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Test Drive Unlimited [PC]

Test Drive Unlimited (2007)

Racing, Driving

PC

Developer	Eden Studios
Publisher	Atari
Series	Test Drive

Buy Test Drive Unlimited at Amazon.com

Description

The ultimate automotive and lifestyle gaming experience, Test Drive Unlimited lets gamers race over more than 1000 miles of diverse, photo-realistic Hawaiian terrain with 90 licensed cars and bikes from the world's most exclusive manufacturers. With a challenging single player game and host of online options enabling gamers to interact with thousands of others simultaneously, Test Drive Unlimited is racing reinvented.

The PC game has been painstakingly adapted and configured to get the very best out of the latest cutting edge PC hardware, allowing it to be played in extremely high resolution with the incredible effects taking the visuals of Test Drive Unlimited to a stunning new level. No monthly subscription is required to play. An already highly successful closed beta test will be followed by an open beta in January 2007 with the aim of ensuring that the PC game is perfect in technical and gameplay terms.

Test Drive Unlimited redefines the racing genre: over 1000 miles of tropical Hawaiian roadways, instant challenges launched with a flash of the headlights, online functionality allowing thousands of gamers to play and up to 8 to race against each other, and much more.

New Hardcore Mode: Available in free-ride and multiplayer challenges, simulation mode will expand the experience for players looking for ultra-realistic driving for both cars and bikes. For the cars, telemetric data shows the actual physics modelled on real life parameters (independent grip for each tyre, weight transfer with G-meter, suspension, etc). Adapted to steering wheels and the standard controller, the hardcore mode shows drivers exactly where they succeed and where they need to improve, pushing their driving skills and the vehicles to the very limits;

Online community: launching in January 2007, www.testdriveunlimited.com/community will play host to a global community of elite racers with Player of the Week section, Leaderboards, Hall of Fame showing top scores in real time, ability to load gamer profiles to compare scores, and more;

TrackIR support: Innovative TrackIR technology from NaturalPoint delivers an unprecedented level of view control, allowing players to look all around the cockpit of their cars using natural head motions for a more immersive and realistic experience;

Seamless online connection: Unlimited new challenges, opponents and competitions;

Configured for steering wheels: the PC game will work with most existing wheels, and includes manual clutch management (3 pedals) and H shifter to let players get the very best out of the new Hardcore mode;

90 licensed vehicles: Cars and bikes from exclusive manufacturers including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Ducati, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Saleen, Shelby, and Jaguar;

Realistic cars and bikes: Amazing render quality and unrivalled interior details including full car functions such as radio, electric windows, horn and more;

Personalisation: Upgrade each car or bike with options from the actual manufacturers' catalogue. Players create unique characters, buy new homes and garages, and tune and upgrade vehicles with performance kits and new paint jobs;

Create challenges or races from more than 50 game rules and settings. Upload self-created challenges online to become part of the player community;

In-game communities: Players can create or join a club to talk, chat, trade, race or organize club-based competitions and tournaments;

Simplified match making and division based rankings make Test Drive Unlimited the most comprehensive and accessible online racing experience.

Reviews on Test Drive Unlimited [PC]

Alwood on Test Drive Unlimited [PC], 09-03-2007

"I play this game for a week now and I like it very much :P It is absolutely a MUST for car enthusiasts because of the wide range of vehicles available.
I play this game with a G25 steering wheel but a wheel isn't required to play this game, a keyboard works very well. The controls are good but not very realistic. Don't get me wrong, the controls are way better than any NFS game(except maybe the older ones like NFS2/3) but it isn't as realistic as GTR2. Because you can't break your car it doesn't annoy me that it isn't a simracer.

It is very(!) nice to take your car and cruise on the vast number of highway's and country roads. I like the fact that there are enough roads long enough to test every vehicles top speed. Some roads however are wide enough to go fast but they are very bumpy so when you go over 200kph (160mph) you are send off flying in the air.

The options for customization of your vehicle are nice. It is not as ridiculous as in NFS carbon. You can't modify the body. But you can upgrade your performance within reasonable limits and you can paint your car(when you have done a classic car race) in every color that exists. When you buy a new car you can also choose interior and exterior colors but only the factory colors. For some cars there are different types of rims.

One of the nicest things integrated in the game is that you are able to be permanently online. In the "online mode" you can cruise the island with other players and you can race them. However there is a limit of 8 to the number of other racers you can see. It's also impossible to find other players by typing in their name. Therefore it can be difficult to find others, especially friends. For in-game friends there's the possibility to add them to a friends-list, you can find them in a more easy way when they are online.

Overall I like this game very much because it is the first non-sim non-arcade racegame for PC in a very long time. There isn't one bit of the island you can't reach and the cars available are really nice."