It’s not unfair to say that the launch of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown didn’t go well. Widespread server issues left the always-online title frequently unplayable, something that was an even bigger insult to those who’d shelled out the best part of £70 for the Gold Edition that granted a week’s early access.
Pretty quickly, some form of ‘compensation’ for these players was announced by publisher Nacon, but exactly what that would entail hasn’t been detailed until now.
TDU Solar Crown compensation details
If you’re a Gold Edition buyer who played the game before 12 October 2024, you’ll receive a 1986 Porsche 911 Carrera ‘Adventurer’ Edition. This is essentially the game’s existing ’86 911, modified in the ‘safari’ style that’s become so popular for air-cooled Porsches in recent years.
It’s certainly cool – everyone loves a safari 911. However, for players who shelled out a chunk of extra cash to play the game early, only to find it a broken, buggy mess at launch, we’re not sure a lightly modified version of a car already in the game is good enough. There’ll also be a pack of – count ’em – five exclusive ‘Premium’ decals to add to cars in-game, although we’ve not been shown these yet.
TDU Solar Crown screenshot
In all fairness to Nacon and developer KT Racing, the announcement does say that there are “more details coming in the next weeks,” so this may not be the full extent of compensation, but either way, if these are the headline grabbers, we think Gold Edition buyers have the right to be fairly miffed. They’ll also have to wait until the launch of the game’s ‘Season 2’ update, scheduled for 24 December, to claim these rewards.
Meanwhile, there’s an update scheduled to go live today – 5 November – which aims to bring improvements in performance and graphics, especially for those playing on PS5, likely ahead of the PS5 Pro’s launch in a couple of days.
TDU Solar Crown screenshot
While the major issues that afflicted TDU SC at launch have been partially ironed out, we reckon there’s still a long way to go before the game reaches the same heights as its flawed but much-loved predecessors, and for many, the damage is already done. Still, with new content including a second island set to be added in the coming months, we’ll be keeping an eye on its progress.
