Game Modes
My approach to game modes has always been around making sure each mode feels unique. Using the core mechanics of CSR and creating content with it was a huge challenge as I had to make sure i wasn't adding new race mechanics. Rather, it was about the various manipulations the different outputs of those mechanics could be.Â
Publicity Drive
Designed a crew based milestone event, where crew gains publicity by earning views against the crew boss.
Crew, Competition, Momentum
Overview:
Publicity Drive is a crew-based mode where players compete to out-popularise a unique boss over two days. Each boss escalates through popularity stages, unlocking new challenges to keep every encounter fresh. Layered on top are promo shots, crew customisation synergy, and timed streams that give crews shared objectives — while individual contribution determines the rewards each member takes home.
Key Impact: +170 bps (Android), +130 bps (iOS), 30% increase in players joining a Crew.
The challenge
The core design problem was making crew-based boss takedowns feel genuinely exciting rather than just a collective grind. The priority was ensuring each boss felt fun to face — not just mechanically distinct, but narratively grounded.
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What I did
I resolved this by assigning each boss a pool of buffs and debuffs drawn from their narrative background, randomly distributed across stages by the server. This meant no two runs felt identical, keeping the challenge fresh without sacrificing fairness. A reputation system was layered on top to give crews a sense of long-term progression to work toward.
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What was explored
Several ideas were scoped but held for a later version — timed streams where crew leaders could schedule double-view windows, and Promo Shots that let players photograph highlight moments mid-race to generate views. Both added depth but were consciously deprioritised to keep V1 focused.
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My process
My starting point is always Miro — I map out a rough flowchart of every system involved before touching anything else. From there I move into concept sketches to work through screen flow and surface any friction points early.
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Working with external collaborators
This project gave me the opportunity to coordinate with an external UX/UI team — a new challenge in itself. I focused on keeping design documentation clear and communication frequent, which paid off in the final product: a distinctive intro sequence and animations that elevated the whole mode.
Design Process:
Daily Draft
Drafting a team before knowing the routes, and choosing the right car against the opponent cars.
Preparation, Chance, Chemistry
Overview:
Built around the tension between preparation and chance, Daily Draft reveals race routes only after players have locked in their car team — pushing broad investment across multiple classes rather than optimising around a few favourites. A car chemistry/synergy system and weekend wildcard policies that boost score multipliers add a meta-game layer that rewards consistent engagement.
Design Process:
The Challenge
The core problem was finding a way to motivate players to build a broader car collection rather than sinking all resources into a handful of favourites. Daily Draft was the answer — a mode where collection depth directly translates to faster progression and better rewards, with used cars locked out of re-use unless paid for.
What I did
To keep the core loop engaging, I built a route pool drawn at random each run. Players receive only a surface and weather hint via an icon before drafting their team — everything else relies on their knowledge and judgement. Opponents were designed to feel like async human rivals despite being bots, with varied difficulty tiers that players select without knowing the opponent's setup. Crucially, bots choose their car after the player commits — reinforcing the tension at the heart of the mode.
Building on the core loop
Once the loop felt solid, I explored ways to add scoring depth beyond simply winning. This led to the chemistry system — drafting a team with shared traits yields a score multiplier, rewarding players who think carefully about synergy rather than just picking their fastest cars.
What was explored
One concept that was considered but not taken further for V1 was wildcard weekends — a catch-up mechanic for players who couldn't make consistent progress during the week. The idea involved swapping one of the player's cars for a random bot's car, adding an extra layer of unpredictability. This remains an interesting direction to explore in a future iteration.
Contracts
Drafting a team before knowing the routes, and choosing the right car against the opponent cars.
Challenge, Arcade
Overview:
A fresh in-race challenge lands every day in Contracts, each with up to three tiers of difficulty and a unique daily reward. Underpinning it is a reward milestone system — completions award points, and hitting milestones unlocks additional rewards — creating a natural incentive to return daily without feeling punishing.
Key Impact:Â +211 bps D1 Retention, +27 bps D7 Retention, +0.09 Rev/Install, +18% bps Payer % (Shared with Test Drive)
Design Process:
The challenge
Contracts was designed to fill a content gap in the game and drive daily session frequency. The core design problem was keeping it fresh enough that players would want to return every day without the mode becoming repetitive.
What I did
The solution was in-race challenges — a new one each day, each completable across multiple difficulty tiers. A key design principle was that completing any tier counted as a full completion, ensuring players never felt locked out by difficulty and always left with a sense of achievement.
Working within constraints
Rather than expanding scope, I leaned into the game's existing mechanics to craft the challenges around them. This meant building variety from what was already there — for example, designing challenges around winning a race through good actions rather than perfect ones, rewarding considered play over pure performance.
Test Drive
Drafting a team before knowing the routes, and choosing the right car against the opponent cars.
Discovery, Skill, Access to all Cars
Overview:
A solo premium mode, Test Drive lets players get behind the wheel of any car in the game — owned or not. Every car is loaned at a set upgrade level to ensure an equal baseline, with performance ranked across Gold, Silver, and Bronze tiers to make rewards feel earned and every run a genuine skill challenge.
Key Impact:Â +211 bps D1 Retention, +27 bps D7 Retention, +0.09 Rev/Install, +18% bps Payer % (Shared with Contracts)
The challenge
Test Drive began as a rework of an existing mode before evolving into something more substantial — incorporating Time Trials as a race style and effectively becoming a ground-up redesign. It was also my first game mode, making it a formative challenge on multiple fronts.
What I did
Beyond the design itself, the project required a key technical decision early on: use an existing tool or build a new one. I chose to work with my dev to create a new tool from scratch, prioritising long-term live ops flexibility. This meant the team could easily adjust numbers, add new cars, and manage the mode without needing to go back into development every time.
What I learnt
This mode taught me that game design decisions don't stop at the player-facing experience — choosing the right infrastructure early has a direct impact on how smoothly a live game can be maintained and iterated on. It was a valuable lesson in thinking beyond the launch state of a feature.