I love getting emails from Firemint studios about  its most popular car racing game, Real Racing 2. Yesterday I received one with interesting details on the next update. Due to the iPhone 4S being released – dual-core processor and iOS 5 in tow – the game will be refreshed to take advantage of the new features and software. Better graphics, and more impressively, Party Play split-screen mode could make this the most incredible iOS game ever released. It just shows how close portable games are getting to being full-on console games. If this isn’t a reason to pony up and buy an Apple TV, I don’t know what is.

Email detailed below: 

Firemint is once again bridging the gap between mobile and home entertainment with the release of the next major Real Racing 2 and Real racing 2 HD update, just in time for the launch of iOS 5. v1.12 delivers full 720p AirPlay support with the brand new Party Play mode, while stepping it up a notch in the visuals department by fully utilizing the power of the A5 processor.

Real Racing 2 & Real Racing 2 HD feature list for the iOS 5 update (features only available on iPhone 4S & iPad 2):

AirPlay features

• Real Racing 2 (iPhone 4S) and Real Racing 2 HD (iPad 2) streamed to HD TV over AirPlay
• Completely wireless. The most liberating and immersive racing experience ever
• Full screen, totally borderless display with stunning upgraded 3D graphics
• Take advantage of dual screens with real-time racing telemetry on your iPad 2 or iPhone 4S

Party Play features

• Split screen local multiplayer over AirPlay, known as “Party Play” – for 2 to 4 players
• iPhone 4S or iPad 2 acts as host, all other iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch devices can join

Visual upgrades

• Car interiors feature real-time dynamic shadows and specular lighting
• Normal mapping applied to car interior, some car exteriors and driver arms for improved lighting and detail
• Some cars have been upgraded, with an average 4x increase in polygon count, details such as front grills, door handles and seams are all modelled in
• Improved reflections on all cars
• Enhanced road lighting with normal and specular maps to highlight details that were previously indistinguishable
• Improved building window reflections
• HDR like exposure effects providing dynamic range adjustments when in shadows or looking at the sun.