The Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown Standard Edition unlocked worldwide on 12 September, but it has not seen the huge influx of players that KT Racing and Nacon would have hoped for.
Following years of delays and a tricky early access period full of server problems and disgruntled gamers, the buzz around TDU Solar Crown has been lacking. From its "Mixed" reviews on Steam to its 56 on Metacritic, Solar Crown has had a rough landing.
While we have really enjoyed playing this title, as our TDU Solar Crown review attests, a vocal section of players have not. The result? Not many people showed up for the grand launch.
Struggling numbers
Early access purchases, given their higher price point, are often a reasonable way to judge the interest a game has. In this regard, TDU Solar Crown did quite well.
The player count on Steam peaked at 4,556 during early access. That's about half the all-time peak of F1 24. Good numbers for a studio the size of KT Racing. The problem is, once the Standard Edition, priced at just £39.99, came online that number only moved to 5,305.
It's nearly double the player count from the evening before launch, but that's not a great number. While Steam is only one storefront on only one platform, it's a good indicator of overall trends in gaming and in this case the trend is not good.
KT Racing and Nacon don't have the marketing reach of Microsoft and the Forza Horizon series. They needed good word of mouth to help push this game in front of potential players. Unfortunately, the shaky launch period and the disappointment some players felt over graphics and optimization have failed to generate much goodwill among the game's early adopters.
As enjoyable as this game is to cruise around and race in, players have been merciless in picking it apart on the r/TDU subreddit.
Perhaps with a few months of patching and a sale price, TDU Solar Crown can attract the audience it needs to make a true comeback as a franchise, but right now it looks unlikely.