NACON has announced their plans for Year 2 of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, and they include the return of fan favorite features such as housing, improved graphics, and new game modes, and more.
Since the game's release, Solar Crown has faced a lot of backlash from the community, with many feeling the game is not a true successor to Test Drive Unlimited 2. It was missing many of the core features, many felt the game looked worse than the previous entries in the series from two generations ago, and the game's balance was allover the place. With Year 2 the developers hope to turn this around, but the catch is, it is going to take a full year for all of these features to roll out, with housing itself set for 2026. An offline mode is also currently being looked into, but is not currently a part of the Year 2 roadmap.
Here is what is currently planned for Year 2 of Solar Crown, as provided to us via a press release. You can also watch the full Developer Diary below to learn more about this in detail, but the full video is an hour long.
Announcement:
Since its launch in September 2024, Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown has been enriched throughout its first year with new content, as well as numerous technical, Quality of Life, gameplay and network stability improvements. After exploring sunny Ibiza city and discovering new mission types such as Navigation and Convoy, players will soon be able to enjoy a whole new experience with the arrival of the Casino at the start of Season 4.
The Casino will enable players to wager their virtual currency on activities such as slots or poker (coming mid-season) and will provide special rewards including an exclusive car as well as various avatar and car cosmetics.
Season 4 also introduces Stock Races (a set of brand-new races in which only factory cars can take part), the Active Aero feature (an improvement in spoiler behavior for cars that have one), the ability to completely hide the HUD, the Group Ping (add up to four routes to the GPS and invite the group to consult the route plan) and 5 new cars.
The Solar Pass now offers two circuits: a premium circuit, obtainable with Diamonds, the new currency, and a free circuit available to all players. Owners of the Silver (Streets or Sharps) and Gold editions can claim this Solar Pass for free (with an additional 20 levels automatically unlocked for the Gold edition). Season 4 marks the end of Year 1.
Year 2 of Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown, scheduled to run from October 2025 to July 2026, will offer even richer content than Year 1, and will introduce features eagerly awaited by the community, such as cab missions, the creation of new mission types voted for by players, Official Racing Centers to facilitate PvP, houses, as well as a set of Quality of Life improvements and an upgrade to the internal game engine, the KT Engine.
All seasons remain free for all players, with the exception of the Solar Pass, whose premium circuit can be obtained with Diamonds from Season 4, and will always be accompanied by new seasonal content, including new cars, Quality of Life improvements and new gameplay features. The developers are continuing to work on several aspects of the game, including economic balancing, optimizing the game for both consoles and PC. They are also studying the long-term implementation of cross-region, crossplay and offline mode.
Summary of the Dev Diary announcements:
- Season 4 (July 23, 2025) – It will include new content like Casino, Stock Races, a new currency called Diamonds, and enhancements, including the ability to customize the HUD in-game, add up to four routes to the GPS, and invite the group to consult the route plan. This season also introduces 5 new cars, including the Aston Martin DB11 Volante, the DeLorean Alpha5, the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series, the Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato and the Porsche 911 Carrera Coupe Virtual Pair WideBody.
- Season 5 (October 2025) – It will mark the return of taxi missions from the original game and introduces an online store, new vehicles, a rebalanced in-game economy, and an upgrade to the KT Engine, enhancing both performance and graphics.
- Season 6 (January 2026) – With a focus on community-driven features, players are invited to vote online now to decide which new mission type will be added in the future. The four options are: Detective, Delivery, Photography, and Adrenaline. Voting is open to all players at the following link until August 4, 2025 at 12am CEST: https://forms.gle/kSatGb7sLYwcp1BW8
- Season 7 (April 2026) – It will introduce Official Racing Centers, dedicated venues on Hong Kong Island and Ibiza city, designed to enrich players' multiplayer and PvP experience through an advanced search system for both ranked and unranked races. Live Events and the Solar Pass will also be revamped.
- Season 8 (July 2026) – It will mark the return of the Housing / Real Estate, the emblematic feature of the first two Test Drive Unlimited games, and the one most eagerly awaited by players. It will also add Extreme missions and Passenger mode. More information on these new features will be shared at a later date.
- Announcements on the future of TDUSC: Alongside the development of Year 2, KT Racing continues to work extensively on long-term evolutions, including the implementation of cross-region play, crossplay, and offline mode. The studio is also actively focused on optimizing the game engine—both graphics and performance—and enhancing the sound effects for all vehicles.
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