Νew Game: "Test Drive Unlimited"

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

Racing games have always been popular, going back to the incredibly simple Atari 2600-based Night Driver, which had blips that marked off the two rows of guide posts that you had to stay between. Boy, have we come a long way since that was released in 1978.

One of the more durable racing franchises has been Test Drive. The latest installment, due out toward the end of the year, is dubbed Test Drive Unlimited, and while it offers the same high-speed action that served as the cornerstone for previous games in the series, this one takes a hard left turn and drives off into new territory. There's certainly no risk that you'll mistake it for the now ancient Night Driver.

Test Drive Unlimited will feature exciting racing at its heart, but the most exhilarating part is its online component, which developer Eden Games plans to use to craft a wide-open game world with full immersion. You'll be able to own a home, create a unique look for your character and, most importantly, have a place to house all the vehicles you intend to own. The home will also provide a place to catch up on news of the racing world and plan out your competitions.

Eden expects to offer over 50 real-world brands of cars, motorcycles and other vehicles, such as Jaguar, Mercedes Benz, Aston Martin and Lamborghini. Those brands will in turn offer a catalog of 150 different vehicles you can use in the game. Each car is meticulously replicated, including working windshield wipers, power windows and a dashboard radio -- which you'll be able to customize to enable access to live Shoutcast streaming-audio "stations" from the Internet while you play the game.

Of course, all of this makes the game look and sound great, but the key is the racing. Eden has picked somewhat of a namesake for the Test Drive Unlimited universe by creating a Hawaiian island on which to race. It's expected that over 1000 miles of road will be available, with the player able to create their own challenges.

The game will have over 50 rules and settings that can be altered, and you can basically pick any section of a roadway and turn it into a race track. This enables courses that can range from a short drag strip-style race to a long rally-type of race that can literally last for hours. Fixed challenges will also be offered, if you choose to race and earn some cash on the side.

The fact that this will take place online means that you'll have extensive rankings and tournaments available to allow for comparison to other players. Players can band together into clubs -- which, in this case, will be Test Drive Unlimited's equivalent to clans and guilds in online games such as EverQuest -- to support trading of parts and vehicles, as well as pave the way for club-to-club competitions.

We're excited by the potential that Test Drive Unlimited exhibits. This idea was tried once before with Electronic Arts' Motor City Online, but the execution wasn't ideal. Test Drive Unlimited trumps that it enabling players the flexibility to create their own courses and offering a free roaming driving environment over static lobbies. We're looking forward to getting into this game more as it gets closer to release, and we'll keep you updated on its progress.

Δεν ξέρω όμως σε ποιά κονσόλα θα είναι......... :roll: :roll:

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

Δείτε μερικές φωτογραφίες...........

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

 

[JohnnyWalker]

Γιάννη οι φωτογραφίες είναι άπαιχτες!!!!
Θα ψαξω να δω σε ποιες κονσόλες θα κυκλοφορήσει....

 

[Giovanni Dimitropoulos]

Συνονόματε, αν πρόσεξα καλά ΚΑΙ στις δύο κονσόλες........
PS2 & X-BOX