Why did a PS4 launch title get kicked back to the development bench, and how does the delay make it better?
Is it a sim? Is it an arcade racer?
It’s not a sim. It’s not an arcade racer. It sits between the two. It’s Forza and Forza Horizon. But instead of Horizon’s faked party atmosphere, Driveclub’s party involves your friends and enemies online, your racing buddies and rivals. Aside from the single player tour, it’s a very real set of challenges from real players that are updated and constantly live.
This is the ‘club’ in ‘Driveclub’, right?
Yep. Each club can have up to 6 members. Some content will only be available for club races and challenges, although Evolution insists this won’t be a lot so there’s no need to feel like you’re missing out if you don’t like other humans. You can only be a member of one club at a time though, so choose your friends wisely. You can leave clubs and join new ones, and Evolution expects bidding for the best racers between clubs, and loyalties and allegiances to switch more often than Walder Frey.
Driveclub was going to be a PS4 launch game. What happened?
Would you believe the majority of the delay has been down to the dynamic menu? That menu – for online and club play – needed to be seamless, according to game director Paul Rustchynsky.
“The quality wasn’t there. It wasn’t an invisible layer. We would never want to compromise the game. Quality is key. The heart of the delay was the dynamic menu. Something that’s in the background but always persistent. It’s giving you relevant activities, stuff that’s important for you at the right time. Being connected keeps everything lively and fresh, there’s always new activities to get involved in. You can win together.”
And the extra time has also allowed for mega polish; art, audio, course variety, dynamic environments. If it’s not the calling card for the PS4 dream, someone’s getting sacked.
Is it free? What’s free? What’s not free?
It’s free for PS Plus subscribers but there will be some content you won’t be able to access unless you pay the full price. The mantra Evolution Studios’ is pushing is “restrictions on content but not restrictions on features.” That’s about all we know now, and we’re not likely to see the barriers to content until release day.
Specs please – how many frames per second?
It’s 1080p, 30FPS. Get that tattooed across your knuckles (and thumbs). Paul Rustchynsky, again: “It allowed us to deliver the detail on the cars, to push the audio, it’s given us the capability to deliver worlds that look that good. There’s no short cuts – there’s no 2D crowds, no baked lighting. Everything is real, everything is dynamic, every shadow is cast from a light source. We needed all that horsepower to deliver that visual splendor.”
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