In a world earlier than Forza Horizon just about set the usual for what always-online open-world driving video games might be, there was Test Drive Unlimited on the Xbox 360. TDU recreated the whole thing of Hawaii’s Oahu island at one-to-one scale — a surprising achievement, even 17 years on. Now TDU is bracing for a comeback, set on a really totally different floating rock: Hong Kong. And we acquired to see a glimpse of it this week in developer Kylotonn’s newest e-newsletter to followers.
Like the primary installment’s rendition of Oahu, Solar Crown’s Hong Kong Island can also be constructed to scale. Of course, HKI is far smaller than the Big Island, so don’t anticipate any hour-long drives from finish to finish. That stated, it additionally appears to supply significantly extra selection than TDU’s Oahu did, from cliffside vistas to neon-lined skyscrapers.
Not each path on the island has been recreated true-to-life, as a result of 1) that’s simply not possible and a pair of) even when it was, it wouldn’t assure enjoyable gameplay. Creative Director Alain Jarniou supplied just a little perception within the e-newsletter on how the crew has tried to copy the spirit of Hong Kong Island, albeit with 370 miles’ price of roads higher suited to racing. Via Reddit:
Recreating Hong Kong Island with all its selection and small particulars was a substantial problem. In an open-world recreation like TDU, we have to present a seamless and attention-grabbing driving expertise in addition to encourage exploration, which is a crucial a part of the expertise. To enhance immersion and transport gamers to a brand new nation, we additionally needed to make HKI very reasonable, which is why we recreated it at 1:1 scale. It was a problem technically in addition to by way of gameplay. Thanks to the expertise gained creating many rally video games (WRC collection) and motorcycling video games (TT collection), we’ve appreciable experience in creating reasonable environments on a big scale. But TDU is a special form of expertise and tougher. Hong Kong Island is an incredible playground that provides unbelievable range, and every atmosphere acquired particular consideration to make them extra enjoyable for gamers. To emphasize the quick and clean driving, for instance, the very dense city community of HKI wanted some small changes due to sure little streets that had been very (too?) slender. Conversely, some mild redesign was executed to the main thoroughfares to make them extra enjoyable and tailored to very quick automobiles, whereas respecting the identification of Hong Kong Island. To enhance exploration choices, we used our experience from WRC video games to remodel sure strolling and mountain climbing paths into small mountain roads {that a} automobile can use.
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Solar Crown’s map is comprised of 14 districts of vastly ranging biomes, with an excellent variety of native landmarks peppered in, as Lead Artist Stéphane Cambier explains:
You can cruise by downtown Wan Chai, the monetary district with big buildings just like the Hopewell Centre and Convention Centre, then move by the Central District underneath the Bank of China Tower and the dual towers of the Lippo Centre, an iconic skyscraper on HKI. The East docks space is the proper playground for the Streets. Their HQ, an underground industrial nightclub, might be discovered right here. But for those who desire a calmer and extra residential ambiance, the Repulse Bay district with its luxurious dealerships is there on the south aspect of the island. The Peak, the island’s highest level, is ideal for an off-road expertise and to admire the town because the solar goes down. Are you an inveterate explorer at coronary heart? Set off to search out small fishing villages on the foot of Tai Tam Tuk Reservoir, which may solely be reached by small paths; then take the Dragon’s Back to succeed in Shek O for unforgettable gaming moments that may solely be present in TDUSC.
Solar Crown’s been considerably lacking in motion till latest weeks, when writer Nacon started sharing in-engine screenshots. All video footage of the sport has been CGI, so we nonetheless don’t actually have a way of how the primary open-world Test Drive expertise in over a decade will look throughout gameplay, nor will we even know when it’s launching. The improvement studio accountable, Kylotonn, is understood for its officially-licensed World Rally Championship and Isle of Man TT video games. The WRC collection was a mannequin of consistency, however constructing an open-world racer is a wholly totally different problem from making a stage- or circuit-based one.
Personally, I’m tempering my expectations. The studio doesn’t have a confirmed monitor file with a recreation of this magnitude. Plus, Solar Crown’s narrative of pitting rival gangs of trust-fund infants towards one another (they’re known as “Streets” and “Sharps,” canonically) has the potential to get actual irritating, actual quick. But as long as the physics are competent and the world’s attention-grabbing sufficient, it may simply be the diversion from Forza Horizon and Need for Speed that the style’s been needing.
Source: jalopnik.com