The Crew 2

Lore & Background

The Crew 2 is a racing game in which players assume control of a racer working to become successful in multiple vehicular racing disciplines. It features a persistent open world environment for racing and free-roaming across a scaled-down recreation of the contiguous United States. In addition to cars, players can control airplanes, motorcycles, and powerboats, each with its own control physics. Players can switch between controlling air, land, and sea vehicles instantly. The game features four different hub worlds, each with their own theme and playstyle: off-road, street racing, pro racing, and free-style. It places an emphasis on playing multiplayer in groups called crews and also features a cooperative multiplayer mode that allows players to join any events besides boss events together; this mode can also be played solo with artificial intelligence.

The game's nonlinear story follows the unnamed player character as they become a racing icon in the United States by winning in all racing disciplines. The four disciplines are Street Racing, Off-road, Freestyle, and Pro Racing. In Street Racing, the player is assisted by Latrell Jordan. In Off-road, the player is assisted by Tucker 'Tuck' Morgan, having previously been assisted by Wade Palmer until the player completes 'The Switch' event. In Freestyle, the player is assisted by Sofia Valentina Herrera and Emmett Lee Parker. In Pro Racing, the player is assisted by Alexis Kendrick.

Development was based on feedback from the previous installment. One major critique was that players did not have enough freedom to explore the world and do missions. To solve this, Ubisoft overhauled the game's progression system and decided not to focus much on the narrative, instead dividing the game into several hub worlds. The downloadable content Wild Run, which was positively reviewed, prompted the studio to focus more on off-road racing. The engine was modified to improve draw distance and include enhancements such as atmospheric clouds and realistic vegetation. The game's control was designed to be accessible but 'hard to master'.

Reader's Guide

The Crew 2 is notable for expanding the open-world racing formula of its predecessor by introducing multiple vehicle types—cars, motorcycles, boats, and airplanes—that can be switched instantly. This allowed players to explore a scaled-down recreation of the contiguous United States from new perspectives, such as flying a plane to see distant objects. The game's development prioritized player freedom by overhauling the progression system and de-emphasizing the narrative, instead offering four themed hub worlds that players could engage with in any order. This design choice addressed criticism of the first game's restrictive mission structure. The game received 'mixed or average reviews' on Metacritic. Its legacy includes the eventual release of a sequel, The Crew Motorfest, on September 14, 2023, set in a scaled-down recreation of the islands of Oʻahu and Maui in Hawaii. Additionally, in 2024, following controversy over the shutdown and license revocation of the first game, Ubisoft announced an update introducing offline play, which was released on October 16, 2025, and continued receiving updates as of April 2026.

Did You Know?

• The Crew 2 was released on June 29, 2018, for PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox One, and Google Stadia.
• Players can instantly switch between controlling cars, motorcycles, boats, and airplanes.
• The game features four hub worlds with themes: off-road, street racing, pro racing, and free-style.
• An offline play update was released on October 16, 2025, following controversy over the first game's shutdown.