PC players were treated to an extended Steam demo of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown last month. This arrived after three closed betas on PC, but console players have missed out so far.
Fortunately for Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown fans on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, KT Racing and Nacon has confirmed that a console beta is coming soon.
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown console beta coming in August
In a blog post on the game’s Steam page, KT Racing and Nacon confirmed that betas are planned for consoles in August, but a release date is yet to be confirmed.
While there will be an open beta for all players, those who preorder the Silver Streets or Silver Sharps Editions will get early access. Gold Edition players will also have access to a separate VIP beta, with more details to be announced soon.
If Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown’s console beta is anything like the Steam demo, it should give players a generous sample of the full game. Released in June, the Steam demo gave access to nine out of Hong Kong Island’s 14 districts, with 16 cars to buy and 22 available to test drive plus 27 race events.
Console versions will include graphics and performance modes
Responding to concerns about the demo’s optimization, the blog post also confirms that Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown will offer performance and quality modes on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S at launch.
Performance mode will run at 1080p and 60 FPS, while quality mode will prioritize visual fidelity, running at a higher 1400p resolution and 30 FPS. Unfortunately, this means that TDUSC won’t run at 4K resolution on consoles, though this perhaps isn't surprising considering the game lets you explore a 1:1 recreation of Hong Kong Island.
PC players can run the game at a higher resolution, but this of course depends on your setup. The demo required a powerful PC to run the game at recommended settings, but the final PC system requirements have yet to be confirmed.
In the blog post, KT Racing and Nacon admit that the demo’s optimization and server stability “did not meet the expectations of some of the community.” This is because the game build “did not yet include a number of important optimizations.” Since the demo, further optimizations and graphical improvements have been added as we get closer to launch.
“ We understand that these aspects may have impacted your gaming experience and currently consider these topics as priorities,” the blog post reads. Since TDUSC is an online-only game, these server optimizations will be critical to ensure a smooth launch in September.
Are you looking forward to trying the Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown console beta? Let us know in the comments below.
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