (KJ), the leader of Nu Fangz, knows that one of the stolen cars is currently owned by Ashleigh Winthdrop, a rich actress and the leader of Gold Rushers. After beating KJ in a street race, Pit Row starts probing Gold Rushers for involvement in the heist. Ashleigh was unaware that she was racing with a stolen car, only answering that she bought the car from Azure Infernos.

Defeating Kurtz, the leader of Azure Infernos at the Salt Flats, Kurtz revealed that she, Amelia, Kiyiya, and Petah were the ones behind the heist. With this information, the crew members of the Azure Inferno crew are arrested, while Kurtz leaves town to avoid imprisonment. Sometime later, a Shax Industries sponsored event, the CSR Grand Finals, invites the player to the event. While its facade is a racing competition, it is actually an event made to hire aspiring racers for Shax Industries, with Victor Kidd, Shax Industries's current test driver, standing on top.

After beating the Grand Finals, the player gets an invitation to Shax Industries. While Jess tries to do one's best to get the player hired, Jerry, who knew who was behind this issue, wanted the player to take on Tyler Shax. After beating him and his crew, Tyler eventually reveals that he was the one who organized the theft and that Jerry's stolen cars are now sold as Shax Industries branded parts, with the player having bought some of them. Tyler Shax eventually gets caught and Shax Industries closes its doors for good. Jerry, having learned who was behind this major scene that almost led the team to destruction, jumps in joy, and Pit Row Racing is once again the top league in CSR.

Shortly after Shax's defeat, Altay, a member of The TEMPE5T, attempts a hostile takeover of the city's racing scene. Along with the help of Angel, Shana, Amelia, KJ and Larry Brunel, the player manages to drive out Altay of the city. Soon after, Ruby Rose, another TEMPE5T member, attempts the same but is also driven out by the player, now helped by Konduit, Finn, Kiyiya, Ashleigh, and Dana.

Rico Rose, another member of The TEMPE5T and Ruby Rose's brother, attempts the same by going up against Sneak, Summer, Petah, Donna and John Harkness but is also defeated.

Izzy, Jess' estranged sister, returns to Los Derivas to reconcile with her and to set up Legends, an auto body shop that specializes in older models. Throughout this chapter, Izzy reveals her past and why she abruptly left Jess on her own.

A new crew called Tashimi X arrives in town and Izzy provides some backstory of the rivalry and vengeance between Tashimi X and Tempe5t, showing Tashimi X's Leader, Noro, lost to Tempe5t's Priest because he cheated, something Tashimi X finds wrong no matter what. The player meets with Tashimi X and after Noro sees the player's strong abilities, they form an alliance to take down Tempe5t.

Trivia[]

In the introduction screen, there is a newspaper article stating "Nitro is alive and b...", as well as the introduction screen of the original CSR Racing. This is a reference to the International portion of the original game as Nitro is revealed to be alive and leading the CSR League at this part of the game.
Returning players from CSR Racing and CSR Classics can claim a "Loyalty Prize", which is a 1-star MINI Cooper S, and the increased chance to win a LaFerrari from a golden crate. If a returning player plays the game, then Jess may answer "Hey, I recognize you! Win 4 more races and you'll get a free car", upon starting the game.
- The Loyalty prize can only be claimed if the player has both CSR Racing and CSR Classics account in the local save, not in the cloud save.
- Because the loyalty reward is rewarded later than the starter car, the prize is almost pointless if the player started with the MINI Cooper S, although the car awarded will have more fusions lots than one bought from the dealership