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'Driveclub' online features shut down March 31st, 2020
Driveclub has struggled despite its early hype and eventual refinement, and now Sony is ready to end its troubled saga. The company has announced that the servers for Driveclub, Driveclub VR and Driveclub Bikes will all shut down just before midnight British time (about 7PM Eastern) on March 31st, 2020, and that it will stop selling games and their add-on content August 31st, 2019 at a similar time. Any single-player components will still work, but that's the problem -- as the name suggests, Driveclub is an inherently social game.
Driveclub Japan update live now with 3.3GB of new tracks, fixes
Driveclub's Japan update – featuring a new online multiplayer mode, gameplay improvements and five new Japan tracks with 11 variants in all – is available now on PS4. The update, coming in at 3.33GB, is free and will automatically download when launching the game. All Driveclub updates so far total 5.87GB, Evolution Studios writes in a Facebook post. The new online mode is a multiplayer time trial, and the five new Japan tracks are as follows: Nakasendo (2 variants), Lake Shoji (2 variants), Asagiri Hills Racetrack (3 variants), Takahagi Hills (2 variants) and Goshodaira (2 variants). Gameplay updates include weather improvements, changes to AI drafting behavior, the option to race without crowds and other track infrastructure, and a number of bug fixes. A handful of add-ons are due out January 27 - 29, including the free Icona Vulcano download, the paid Apex Expansion Pack – five new cars, 11 new events and five trophies – the Sakura Tour Pack with 11 new events and five trophies, and two new livery packs. [Image: SCEA]
Driveclub gets free Japan track DLC later this month
Evolution Studios revealed that Driveclub players will receive a free set of Japan DLC tracks as part of an update launching later this month. The pack includes the new Nakasendo challenge, a lengthy point-to-point race featuring trackside cherry blossom trees and other traditional Japanese aesthetic elements. The track is one of several arriving in this month's update, and a collection of new cars, including the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 Centennial Edition, will accompany the launch for Season Pass buyers. A full runthrough of the Nakasendo track is available here. A more specific release date for the free DLC is not yet known. [Image: Evolution Studios]
Driveclub's Redline DLC deploys this week in Europe, Dec. 22 in North America
Driveclub's next Season Pass expansion pack will take a lap in Europe one week before it hits North American shores, developer Evolution Studios announced via Facebook. The upcoming Redline DLC adds five new vehicles, including Renault's Alpine A110-50, McLaren's F1 LM, the Ferrari 458 Speciale, the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, and Mercedes-Benz' SLS AMG Coupe Electric Drive. The pack also adds 11 Tour mode events and a handful of new unlockable Trophies. The Redline expansion launches first in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand on December 17. A North American release will follow on December 23. [Image: Sony]
Sony 'embarrassed' by Driveclub's launch, UK boss says
Driveclub's launch has been rocky, pockmarked with severe server issues, a stream of patches and the delay of the game's free PS Plus version. With all of this in mind, Sony UK Managing Director Fergal Gara told IGN that he and the Driveclub team are "embarrassed" by the game's performance so far. "It's a disappointment," Gara said. "When you lay your soul out as being '4ThePlayers', then what you certainly don't want is games that are not fully ready. It certainly wasn't any ill-intention on behalf of the team. It's ambitious as a game; they're as embarrassed as we are and all you can do in those situations is say sorry. We apologize to any players affected and are doing our damndest to make things right. So that's what we've been doing and the game is pretty near-complete now. We don't want to introduce the PS Plus Edition until we're confident the servers can take the load." In our review, we noted that it was "an infuriating slog to race against" Driveclub's AI, and the game's true joy hinged on its online functionality: "To truly enjoy Driveclub and ignore the demands of its abusive AI, you have to form or join a racing club with friends online." Sony America President and CEO Shawn Layden previously said that Driveclub's issues stemmed from the developer's inability to fully test the game's online systems. "In a connected world, you can't effectively test in your house or in your beta group what it means to have 50,000, 100,000, 200,000 users hit your service," he said. "And the guys [at the studio] are struggling with that. It's throwing up things they had not anticipated." [Image: SCEA]
Driveclub patch restores challenge functionality, rain forecast for tomorrow
Evolution Studios has issued another patch for its socially-focused racer, Driveclub. A post to the game's official Facebook page states the update has "made major improvements to online play," adding that racers should "now see that challenges are back up and running for everybody." Joystiq's Sunday morning test drive was indeed populated with functional community challenges, allowing clubs and friends to take on rivals in track and time-based trials once more. A second patch is scheduled to launch tomorrow, and while the full details regarding its effects will be held until then, a video within the related Facebook post offers a glimpse of a rain-slicked drive. Despite improvements, the team is still working to "reach the capacity levels" needed to support Driveclub's companion app and a PlayStation Plus version. The latest updates continue a string of patches trailing from Driveclub's launch, which have been persistent enough for Evolution Studios to offer up two DLC packs to fans to make up for their troubles. [Image: Evolution Studios]
SCEA boss: 'You can't effectively test' for games like Driveclub
Wondering why Driveclub, a game that has required several post-launch fixes, didn't receive more testing to make sure everything was running smoothly before it was pushed out the door? According to Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA) President and CEO Shawn Layden, it's because games like Driveclub, which focus heavily on online communities, can't be effectively tested. "In the development cycle, we try to do all things. In the development cycle, we try to test against every possibility. We have a [Quality Assurance] team, we have a QA plan. You do a beta test, you scope against that," Layden recently told IGN. "But now, in a connected world, you can't effectively test in your house or in your beta group what it means to have 50,000, 100,000, 200,000 users hit your service. And the guys [at the studio] are struggling with that. It's throwing up things they had not anticipated." Layden noted that progress reports from developer Evolution Studios show continued improvement, and called the problems experienced so far a "hiccup." For their part, Evolution has been quick to apologize for Driveclub's issues, going so far as to offer free DLC and extending Season Passes. [Image: Sony]
Driveclub update adds photo mode, three new tracks
Evolution Studios updated Driveclub yesterday, adding a photo mode option as well as three new tracks. Players can now press the right side of the DualShock 4 controller's touch pad to enable photo mode, then use the system's sharing features to send their pretty car screenshots across the web. Driveclub's three new tracks, which include reversed variants, are located at Yedapalli in India, Los Pelambres in Chile and Wester Ross in Scotland. The developer posted the patch notes to Driveclub's official Facebook page. The update also added support for two upcoming expansions, the Ignition Expansion Pack and Photo-Finish Tour Pack. Both pieces of DLC will launch on November 25 in North America. Driveclub's latest update featured changes to corner and collision penalties as well as corner cutting "for balancing purposes." In addition to new menu and club functionality, the update also introduced "a number of minor bug fixes, performance improvements and usability tweaks." Driveclub has been plagued with server connectivity and performance issues since its October launch. [Image: SCEA]
Driveclub studio kicks the tires, lights two free DLC fires
Game launches can be tricky to nail, as there are plenty of variables where things can go wrong. Such was the case for the unfortunate Driveclub from developer Evolution Studios, which has already seen several fixes deployed and a delay of the game's PlayStation Plus version. Naturally, these developments have led to unhappy customers. To thank fans for their support in light of such problems, Evolution Studios will be giving away two DLC packs for free to customers who have purchased the game. The Ignition Expansion Pack and Photo-Finish Tour Pack, both due on November 25 in North America (November 26 in Europe, November 27 in Japan), will add five new cars, 22 new tour events, 10 new trophies and 10 new livery items. Since these new items will be given away for free, Evolution Studios will be offering Driveclub's Season Pass holders two extra DLC packs in July of 2015 so that, according to a Facebook post by the studio, "players who purchased the pass get everything that was promised." The studio will also be rolling out another update to the game on Tuesday, November 18, which will add the increasingly popular Photo Mode, as well as several game balances and fixes. [Image: Evolution Studios]
Driveclub PS Plus version delayed 'until further notice'
Shuhei Yoshida, Sony's president of worldwide studios, would like to an offer an apology to fans burned by the problematic launch of socially-connected PlayStation 4 racer Driveclub, but his mea culpa comes with more bad news. "[T]he road to launch has been a little rocky, and we are truly sorry that so many of you have not been able to enjoy everything that we had hoped Driveclub would deliver," Yoshida writes in a Facebook status update. He then claims that Sony has dedicated additional resources to fixing Driveclub's connectivity issues, but warns fans that there is currently no estimate for when the game will work properly. From there things only get worse. "With the high volume of new players and additional server load the PS Plus Edition is anticipated to bring, we are currently not confident that we can guarantee the best online experience," Yoshida adds. "Until we can ensure that everyone can enjoy the full social connected online experience, we will be postponing the release of the PS Plus Edition until further notice." For those keeping score at home, the free-to-play PS Plus Edition that Yoshida mentions was originally slated to launch alongside Driveclub on October 7. [Image: Sony]
Driveclub deploys server update, PS Plus Edition 'on hold'
PlayStation 4-exclusive racer Driveclub has seen a "significant" server update to address online issues that linger after the game's launch earlier this month, developer Evolution Studios announced. Players should see improvements in Driveclub's competitive multiplayer component starting this week, and leaderboard fixes are also on the way. Many of Driveclub's online features were previously disabled as its developers addressed connectivity issues that cropped up post-launch. "The issues with server performance were never encountered during the past year, in any of the many rounds of testing prior to launch," a reply from Driveclub's official Facebook account reads. "The servers were actually live for over a week before Oct 7 for reviewers and none of these issues were discovered during that time either. "The servers hit their absolute limit soon after the midnight launch on Oct 7 [...] and we have been working around the clock every day since, to get more servers online and improve the way that the servers handle social activity between players." The team is additionally holding back Driveclub's free PlayStation Plus Edition, pending online fixes. "The PS Plus Edition is on hold while this work progresses and we want to get it back on track as quickly as possible, because we want everyone to enjoy the game we've poured our hearts into throughout development," Evolution Studios revealed via Facebook. [Update: Evolution Studios has issued another Facebook update explaining this week's fixes in detail. "Our diagnostics show the majority of you are now able to get online and racing," the developer states. "Today we also released a server update to optimize multiplayer matchmaking so you will now be matched with more suitable players based on the type of internet connection you have, which means matchmaking should be more reliable. This update will also fix some bugs we had with clubs where some players couldn't join or leave a club."] [Image: Sony]
Driveclub patched again, server woes still plague the racer
Developer Evolution Studios has issued a new patch for socially-connected racing game Driveclub, which it hopes will alleviate the ongoing connectivity issues that have plagued the game since its debut. "Over the next 24 hours we are rolling out a new game update alongside server upgrades that will help to improve server performance, clubs and multiplayer functionality," reads a recent post on the game's Facebook page. "We are also running essential diagnostics periodically to help us continue to improve server performance, which may disrupt online play for you when you get connected. This will be kept to a minimum." Evolution then goes on to apologize for the connectivity issues that are especially troubling in a game based around a core gimmick of social networking, and claims it is "working around the clock to improve connectivity." Our review of Driveclub was middling. Ludwig awarded the game three of five stars, and while he praised its undeniably attractive graphics he also noted that the game features braindead AI and a career mode he quite diplomatically described as "old-fashioned." These ongoing server woes have not improved our opinion of the game. [Image: Sony]
Driveclub's imminent update to re-enable some online features
Server woes remain ongoing for PS4 racer Driveclub, but developer Evolution Studios announced a new update should allow the team to bring more functionality to the game's online side. Yesterday afternoon the UK studio said the update was due "within 24 hours," and would mean the dev could "switch on more of the online features, so that you will be able to play more of Driveclub online." When Driveclub launched last week, its servers buckled so hard under the traffic that Evolution decided to delay the launch of the content-lighter PlayStation Plus version to ease the load, as well as the companion iOS and Android app. Over the weekend a new patch allowed the servers to handle more players, but the studio added further work would make certain online features unavailable, such as challenge and social updates.
Driveclub PS Plus temporarily held back to ease server load
Evolution Studios announced it's delaying the PlayStation Plus edition of Driveclub following the server troubles and connectivity issues the retail version's endured since launch. In a Facebook post, Game Director Paul Rustchynsky apologized for holding back the content-lite version free for Plus subscribers, which was due to launch alongside the full game this week, noting that "we want to ensure that when you come on board, you get the best experience possible." Rustchynsky didn't provide a new due date for the Plus edition, but said once Evolution's happy with server performance the studio will announce when it'll be available. The delay also applies to the racer's companion iOS and Android app, which did launch on Google Play yesterday but was since pulled. As for users who've pre-ordered the full game upgrade from the Plus edition, Rustchynsky said "you will still get the full version of Driveclub digitally." - we've reached out to Sony to clarify if that means they can obtain the full version now or when the Plus version launches [Update: A Sony UK spokesperson told Joystiq, "If someone has purchased the PS Plus version, they will be able to get the full game - as the game isn't out yet here, this would be on Friday in the UK."]
Driveclub review: The Stepford Drives
(PS4) You choose what you look like in Driveclub, which adds a tinge of humanity to a game characterized by competitive pieces of metal orbiting a scenic road at high speed. It may seem like a trifling detail, just a simple tweak to the biped behind the wheel, but it's the subtle setup for what Driveclub is really about: a human trying to purge all emotion and blend in with a community of robot race-car drivers. The computer-controlled drivers infuse their route with a glorious, mechanical perfection – slingshotting around insane curves as sunlight ripples across their Mercs and Paganis. Who wouldn't want to be part of such calculated beauty? Who would not want to fit snugly into a 12-car snake slinking around the corner?
Driveclub additional to regular PS Plus allocation, says Sony [update]
PlayStation Plus members are getting the service's edition of Driveclub on top of next month's regular number of games, according to Sony Europe. That means the PS4 racer's lite edition is effectively a bonus for Plus subscribers, who can download and play it as well as the two PS4, two PS3 and two Vita freebies due monthly in the Instant Game Collection. The confirmation comes from Sony Europe's Fred Dutton on the region's PlayStation Blog, so we've reached out to Sony America to confirm the same deal applies. [Update: A Sony Computer Entertainment America spokesperson told Joystiq the same does apply for North America] Evolution Studio's sim is out October 7 as a full retail game and in an edition free for Plus members, with the latter missing most of the cars and tracks available in the former. The Plus edition includes 10 cars and 5 tracks with 11 variations or routes, while the full game features 50 cars and 25 tracks with 55 routes. It's unclear whether or not the hashtag is included in the Plus edition, but the good news those who download the Driveclub freebie can upgrade to the full game for $50. [Image: Sony Europe]
Free DLC tracks, cars coming to Driveclub post-launch
Driveclub developer Evolution Studios has revealed new information on the racing game's planned post-launch DLC, a scheme that includes quite a bit of additional content in both free and premium formats. According to Evolution's community manager Jamie Brayshaw, at launch Driveclub will feature 25 tracks, each of which will boast multiple routes from start to finish. Over the course of the following year, the developer plans to release seven more tracks at no cost to players alongside new, gratis vehicles which will appear each month. While all of that content is free, Evolution also plans to release for-pay DLC content at the same time, which will add an additional 38 cars and 176 events to Driveclub. Individual pricing on this DLC is currently unavailable, but those interested in picking up everything coming to Driveclub will save some money by purchasing all the DLC at once via the game's $25 Season Pass. According to Brayshaw this represents a 60 percent savings over purchasing all of the content piecemeal. Driveclub is currently slated to launch on the PlayStation 4 on October 7. [Image: Sony]
Driveclub Special Edition peeling out (stickers) in Europe
Sony's socially-driven racer, Driveclub, is getting the special edition treatment in Europe. The special edition comes packed with some bonus in-game goodies, most notably access to five cars, including the McLaren P1, Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series, Ferrari 458 Italia, Aston Martin v12 Vantage S and Alfa Romeo 4C, and each will feature an "exclusive" livery design. On top of that, players will get access to two more exclusive livery designs. Finally, in an apparent effort to corner the crucial Trapper Keeper demographic, the special edition will include two vinyl stickers of the Driveclub emblem. The special edition has a suggested retail price of €69.99. Driveclub launches October 8 in Europe. We've contacted Sony to find out if the special edition will be available in North America as well. [Image: Sony]
MotorStorm creator's new studio is cooking up new IP
Remember that studio that MotorStorm creator Martin Kenwright founded not-quite two months ago, called Starship? Well, they're ready to talk about some of the projects they're got baking in the oven. That's no throwaway metaphor either, as one of Starship's upcoming IPs is CyberCook, a "next-gen eco-system for cookery." "There has been no major step change in the evolution of consumer cooking experiences in over 20 years," Kenwright said in a press release. "The 19th century had cookery books, 20th century had TV, analogue media and live shows. Direct to consumer has come of age, with mass technology ownership allowing us to move beyond existing channels into a brave new world called CyberCook. It's an experience second only to real cooking, a genuine game-changing platform with infinite opportunities for collaboration, partnerships and social media." Also on Starship's plate (haa) is Playworld, a mobile game designed for children ages five and up. No gameplay details or screenshots were shared, but Kenwright said the game is designed to "empower kids' creativity." Both Playworld and CyberCook are expected to reach smartphones and tablets in Q4 2014. If all of this feels like too much of a departure from Kenwright's racing game history - along with creating MotorStorm, Kenwright founded Driveclub developer Evolution Studios - don't fret too much; Starship is also eyeing the growing sector of virtual reality with keen interest. "We're thinking about returning to our roots with a wicked twist," Kenwright said. "Original, made-for-VR propositions are on the way. It's truly a case of 'watch this space.'" Oh, we'll be watching alright. Right after we cook that delicious-looking dish. [Image: Starship]
Video preview: Socialized racing in PS4's Driveclub
After deciding to go a few more laps to ensure its social features functioned as envisioned, Evolution Studios is ready to unleash its delayed PS4-exclusive racer Driveclub onto the world. Launching on October 7 in North America, the racing game finds its place between the hardcore simulation style of a Gran Turismo and the arcade action of a Need for Speed. In our video preview, we discuss the game's look and tactility, marvelous sound design, microtransaction concerns and where the game's PS Plus version fits into the mix.
