A not - so modern-day racing secret plan !
After more than a X , Test Drive Unlimited received a reboot in an seek to revive what is one of the oldest racing franchises . Solar Crown re-introduce the open - human beings , colonnade - manner car racing biz emphasizing the fan - favorite lifestyle - building aspect , but how good is it actually ?
Graphics
Developed by Kylotonn Studio , the biz seems prognosticate if you watch the official drone and screenshots ; however , the first - helping hand experience is totally dissimilar . Players are allowed to have different expectations , but when I play a modern racing game , I bet for top - notch graphics for the surround and vehicle model . Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown failed to convince me that it ’s better than its competitors in this respect .
What I ’m saying is this does n’t experience like a 2024 racing game . If you blab about the vehicle theoretical account , they face mythical and look to be a fairly accurate representation of real cars . Having say that , the reflection and trace require a lot of oeuvre . While some car have a adequate reflection essence die on in favourable lighting weather condition , others either appear bland or have no rumination at all .
The environment is another aspect that let down me . After playing game like Forza Horizon 5 and Grid Legends , which were released years ago , TDU Solar Crown is somewhat of a downgrade in comparing . Do n’t get me wrong , it ’s not a bad - looking game ; the graphical faithfulness just does n’t seem on equation with these old titles , and the bad performance makes things even big .
musical score : 3/5
Performance
If you do n’t remember , let me remind you that this game was initially planned for a 2022 release , but the developers kept pushing the date until now . And the secret plan still is n’t finished . It ’s a poorly optimise game even after all the beta trial run and geezerhood of wait .
Even worse , the biz was mostly unplayable on launch . Players make up a agiotage for early access so they could experience the new TDU installment early , but they were greeted with never - ending host issues that are persistent to this escort . For a time , I was n’t able-bodied to encounter the biz because of constantlogin errorsand association timeouts , as was the casing for many other players around the earth . The problem is still there intermittently ; I hope the developers resolve it before the full launching as more players are going to come online . What would it take for studios to bring an offline mode to games these days ?
I play the biz on a potent enough rig ( AMD RX 6800 XT and i7 - 12700 K ) but failed to get a unchanging performance even after tweaking the setting and updating driver .
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
That is to to say , FPS is there , but it ’s not stable at times . I average 70 FPS on clear road and dip down to 50 - 55 in cities ( using Medium caliber preferences ) . I ’ve acknowledge that swop the camera to first - person POV significantly hinders the frame and the game starts stutter . Apart from ocular bugs like traffic disappearing in good order in front of you , sometimes the surround renders slowly , affecting the immersion .
Score : 1/5
Gameplay
you may not ignore the graphics and performance in a racing biz , but when you move further and start expect at the core aspect of gameplay , you ’ll enjoy your time in Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown . It shares similarities with the Forza and NFS franchises and will pull out you in if you ’re an colonnade - style racing biz fan .
There are dissimilar eccentric of subspecies and consequence to take part in all across the Hong Kong island ; you may drive at high speed through speeding traps to earn money ; discover roads , Meeting Points , Dealerships , and Gas Stations to take in XP and level up your character to unlock new vehicle . There are even treasure hunt railway car shipwreck you may discover to unlock new cars for free . automobile customization ( i.e. cosmetic and carrying into action tuning ) can be done at shop across the map .
Before each race , you’re able to choose a worthy car and tune it to your liking . you could opt from a miscellany of tires and driving modal value calculate on the raceway types , racetrack , and weather ; most importantly , you could exchange tug Assists like head caterpillar tread lines , gear geological fault , ABS , and traction control . Make the driving more difficult , and you ’ll be rewarded with more money ( just do n’t go overboard ) . For case , you ’ll need some traction control ( TCS ) enabled when the asphalt is pixilated to drive effortlessly .
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
As you progress through the point , unexampled tasks will appear for you across the map . accomplished these and you ’ll finally be able to join a clan . you may either join the tart kinship group which takes pride in being the elite luxurious , or the Street clan if you want to side with the rebellious mathematical group . Do n’t think much before take as there is no major story impingement ( because there is no floor ) ; just comply your aesthetic .
link up a order will not just give you access to their unique wearable style . It allows you to compete in clan race , dispute other online opponents in a head - to - head race , race against clan members , and unlock new rewards as you increase your influence stage . Now , rent ’s mouth about some of the negative .
The yard of the progression is good ; however , the labor get moth-eaten over time as you accomplish higher levels . For instance , most of the lower-ranking tasks after 60 minutes of gameplay were to finish x amount of races at first place with a sure car . I ’m miss the ' lifestyle ' coming of TDU here ( more on that below ) .
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
Starting or restarting a race is too drawn out in Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown . Waiting for 10 second and then catch a cutscene just to lead off a race gets boring very cursorily . Furthermore , you could not pause a race because this is an online game .
One matter that I and several other instrumentalist have experienced is that the AI or NPC cars you compete against are too powerful at times , and there is no trouble set so you ca n’t tune them down . You ’ll notice this , especially during off - route races . For some reason , the AI vehicle are impeccable in these scenario and your best bet is to use off - road tires on your fomite if you need to win the off - road competitor . hit physics feels off whether to talk about hit other cars or environmental objects . Once I even ran into an unseeable barrier during a raceway ( gratefully , I did n’t lose ) .
grade : 4/5
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
Story
If you ’re expect to indulge in a story , Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown does n’t offer anything substantial in that respect . There is a story proceeding and lore that the game is base upon but that ’s about it . At the end of the day , it ’s a racing game and the bulk of role player including me do n’t handle much about the tarradiddle .
You are invite to Hong Kong to join the Solar Crown formation and compete for them . A Lamborghini Huracan is given to you temporarily to give you a glimpse of what you may accomplish later down the road . Soon , you conjoin a kindred as discussed antecedently to take part in more race and rivalries . That ’s where it ends basically . The characters are n’t interesting and I find myself skipping most of the cutscenes . The tasks , however , are very useful for progression and assist you explore the mapping .
musical score : N / A
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
Lifestyle and Vehicles
We ’ve deal the racing aspect of the secret plan ; let ’s now plunk into lifestyle , something the TDU franchise is remembered for by the fan . The honest-to-goodness games were love for their assailable - domain mise en scene and the player ’s ability to progress their area . Solar Crown has some of these component , but they ’re not as detail .
You get an apartment where you could change your wearing apparel and retard out the calendar for approaching result . In TDU 2 , you were able to do much more with your life space ( for instance , tailor-make bulwark nontextual matter and floor , like a simulator game ) . you could not visit a real estate factor to buy or sell a house . These are small thing that sum up depth to the previous game and players enjoy the ducking .
Those count for a subsequence to play may be a slight defeated as the developer did n’t build up up on what was successful in the last games . Initially , I liked the idea of going shop at for cars at specific dealerships . But before long it became fatigued by the summons of visiting the franchise , walking up to different cars , checking their stats , and then decide whether or not to buy .
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
A menu with a listing of cars would ’ve made everyone ’s lives a little easy by making the shopping experience not so boring . Furthermore , it ’d have been easier to compare railway car before buying them . As of now , there are no conveyance missions , meetings , nightclub , or gambling , but they ’ll be added in future updates . The game in its current nation seems more racing - focused rather than lifestyle .
You ’ll find yourself drawn more towards buying vehicles to competing well in races to gain money , meaning it ’s not that prosperous to be a car enthusiast and collector in TDU Solar Crown . speak of cars , they voice swell and look amazing besides some unsatisfactory reflection effects . There is a all-encompassing variety of vehicles , from day-to-day drivers to hypercars , and you ’ll have to spend hours playing to collect all of them .
musical score : 2/5
Screenshot by Pro Game Guides
Verdict - A disappointing entry with potential
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown can be a in force racing plot to corrupt but only if the waiter issues are completely taken care of . It ’s very unprofessional of secret plan development studios to sell unfinished products . In improver to that , they also need to do public presentation optimization so the game runs smoothly .
If you ’re a TDU veteran who is expecting a sequel , you will be somewhat disappointed by Solar Crown . That suppose , the secret plan incorporates the core concepts of its harbinger and things are likely going to get better in the upcoming seasonal update with the plus of the new map Ibiza , Clan Wars , and Casino . New players will revel the game if they ’re here for railway car and races , but the poor carrying out of the lifestyle design may be too irksome for them to like .
[ Disclosure : A free copy of the secret plan was provided to PGG for review intent . ]
For more on TDU , arrest outBest ways to earn Reputation and level up tight in Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crownon Pro Game Guides .
