Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown Season 4 Preview: Casino, New Cars, and Gameplay Changes

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Famine

Famine

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I keep reading comments from folks who's opinions I respect saying some good things about this game, Im still haunted by the demo which put me right off though. Im hoping for the Cyberpunk type redemption to happen, particularly as driving games are precious amongst the capitalist merging/shenanigans.
 
So to sum it all up….

  • Season 4 is mainly about the casino…
  • In some countries this casino isn’t even available (but no communication whatsoever in which countries exactly 🙄)
  • If you have access to the casino, the ONLY game you can play is the slot machine… for now.
  • Earnings from the slot machine can’t be converted back to in-game currency…. yet.

You honestly can’t make this stuff up 😂
 
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The economy has been busted for ages. Progression is the worst I have ever seen. Graphics are horribly optimized. And, after months all they manage to do is introduce a casino which is equally half baked. So, how can we possibly make the situation worse? Advertise 4 new cars, only two of which are not paid DLC and then sell credits for the DLC in the scummiest way possible…. Congrats! We have now reached a new LOW point for “live” gaming services.
 
evldave333
I keep reading comments from folks who's opinions I respect saying some good things about this game, Im still haunted by the demo which put me right off though. Im hoping for the Cyberpunk type redemption to happen, particularly as driving games are precious amongst the capitalist merging/shenanigans.
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I'm there with you, man. Absolutely loved the X360 Test Drive Unlimited so was very excited for this one, but those early days still linger in my memory, making me completely unsure if this IS a better game now or if it's still bad, and not wanting to bite the bullet to find out.

Someone needs to buy the game, play it and share their impressions of the game... maybe a certain GTPlanet staff member would oblige us. Maybe.
 
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Zero2Oblivion
I'm there with you, man. Absolutely loved the X360 Test Drive Unlimited so was very excited for this one, but those early days still linger in my memory, making me completely unsure if this IS a better game now or if it's still bad, and not wanting to bite the bullet to find out.

Someone needs to buy the game, play it and share their impressions of the game... maybe a certain GTPlanet staff member would oblige us. Maybe.
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We reviewed it at launch.

I keep going back to play it (I love trophies after all), and while in general I like that it's a bit different I always end up bored after about 45 minutes.

Also I really wish it'd include roads you've raced on as discovered roads.
 
Famine
We reviewed it at launch.

I keep going back to play it (I love trophies after all), and while in general I like that it's a bit different I always end up bored after about 45 minutes.

Also I really wish it'd include roads you've raced on as discovered roads.
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If you get bored after 45 minutes, how are you with other open-world racers like Forza Horizon and The Crew?

That to me was the issue. X360 Test Drive always had something to do, something to engage in. While recent open world racers tread a similar path, I think I have shifted my perspective by engaging more in dedicated racers like Gran Turismo and ACC, making open-field racers seem less focused and boring.
 
breyzipp
So to sum it all up….

  • Season 4 is mainly about the casino…
  • In some countries this casino isn’t even available (but no communication whatsoever in which countries exactly 🙄)
  • If you have access to the casino, the ONLY game you can play is the slot machine… for now.
  • Earnings from the slot machine can’t be converted back to in-game currency…. yet.

You honestly can’t make this stuff up 😂
Click to expand...

Famine
Well, the first bit at any rate.

I'm more interested in the pass, and the paid pass, and the VIP paid pass, and the two entirely new currencies - one of which is also paid.
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These are certainly decisions...that have been made.
fwyflyer
The economy has been busted for ages. Progression is the worst I have ever seen. Graphics are horribly optimized. And, after months all they manage to do is introduce a casino which is equally half baked. So, how can we possibly make the situation worse? Advertise 4 new cars, only two of which are not paid DLC and then sell credits for the DLC in the scummiest way possible…. Congrats! We have now reached a new LOW point for “live” gaming services.
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There's a special kinda of awful when you manage to top EA & 2K in this kind of design for a Live Service title (While not even having the "Triple AAA" Game budget if I recall).
 
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Zero2Oblivion
I'm there with you, man. Absolutely loved the X360 Test Drive Unlimited so was very excited for this one, but those early days still linger in my memory, making me completely unsure if this IS a better game now or if it's still bad, and not wanting to bite the bullet to find out.

Someone needs to buy the game, play it and share their impressions of the game... maybe a certain GTPlanet staff member would oblige us. Maybe.
Click to expand...
On a ffb wheel, the driving model is surprisingly good. Likewise, controller players also enjoy the driving model. So, at a root level the game has great potential but Devs have ignored consumers requests or been so slow to patch that most have already given up on it. Things like being unable to tune cars until level 20 and not getting to enjoy the Crown races until level 60 are just nuts. Likewise, the failure to have an offline mode in light of the disastrously low player count make it a bit of a gamble. But, if you have bleeding edge hardware, it IS still very enjoyable to drive (while waiting far too long for economy fixes and video and network optimizations). Finally, it will likely take an hour or more to setup and figure out how to get into the car and drive it if you have a full sim rig and/or motion platform.
 
I think the main appeals of the TDU 2 casino were the online pvp table games and the fact that you couldn't lose any real money (though I know one person who put a lot of enjoyable hours into the slots for the thrill of winning credits and the car).

If there is any pathway at all to turn real money into paid Diamonds into losable chips, then the game has sunk to the same level as "money-in, nothing-out" sludge like Slotomania and Gardenscapes.

Fingers crossed for diamonds only directly unlocking cars, or something (or their implementation being cancelled, that'd be nice).
 
The most positive news for me is the introduction of S2 and S3 ranked reward cars being accessible in the dealership. The casino really doesn't interest me in the slightest although props to KT for not pulling the plug in the first year and having a longer term plan to support and improve the game.
 
I don't understand the devs, It's a succession of poor decisions and failed promises, I try to like it but I'm quickly bored by the grinding aspect of the game and the loads of bugs or technicals issues
I've install the game once again to check on PS5, performance is even worse than before... nothing major have changed, the only good stuff is delivery missions, but it's pretty basic and it missed the tension we had in the old TDU
I expect nothing for this S4, this is still disappointed and casino isn't my biggest expectation, I look forward for S5 with the game engine overhaul and maybe more solo content...

No mention to the payed DLC that I found pointless and a ripoff

@fwyflyer FFB is good on a FFB wheel ? I've try several setups with my TGT2 on PS5, nothing is really good or work , it's mostly vibration, no real FFB, the steering ratio is messed up, on controller I agree it's not that bad
 
Yes, ffb on the PC in TDUSC is actually pretty good. And, the ability to tune cars so that they handle appropriately is also cool. You definitely feel the changes in the wheel when you alter the balance of the car. What's even more surprising is that TDUSC also works in full motion for those that have the rigs.
 
fwyflyer
Yes, ffb on the PC in TDUSC is actually pretty good. And, the ability to tune cars so that they handle appropriately is also cool. You definitely feel the changes in the wheel when you alter the balance of the car. What's even more surprising is that TDUSC also works in full motion for those that have the rigs.
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could you give me your FFB setup in game ? it may help, thanks
 
I am using a Moza R12 with Moza CRP-2 Brakes, Moza Handbrake, Project D H-Shifter, and an NLR Motion Platform V3. These settings are nowhere near perfect but they do allow me to feel exactly what is going on with the car.

With a whole lot of trial and error, I discovered the single most important factor for ffb quality within TDUSC is having minimal rotation and one to one steering. Because my Steering Range is greyed out, I set the Steering degrees within Moza Pithouse to 360 degrees. For folks like me who enjoy sim racing, it is frankly hard to set it down that far... but this is arcade so when in Rome.... Same goes for centering spring. This is arcade so when in Rome...

As always, feedback on the settings, whether positive or negative, is appreciated. The fact is I would love to see more players in game despite my brutal honesty about it.

One final tip for PC users who tend to do more Sim Racing, at level 20, when you have created your own tunes by adjusting the springs, shocks, arbs, etc., make SURE to also adjust brake pressure to -800 or so otherwise the brakes on many cars lock up far too quickly.
 

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There was supposed to have been a free weekend on PC, did that ever happen?

I know the console weekend happened, what, last year? Earlier this year? And it was supposedly to be soon followed by one for PC. I already played the beta/demo thing and the performance was astonishingly bad, but curiosity killed the cat and all of that...
 
Terronium-12
There was supposed to have been a free weekend on PC, did that ever happen?

I know the console weekend happened, what, last year? Earlier this year? And it was supposedly to be soon followed by one for PC. I already played the beta/demo thing and the performance was astonishingly bad, but curiosity killed the cat and all of that...
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Unfortunately, graphical optimizations are not due until season 5 (September); as a result, performance is still pretty dismal unless you are on the most current generation of hardware. Even then, using the nvidia app to force the latest version of DLSS 4, my true (non frame gen based) frame rate isn't exactly steady but holds somewhere between 60-75 fps. I then use Frame Gen x 2 to maintain well over 120+ (faked) fps on my 5080 at mostly ultra settings. On a 4060 though, even with a newer gen processor, you can only really expect 30-55 true fps.
 
I hope PS5 Pro is going to keep its 60 FPS mode when in a very wooded area. Usually it tends to switch to 30 FPS when in the very forest-y areas, at least during off-road racing events.
 
Terronium-12
There was supposed to have been a free weekend on PC, did that ever happen?

I know the console weekend happened, what, last year? Earlier this year? And it was supposedly to be soon followed by one for PC. I already played the beta/demo thing and the performance was astonishingly bad, but curiosity killed the cat and all of that...
Click to expand...
I played like 1-1h30, In The PS5, on that free weekend, and The game was on realy bad state. Poor graphics, pop ins, slowdows, etc...
Realy terrible.
 
art1976
I played like 1-1h30, In The PS5, on that free weekend, and The game was on realy bad state. Poor graphics, pop ins, slowdows, etc...
Realy terrible.
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Sounds like all this game offers atm is a title of past glory.
 

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