Digital Release | PC 2008 – Online April 01, 2021 – Steam |
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Delisting | January 01, 2023 – Launcher Disabled January 24, 2023 – Removed from Steam January 31, 2023 – Server Shutdown |
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Developer | Chat Republic (2008 – 2018) Gunther-Gerben Boxhammer (2018 – 2023) |
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Publisher | Chat Republic (2008 – 2018) Gunther-Gerben Boxhammer (2018 – 2023) |
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Available On | None | |
Links | Superstar Racing homepage [Archive] SteamDB page |
Delisting
Superstar Racing and Superstar Streetz were both made inaccessible for new players by January 1st, 2023 with the servers going offline for existing owners on January 31st. The games were removed from the Steam store in January and early February 2023 but after January 1st only the launchers could be downloaded, the client installer was already offline.
Previously in October of 2015 Chat Republic mentioned on Facebook that the future of the games and the company were uncertain but that a “new Admin [might] be taking over the game and perhaps bringing it to greater heights”. As early as 2018 the Chat Republic name on various homepages was replaced with a new copyright by Gunther-Gerben Boxhammer. It is uncertain if this is the “new Admin” mentioned in 2015 or another party. Both titles then came to Steam in 2021 (Racing) and 2022 (Streetz) with a seemingly brief period in 2021 where Superstar Racing was being flagged by malware scans as malicious with some users stating that it was installing crypto miners. Boxhammer refuted the claims stating they were false positives and they would investigate.
A post on the Superstar Streetz Discord server in late November of 2022 reportedly laid out plans to shut the game down on December 1st but the comment was quickly deleted and servers were said to “continue running as normal”.
On January 3rd, 2023 Discord moderator Moh confirmed that “servers are down until further notice” and the followed up on January 25th adding that “at the end of this month the servers will be fully disconnected, Superstar Streetz is over”. The Superstar Racing Discord server has since been deleted but it is assumed that it followed the same trajectory toward being shut down.
Since the release of the games on Steam only a few dozen daily players were active in either title. Moh provided some annual player counts for Superstar Streets at the end of 2022 revealing that the game had seen 3,213 players through that year, the highest they’d been since 2017. The earliest stat they provided was from 2012 when they recorded over 350,000 players with an all-time peak the following year in 2013 with 490,871 players. In 2020 a Patreon was started to support new development of both games but has since been terminated.
It seems that after more than a decade in operation, and despite the increased number of players in 2022, the games were not able to generate enough in-game purchases or VIP subscriptions to justify maintaining them any longer.
About the Game
Superstar Racing is a popular arcade-style racing MMO with a great variety of tracks, cosmetics, and competition. Superstar Racing is a completely free-to-play, fast-paced action-filled online game where you can create your very own driver avatar and racing team. Once you’re done customizing your driver and team, you can invite your friends to join efforts in ascending the team’s ranking. In addition to the social aspect of this game, you can get together with players from all over the world and challenge them to race against you and your team.
You can race them over dozens of different racing tracks, with these tracks being updated and added to over time by the developer. When you win races, you earn credits, which you can then spend on new clothes and other items to pimp out your avatar in the store.
Want to take your competition to the next level? Superstar Racing allows controller support. You have the ability to connect your controller or steering wheel and start racing! So you have enough to do in Superstar Racing besides the actual racing itself. Nail that promotion, score them hard-to-get achievements, and become rich and famous as you have always dreamed of!
- Follow the real Formula Calendar – The real world Formula calendar defines which grand prix is currently going on, giving a sense of reality to your gaming experience.
- Create your own character – You can define general appearance, gender and clothing of your personal character in game while socializing with others in a persistent online paddock.
- Create your own team – Dominate the scoreboards with your teammates, gaining fame and glory!
- Customize your own car – You’ve got plenty of options to customize your Formula to maximize efficiency and simply stand out in the crowd!
- Increase your skill rating – You have a skill rating to match you up against the most optimal challengers.
- Gain levels – With each race you get closer to your next level and fascinating titles!
FREE stuff (Non-VIPs):
- Beginner and Advanced difficulty levels
- Basic Formula game modes
- Basic character clothing available
- Basic car components available
- 10 free races per day(For Non-VIPs)
- Level capped
VIP Subscription:
- All difficulty levels
- All races & tracks available
- All in game items available
- Unlimited racing!
- Tournaments throughout the Formula season
- Team creation
- Extra x2 points in races!
- Extra game mode; Rally
What are you waiting for? Come join us & have fun – Available since 2008. 3,5 million registered users 140 million races completed