2020 Christmas Update

The 2020 Christmas Update is the 45th update of Asphalt 8: Airborne.
==Announcement==
GET MORE WITH THE NEW GAUNTLET STORE!
Great news, racer! We've made good even better -- now, in addition to the common Gauntlet rewards, you can get a bunch more! Race hard in the Gauntlet to get Badges, go to the special Store, spend Badges and get the the finest items!
NEW FESTIVALS ARE WAITING FOR THEIR RACER!
The winter holidays are ahead, and it's a super-cozy time to play! Don't miss the new winter festival with the splendid Bugatti Divo, and some more great festivals, including the gorgeous Koenigsegg Agera RS! Check out the calendar and burn rubber in the races!
CONNECT THE WORLD WITH DISCORD!
But wait, there's more! Now you can log into the game with Discord! Choose a profile to display your nickname in the game, enjoy all the Discord benefits, and stay close to your friends!
==New Vehicles==
*Class D
**Nissan Leaf NISMO RC
*Class B
**Exotic Rides W70
*Class A
**De Tomaso P72 (Postponed to the Neon Season Update)
*Class S
**Koenigsegg Agera RS ()
**Bugatti Divo
The new cars will need the following cards:
==Game Changes==
===Gameplay Changes===
==== Currencies ====
List of changes:
*Since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020), the Nitro Starter, Extra Tank and Double Credits boosters now require rather than (Extra Tank and Double Credits) or (Nitro Starter) to be purchased. Each type of booster now costs the exact same number of Fusion Coins as the Tuning Kit already did previously.
*Since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020), a new currency called has been introduced to the game. Gauntlet Badges, also known simply as "Badges", are exclusive to Gauntlet mode. For more information, see the Gauntlet section below.
*Since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020), upgrades for certain cars are now purchasable with either or instead of only with .
**This change relates to the following cars that previously possessed Tokens-only upgrades:
***Acura NSX GT3 Evo
***Rezvani Beast X
***Ford GT (2017)
***BMW 3.0 CSL Hommage
***Mosler Super GT
***Apollo Intensa Emozione
***Lamborghini Centenario
***Koenigsegg Regera
** Note: All other Legacy cars, as well as all Legacy motorcycles (which only have MAX upgrades and no PRO upgrades), already follow this upgrade pricing system. Only -only cars (Festival cars, Formula One cars and the Ariel Atom V8) and cars don't follow this system.
*Since January 1, 2021, all of the remaining purchasable bundles have disappeared. These bundles contained (, , with bonus items), taking away yet another (premium) avenue for the acquisition of Tokens. The only bundles remaining are the Free Daily Bundle, Weekly VIP Bundle and various gift bundles (such as the Mazda Furai Winter Holidays Gift). Otherwise, this section of the game menu is now mostly useless, with the majority of purchasable bundles now located in the "Offers" section of the game menu.
**Note: The 7-Day Booster Bundle was already removed from the Bundles section and relocated to the Offers section towards the end of the preceding 2020 Halloween Update, on December 17, 2020.
***Update: The bundle has been restored as of January 18.
**Update: The bundles have been restored as of January 19.
*Since January 18, 2021, 7-Day Milestone Advertisements now reward additional at additional milestones. Most of the old milestones haven't been removed or changed. However, the -milestone has been replaced with a -milestone, removing one of the last possible non-VIP methods by which to obtain .
**The new milestone system includes:
***[OLD] Milestone at 3 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 7 ads - 
***[NEW] Milestone at 11 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 16 ads - 1x (Class B)
***[NEW] Milestone at 21 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 25 ads - 
***[NEW] Milestone at 31 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 35 ads - 1x (Class B)
***[NEW] Milestone at 41 ads - 
***[NEW] Milestone at 45 ads - 
***[NEW] Milestone at 51 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 55 ads - 3x (Class B)
***[NEW] Milestone at 61 ads - 
***[OLD] Milestone at 65 ads - 3x (Class B)
****TOTAL: + + 4x + 4x 
** Note1: Some players report only having 10x ads per day, whereas others report having 15x ads per day. As such, some players will gain Golden Gauntlet Tickets from milestone ads faster than others. However, the total amount of Golden Gauntlet Tickets that can be won across a single 7-day ad cycle is the same for all players.
**Note2: The normal ad rewards in the 7-day ad cycle have seemingly remained unchanged.
*Since January 18, 2021, the 7-Day Booster Bundle has been relocated to the Bundles section, where it was originally located. It had previously been transferred to the Offers section on December 17, 2020. For several hours on January 18, 2021, the bundle was completely unavailable for purchase, having been missing from both Bundles and Offers.
*Towards the end of January 19, 2021, the other aforementioned Bundles have reappeared. These bundles contain (, , with bonus items). They had disappeared earlier on in the 2020 Christmas Update, on January 1, 2021. 
*The first-ever exclusive sale for cars with purchase prices in was held from January 30 to January 31, 2021.
* As of February 4, the time of writing, the 3-Day Booster Bundle can now be viewed towards the beginning of the Offers section, rather than towards the end. Previously, it was obscured by the numerous Gauntlet Packs.
==== Festivals ====
List of changes:
* Since December 25, 2020, the ability to purchase the Premium Pass in Festivals with (or, alternatively, with real money) has been reintroduced, at least for the Winter Festival, Nissan Leaf NISMO RC Festival, Koenigsegg Agera RS Festival and Exotic Rides W70 Festival so far.
**Note1: The last time that a Premium Pass in a Festival could be purchased with Tokens was during the DS E-TENSE Festival, occurring from April 25 to May 5, 2020 (2020 Spring Update, v4.9.0), which charged or US $20 for the Premium Pass.
**Note2: The Winter Festival charges or US $10 for the Premium Pass. This is very cheap, considering that the DS E-TENSE is a Class D car whereas the Bugatti Divo (the featured car in the Winter Festival) is a Class S car.
**Note3: The Nissan Leaf NISMO RC Festival charges or US $20 for the Premium Pass.
**Note4: The Koenigsegg Agera RS Festival charges or US $10 for the Premium Pass.
**Note5: The Exotic Rides W70 Festival charges or US $5 for the Premium Pass.
* Since December 25, 2020, the two variants of Festival Offers, cheap daily offers and progressively-expensive exponential offers, now provide instead of (in addition to or as well as ). are still rewarded alongside Fusion Coins in the latter category of offers.
**Note: The higher-tier exponential offers already did reward both Tokens and Fusion Coins, so they have seemingly decreased in payout as they only reward Fusion Coins now (as well as the other standard rewards). The number of Fusion Coins that are rewarded may have been increased, though this has not been confirmed.
* Since December 27, 2020 (beginning with the Winter Festival), Festival Time-Limited Events have been reorganised:
**There are now 2x Vehicle-specific Kit-cards Cups (Festival Kits Cups) rather than 3x.
***Note1: Payouts are seemingly the same as before for individual cups.
***Note2: Reward requirements may have been altered. This has not been confirmed.
***Note3: Overall, the payout has been reduced from 60x Kit Cards to 40x Kit Cards in the context of entire Festivals.
***Note4: Combining the Kit Cards that can be won from the 2x Festival Kits Cups, the occasional Featured-Car Festival Kits Cup (in the case of the Nissan Leaf Nismo RC, this was the Ferrari SF90 Stradale) and both the standard and premium Festival Tiers, the maximum possible number of Kit Cards that can be obtained from the Festival throughout its duration is only 210/220. The remaining 10x Kit Cards must be obtained by converting Wild Cards long after the Festival has concluded. Kit Cards can take up to two months to be made available for Wild Card conversion, it seems. An alternative VIP-exclusive way to obtain the remaining Kit Cards is to gradually accumulate bonus Kit Cards for that specific Festival car from the premium Festival rewards of other Festivals. However, this second method is just as tedious as the first method, not to mention more expensive.
**There is now 1x rather than 2x.
***Note1: The payout of the single Festival Coins Cup has been greatly increased, at least for players who can place within the higher positions, especially within the top 1%.
***Note2: From player testing, it seems that the highest possible Festival Tier that can now be reached by a non-VIP player is Tier 22, due to the increased overall Festival Coins payout. Whereas, previously, it was Tier 19. However, since one of the Festival Kits Cups has been removed, it seems that the overall Kit Card payout for non-VIP players is lower; though, the payout is higher. Featured-Car Festival Kits Cups are an unpredictable variable since certain players will have different progress levels towards these cars, ranging from having them at + / full- to not owning them at all. In order to reach Tier 22, having the featured car at MAX+PRO / full-PRO (or close to that) is necessary. Of course, investing more Kit Cards into upgrades for the Festival car early on will result in a better lap-time in the Festival Coins Cup that appears later on, resulting in a higher Festival Coins payout and the potential to reach Tier 22. Most non-VIP players will only be capable of reaching Tier 21 or even Tier 20. A certain element of luck is also involved, due to the semi-random drop rates, with the three distinct levels of payout per Festival Coins Pack being , and . Players have reported missing certain Festival Tiers by very small margins in Festival Coins, owing to bad luck when opening Festival Coins Packs.
** Update: This Festival TLE layout has only been used for the Bugatti Divo's Festival and the Nissan Leaf Nismo RC's Festival so far.
* Since January 20, 2021, the layout of Festival Time-Limited Events has been changed again. The Koenigsegg Agera RS's Festival used a Festival TLE layout very similar to that of the 2018 McLaren X2's Festival (August 12 to August 22, 2020; 2020 Summer Update, v5.2.0). It featured three, with each cup employing the usage of a different backup/bonus car, all having been previous Festival cars. However, there were no Festival Kits Cups since the Agera RS is an car.
** Note1: The Agera RS's Festival was the first to feature five cars, the highest number ever after the Infiniti Project Black S Special Edition's Festival's (January 23 to February 1, 2020; 2020 Lunar New Year Update, v4.8.0) record of four cars, shared with the X2's Festival.
** Note2: The Agera RS's Festival was the first to feature two ULTIMATE cars/bikes. The previous record was one, in four previous festivals that rewarded the Koenigsegg Jesko (on two occasions), Arash AF10 and Dodge Tomahawk. The Jesko was rewarded alongside the Agera RS in the Agera RS's Festival.
*** Trivia: This was also the Jesko's third appearance as a reward in a Festival, and the Jesko's second appearance as a bonus reward rather than as the main reward. The Jesko was first rewarded as one of two main cars, alongside the Lotus Elise Cup 260, in the 2019 Winter Festival (December 19 to December 30, 2019; 2019 Holiday Update, v4.7.0). Both cars had debuted in that Festival.
* Since February 1, 2021, the layout of Festival Time-Limited Events has been changed again. The Exotic Rides W70's Festival had three and four Festival Kits cups. Each Festival Kits Cup employed the usage of a different backup/bonus car, all having been previous Festival Cars, whereas each Festival Coins Cup employed the usage of the W70 itself.
** Note1: This was the second Festival to feature five cars, the current record (as of February 1, 2021), after the preceding Koenigsegg Agera RS's Festival.
** Note2: This was the first Festival to feature five -only cars (also known as "Festival cars"). The Agera RS's Festival only featured three PRO-only cars, alongside two cars, whereas every car in the W70's Festival was PRO-only. This made the W70's Festival the most expensive and exclusive Festival in Asphalt 8: Airborne's history, even more so than the Agera RS's Festival.
** Note3: This was the first Festival to reward the same car twice at two different points within one Festival. It could not actually be won twice, so players were provided with 10 Kit Cards as compensation if they had won both rewards.
** Note4: This was the first Festival to reward Wild Cards within the standard Festival rewards (Optimal, Prime and Superb).
** Note5: This was the cheapest Festival to purchase the Premium Pass for, both in terms of real money and , in the game's history, at US $4.95 or .
** Note6: This was the first Festival to reward Kit Cards for multiple different cars within a single Festival Kits Cup.
* As of February 4, the time of writing, the two variants of Festival Packs can now be viewed towards the beginning of the Offers section, rather than towards the end. Previously, they were obscured by the numerous Gauntlet Packs.
** Note: The two variants of Festival packs have also swapped positions so that the progressively-expensive exponential offers are shown firstly and the cheap daily offers are shown secondly.
*The Aston Martin Valhalla's and BMW M4 GTS's car-specific Pro Kit cards are not yet available for Wild Card - Superb and Wild Card - Optimal conversion, respectively. The Valhalla and M4 GTS both debuted during the preceding 2020 Halloween Update.
==== Gauntlet ====
List of changes:
*Gauntlet Store: A new subsection has been added within the Gauntlet screen, known as the "Gauntlet Store". It is a new shop where players can exchange a special currency from Gauntlet mode () for useful items, including part, tech & engine cards, Wild Cards, other currencies, extra tickets () and boosters. The prizes available in the Gauntlet Store are determined both by the player's Gauntlet league (tiers of prizes available) as well as by the player's VIP level (number of prizes available in stock per season).
*: Gauntlet mode now awards participants with a new currency called Gauntlet Badges at the end of every season. This currency is used to make purchases in the Gauntlet Store, as stated previously. Gauntlet Badges remain in the inventory indefinitely and are not depleted at the end of every season, unlike .
*The rating points system of Gauntlet has been reworked (since December 21, 2020, or slightly earlier) so that players now win twice as many rating points as their opponent loses whenever they win a race. However, this is only the case when challenging opponents. When defending against opponents, a player only gains the regular amount of rating points when they win, and their opponent loses the same amount of rating points when they lose. The standard amount of rating points gained is 15×2 (challenging) or 15×1 (defending). This can fluctuate up or down by several ticks, depending on how many rating points the opponent possessed before being defeated. When a player loses a challenge or defence, they only lose the standard amount of rating points rather than double, as implied previously, so the player gains twice as many rating points for winning as they lose for losing.
*Gauntlet seasons have been changed to have up to 1000 players or more per each random division (since December 21, 2020, or slightly earlier), rather than 500 players as was previously the case; this is indicated by the rewards section, which goes up to 1000 players. However, players can now only see the top 100 players, as well as their own position (if their own position is below the top 100, they will not be able to see players nearby to them), in a manner similar to Multiplayer League.
*The Gauntlet mechanics guide has been updated since December 21, 2020, or earlier.
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS1.jpg|Gauntlet Qualification Rank displayed: 6,098
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS1 zoomed.jpg|Gauntlet Qualification Rank displayed: 6,098 (zoomed)
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS2.jpg|[Car] Bugatti Divo - Upgrades: 0000; Rank: S1613
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS3.jpg|[Car] Mazda Furai - Upgrades: N/A (ULTIMATE); Rank: D1230
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS4.jpg|[Motorcycle] KTM 1290 Super Duke R - Upgrades: 0000; Rank: D1181
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS5.jpg|[Car] Chevrolet Camaro GS - Upgrades: 1411-0000; Rank: D1117
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS6.jpg|[Car] Cadillac ATS - Upgrades: 5555-5555 (MAX+PRO); Rank: D1090
A8A Gauntlet Qualification Rank Fixed Jan 26 SS7.jpg|[Car] Audi R8 e-tron - Upgrades: 5555-5555 (MAX+PRO); Rank: D1048
*Since an unknown point, at the time of writing, January 26, 2021, the Qualification Rank in Gauntlet mode — a figure determined by the sum of the five highest-ranked "cars" (vehicles) in a player's Garage — has been changed so that motorcycles don't count towards it. Previously, motorcycles counted towards the Qualification Rank even though they couldn't be used in Gauntlet mode, which was very unfair for players whose Qualification Rank crossed over a Gauntlet League rank-threshold only because a motorcycle in their Garage was among their five highest-ranked vehicles.
**In the screenshots provided, it can be seen that the Qualification Rank has, in fact, been changed to exclude motorcycles. The screenshots show the five highest-ranked cars, as well as the highest-ranked motorcycle, from a certain player's inventory. The highest-ranked motorcycle is higher-ranked than three of the five highest-ranked cars, so it should be among the five highest-ranked vehicles.
***[Car] Bugatti Divo - Upgrades: 0000 | Rank: S1613
***[Car] Mazda Furai - Upgrades: N/A () | Rank: D1230
***[Motorcycle] KTM 1290 Super Duke R - Upgrades: 0000 | Rank: D1181
***[Car] Chevrolet Camaro GS - Upgrades: 1411-0000 | Rank: D1117
***[Car] Cadillac ATS - Upgrades: 5555-5555 (+) | Rank: D1090
***[Car] Audi R8 e-tron - Upgrades: 5555-5555 (+) | Rank: D1048
****Rank-sum of the five highest-ranked vehicles (cars and motorcycles) = 6,231
****Rank-sum of the five highest-ranked cars = 6,098
****Gauntlet Qualification Rank displayed = 6,098
****Therefore, the change is true.
**thumb|AndreeaFromGameloft's announcement about the changethumb|The forum member whom AndreeaFromGameloft was responding toNote: The change was announced by AndreeaFromGameloft, the Community Manager of Asphalt 8: Airborne's forum (at the Gameloft Forums), Discord server and Facebook page, on January 26 (according to Gameloft's server-time).https://forum.gameloft.com/viewtopic.php?f=1505&t=680235&sid=fc176e2f2d59c83513e793a9829f965f&curpage=flist&start=1470
==== Time-Limited Events ====
List of changes:
* There was no Multiplayer Cup in Time-Limited Events in the week beginning on January 18, 2021, and ending on January 24, 2021.
** Analysis: It seems that the TLE might not reappear for a while. It had been a regular, weekly, two-day-long TLE for over two months, starting from November 7, 2020. That particular TLE, which started on a Saturday, was an outlier. Most subsequent TLEs started on Wednesdays. There was one other outlier that started on a Monday, on December 14, 2020. The TLE was popular for various reasons; (1) it was free for all players to enter, providing a range of high-end Class S cars for players to test out at +, full- or ; (2) it provided generous rewards, including boosters, Superb Wild Cards (Class S) and ; and (3) it was a major source of for Gauntlet mode, providing in total per TLE. The TLE became a major element of Gauntlet mode due to the difficulty of obtaining tickets elsewhere. However, due to the introduction of the Gauntlet Store, where tickets can be purchased in exchange for , and due to the increased number of tickets that are available from 7-Day Milestone Advertisements starting from January 18, tickets have become easier to obtain outside of the TLE, which may explain why the TLE has been discontinued, at least for now.
** Update: The Multiplayer Cup also didn't appear in the week beginning on January 25, 2021, and ending on January 31, 2021.
* Since January 23, 2021, the weekly in Time-Limited Events has been replaced by a weekly , removing one of the last possible non-VIP methods by which to obtain .
** The rewards of the Fusion Coins Cup are as follows:
***(Standard) Finish Race: 
****Note: This is achievable with any car in any condition.
***(Leaderboard) Top 5%: 
****Note: This is achievable with unboosted, fully-upgraded, high-end Class S cars.
***(Leaderboard) Top 10%: 
****Note: This is achievable with unboosted, fully-upgraded, low-end Class S cars and high-end Class A cars. It is possibly even achievable with double-boosted, fully-upgraded, mid-to-high-end Class B cars.
***(Leaderboard) Top 40%: 
****Note: This is achievable with unboosted, fully-upgraded, mid-to-high-end Class C cars and all Class B cars.
***(Leaderboard) Top 75%: 
****Note: This is achievable with unboosted, fully-upgraded, mid-to-high-end Class D cars.
***(Leaderboard) Top 80%: 
****Note: This is achievable with unboosted, fully-upgraded, mid-to-high-end Class D cars.
***TOTAL:
==== Mazda Furai ====
List of changes:
* + rank decreased from to 
*Fully upgraded top speed decreased from 359.1 km/h to 290.1 km/h
*Fully upgraded nitro speed decreased from 39.7 km/h to 35.1 km/h
*Fully upgraded acceleration has been improved
*Drift radius has been adjusted
*Nitro efficiency has been improved
*Converted to status 
*The Furai has always had very good acceleration, handling and drifting. Unlike most other ULTIMATE vehicles, such as the Koenigsegg Jesko, the Furai's new raw top speed is standard for its rank, rather than much higher.
**Analysis1: The Furai's nitro efficiency at its new rank of is 7/11.5/16. The Furai's previous, worse nitro efficiency at its old rank of was 9/15/18.
**Analysis2: The Furai at its new rank of takes 2.5 seconds to accelerate to its maximum speed from a standstill with a Nitro Starter, Tuning Kit and triple-tap nitro. At its previous rank of , the Furai took 3.3 seconds to accelerate under the same circumstances, though its top speed was significantly higher as well. Comparing the length of time taken to accelerate to the same speed, the Furai's acceleration has improved by around 0.1 seconds. The Furai took 2.6 seconds to accelerate to the same speed as the Furai.
==== Other ====
List of changes:
* In the patch notes, Gameloft claims that the Rimac C_Two will be buffed to the rank slot (from ), though this change already occurred towards the end of the previous update, the 2020 Halloween Update, on December 9.
* Since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020), the Terra 9 and Orbital Loop tracks have been added to Local Wi-Fi and Quick Solo Race game modes.
=== Vehicle Availability Changes ===
==== Vehicle Price Changes ====
The purchase prices of the following vehicles have been changed:
* The Rimac C_Two's purchase price was increased from to seemingly upon the launch of the 2020 Christmas Update.
* The KTM X-Bow GT4, which debuted as a free car in the Formula E Update (April 28, 2020; v4.9.1), is now available for purchase in the Garage at the price of . This was not recorded in the preceding 2020 Halloween Update's patch notes, though the change presumably occurred at that time and was not a part of this update. During the 2020 Halloween Update, many exclusive vehicles were placed permanently on sale in the Garage for Fusion Coins, likely including the X-Bow GT4, though this was not documented at the time.
* The following vehicles that debuted during the Seventh Anniversary Update and the 2020 Halloween Update, the two preceding updates before the 2020 Christmas Update, have now been made available for purchase in the Garage at the following prices in presumably since the launch of the update:
**Morgan Aero GT - 
**Jaguar XKR-S GT - 
**Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 - 
**Aston Martin Valhalla - 
**Bugatti Chiron -
==== Vehicle Removals ====
The following vehicles are currently not available for purchase:
*The Mazda Furai was removed from the Garage for normal purchase upon the launch of the 2020 Christmas Update.
**Analysis: As stated elsewhere on this page, the Furai was reshuffled from Class C to Class D, was converted to status and was given away to all players for free as a Christmas gift. Hence, it is highly unlikely that it is was removed from the Garage due to licensing issues. It has likely been removed in order to dissuade players from purchasing it with , given that it's a free vehicle at the moment. However, some players did pre-emptively purchase the Furai with Tokens shortly before it was removed from the Garage, fearing that they would never be able to obtain it again. This turned out to be a false alarm, given that it subsequently became a free vehicle. These players have not been compensated for purchasing the Furai at that time.
**Update: The Furai is no longer available as a free gift (Winter Holidays Gift) as of January 27, 2021, according to one report.https://www.facebook.com/groups/232926860191657/permalink/1873786482772345/?comment_id=1873793662771627&reply_comment_id=1873795049438155 This means that the Furai is now completely unobtainable.
*The Lucra L148, an old car in the game (it debuted in late-2014 to early-2015 during the Winter Update; v1.7.0) and a -purchasable, then Blueprints-assemblable and then finally (briefly) -purchasable car in mid-Class B (previously in mid-Class A), is no longer available for purchase in the Garage. The Lucra L148 was converted into a Tokens-purchasable car in the 2019 Halloween Update (October 30/31; v4.6.0). Its subsequent fate is unclear, though it temporarily went on sale from November 29, 2019 until December 2, 2019. The Lucra L148 has not been obtainable by any means since then.
**The change was spotted on January 5, 2021. Technically, nothing has changed, though almost every other exclusive vehicle has been placed permanently on sale in the Garage as of the 2020 Halloween Update. So, it seems that the Lucra L148 has either been forgotten or removed from the game.
**It is unclear whether the Lucra L148 was placed on sale in the Garage in the 2019 Halloween Update, after it was converted into a -purchasable car, or was instead converted into an exclusive vehicle at that time, only to never return to the game after December 2, 2019.
**Note: Players reported the Lucra L148 as being unobtainable as early as June 28, 2020, in the comments section of the Wild Cards Update (v5.1.0) wiki page.
*The Marussia B2, an original car (one of 47 original cars that have been in the game from the beginning, August 2013) in the game and a -purchasable, then Blueprints-assemblable and then finally -purchasable car in high-end Class C (previously in low-end Class A), is no longer available for purchase in the Garage as of December 29, 2020. In real life, the Marussia automotive company has been defunct since April 2014.
**The Marussia B2 had previously been on sale for 50% off at from December 17, 2020, towards the end of the 2020 Halloween Update on IOS and Windows and during the 2020 Christmas Update on Android, to December 28, during the 2020 Christmas Update.
**Unlike the Lucra L148, the Marussia B2 was on sale much more recently and may have been permanently purchasable for a substantial period of time.
*The Holden Coupe 60, originally a -purchasable and then subsequently Blueprints-assemblable car in high-end Class B prior to the discontinuation of Blueprints in April 2019 (2019 Spring Update; v4.2.0), thereafter having been temporarily removed from the Garage for purchase, has once again not been available for purchase in the Garage since October 30, 2020, since the beginning of the 2020 Halloween Update. It is unknown whether it has been permanently or temporarily removed. In real life, the Holden automotive company was dissolved on December 31, 2020, so it seems likely that the removal of the Holden Coupe 60 from the game is permanent.
**The Holden Coupe 60 had previously been on sale at its full price in either or (but not both) for most players from October 16, 2020 to October 29, 2020, during the Seventh Anniversary Update (v5.3.0). At the time, nearly every exclusive car in the game, having previously been obtainable only via R&D, EDD, Championship, World Tour, Multiplayer League, TLEs and so on, had been on sale temporarily. Subsequently, upon the launch of the 2020 Halloween Update, the vast majority of these cars were placed on permanent sale in the Garage for Fusion Coins. The only car that was not subsequently placed on permanent sale in the Garage was the Holden Coupe 60.
**Note: The Holden Coupe 60 was already effectively removed from the Garage back when Blueprints were discontinued in April 2019, though it was still occasionally placed on temporary sale in the Garage at later times.
*The Ferrari Enzo Ferrari (A1790), Sbarro Alcador (A1747) and Sbarro GT1 (C1545) have also been reported as being unobtainable during the 2020 Christmas Update. The Enzo was last obtainable on September 9, 2020, having been placed on sale many times throughout 2020. The Sbarro GT1 was last obtainable by VIP players on June 8, 2020 and by non-VIP players on April 26, 2020. The Alcador was last obtainable on December 2, 2019, in a brief exclusive sale that occurred during the 2019 Halloween Update (October 30/31; v4.6.0), alongside the Lucra L148, whose similar case has been detailed above.
**When it debuted, the Enzo was a Class S car; it was subsequently transferred to Class A. On the other hand, the Alcador has always been a Class A car and the Sbarro GT1 has always been a Class C car.
**Both the Enzo and Alcador were formerly Blueprints-assemblable cars, similarly to the Lucra L148, Marussia B2 and Holden Coupe 60, all of whose cases have been detailed above. On the other hand, the Sbarro GT1 was never Blueprints-assemblable.
*The Infiniti Vision GT has not been obtainable via any means ever since its R&D was rerun for the first time on March 14, 2020. The last date that it could have possibly been acquired was a few days after March 14, 2020, since players were given a few days to start the R&D before it prematurely disappeared.
**Normally, it would seem that the Infiniti Vision GT could have a chance of returning to the game in a second R&D rerun. However, it seems that R&D reruns have been discontinued as of the Seventh Anniversary Update (v5.3.0), which began in September 2020. Previously, new R&Ds had been discontinued ever since the 2019 Holiday Update (v4.7.0), which began on December 19 across all platforms, with all new cars from that point forward being exclusively obtainable via Festivals.
**As stated in the Holden Coupe 60 segment above, almost all exclusive vehicles were placed on permanent sale in the Garage upon the launch of the 2020 Halloween Update, having previously been temporarily on sale in the Garage for around two weeks towards the end of the Seventh Anniversary Update. The Infiniti Vision GT wasn't placed on temporary sale, and it subsequently wasn't placed on permanent sale either.
**Note1: It is suspected that licensing issues may have had something to do with the Infiniti Vision GT's removal from the Garage.
***Update: The licensing for the Infiniti Vision GT seems to primarily belong to Polyphony Digital, the developer of the racing simulation series of video games known as Gran Turismo, as well as to the Infiniti brand, which is a luxury subsidiary of Nissan. Polyphony Digitial launched a vehicle design project called Vision Gran Turismo, seemingly in 2013 or earlier, and signed deals with multiple automotive companies to design cars specifically for the project and for the game. Infiniti's entry into the project was the Infiniti Vision GT. When the Infiniti Vision GT debuted in Asphalt 8: Airborne in the Holiday Update of December 2018, it became the first car from the Vision Gran Turismo project to feature in an unaffiliated racing simulation game. It is likely that the licensing agreement signed between Gameloft and Polyphony Digital over the Infiniti Vision GT has expired or has been terminated, resulting in the Infiniti Vision GT's removal from Asphalt 8: Airborne.
**Note2: One player has reported on the Gameloft Forums that the Infiniti Vision GT can no longer be used in the entire Career Mode by players who already own it since at least November 3, 2020, and likely since a short while earlier than that.https://forum.gameloft.com/viewtopic.php?f=1505&t=708310
*The Formula E Gen2, Infiniti Project Black S Special Edition, SSC Tuatara, TVR Sagaris Special Edition, Hennessey Venom GT, Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG Special Edition, Zeus Twelve Sigma and Koenigsegg Jesko have also not been available by any means for several months at this point, though there's no indication that they will not return at future points in time as exclusive vehicles.
**The Tuatara has been unobtainable for the longest period of time, having been removed from the Garage on December 19, upon the launch of the 2019 Holiday Update (v4.7.0) across all platforms.
**Among these cars that have been listed, three of them, the Project Black S SE, Sagaris SE and SLK 55 AMG SE, are Lunar New Year Special Edition cars. There is one other Lunar New Year car, the Audi R8 e-tron Special Edition, that was temporarily on sale in January 2021, though it isn't permanently on sale in the Garage either. There are three other Special Edition cars in the game that are not themed around the Lunar New Year, namely the Nissan 370Z Special Edition, BMW M2 Special Edition and Mazda RX-8 Special Edition. The latter two cars are permanently on sale in the Garage whereas the 370Z SE was given away as a free gift for logging onto Facebook during the 2020 Christmas Update, though it's unknown whether it's still on permanent sale in the Garage.
***The Project Black S SE and Sagaris SE have both gone on sale at least once in the Offers section, for real money, roughly during mid-2020.
**Among these cars that have been listed, three of them are vehicles. One of them, the Jesko, is the tied-best car in the game, so it's most likely being temporarily withheld due to its overpowered performance. On the other hand, it's unclear what the fates of the Tuatara and Venom are. The Venom was previously a -purchasable car, and it was last obtainable in August 2020 (19 to 25) when it was temporarily placed on sale in the Garage. The Tuatara hasn't been obtainable in any way since December 19, 2020, as stated previously.
***Note: The Jesko is frequently featured as a free-try vehicle in Weekly Multiplayer Cups as well as in other free-try TLEs, so it's almost guaranteed to not have been permanently removed from the game.
***Update: The Jesko was made available as a premium reward through the Koenigsegg Agera RS's Festival from January 20 to January 30, 2021.
**The Formula E Gen2 is the second old Festival car that is not on sale in the Garage at the moment, after the Infiniti Project Black S Special Edition, whose case is detailed above. Other newer Festival cars aren't on sale either, but that's because they are new. It is unclear why the Formula E Gen2 isn't on sale at the moment.
**The Zeus Twelve Sigma has always had restrictive availability, like the Infiniti Vision GT (whose case is detailed above), though it doesn't seem that there are any licensing issues surrounding this car.
***The Zeus Twelve Sigma still has its Season 9: Beyond race in the Career Mode, whereas the Infiniti Vision GT doesn't.
**Note1: The Dodge Tomahawk, which debuted during the preceding 2020 Halloween Update, has presumably not been made available for purchase due to being an vehicle (motorcycle).
***Update: The Tomahawk was available for purchase in the Offers section from midday of January 23, 2021, to midday of January 29, 2021. The price was US $119.95 or AU $159.95. This was much more expensive than the original price of just US $19.95 or AU $29.95 in the Morgan Aero GT's Festival back in November 2020 (2020 Halloween Update). In that Festival, the Tomahawk was the Tier 1 Premium reward, so it could be attained as soon as the Premium Pass was purchased. The Premium Pass was only available for real money and not for , but the price in real money was still relatively cheap in comparison to the price that the Tomahawk was being offered at in this deal. It seems that this deal for the Tomahawk had the second-highest price that any individual vehicle has ever been sold for in real-life currency. The most expensive vehicle in the game, by a huge margin, is still the 2015 GTA Spano, which can only be attained with real money, for a price of US $4000 or AU $6000. It should be noted that were included in this deal for the Tomahawk as well.
**Note2: The BMW M4 GTS, the last vehicle that debuted during the preceding 2020 Halloween Update, has not been made available for purchase yet. This will presumably happen at some point in the near future, either later on in this update or upon the launch of the next update.
* Among motorcycles, four out of fifteen are purchasable in the Garage at the moment. As stated previously, the Dodge Tomahawk is not on sale at the moment, though it is a relatively new vehicle. Meanwhile, the Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR my2017 was permanently removed for non-owners back in October 2018. However, aside from those two motorcycles, the other nine motorcycles that aren't on sale in the Garage, as well as the four that are, are available for purchase with real money from the Car Packs section of the main menu.
** The list of motorcycles that can be purchased in the Garage includes:
**# Suzuki GSX-R750 - 
**# Kawasaki Z800 - 
**# KTM 1290 Super Duke R - 
**# Ducati Monster 1200 - 
** The list of motorcycles that can be purchased with real money includes:
**# Suzuki GSX-R750 (Nitrous Standard Bike Pack; US $5)
**# Kawasaki Z800 (Nitrous Standard Bike Pack; US $5)
**# KTM 1290 Super Duke R (Nitrous Standard Bike Pack; US $5)
**# Ducati Monster 1200 (Nitrous Standard Bike Pack; US $5)
**# Yamaha YZF-R6 (Nitrous Standard Bike Pack; US $5)
**# Ducati SuperSport S (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# Yamaha FZ-10 (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# MV Agusta F4 1000 R (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# Ducati XDiavel S (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# BMW S 1000 RR (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# Suzuki Hayabusa (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# Kawasaki Ninja H2R (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
**# Lightning LS-218 (Powered Premium Bike Pack; US $90)
===Technical Changes===
Technical changes are as follows:
*Decreased Session Load Times: On Windows, when the game has been fully loaded at least once during the current login session, subsequent reloads of the game during the same session are greatly reduced.
*Device Compatibility: The following devices & platforms are no longer compatible with the game:
** iOS: iPad 3, iPad 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPhone 5С, iPod Touch 5, and iOS versions below 10.0.
**Android: Android API 20 or older.
** Windows: Windows 8.1 or older and Xbox Live. Player data is now linked to a Facebook account.
*Social Media Logins:
**Logging onto Facebook or Outlook (Microsoft email) is now mandatory for Windows PC players since the launch of the update. Both platforms are used to save data to the Cloud and also to provide an in-game username, which the player can switch between in the player-profile menu, which can be accessed via the upper-left corner of the screen. Xbox Live (another Microsoft social media and gaming platform) was discontinued as a login/data-save option since the launch of the update.
***Logging onto Facebook, Google Play or Discord is mandatory for Android players.
***Logging onto Facebook, Apple, Game Center or Discord is mandatory for iOS players.
**Gameloft has also claimed that a Discord login option will be made available at some point during this update. Discord is a social media service that allows users to communicate with one another both with text and with video/audio. 
***Discord is already available for Android and IOS players and presumably has been since the launch of the update on Android and IOS.
===Cosmetic Changes===
Cosmetic changes are as follows:
*New loading screen of a Bugatti Divo in Patagonia that replaces the previous loading screen of a Bugatti Chiron in Terra 9.
*Since December 14, 2020 (changes initially implemented during the preceding 2020 Halloween Update); Iceland, Tokyo and the Alps are decorated with Christmas scenery objects until February 2021.
**Note: The addition of extra city havoc around these tracks, in the form of Christmas gift boxes and snowmen, does affect gameplay to a minor degree. Destroying these gift boxes provides a minor boost to the player's nitro meter.
**Note: Snowflake particle effects directly on the device's screen are visible on these tracks on Android (and possibly IOS) but not on Windows, which has lost its particle effects in the preceding 2020 Halloween Update. "High" visual quality needs to be selected on Android; this is equivalent to "Extreme" visual quality on Windows. Alps, by default (with High/Extreme visual quality), already has snow particle effects in the background as well.
*Gauntlet Cosmetic Changes:
**Changes implemented since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020) include:
***The Gauntlet Store is now visible in the upper-left corner of the main Gauntlet screen, with a large green parallelogram-shaped button and a watermark of a price-tag symbol.
***The currency balance is now visible in the main Gauntlet screen, nearby to the Gauntlet Store button and the currency balances of the and .
***The Daily Rewards segment of Gauntlet mode has been cosmetically redesigned to a slight degree, with a new progress bar underneath the Daily Rewards, giving more visibility to this feature.
* Since the launch of the update (December 16, 21 or 22; 2020), the Rimac Automobili logo has been updated to reflect the current design in real life.
*The brands Exotic Rides and De Tomaso are now visible in the Brand Filter in the Garage. These changes were noticed in late-January 2021 (the time of writing is February 1, 2021).
==Exclusive Vehicles==
*December 29, 2020 - January 2, 2021
**Ferrari F50: (40% off)
**Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren 722 Edition: (21% off)
**Aston Martin One-77: (15% off)
**McLaren 720S: (10% off)
*January 3 - 7, 2021
**Pontiac Solstice GXP: (42% off)
**Audi R8 e-tron Special Edition: (23% off)
**McLaren 650S GT3: (18% off)
**Peugeot Onyx: (15% off)
**McLaren 675LT: (11% off)
*January 30 - 31, 2021
**Hyundai i30 N: (5% off)
**Ariel Atom V8: (10% off)
**Maserati MC12: (14% off)
**ONUK Sazan LM: (16% off)
**Apollo N: (17% off)
**Lamborghini Murciélago LP 640: (18% off)
**Ferrari F60 America: (20% off)
==Events==
#Winter Festival (December 25, 2020 - January 4, 2021)
#New Start Multiplayer Season (December 31, 2020 - January 25, 2021)
#Nissan Leaf NISMO RC Festival (January 8 - 18, 2021)
#Koenigsegg Agera RS Festival (January 20 - 30, 2021)
#Frostbite 4 Multiplayer Season (January 28 - February 22, 2021)
#Exotic Rides W70 Festival (February 1 - 11, 2021)
==Gifts==
===Winter Holidays Gift===
Winter Holidays Gift details:
Furai gift FB a8.jpg
Furai Gift a8(1).PNG
Furai gift a8(2).PNG
V5.5 Winter Holidays Gift Bundle.png|Winter Holidays Gift compensation for players who previously owned the Furai (minimum rewards)
A8A Winter Holidays Gift Compensation.PNG|Winter Holidays Gift compensation with maximum possible rewards
The Mazda Furai was given to all players for free as a Winter Holidays gift from December 25, 2020, up until January 26, 2021. It could be claimed as a free gift in the left-most segment of the Bundles section. Players who previously owned the Furai instead received a gift bundle as the Winter Holidays Gift on January 11, 2021, as compensation. The bundle could be claimed for free from the Bundles section.
*Maximum compensation rewards included:
**
**
**10x 
**10x 
**10x 
**10x 
**40x 
* Minimum compensation rewards included:
** [25% of the maximum rewards]
** [2.5% of the maximum rewards]
**5x [50% of the maximum rewards]
**5x [50% of the maximum rewards]
**5x [50% of the maximum rewards]
**5x [50% of the maximum rewards]
**20x [50% of the maximum rewards]
* Note: It seems that players may have been provided with different levels of compensation rewards based on their upgrade levels before the Furai was converted to status.
Note: The game automatically sent players a notification advising them to claim their Furai gift (unless they had notifications disabled).
===Gauntlet Badges Gifts===
Gauntlet Badges Gifts details:	
Gauntlet Badges Gift Amateur.jpg|Amateur League
Gauntlet Badges Gift Pro.PNG|Pro League
Gauntlet Badges Gift Champion.jpg|Champion League
Gauntlet Badges Gift Elite.PNG|Elite League
Free Gauntlet Badges were gifted to players a few days after the launch of the update (perhaps around December 23), based on their league in the immediately-previous Gauntlet season (which was seemingly terminated early), if applicable. Players received the number of Gauntlet Badges for achieving first place in each respective league, regardless of their position during the previous season, as following: 
{| class="table-a8"	
League 	Badges
Amateur 	
Challenger	
Pro 	
Champion 	
Elite 	
===Christmas Gifts===
Christmas Gifts details:
Christmas Gift 2020 FB a8.jpg|Facebook promo ad on December 25, 2020
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 1 a8.PNG|Promo image on Day 1
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 2 a8.PNG|Promo image on Day 2
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 3 a8.PNG|Promo image on Day 3
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 4 a8.PNG|Promo image on Day 4
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 5 a8.png|Promo image on Day 5
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 6 a8.png|Promo image on Day 6
Christmas Gift 2020 Day 7 a8.png|Promo image on Day 7
From December 25 - December 31, 2020, daily gifts were given for logging into the game and consisted of the following:
*Day 1:
**10x (Class D, Class C and Class B)
*Day 2:
**15x (Class C)
**15x (Class C)
**15x (Class C)
**15x (Class C)
*Day 3:
**1x 
**1x 
**1x 
**1x 
*Day 4:
**7x (Class A)
*Day 5:
**10x (Class B)
**10x (Class B)
**10x (Class B)
**10x (Class B)
*Day 6:
** 
*Day 7:
**5x (Class S)
===Social Media Gifts===
Social Media Gifts details:
*Log onto Facebook and get the Nissan 370Z Special Edition.
*Players who already have the 370Z SE will get instead.
*Note: It is unclear whether this gift is permanent (given that the Facebook mandatory login feature is presumably permanent) or will only be available during the 2020 Christmas Update.
==Bugs / Glitches==
Bugs and glitches are as follows:
thumb|Normal Gauntlet gameplay: The ghost is visible and the lap-time is normal.thumb|Buggy Gauntlet gameplay: The ghost is missing and the lap-time is impossibly short due to mismatched tracks.
thumb|Players were compensated for the Weekly Tires Cup issue on January 27, 2021. Screenshot one of two.
thumb|Players were compensated for the Weekly Tires Cup issue on January 27, 2021. Screenshot two of two.
*iOS crashes: Players have reported that the game will always crash at the splash loading screen. A temporary solution to this is to turn off and reboot the device before launching the game. Asphalt 8: Airborne Discord server
*Windows, Android: Some players reported that they only received parts of the Christmas Gifts.
**It is possible to gain compensation for the missing rewards by contacting Gameloft Customer Care with video evidence.
*Token Cups finish after 24 hours, even though the durations have been shown as two days in the weekly calendar.
**Gameloft gave players as compensation for an issue relating to a Tokens Cup on January 4, 2021. It is unclear exactly what issue they are referring to, however.
*Gauntlet Bugs:
**As of December 28, 2020, the bugs in Gauntlet mode involving missing ghosts and mismatched tracks have resurfaced.
***These bugs originally appeared in Gauntlet mode when it debuted in late-October 2020 at the beginning of the 2020 Halloween Update. The bugs were soon fixed on November 9, 2020, prior to reappearing in the 2020 Christmas Update.
**Server connection bugs in Gauntlet are still a major issue and have seemingly gotten worse recently, as of January 31, 2021. Tickets are often depleted before races have even started, usually whilst the player is attempting to enter a race but is having connection issues. When losing a race, it is possible to lose double the normal number of rating points due to connection issues. It is also possible to not gain the daily bonus from Gauntlet races due to connection issues, usually when the player has exited the race after having completed it but before the results have been uploaded. Rating points can be deducted even though the daily bonus has not been rewarded.
*Weekly Tires Cup: On January 25, 2021, all of the leaderboard data for the Weekly Tires Cup in Timed-Limited Events, which was held on Mountain City Rally, Transylvania, was wiped from Gameloft's servers. Some players who noticed it were able to retry the cup and gain back their rewards, however, many players didn't realise what had happened, and they ended up losing their rewards entirely. Players who did retry the cup generally had to spend extra boosters and Fuel in order to set a new lap-time.
** On January 27, 2021, players were compensated for their lost rewards with and 10x . It seems that all players may have been provided with the exact same quantity of compensation rewards.
*** Note: The original maximum rewards of the cup were and 19x .
*Multiplayer League:
**Players are increasingly being disqualified from races in Multiplayer League due to connection issues, resulting in the appearance of a "red x" where the increase or decrease in rating points is usually displayed. This "red x" used to be common several years ago, did not appear very often throughout most of 2018 to 2020, and has now become much more frequent as of January 2021 (the time of writing is February 1, 2021).
*Weekly Suspension Cup: On February 3, 2021, the Weekly Suspension Cup in Timed-Limited Events was inaccessible for players on the Windows PC platform, who were blocked from entering the event by a prompt reading "Event 1 is not available yet" and providing a list of every vehicle in the game, similar to that which can be seen during multi-stage TLEs. The event was seemingly accessible for those players on IOS and Android. Subsequently, Gameloft swapped the glitching cup with a new cup. The track was changed from the initial Classified, Area 51, to The Mirage, Dubai.
** Note1: It is unclear how the change affected players who had already participated in the glitching cup on IOS and Android before the track was changed.
** Note2: Some players also complained about similar issues for IOS on the previous day, February 2, 2021, for the preceding Weekly Exhaust Cup. The complaints were made on the Gameloft Forums. The precise nature of the issues is unclear.
==Post-update screen==
A8 v5.5 screen 1.jpg
A8 v5.5 screen 2.jpg
A8 v5.5 screen 3.jpg
==Trailer==
center|350px
==References==