Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown
Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, developed by Nacon's in-house studio KT Racing, is one of the most important games ever for the French publisher, as Nacon aims to compete with arcade racing games such as Forza Horizon and The Crew, although not all the signs are pointing in the right direction.
Test Drive is a racing franchise with a long history, starting with the first game in 1987. Over a dozen titles were released before Atari made a name for itself with Test Drive Unlimited and its sequel. That was 13 years ago, and the franchise has been dormant since Test Drive: Ferrari Racing Legends (2012). Given the long history of the franchise, Nacon, at the time still Bigben Interactive, bought the IP from Atari in late 2016 with the intention of rebooting the franchise. In 2018, Bigben announced the acquisition of French studio Kylotonn, which had previously developed the WRC rally games. The studio was then renamed KT Racing to emphasise its focus, and this was Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, which was then announced in July 2020 - by which time production had already begun. The game was originally scheduled for release in September 2022, but the planned release date could not be met. Instead, the publisher pushed the release back several times, first to July 2023 and then to 12 September 2024. At the same time, the PS4 and Xbox One editions were cancelled.