Ossu!
Here it is, the finish line! JDM: Japanese Drift Master is out now! You can grab a copy with a launch discount between today and June 04. There’s 250km of an open world ready for you to explore, a full single player story campaign, one of the most robust tuning systems in a racing game, two different driving models (simcade and arcade), drift, grip and drag event races, and fully licensed, legendary cars coming from the biggest Japanese manufacturers. In other words - it’s a lot of content for you to enjoy!
Ladies and Gentlemen, Let’s Drift!
I’ve launched the game, what now?
First and foremost, obviously have fun! We’re continuing to work on the game: from optimization improvements, quality of life improvements, to future game content. Any and all feedback you might have for us is more than welcome.
The game starts with a tutorial, which eases you into the most basic mechanics of the game, including how to initiate a drift. It’s also the beginning of the story. After its completion (you can also skip it from the Pause Menu) the open world lies at your disposal - feel free to explore Guntama or travel to the next story mission that’s unlocked on your map. You can repeat any of the completed missions directly from your in-game smartphone - it’s a good way to improve your score or even get some additional cash.
Engage in side activities, like the Sushi Delivery Missions or Underground Races to gain more money and ultimately buy new cars as well as tuning parts for them. With game progress you will unlock additional garages for even more car storage. Garages also serve as fast travel points, so do remember that if you want to get somewhere at the far end of a map faster.
From the Main Menu you can also access a Challenge Mode, where players compete for the score in either grip or drift races. The scores are public and visible on leaderboards - it’s the first element of a larger multiplayer feature that we want to add into the game in the future. Additionally, doing Challenge runs earns you some additional cash. Note that you need to score a minimal time requirement or drift points for the score to be recorded.
What’s new today? Patch Notes
If you’re following what’s happening with JDM, you might have seen some gameplay footage being published by influencers for the past week. Today, with the full public release, we’re bringing some new features into the game:
New Open World Events
- Sushi Delivery - When roaming the open world you may stumble upon a Sushi Delivery event. Deliver the package in as good as possible condition, while driving with style, to earn additional money.
- Underground Races - Found when driving through the open world. There are two variations of this event: grip or drift focused. Bet your cash for a chance to win even more money, but you will need to show your skill first - earn enough points (drift) or make it to the finish line in the allocated time (grip) to get the reward. The more money you will bet, the more difficult the challenge will be.
Difficulty Settings
We’ve added three difficulty settings to the game: Easy, Medium, Hard. They are accessible from the Main Menu or the Pause Menu, under the Assists and Driving Settings. The new difficulty settings are scaling how well the AI opponents behave on track: how well they build-up their scores and how aggressively they drive on tracks during events.
Additional patch notes include:
- General Traffic AI improvements - cars in the traffic should behave more rationally. Their spawning points and animations have been improved.
- Traffic intensity optimization - we’ve optimized the amount of cars spawning on different graphics quality settings to improve the overall game’s performance.
- Traffic on/off option - we’ve added the option to turn the traffic on or off at any time - a perfect solution for people who want to master those tight corners in the open world. You can find this setting in the Assists & Driving options from the Game Menu or Pause Menu.
- Force Feedback - fixed the issues with force feedback technology when driving using a steering wheel.
- Upscaler fixes - fixed issues with FSR and XeSS upscaling technology.
- Story Campaign events - fixed minor issues with a variety of events for the Main Story Campaign.
Supported steering wheels
A good portion of you fine people will want to play using your steering wheels. Know that we’re tirelessly working on bringing more and more plug&play presets for you, but as of today this is the list of steering wheels that we fully support.
- Fanatec Podium DD2
- Fanatec CSL DD
- Fanatec_GT_DD
- Moza R5
- Moza R9
- Simagic_Alpha_GT1
- Logitech G29
- Logitech G923 + pedals (PS)
- Logitech G923 + pedals (Xbox)
- Logitech PRO Racing Wheel #1
- Logitech G920
- Thrustmaster T150
- Thrustmaster T300
- Trustmaster_T-GT_II
- Thrustmaster_TS-XW_Racer
- Thrustmaster_TX_RW
- Thrustmaster TMX
- Thrustmaster T500RS
- PXN v10 + pedals
- Turtle Beach VelocityOne Race
If your device is not on the list, don’t worry, we’ve built a whole robust custom binding system in the game. You can use it to map out any device you want to play on.
For more details take a look at our guide here:
The infancy problems
We’ve playtested, debugged and double-checked everything before launch, but you know what? We might have missed something. That something may result in a serious issue for you, which is a situation we really don’t want to happen…but it might.
If it comes down to this, please use our Bug and Issues form, that you can find here - Bug and Issues Form (the link will take you to our webpage).
You will also be able to access this form directly from the game, from the Main Menu > Bug Reporting button.
Using the form is the best way for us to see your issues, however we will still be looking through the Forums, reading our emails and looking at Reddit, but it will always be a less efficient way to contact us.
What’s next for JDM?
Today’s release is just a start. We’re planning to grow, evolve and expand the game in the upcoming months (hopefully years!) to come.
We’re a small team and we can’t push out every single feature we’d want immediately, which is why we’ve put certain milestones in front of us. Something for you to look forward to. Here’s a gist:
It’s but a glimpse into our plans, but it will give you a rough idea on what our priorities will be in the months ahead.
We’ve made it!
Once again folks, THANK YOU for being part of the community. For your support, insights, comments and critique. We’ve done it together!
To celebrate, here’s a commemorative Key Art variation for launch date:
We hope you have a blast roaming the streets of Guntama, following the story of Touma and flying sideways through those tight mountain corners.
JDM: Japanese Drift Master is OUT NOW!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1153410/JDM_Japanese_Drift_Master/
Let’s Drift
The Gaming Factory Team
GAMING FACTORY - UPCOMING RELEASES
We're not only a developer but also a publisher. If you like JDM, maybe take a look at what other titles we have gearing up for launch. Who knows, maybe you'll come to love them, as much as we do!
Thanks!
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