Dear members,

By watching our recent trailer, “The Racer”, you got a taste of how responsive and dynamic our game can be, and the more competitive among you loved it. While “The Cruiser” trailer gave you a look at a more relaxed driving experience with the radio playing, “The Racer” video showed another way to play TDU, one that illustrates how much fun it is to win races, take on other players, upgrade your car and constantly strive for better performance. Today we'd like to take another look at this important part of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, which will take you to the top: competitive racing.




A lot of you have already expressed a preference for one of the two clans in TDUSC: the Streets and the Sharps. Whether it's for personal reasons or the kind of cars, clothes or music you like, you are already leaning in a particular direction! Each clan defends and promotes its own vision of luxury and passion for cars.




With its stunning landscapes, Hong Kong Island is the ideal setting for a battle for influence between the two clans. Even though you don't have to ally yourself with either of the two clans, helping one of them come out on top will help you achieve your objectives faster and unlock exclusive clan rewards.

Entering the Solar Crown competition means you will want to acquire new cars throughout the event. This could be because you want something more prestigious, with higher performance or a car better suited to a certain challenge. There are lots of ways you can acquire them:

• Taking part in driving challenges: on- or off-road races, time trials, etc.
  
• Exploring and discovering new districts, roads, secret areas, etc.
  
• Finding and completing wrecks so you can restore iconic cars, only accessible by exploring the island
  
• Using FRIM to perfect your driving skills and earn Solar Coins

In addition to activities organized by the Solar Crown, you can defend your clan's colours by taking part in clan races and by throwing down an Instant Challenge to members of the opposing clan.




While enjoying a relaxing drive around the streets of Hong Kong Island, chilling out to your favourite music station, you suddenly hear the deep roar of an engine behind you. A visibly fired-up player seems to be goading you. They flash their high beams, confirming their intentions. You only have the bare minimum of information: name, clan, car, Performance Rating and the amount of Solar Coins at stake. That's all it takes for a clash of egos to spill over. There's no way you'll let this player from the opposing clan provoke you and win a duel. Once the challenge has been accepted, you start a head-to-head race along a unique route that is randomly created and depends on your location on the island.

Each player has already configured their betting profile and the amount they are ready to stake for each challenge. Once the Instant Challenge has been started, the goal is to cross the line before the other player and win the pot! If the player you beat is from the rival clan, your Influence in your clan increases, and you help with your clan's ultimate aim of ruling over the island.

Instant Challenges are a fast and exciting way of competing against other players, with no limits on vehicle or Performance Ratings: they are 100% improvised and organized between players. They can also be disabled if you're not into that sort of thing. Once turned off, other players can no longer challenge you, but you will have less Influence within your clan.


On Hong Kong Island, new temporary activities appear each week, which give you access to exclusive rewards and mouthwatering sums of Solar Coins. There are several types:

• Lifestyle Battles: These races embody the rivalry between the Streets and Sharps. During these challenges, each clan tries to impose its vision of luxury and racing on Hong Kong Island. There are 5 different types: Instant Challenge LBs (win the most Instant Challenges), Frantic Spender LBs (spend the most money), Maximum Gain LBs (accumulate the most money), Need 4 FRIM LBs (earn the most SC in FRIM), and Betting Challenges (win the most SCs in Instant Challenge bets)
  
  
• Hot Heads: Time Attacks are randomly selected to become Hot Heads races each day on Hong Kong Island. Players need to achieve the best possible time and climb as high as possible on the leaderboard by the end of the day. The amount of Solar Coins you earn depends on where you finish.
  
  
• High Stakes : Just like with Hot Heads, Time Attacks are randomly selected to become High Stakes races. When an event becomes a High Stakes, a new target time is set. Participants get 3 chances to try to beat the time. They also need to pay an entry fee for each attempt. The entry fees are added to an overall pot and then split among the drivers who beat the target time.

Some of you got the chance to try out Hot Heads mode and the first Lifestyle Battle Instant Challenge during Closed Playtest #2. It was a sneak peek and an initial chance to take on the best players in the Solar Crown!


In TDUSC, you can take part in different types of races to increase your Reputation in the Solar Crown competition. As you've seen through the different Solar Club Letters, the stories in Test Drive involve many players. That's also what we're aiming for with the races.

This means all the races are primarily multiplayer events, so you will face other players in each of them. If there aren't enough players in an event, AI drivers will fill out the starting grid. Each Solar Crown race has certain restrictions on participation. The restrictions may involve the car category, year, make, a specific model, type of transmission allowed (FWD, RWD, 4WD), type of engine (thermal, hybrid, electric) and, finally, the car's PR (Performance Rating). Each race always has at least one restriction, but there can be as many as three (e.g. Supercar, max year 2010, FWD).



In addition to these restrictions, which already allow for an infinite number of race variations, there are different types of races:

• Circuit: A race around a closed loop with checkpoints to cross. The number of laps can vary. Basically, a classic race!
  
  
• Sprint: A race from A to B via checkpoints that you absolutely must pass!
  
  
• Time Attack: Solo races in which you need to reach a given location via checkpoints and cross the finish line before the countdown ends! The faster you reach the finish line, the higher your ranking. In this game mode, you can also play against the ghost of any player in the rankings.
  
  
• Domination: In this game mode, players earn points according to their position each time they reach a checkpoint. These are A to B races, and the player with the most points at the end of the race is the winner! In each race like this, there is a randomly-determined Rush checkpoint that doubles the points awarded at that location!

More race modes and challenges, including some very popular ones from TDU 2, are also planned for post-launch updates.




The purpose of the Solar Crown is to bring together the world's most influential drivers and also to determine who are the very best. That's why Radiant has decided to set up a competition within the Solar Crown.



Starting from level 20, various races are randomly selected in the different districts of Hong Kong Island to become Solar Crown competition races. Why are they randomly selected? Quite simply because being the best driver in the Solar Crown means more than being the best driver in your favourite car. You have to be the best in every car in your garage. In the Solar Crown, the most well-rounded drivers are rewarded and celebrated.

By participating in these races, your position in the leagues changes according to where you finish in the races. Drivers can move up from Bronze to Diamond and reach the upper echelons of the Solar Court, which includes the best drivers from the Solar Crown. The best of this elite becomes the Solar King/Queen at the end of each season, becoming the new face of the Solar Crown.



Participants are rewarded according to how high they place in the leagues. Members of the Solar Court, and the Solar King/Queen, receive an exclusive new car. At the end of the season, participants' positions in the leagues are reset for the next competition.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“In Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, the experience is based on realistically depicting what it's like to drive the most prestigious cars on the planet. We also wanted to convey this in the racing experience by motivating players to push their vehicles to the limit.

We designed the competition so it would not only reflect the intensity of a closed-track race, but also in a city reproduced on a 1:1 scale. That carries certain limitations with it, which means you have to know the strengths and weaknesses of each of your cars, install the right parts and choose the right driving modes. The goal is to not only determine the best driver, but also to find out who knows and manages their garage the best.”

It's important to think about how to optimize your car to maximize your chances of winning. But don't worry, you don't need to be an expert in mechanics to get results. In TDUSC, car optimization is both satisfying and accessible!

DRIVING ASSISTS

Whether you're a beginner who just wants to enjoy stress-free driving without risk of an accident, or an expert with extensive road experience, the driving assists help you achieve your objectives through a range of essential settings:

• ABS system (anti-lock braking system) for better brake control, adjustable from 0 to 100%
  
  
• TCS (traction control system) for better road grip, also adjustable from 0 to 100%
  
  
• A race line that shows the ideal trajectory to follow in your races. You can set it to be always visible, just visible for bends, or disabled
  
  
• A gearbox that can be set to semi-automatic or manual

To help you become familiar with the different settings, you can use one of the three available presets: Novice, Intermediate or Expert. These presets automatically change the settings to match your preferences. Adjusting these settings also determines how many Solar Coins you earn from activities on Hong Kong Island: the less you rely on driving assists, the greater the rewards.

CAR SETUP

Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown aims to be realistic, while also being fun and accessible. We feel players should have sufficient scope to make modifications that have a real and visible impact on the car, and the process should not leave the player feeling lost in a host of ultra-precise adjustments that often have a negligible impact.

Just like in Test Drive Unlimited 1 and 2, you can focus your optimizations on several clear and concrete variables:

• Acceleration power (torque)
  
• Top speed
  
• Braking
  
• Handling

There are different ways you can upgrade and optimize these variables.



PURCHASING NEW MECHANICAL PARTS

As mentioned when we talked about Workshops in Solar Letter #1, you can upgrade your cars with mechanical modifications. This is sometimes essential to meet the entry conditions for certain races. Some modifications directly affect your car's performance: intake, exhaust, brakes, transmission, aerodynamics, cooling, etc.; whereas others have more of an impact on the car's behaviour in certain racing conditions: close or wide gear ratio, tire choice depending on the surface, suspensions, and so on.



CHANGES TO THE DRIVING MODE

With Driving Modes, you can refine the settings for your cars. More experienced players can customize and set up their own modes, which will affect (in a simplified way) speed, stability, handling and braking. Each vehicle has a Stock (factory) preset and three further presets from among the following:

• Sport: For high-speed sports driving, designed for racing on major thoroughfares like motorways. It uses precise steering adapted to high-speed manoeuvres. Sport mode retains flexible handling suited to city driving and makes it easier to cross sidewalks.
  
  
• Trail: For racing on dirt and gravel. This preset has responsive steering and a close gear ratio for frequent acceleration.
  
  
• Dynamic: Oriented toward urban racing in confined areas. It uses a close gear ratio for frequent acceleration.
  
  
• Off-road: For safe driving on all surfaces (asphalt, tracks, etc).
  
  
• Rain: For wet conditions and safe driving on slippery surfaces.
  
  
• Circuit: A responsive but challenging driving mode, it uses a wide gear ratio to get the most from the engine power. It stabilizes the vehicle but makes it more sensitive to road hazards.
  
  
• Cross-country: Suited to crossing obstacles, it uses a close gear ratio to provide lots of torque and has more flexible suspension. This mode makes you more competitive off-road.
  
  
• Relaxed: The safest and most comfortable driving mode, suited to cruising and exploration.

A few weeks ago, we gave over 5,000 players the chance to try out the TDUSC experience for a short time in Playtest #2. As well as once again noting your enthusiasm for the game, for which we thank you, it was a major step in the development process, allowing us to test game features and certain technical aspects on a large scale. The playtest allowed us to test the different types of servers and identify areas for improvement so we can ensure you get the best possible multiplayer experience.

We'd like to confirm that there will be a new Closed Playtest in the coming weeks. It will be open to even more people and regions. Those who took part in Playtests #1 and #2 will automatically be invited to join. The playtest will be subject to the same strict rules of confidentiality (streaming, captures and sharing are not allowed). If you haven't yet done so, you can register for the TDU Newsletter at https://testdriveunlimited.com/. If you've already completed the Playtest registration form (sent by email), there's no need to send in a new one even if you haven't been selected yet.



We hope this (long) Solar Club Letter has given you significant insight into the experience that awaits you in TDUSC, especially those of you who enjoy the competitive aspect. So, are you a Street or Sharp? Cruiser or Racer?

Follow TDUSC on our social media:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support the game by adding it to your Steam wishlist:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

See you next month!
The TDU team.

Dear Solar Club members,

As you saw in our last video, The Cruiser, the driving experience - and not just for racing - is key to our approach to Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown. Lots of Test Drive Unlimited fans still remember the first time they got behind the wheel of the car of their dreams in the previous version, whether they were going for a spin in town or meeting up with friends on the streets of Ibiza or Oahu in TDU and TDU 2. One of our objectives is to give you the same sensations with Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, on the streets of Hong Kong Island. In this latest Solar Club Newsletter, we take a look at how the driving experience will be shifting up a gear in TDUSC.




Car physics is a critical aspect of development. For some people, TDU2 did not meet all of its objectives in this respect: they felt the physics were too arcade-like, even unpredictable. As you already know, TDUSC integrates different car categories, from Classics to the Hypercar, Off-roads to Supercars, the Citroën 2CV to the Bugatti Chiron Sport.

Within each category, of course, each car has its own attributes: combustion, hybrid or electric engines, traction, propulsion or 4-wheel drive, turbocharger, 6, 8, and 12 cylinders… All the details that make each model unique. For each car, realism was the order of the day. The perfect mix so you get the best sensations whether using a wheel or a controller. Don't try to pull off a perfect drift with traction: you just might end up pulling all your hair out before you pull it off. In the same way, very few Supercars are adapted to off-road driving, even if some people insist on trying! But rest assured, even if the car isn't adapted to it, it still won't go up in smoke! Each car provides you with a unique driving experience, and that’s why you pick the car! In an upcoming letter, we'll be going into more detail about tuning and customization options.




When we think about “going for a ride", the music we listen to springs to mind. As we have previously mentioned, we have been working with a wide range of music to go along with the best trips and to match your mood. There are 6 themed radio stations in TDUSC: Hip Hop Planet, Absolut Club, Indie Rock, Classic Era, World Music and Retro FM. They each have their own DJs and jingles. Each radio station has over 10 hours of music, which you will soon be able to check out on our social networks. Aurélien Baguerre, Audio Director at KT Racing, explains the philosophy behind each radio station and how each playlist was constructed:

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“Our six radio stations let players escape by listening to a large number of musical styles. We've worked on a musical selection that ranges from classic songs to modern tracks by lesser-known independent artists that players can discover while driving. In the car, the radio is like another passenger who is riding along with us and is part of the trip. When we think about cars and music, a track that we like to listen to while driving always comes to mind. The objective of TDUSC is to use a great, varied playlist to be right there with you and match your mood. Whether your taste is traditional and you're more of a Sharp, enjoying calm classical music while admiring the countryside, or Indie Rock, for more exciting trips along the docks or in town, or Hip Hop, if you’re into Street style, you'll find something you like. The Absolute Club (EDM), Retro FM and World Music radio stations add additional variety so you never get bored while driving. In TDUSC, the radio adds extra identity to your journeys.”

Not to worry, though, if you're a purist and only want to hear the soft purr of the engine while driving: you can also turn the radio off. That's when all the work spent developing the precision of the engine sounds becomes evident. Because it is a major factor in immersing yourself in a car game, especially when it comes to driving and cruising, a lot of R&D work went into the KT Engine so we could reproduce the specific sounds of each car model as faithfully as possible. Starting from real recordings, made in different conditions, the sounds were then integrated and linked to the car physics, so they react perfectly to what the player does and are spatialized. Basically, the sound rendering adapts to the camera in use and to the environment the player is in. Players seeking maximum immersion with the interior view can even hear the hazard and indicator lights while driving (they automatically go off once you've changed direction!), just like turning the car engine on or off.





Our latest The Cruiser video also generated some reaction concerning the game cameras, and in particular about the dynamism of the rear camera. The video was completely made using the static Chase camera, as it's more suited for jaunts and makes it easier to see the environments.

A lot of people asked about the camera's dynamism. We would like to reassure everyone that TDUSC has 2 Chase cameras, one of which is “Dynamic”. This camera is a favourite of players and has a certain elasticity, relative to the car, that matches the driving rhythm (speed, turns, etc). You will get the chance to see more of this in an upcoming video! As for the other cameras, there's also an interior view for total immersion, the dashboard view appreciated by players at the wheel (it is located on the steering wheel, which therefore disappears), the traditional bonnet view and the bumper view, closer to the road, that enhances the effect of speed.




The F.R.I.M. (Free Ride Instant Money) system is back! Making money by completing different activities is one thing, making it by driving with style and skill is another!

Initially introduced in Test Drive Unlimited 2, this feature lets you earn cash in the open world by adopting a more player-oriented way of driving. Your control and agility enable you to continually earn credits: ideal for when you're starting out on Hong Kong Island or to fatten your wallet when you want to buy your next car!

The principle is simple: complete a series of different achievements to raise your F.R.I.M. bar and add to the jackpot you can win. Once you think your score is high enough, you can cash it in. These are a few of the achievements you can complete:

● High speed
● Overtaking in extremis
● Wrong way
● Drift
● Good driving
● And many more!

Completing the different achievements increases your F.R.I.M., so the potential jackpot increases also! But mind you cash in at the right time! An accident or stopped car halts your F.R.I.M. gauge and sends your potential earnings back down to zero. So don't get greedy!




Finally, to end this Solar Club Newsletter, we're pleased to announce that we are setting up Playtest #2 starting on October 27. The purpose of the new playtest is to test the game servers, especially for simultaneous connection peaks. Just like with Playtest #1, the playtest will be on PC only and governed by rules of strict confidentiality: sharing and streaming are not allowed and you must sign an NDA to gain access. Members who took part in Playtest #1 can participate in this test as well. If you already registered for Playtest #1, you don't need to re-register; you will automatically be considered a candidate for Playtest #2. New registrations will be accepted from today via the Newsletter registration page on https://testdriveunlimited.com/. For those who are new to the Newsletter, a Playtest registration form will be shared in the coming days before the NDA is sent out to those participants who meet the Playtest access conditions.



Follow us on our social media:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support us by adding TDUSC to your wishlist :

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

See you next month!
TDU Team.

Dear members,

Last month, you got a very first look at the gameplay for Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown. The TDU Connect event generated a lot of excitement on all social media platforms. We want to thank you again for all the feedback and suggestions you sent following this fantastic event! As you can imagine, to finally start gathering your feedback on specific aspects of the game is an important step for us. The first playtest we set up in the weeks after TDU Connect was also a new milestone for us. Over 1,000 players had the chance to play the game and give their feedback. Let's take a look at these two events, some of your questions, and some early points to keep in mind.


One week before the event, some of you may have a spotted a previously unidentified figure. This was Vivian Hughes, organizer of the Solar Crown competition. Through various posts and clues, many of you suspected something exciting was being prepared for Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown. The big question was: would any gameplay be shown?

And via a unique presentation format, the gameplay reveal came in the form of a live co-op session. Three members of the development team were joined by BlackPanthaa, Alex VII, and Alan Boiston (Team VVV), three content creators specializing in online racing games. Together, they got a very first taste of the game on your behalf, while we streamed pure and immersive gameplay from a development version of the game. The format may have been a surprise, but we felt it was crucial to include some well-known members of the community to show content that has been eagerly anticipated for several years.




The format highlighted the social aspect of TDUSC, which is an essential and traditional component of the franchise and one of its key innovations. Players race against each other as a member of the Sharps or Streets, two clans whose very different lifestyles affect the in-game experience. However, the TDUSC DNA is not just limited to competitive racing. It's a lifestyle centred on luxury and a passion for cars that you share with others, so you can buy a car from a dealer together or customize your cars at a Workshop as a group, for example.

At TDU Connect, to address a larger audience than just long-standing fans of the franchise, we wanted to show a gaming session that represents the experience that many of you will have when first playing the game: lots of fun, players challenging each other, and exploring a vast world with a wide range of possibilities. But don't worry: cruising around is still an important aspect of TDU for us, and we're confident that exploring the island at a more relaxed pace will also be lots of fun for all the purists out there! TDUSC remains faithful to this vision by retaining what players have always loved about the franchise: chill driving, alone or with others, enjoying landscapes at cruising speed, and using all the various options inside your car.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“Car handling and behaviour is key to the TDU experience. Along with our guests, you saw and shared in an early development version during the gameplay reveal. We received excellent feedback from our guests on some crucial aspects, such as the cars' behaviour on asphalt and gravel, the feeling of speed, and the pronounced differences between each vehicle. But this is just a first step towards reaching our goal of implementing the perfect physics for a TDU game.

Thanks to our professional content creators' comments, and those from players of our first playtest, we are refining and cementing our design decisions so that the driving is as enjoyable and realistic as possible.

We want each car to have its own identity, to have authentic behaviour on roads, tracks and off-road, in all the weather conditions available in the game.

We feel it's important that players can have an ideal experience with a controller and all the assists enabled as well as with a wheel, without assists, for a more sim-like experience.

There's a lot of work to achieve that, but thanks to the experience gained developing other games, such as the WRC series, and the many occasions we have had to collect player feedback, we are confident we can create the best driving experience of all games in the TDU series.”

You got a first glimpse of the game's graphics during the presentation. The teams are working hard on the overall visual quality to offer the best graphics possible, especially for the environments and vehicles. Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown aims to faithfully recreate Hong Kong Island and the exclusive cars that everyone dreams of driving. This TDU Connect was a chance for us to share with you an unadulterated look at the game experience in its current form, which is a development version (alpha). We are still working on optimization of the network and performance aspects and will continue to do so in the coming months before release.


To accompany TDU Connect, we soon opened up access to the game so more of you could get your own feel for the gameplay. Because of this, some of you had the chance to try TDUSC in our very first closed playtest. The primary goal of this session was to test the stability of the game and servers, while also offering a chance to collect feedback and suggestions from the first players to try the game. It wasn't a huge surprise, but the number of registrations we received to take part in this first session once again confirmed that TDU holds a special place in many players' hearts, even 12 years after the release of the first game! More proof of your enthusiasm was shown by the impressive participation numbers and certain statistics: more than 2,800 cumulative hours of play and 55,000 kilometres (34,000 miles) driven. One member racked up over 1,000 kilometres (620 miles), while another became the first Solar King after more than 50 races completed. In total, there were over 15,000 races started, 2,500 wrecks discovered, and 8,500 speed traps triggered. Playtest 1 helped us test certain features on a much larger scale, and your feedback has already given us lots of great information! We want to thank the participants once again for spending their valuable time helping us.

We also appreciated the community's huge enthusiasm, and even though many of you didn't have the chance to try the game, rest assured there will be other sessions planned!


As you know, we started sharing more information a few months ago as development gradually moved closer to our beta phase. We still haven't shared all details about the game's content, story, and activities you can do as part of the Sharp and Street clan rivalry so that you will have more to discover in the coming months. More news is coming in the next few days with new gameplay images and reports from the first gaming journalists to have played the game at Gamescom last week.



Follow us on our social media:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support us by adding TDUSC to your wishlist :

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

See you next month!
TDU Team.

Dear members,

A few days ago, some of you were able to discover the face of Vivian, the representative of Radiant: the organization behind the Solar Crown competition.

Today is the day we've all been waiting for: #TDUConnect starts in just a few hours! See you at 07:00 PM CEST on the link below to attend the Youtube Premiere.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nxMNoZ-wVc

See you soon!
TDU Team.

Dear Solar Club members,

A little-known but highly influential organization called Radiant will soon invite the first members to an extraordinary competition: the Solar Crown. The public are unaware of the group's motives, but it's clear what they value: Prestige, a love of Cars, and Competition.

No one knows the exact origins of Radiant, but it is made up of elite and influential people whose goal is to create a street racing extravaganza without limits. To allow future participants to compete with the best possible preparation, Radiant has built an impressive and luxurious building: the Solar Hotel.

Located in Victoria Park in the heart of Causeway Bay, the Solar Hotel is a unique architectural jewel. Its unusual and futuristic silhouette immediately leaves a big impression. At 540m (1,772 ft.) high and with 120 floors, it is one of the 10 highest skyscrapers in the world. When you first encounter the Solar Hotel, several questions will probably cross your mind. What is its role? How was it built? Who are the other residents? But one thing's for sure: it always leaves a big impact.




After taking the elevator, you head to your first suite, graciously provided by Vivian, President of the Solar Crown Organization Committee. Upon entering, you find yourself in a bright and spacious room, decorated in an ultra-modern, minimalist style.

Here you'll find your wardrobe where you can change your outfit whenever you want. Members who are concerned with their image can therefore always remain stylish and show off their coolest outfits for everyone to see. For drivers who are more concerned with the competition, all the suites have an augmented reality screen with a wide range of information: weather, upcoming challenges, player profile, and progress details.

In the comfort of this premium suite, your temporary home, you can recharge your batteries between races. The Solar Crown Organization also stipulates that its most distinguished members will be offered increasingly prestigious suites as they move up through the ranks and gain more reputation.

Rising up the Solar Hotel is another way to further increase your fame and dominate the world of TDU. It perfectly reflects Radiant's selective philosophy: every participant should feel important and be rewarded with privileges. Every new outing around Hong Kong Island will start from your room, your personal HQ.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“The Solar Hotel is inspired by 'Arcology' and aerodynamics. It is notable for its slender and organic shape, combined with the latest architectural, aerospace and automobile technologies. Its spire reaches up at over 500 metres (1,640 ft.) from the ground and dominates the Hong Kong skyline.

Its location is somewhat linked to its connection with the tournament's competitors. It overlooks the city and encourages you to push yourself to another level. It is a central hub for players – who gain access to increasingly luxurious rooms as they progress in the competition – and has stunning views over HKI."

After looking around your new suite, it's time to get in your car so you can explore the city. This will take you through the hotel lobby. Designed as a social hub, this majestic hall is primarily a place to meet and chat with other members who have been invited to take part in the Solar Crown.

The Solar Hotel's lobby is the main hub for all participants of the Solar Crown. This wide-open space showcases the best drivers and displays the activities available. It's a common area where Sharps and Streets are constantly meeting each other as they come down from their suites. It's the perfect place to make friends or stoke rivalries! The Solar Crown Organization will give you more details on the rules and interactions between members in the lobby in a future newsletter.



As with all luxury hotels, the Solar Hotel offers various services for its members. There is a clothing store where you can view a catalogue with a wide variety of items for sale to show off your style. In a world where luxury and reputation rule, everyone wants to make the biggest impression in the Solar Hotel.

Your progress and race rewards will give you access to hundreds of fashion items, from the most basic to the most lavish. In the lobby you'll also find a hair stylist and cosmetic surgery service. Radiant has recruited the world's top surgeons to ensure you can make any change you want to your appearance. So, you can live the affluent life of luxury you have always dreamed of. Finally, there is a valet service in front of the hotel to ensure you can explore the city with whichever car you feel like driving at that particular moment.

In the middle of the lobby, four special Solar Crown members will always be showcased for their achievements that day. Whether they have distinguished themselves in races, FRIM or extreme exploring, their favourite car will be on show to all other participants across the world. It's the ultimate recognition of your feats and is reserved for just four players!

The outside of the Solar Hotel is your gateway to the city and is also a central meeting point for players in their cars. The roads around here have been designed for easy access to the hotel even when there's a lot of traffic. Whether it's a car meet, a show of strength, or simply somewhere to meet friends, the Solar Hotel represents much more than your accommodation.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“The lobby of the Solar Hotel illustrates our desire to get players together and help them interact. TDUSC is not just a racing game, it's a game for fans of beautiful cars, for racing or cruising around with friends, so it was essential for us to provide a place for players to meet up. The most obvious way to do this was with social hubs where players move around with their avatars rather than at 300km/h on HKI behind the wheel of a hypercar. In the first Solar Club Letter, we explained that players meet in dealerships and workshops, but the Solar Hotel is the central meeting hub in TDUSC.

Whether it's for strutting around with the latest exclusive clothes, throwing down an Instant Challenge to other players, seeing your car showcased after your latest triumph, buying new clothes, or changing your avatar's appearance, the lobby has been designed as a 'village square' in TDUSC.

We added this fantastic place and its rooms to enhance the accommodation concept in the TDU series. Fans of the franchise will remember the houses in TDU2 where you could extend your garage, but it was a very personal experience. Even though you could invite your friends, you must first make friends, and this is the objective with the Solar Hotel. We know that houses made an impression on TDU players. While this feature is not in the game when TDUSC launches, it is part of a long list of features we have already researched for future content in the medium and long term."

As you can see, to help the competition run smoothly in its first year, Radiant decided to host all its members in the same place: the Solar Hotel. But there are very few limits to Radiant's ambitions, and many investment projects are already being explored for future years. These projects include real-estate projects that would directly contribute to Radiant's growth and global influence of the Solar Crown and its ever-increasing number of members.

While waiting for your chance to visit the Solar Hotel, you should rest assured that all of Radiant's construction teams are hard at work and putting the finishing touches to their project so they can welcome you in the best way possible. Reservations and the first tours will open soon. Stay tuned!

Follow us on our social media:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support us by adding TDUSC to your wishlist :

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

See you next month!
TDU Team.

Dear Solar Club members,

Today, we're going to continue exploring the world of TDUSC. After the first newsletter, you now own your new luxury car with customized performance and style. It's now up to you and your driving skills to stand out from the crowd and beat your rivals. As you know, other than physical, mental and fine-motor skills, what separates an excellent driver from a good one is knowledge of the terrain. You need to master your speed, cornering, bumps in the road, weather conditions, visibility… Getting to know a course inside out takes time, dedication and practice.

The variety of roads that can be found on Hong Kong Island (also known as HKI) makes it great for
exploration. That's why, in this newsletter, we'll explore this unique island together and take a closer look at your playground for Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown.



Faithfully recreated and at true 1:1 scale, Hong Kong Island is actually a great place to enjoy a very varied and intense driving experience, despite what you might think. You may not be able to tackle all the challenges the island has to offer with your first car, but you will be able to explore and discover many of the surprises that HKI has in store.


Hong Kong Island is full of very different landscapes. From the traditional narrow streets of the old town, to the wide highways where you can really put the pedal to the metal, to the off-road mountain trails that require skill and technique, each type of terrain poses its own unique challenges. The driving experience offered by TDUSC is realistic and challenging, while remaining accessible for drivers of all skill levels. By honing your skills behind the wheel and choosing the right car for the road type, you will learn to dominate all the different types of terrain you encounter.



As well as the varied terrain types, there is a dynamic weather and time of the day system: you can go
from a sunny ride at dawn to a long night-time drive under stormy skies. Rain has a significant impact on the behaviour of your car: you will need to adapt your driving to avoid unexpected skids and maybe change your tyres and gear ratios. Don't forget to turn on your windscreen wipers while waiting for the sun to come back out so you can put the top down again! The day/night cycle is also realistic with distinct phases for dawn, day, evening and night.



Like previous editions, HKI has been optimized to encourage freely driving around in your car. In total,
you can explore over 600km / 370 miles of roads. Exploring roads in HKI is a core part of the TDUSC
gameplay: the more you explore, the more rewards you earn!

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

Recreating Hong Kong Island with all its variety and small details was a considerable
challenge.

In an open-world game like TDU, we need to provide a seamless and interesting driving
experience as well as encourage exploration, which is an important part of the experience. To
increase immersion and transport players to a new country, we also wanted to make HKI very
realistic, which is why we recreated it at 1:1 scale. It was a challenge technically as well as in
terms of gameplay.

Thanks to the experience gained developing many rally games (WRC series) and motorcycling
games (TT series), we have considerable expertise in creating realistic environments on a large
scale. But TDU is a different kind of experience and more challenging.

Hong Kong Island is an amazing playground that offers incredible diversity, and each environment
received special attention to make them more fun for players.
To emphasize the fast and smooth driving, for example, the very dense urban network of HKI
needed some small adjustments because of certain little streets that were very (too?) narrow.

Conversely, some light redesign was done to the major thoroughfares to make them more fun
and adapted to very fast cars, while respecting the identity of Hong Kong Island.

To increase exploration options, we used our expertise from WRC games to transform certain
walking and hiking paths into small mountain roads that a car can use. It's up to you to discover
all the island's secret areas by driving down routes that aren't always shown on the map! It takes
time for HKI to give up all its secrets…

As you can see, everything has been done to provide a unique, fun and sometimes challenging game
experience, while remaining as authentic as possible.




While the competitive drivers among you will love all the different races organized by the Solar Crown,
players looking for exploration and relaxation will also be happy. You'll find 14 districts to explore, and
each one full of activities, events, and objects to find and collect. And fans of previous TDU games will be excited to hear that wrecks are returning to HKI with parts to be found across the island. Anyone who manages to find all the parts can acquire some iconic cars.

There are also many challenges to tackle: beat your speed records through the island's speed traps, and go head-to-head against other players or your friends in Instant Challenges. Your driving will probably not be perfect, and your cars won't always stay in immaculate condition, but don't worry: there are gas stations available to restore them to their shiniest best.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

HKI has a wide variety of locations, and we wanted to reproduce as many of these
environments as possible: from small inlets on the coast to mountain peaks to dense urban
areas and swamps.

Obviously, you can't show Hong Kong without the major landmarks that make up its famous skyline and iconic places from movies like the Monster Building.

You can cruise through downtown Wan Chai, the financial district with huge buildings like the
Hopewell Centre and Convention Centre, then pass through the Central District under the Bank
of China Tower and the twin towers of the Lippo Centre, an iconic skyscraper on HKI.

The East docks area is the perfect playground for the Streets. Their HQ, an underground industrial
nightclub, can be found here. But if you prefer a calmer and more residential atmosphere, the
Repulse Bay district with its luxury dealerships is there on the south side of the island. The Peak,
the island's highest point, is perfect for an off-road experience and to admire the city as the sun
goes down.

Are you an inveterate explorer at heart? Set off to find small fishing villages at the foot of Tai Tam
Tuk Reservoir, which can only be reached by small paths; then take the Dragon's Back to reach
Shek O for unforgettable gaming moments that can only be found in TDUSC.

With this guided tour, you can see that HKI has incredible variety that we have faithfully recreated
so you can enjoy epic driving adventures with your friends.

Members, we hope that with this information you can envisage your future playground and that it has
made you even more excited to explore Hong Kong Island. Please don't hesitate to share your thoughts! Which district are you most excited to visit first in your car? Feel free to share on our social media channels:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support us by adding TDUSC to your wishlist :

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

See you next month !
TDU Team.

Dear Solar Club members,

We have been quiet for a long time, but we fully understand how eager you are to learn more about this game, a project that means as much to us as it does to you. The team has been working very hard, and the game is progressing well. We're now in a position to share more about TDUSC with you. We have taken our time, but as you can imagine, we didn't want to disappoint you and we want every part of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown to meet your expectations.

That's why, starting today until the game releases, we will send out a Solar Club Newsletter every month. These newsletters will reveal more details about the game, its development, and how we are respecting the DNA of the Test Drive Unlimited franchise. They will also be a chance for us to keep you up to date on everything happening with TDUSC this year. Here are a few examples of what we intend to share in the coming months:

• Screenshots and exclusive concept art
• Gameplay details
• Live game sessions with the developers
• Information on the testing phases

We hope you like this initiative and that it promotes discussion between us, whether it's on the game's Steam page or on the various official game channels.
And to make sure you don't miss any news, don't forget to join us on our social media channels:

• Discord
  
• Twitter
  
• Facebook
  
• Reddit

You can also support us by adding TDUSC to your wishlist :

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

Dear members, we heard what you asked for: asphalt, nostalgia, the ultimate driving experience… One thing's for sure, 2023 will be full of revelations, answers and unique experiences.

For the first edition of our newsletter, we decided to share some details on choosing a car, buying it and customizing it, which are all core elements of the TDUSC gameplay and help make it a truly unique game.




Buying a car in TDU isn't a trivial matter; it rewards the efforts you've made to earn enough money, and the decision shouldn't be taken lightly. With TDUSC, you don't just buy lots of cars without interest or emotions. We want each car you own to be something you love, an extension of yourself and your personality. What will be your next car? It should be the car you've dreamed about for several hours playing the game, one that shows off your style, one that reflects who you are, and one that will help you win the next races!

What could be more exciting than going from dealership to dealership, money burning a hole in your pocket, choosing and customizing your next car? And then there's checking out all the models, test driving them, browsing their specs, and finally making the big decision. After that, you just need to give your new toy the personal touch, including the paint job, interior, rims… your dream car. To conclude, you're finally handed the keys and can now proudly say it's yours!





Are you more into American, Italian, or German ones? Do you want a daily driver or a Supercar? Off-road or GT? You'll find 14 specialist dealerships, each offering different brands, all over Hong Kong Island. Which one will have the car of your dreams? Two iconic marques from the TDU universe also have their own dealerships, entirely dedicated to their brands: Lamborghini and Ferrari. You'll find a wide selection of their models in those dealerships.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“Buying a car in TDU is always a special moment. It's a core part of the game for fans of beautiful cars.
In TDUSC we have created special places that showcase our cars. You'll discover them in real locations throughout Hong Kong Island as you progress and level up in the game.

Before buying a new car, we make sure you can take time to make the right choice. You can move around freely within the dealership, interact with the cars to choose the model you want, admire the exterior in detail, and get inside after opening the door to appreciate the comfort, try out the horn, and even start the engine, which is not always possible in real life!

All this interaction happens with other players around in what we are calling "social hubs". Like all areas where you can move your avatar around, it's a meeting place for chatting with other players and other car enthusiasts like yourself. We think it's essential that players can meet and communicate with each other. You can then decide to play together and greatly increase the fun of driving around in amazing cars (and earning bonuses at the same time).

Before making your final choice, you can obviously test drive the car to make sure the handling and drive meet your expectations.
When you've made your decision, you can then choose the exact model you want. The game offers the official options from manufacturers: paint, interior colours and rims, so you can purchase your dream car.

If you want to take the customization further, we have created special places for that: Workshops.
Finally, to make the experience as authentic as possible, the transaction concludes by you receiving the keys. That's all in the spirit of Test Drive Unlimited".

Want to give your cars a personal touch? That's what the Solar Crown Workshops are for. Need to prepare for the next races? Need more power, traction or a more playful car for pulling off the longest drifts? Stop by the Workshops! Looking to flaunt your Street or Sharp style with a full or partial paint job? You'll want the Workshops for that too!



If you're looking for a performance boost, you have a wide range of modifications available: from suspensions to the gearbox to complete configuration of the engine. What if you're not much of a mechanic? The technical characteristics have been simplified to help you focus on what's important: power, traction, acceleration, braking… In total, there are 13 customizable performance parts across 6 categories for combustion-powered cars, and 12 customizable performance parts across 6 categories for electric cars.

Customizing the look of your cars is essential for any driver aiming for victory in the Solar Crown. Winning is great, but winning in style is even better!

Are you more of a purist and not really into liveries? You can choose one of the manufacturer's colours when you buy the car and just keep that. Or do you prefer to get creative and obsess over every detail? Express yourself in the Livery Editor and show off your style: metallic, matte, pearlescent and chrome paint jobs, and of course hundreds of stickers and decals to create unique designs.



As you can see, there are lots of ways you can customize your car. However, you can't just claim to be an artist to become one. The Solar Crown organization has rules: access to the modifications available for your cars depends on your Reputation level. Your ties to the Sharps and Streets also unlocks unique customization options that are specific to each clan.

#Discussions_QuoteBlock_Author

“The ability to customize your car is an essential part of an MMO like TDU. Whether it's to express your creativity to show off your style to other players or to tune your car to match the race conditions or explore off the beaten track, the Workshops are there to give you as many options as possible.

Like our other social hubs, Workshops are large community spaces. You can customize your cars and see what other players have done to their own vehicles. It's a chance to look at the most beautiful liveries and discuss the best configurations with other players.
Based on your level, you gain access to increasingly precise tuning options, which means you can create configurations for use in races later on.

TDUSC offers a driving simulation that is accessible for those who want an experience you can just pick up and play, yet challenging for those who enjoy spending time tweaking configurations and adapting their cars to match their driving style and for optimal performance in the various race conditions.”

We hope you have enjoyed reading all this new information. Please feel free to share your comments about our first Solar Club Newsletter. As mentioned previously, a new one will be sent out every month with new topics and more news. Finally, we saw your enthusiasm during the previous Nacon Connect conferences. We wanted to let you know that Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown won't be featured at the next conference on 9 March 2023, but we will be sharing more exclusive information about the game and gameplay every month!

TDU Team.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1249970/Test_Drive_Unlimited_Solar_Crown/

Let us take you on a journey of choice. The Streets, The Sharps, it's all about your mentality. Where does your loyalty lie? Together We Drive

Eager to know more about everything Test Drive? Come and join our community discord server where we talk about all things car related, hang out, and play games together: discord.gg/testdrive

We know you want more, and there's SO much to show you. But there's still time for that ;) for now please enjoy our latest offering - and see if you can spot the 5 revealed cars.



We've also got a nice selection of screenshots to share, taken in-game from the alpha version of the game, enjoy!

We've got some exciting Test Drive news to share! Don't miss it 7th July - 8pm CEST
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jwkTwMa3c-A
Watch on Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/nacon

Dear TDU fans,

This is the first article in a long series where we will be sharing information on the game's development and some of the exciting things you will experience in Test Drive Unlimited: Solar Crown.

In this blogpost, we'll be sharing more details about the clans in Solar Crown: the Streets and the Sharps. But first, the most important bit of news is that the game will now be releasing in 2023. With so much support from fans of the series, we know many of you will be disappointed, but our goal with Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown is to make it the most polished gaming experience in the franchise by spending more time on its development. We therefore want to thank the fan community for your support and daily involvement on the game's official Discord channel and within communities on the various social media platforms.

Regarded by many players as the most comprehensive open-world racing game experience, the Test Drive Unlimited franchise has a rich and complex DNA: the environment reproduced at 1:1 scale, beautifully recreated cars, a realistic driving experience, social interactions with other players, a wide variety of races and game modes, and a major "lifestyle" component that goes beyond simple street battles on wheels. Test Drive Unlimited is more than just a racing game, but rather a game about the joy of driving your car, the car that reflects your style and the one you have chosen over all the others. Buying a car from a dealership, listening to the radio while driving, putting the top down when the rain stops, using the turn signals properly, and even simply opening the window are all details that millions of players have fallen in love with. Our goal is to meet those expectations and to stay true to the franchise's DNA by including all those details. But we also want to go further and offer new experiences. We want to make all of Hong Kong Island and its 550km of roads to be a no-limits playground where the fun never ends.

Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown offers a new vision of racing competitions where style and reputation matters as much as race victories. In our game, the Solar Crown competition on Hong Kong Island is contested by wealthy enthusiasts of luxury cars, for whom their vehicle is an extension of their personality. As you have seen on our website, two visions of luxury have emerged in the city and two clans have formed: the Streets and the Sharps.

Each clan wants to impose its style on the city. Players can therefore choose to align themselves with a clan and help to champion its lifestyle. While respect for the rival clan remains, there is always a determination to show off their superiority behind the wheel. Each clan also has its own HQ for gathering, celebrating victories together and finding new missions. Whether your vision of luxury is refined and elegant or provocative and rebellious, you always have the chance to showcase it. The Streets – whose culture has a more underground, nightclub vibe – gather in an old building they have taken over for the Solar Crown competition. It is located in the industrial district of Wan Chai on the northern-central part of the island. As for the Sharps, they have privatised the top floor and balcony of a luxury building in the Western District to the west of the city. A more subdued and sophisticated atmosphere reigns in this HQ. Each of the HQs has a "public" area that can be accessed by all players, whether they are a Street or Sharp, but the more interesting part is the VIP area, which is only open to clan members who have proved their allegiance. In this area, out of sight of non-members, meetings are held and missions are assigned with the aim of destabilising the rival camp.




We also want to take advantage of the extra development time to optimize the game and get you more involved. We are currently working on a schedule for closed betas. The more impatient among you will get the chance to test the game long before it releases. This phase will allow us to gather your valuable feedback so we can keep improving the game's quality until it releases, while also staying in more regular contact with you. Finally, with the aim of making the most of the technology in the latest consoles and maximising the overall quality of the game, NACON has decided to no longer develop Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown for PlayStation®4 and Xbox One.

Until our next communication, we would love to see you join the amazing driving community we've built across our socials. Come and join in the dicussion!

discord.gg/testdrive
twitter.com/testdrive
facebook.com/tdusc