Test Drive: Ferrari - New Game of the Day #31
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Test Drive: Ferrari - New Game Of The Day #31
What? An apparently Ferrari-focused iteration of the long-running Test Drive series. This will be the 20th Test Drive game.
When? March 30th 2012.
Where? PS3, Xbox 360 and PC.
Blimey, in the last few days we've now had not one but two new driving game announcements. This one is just as unexpected as MotorStorm RC, too.
Distributor Bigben Interactive has announced Test Drive: Ferrari, the follow-up to Test Drive Unlimited 2 released back in February, is slated for release on March 30th for PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. And that’s literally all we know for now.
Actually, we don't even know the release date - it was stated that Test Drive: Ferrari will be released in "most major European countries besides the United Kingdom" on this date. Ironic from a publisher called Bigben.
Details are rather scant for now, but we did manage to retrieve the first set of teaser shots which depict a fetching Ferrari F50 and a slew of Ferrari F1 cars, one vintage and one contemporary. I think it's relatively safe to assume that this will be the most comprehensive collection of Ferraris ever assembled in a driving game - we're hoping to see a return of the long lost Ferrari Mythos Concept, last seen in Test Drive III back in 1990.
As for the developer, it’s been long rumoured that Slightly Mad Studios, developers of Shift 2: Unleashed, have been busy creating a Ferrari-centric racing game but have been bound by legal troubles. The developer has always had a penchant for sim racers so we’re expecting Test Drive: Ferrari to continue in this vein, particularly without the shackles of EA holding them back.
It turns out that this early Ferrari project was in the pipeline long before the original Shift game, and the engine was subsequently carried forward into Need For Speed: Shift and Shift 2: Unleashed - you can instantly tell from the screenshots we've posted. Just look at the overexaggerated blurring effects in the screenshot below, for one.
The screenshots also confirm that Slightly Mad will not be continuing down the online MMO road that Eden Games pioneered for the Test Drive: Unlimited series. Not that we're particularly saddened, especially after the dismal failings of TDU2 which was a sorry buggy mess. Slightly Mad excel at track racing simulations, so it makes sense to leave the open world format to the Unlimited series. It will also be the first time the Test Drive series has been situated in enclosed race tracks rather than city circuits.
Consequently, focusing on Ferrari in yet another Slightly Mad track racing game seems somewhat uninspired. We’ve already had Ferrari Challenge and there is of course Outrun which is defined by its Ferrari heritage. Slightly Mad will certainly have their work cut out if Test Drive: Ferrari is to stand out, which all depends on how treat the license.
We can only hope it’s delivered with the same loving execution as Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed back in 2000, which remains the best car manufacturer tribute game to this day.
Developer legacy: Slightly Mad Studios are renowned for their racing simulation games, notable for rebranding Need for Speed into a thoroughbred track racer in Shift and Shift 2: Unleashed. Along with Test Drive: Ferrari, Slightly Mad are also in the midst of developing their latest PC racing simulator C.A.R.S. due out next year.
They say: "The ultimate driving experience for fans of the Ferrari Brands and the racing games. Test Drive: Ferrari will be the 20th title of this impressive and successful collection. The last episode has reached 1.5 million sell-out worldwide."
We say: If Slightly Mad can apply their usual astute attention to detail then Ferrari fans are in for a treat, but we question the lack of originality for the rest of us.
Can't wait? Play this... If you need your Ferrari fix, then there's still the aforementioned Ferrari Challenge and Outrun. Failing that, Forza Motorsport 4 has plenty of Ferraris to go around.
Official Test Drive: Ferrari website, twitter feed and facebook pages all tbc.
Words by Martin Bigg (Twitter: @drivinggamespro)
- Related Games
- Test Drive Unlimited 2
- Test Drive: Ferrari Legends
Opinion
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Saleheim
Thu 24th Nov 2011@ Martin Bigg: You may be very well be right. If this game drives as it should I would probably buy it.
Martin Bigg
Thu 24th Nov 2011I think that was partly because of EA's influence to make the game reach a mass audience. If TD Ferrari isn't published by EA then I suspect it will play more like a sim racer.
Saleheim
Thu 24th Nov 2011The cars in Shift felt like boats that floated anywhere but where you wanted them to go. Let's face it, handling was absolutely terrible. They really need to rebuild their handling mechanics if they want to go this anywhere. I did like the graphics and the sounds (!) though.