Santa's Gift Update

The Santa's Gift Update, also known as the 2015-2016 Winter Update, Tag Racing Update, Area 51 Update, or Gameloft's "Gift" Update, is the v2.2.0 update of Asphalt 8: Airborne, which was released on December 16, 2015 for iOS, December 18, 2015 for Android (Play Store), December 21, 2015 for Windows, and January 8, 2016 in the Amazon Appstore for Android.
This was followed by further updates to v2.2.1 and v2.2.2 in January 2016 for iOS using the same description as this update.
Area 51 and Tag Racing race mode were added in this update, along with 3D Touch controls for iPhone 6S/6S Plus models onwards. This update is considered to be one of the biggest updates to Asphalt 8: Airborne yet.
== Announcement ==
The following text was published on the Apple Store:
:Santa’s got a sack full of new features for racing aficionados, including the very exclusive LAMBORGHINI EGOISTA, which will make its video game debut in Asphalt 8!
* NEW LOCATION: Enter Area 51, this world’s most top-secret racing facility. Look out while flying; you’re not alone in the sky!
* R&D SERIES: Two speed machines will be revealed via R&D! Stack up amazing & exclusive rewards, while test-driving those beasts to the max, to make them yours!
* 15 NEW CARS: Alongside the Lamborghini Egoista, the Lamborghini Asterion, Renault Sport R.S. 01, Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34), & 11 other sports cars will be revealed. Look for each one, coming out over the next days & weeks!
* NEW GAME MODE: Make the switch in the brand-new Tag Racing mode! Experience the thrill of racing with 3 different cars in 1 single race!
* 3D TOUCH CONTROLS: Experience a new way to drive, exclusive to iPhone 6s & iPhone 6s Plus!
* HOLIDAY TRACKS: Feel a cold rush as you streak across 3 winter-themed tracks!
== New Cars ==
*Class D
**DS 3 Racing
**Honda S2000
*Class C
**Range Rover Evoque Coupe HSE Dynamic
**Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG ( car)
**Toyota Supra RZ (Mark IV) (made unpurchasable in the Motorcycles Update)
*Class B
**Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34) ( car, returning car from Asphalt 4: Elite Racing)
**Peugeot SR1 (R&D)
*Class A
**Lamborghini Asterion
**Mazzanti Evantra (made unpurchasable in the 2023 Summer Update)
**McLaren 570S (Time-limited car; originally from Research & Development Update)
**Mosler GT3
*Class S
**Lamborghini Egoista (R&D)
**McLaren F1 XP-5
**Renault Sport R.S. 01
**TRION NEMESIS
The new cars will need the following Engine Cards:
*
**DS 3 Racing (x4)
**Honda S2000 (x12)
**Range Rover Evoque Coupe HSE Dynamic (x8)
*
**Renault Sport R.S. 01 (x64)
*
**Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG (x8)
**Mazzanti Evantra (x8)
**Mosler GT3 (x16)
*
**Peugeot SR1 (x8)
*
**McLaren 570S (x12)
**TRION NEMESIS (x60)
*
**Lamborghini Asterion (x8)
**Lamborghini Egoista (x16)
*
**McLaren F1 XP-5 (x52)
*
**Toyota Supra RZ (Mark IV) (x32)
**Nissan Skyline GT-R (R34) (x4)
== Game Changes ==
===Gameplay Changes===
* New location: Area 51.
* New game mode: Tag Racing.
* New 3D Touch controls added for iPhone 6S/6S Plus
* Events now have Local Leaderboards.
* New Collectons: McLaren and Retro
* Research & Development revamped. It is now possible to see one Lab with all of its Tests instead of all Labs with all Tests at once.
** This is due to the Lamborghini Egoista's R&D event containing more than 30 Tests.
** The prompt to play an R&D event no longer shows the car's name in all capital letters (except if the car's in-game name is in all capital letters).
* The McLaren 570S's stats have been considerably buffed from the last update. The stats at MAX+PRO with a Tuning Kit still remain the same, aside from the lowered Tuning Kit bonus of +41.
===Cosmetic Changes===
* Many of the banners have been revamped in order to look more crisp and appealing. The changes are in terms of perspective, color, and especially levels of detail of the rendering.
* Two new loading screens added: additionally to the existing McLaren P1™ screen (now modified), there is one with the Koenigsegg One:1, and another one featuring the SSC Tuatara.
* Two new engine sounds introduced: "Corrado VR6" (vr6_corrado), used by the Renault Sport R.S. 01; and "Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X i4" (i4_mitsubishi_lancer_evo), used by the DS 3 Racing.
* Decals added for Cadillac 16 Concept, McLaren 570S, and McLaren P1™ GTR.
* When selecting tracks in Car Mastery, tracks now use their World Series/Quick Solo Race banners.
* Some sound effects have been altered.
==Events Schedule==
#Lamborghini Egoista R&D December 19, 2015
#Peugeot SR1 R&D January 20, 2016
== v2.2.1 ==
Gameloft released an update for the iOS platform with the build number v2.2.1 on January 5th, 2016, which has the same description as the original update and no visible changes; neither for the races, the rewards or the Christmas decoration. However, the waiting/loading screen has diminished greatly and only appears, where there is actually information to update, for instance in the ranking view of an Events. The Tag Season unlock bug was also fixed in this version. In the past, there have been two pure bugfix updates for the iOS platform, v1.0.1, and v1.8.6, which were both announced as such.
It seems however that in time-limited multiplayer Events, only players with the same game version are matched. When participating with v2.2.0, there are hardly more than four players in the room.
=== v2.2.2 ===
== Trivia ==
* This marks the final update of the year 2015.
* The McLaren 570S was released after the release of this update, just like with the Geely GC9 and the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X.
* This update has the most amount of cars released in a single update, with 14 new cars released (excluding the McLaren 570S from the previous update).
* This is the most expensive update in terms of total cost of Pro Kits, with a total of .
* Unlike most other updates, the text in the "What's New!" screen is shown in all capital letters (except when making references to Apple products like the iPhone, iPad, etc.).
== Bugs / Glitches ==
* Tokyo Sidewalk: The Tokyo sidewalk bug was fixed on Tokyo Reverse; however, there is still a small chance to be flipped when mounting the sidewalk.
* Loading: The waiting/loading sign which blocks any interaction appears on iOS very frequently throughout the game, mostly at places where there is nothing to load (i.e. when pausing a race), and the waiting time is longer if the internet connection is slow. This seems fixed with update v2.2.1.
* Tag Season: The Tag Season bug occurs when progress is synced from one device to another, the for the unlock achievement are granted again. This bug supposedly occurs endlessly whenever progress is synced from one device to another, leading to an infinite farm without the need to actually play. The Tag Season unlock bug was fixed with update v2.2.1.
* Missing Tenerife Letters: In the cutscene intro for Tenerife in multiplayer mode, if the track is Sky Drop, the "Tenerife" letters are not shown. This bug has never been fixed.
** In fact, this bug actually extended outside of Multiplayer in the Porsche Update, evident in the Championship.
===Bug Fixes===
*"No Drift bug"
*Random crashes from landing or slightly touching track borders
==Post-Update Screen==
Santa Update ad.png
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Santa Update 6.png
== Trailer ==
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