MotorStorm Apocalypse: Free After Party Update Hits PSN Today

100w ago - Lead Designer Paul Rustchynsky has announced that the MotorStorm Apocalypse PS3 free After Party update is hitting PSN today.

To quote: On behalf of the team at Evolution Studios, I'm here to bring news of the biggest update to MotorStorm Apocalypse so far!

We've always known that feedback from players and continued development of the game post-launch would be a key ingredient, and we're still committed to supporting this goal. Read on for an overview of the free After Party update that hits PSN tomorrow today. We hope will enhance and extend your enjoyment of the MotorStorm Apocalypse!

A New Day-and-Night Track: The Rock

The stage for this After Party is an abandoned prison island near the bay, known to the lunatic racers and ravers as The Rock. Multiple routes have been carved into the island's varied terrain, so expect off-road racing action reminiscent of the legendary island in the Pacific Rift.

Expansion of 'Special Events'

A heap of fresh single-player races, hand-crafted by the design talent at Evolution Studios, are being introduced via Special Events Packs. Each pack sees you play as a distinguished character from the Festival, offering the grand sum of 120,000 chips if you can take 1st place in six unique events. The first pack (Stone: Jack of Clubs) is included in the update. Further Events Packs will be available in coming weeks via PlayStation Store, for free.

Weekly Challenges

Weekly Challenges offer you a great opportunity to boost your chip total. There are 30,000 chips on the table every week and to claim them you'll need to beat the specified target in a Rookie, Pro and Veteran challenge. Chips, if you didn't already know, unlock new Ranks and rewards in the game, as well as several PlayStation Trophies.

The available races change at the same time every week (on a Wednesday), meaning that there are new challenges to take on and more chip rewards if you can beat them. Good luck!

Vehicle Performance Re-tuned

Feedback from the MotorStorm racing community, along with the game data and statistics we've analysed since the first day of online racing, highlighted that a number of vehicle types would benefit from a slight performance re-tune.

In response to this, changes have been made to several vehicle types to support more evenly balanced and competitive races. Most noticeably improved are the Supercar, Dirt Bike and Superbike classes. The Racing Truck, Muscle Car and ATV types have also been tweaked.

Game, Servers and Connectivity Improved

The update includes many 'behind the scenes' changes to the game and the online servers, to make the overall experience more robust and reliable. Important improvements have been made to online matchmaking lobbies, player profile records and leaderboard browsing.

The After Party is a healthy update to the game, which we hope will keep you entertained while we continue to develop another big update - which will include the Game Mode Editor, steering wheel support and several other surprises we've yet to announce.

In the mean-time, enjoy the After Party, look forward to the free Event Packs on PlayStation Store and watch out for a refreshing change to the Matchmaking playlists soon. Cheers!