The London-based Slightly Mad Studios debuted in 2009 with Need for Speed: Shift, and what a debut it was! At the time, EA Black Box (closed in 2013) was struggling with the established Need for Speed formula they helped to create in 2003's Need for Speed: Underground. The series' long-time fans also didn't fall in love with Need for Speed: ProStreet's "realistic" direction, familiar roads, and closed tracks.
Where Need for Speed: Shift failed, Slightly Mad Studios' Need for Speed: Shift exceeded, putting a heavy emphasis on simulation and realism. The highly successful Shift also received a sequel, Shift 2: Unleashed, in 2011. Following their spilt with EA, Slightly Mad decided to focus on their own brand, Project CARS, that was made by millions raised by the community and the developers themselves.
In a post on the GTPlanet forums, Slightly Mad’s CEO Ian Bell revealed that the developer is working on Project CARS 3. "There will be a new pCARS, it's signed. I can't tell you anything but don't hold your breath on timings. We plan to blow anything else, planned by anyone else, out of the water... That will take a while," Bell explained, though no release date time-frames or target platforms were cited.