History VideoGame / TestDriveUnlimited

* InfinityPlusOneSword: The Chrysler ME Four-Twelve in the [=PS2=] and PSP versions of TDU. It is the fastest, quickest, and grippiest car in the game, and is able to make a whole lap of the Oʻahu island in an hour or less. However, for unlocking it, you have to win the Supercar Series, which is unlocked very, very, very late in the game, as it's the third-to-last championship in the game, before the [[ShoutOut King Of The Hill]] and the [[GratuitousItalian Viaggio Grande]]; this championship is only open to class A cars (such as the Lamborghini Murcielago, Saleen S7 Twin Turbo and the Koenigsegg CCR), and is composed of 5 long, high-speed races which can take at minimum 3 minutes and at maximum 8-10 minutes with the final race. However, once you unlock it, [[GameBreaker the rest of the game is a walk in the park]].

* ObviousBeta: ''TDU 2'' suffered from a massive amount of bugs and server failures when it was released. The PC version of the game would oftentimes flat-out refuse to let players play due to server overload.

The first ''Test Drive Unlimited'' was released for Platform/{{Xbox 360}} in 2006 and later released for Platform/PlayStation2, UsefulNotes/MicrosoftWindows, and Platform/PlayStationPortable in 2007. It is set on the UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}an island of Oʻahu (where the state's capital and largest city Honolulu is located). The second game, ''Test Drive Unlimited 2'' (''[=TDU2=]''), was released for Windows, Xbox 360, and Platform/PlayStation3 in 2011. It added the [[UsefulNotes/{{Spain}} Spanish]] island of Ibiza as a location and revamped Oʻahu to keep things interesting for returning players. Both those games were developed by Eden Games, who previously made the ''V-Rally'' games.

A third ''TDU'' game, titled ''Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown'' (''TDUSC''), is currently in the works by Kylotonn and will be published by Nacon. It will feature a 1:1 recreation of [[UsefulNotes/HongKong Hong Kong Island]] and will run on the framework of the developer's ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldRallyChampionship WRC 8]]'' game. ''TDUSC'' will be released for Windows (via Platform/{{Steam}} and the UsefulNotes/EpicGamesStore), Platform/PlayStation5, Platform/NintendoSwitch,[[note]]making ''Unlimited Solar Crown'' the first ''Test Drive'' game on a Creator/{{Nintendo}} platform since ''Test Drive 2001'' (2000) for UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor and the first-ever ''TDU'' game on such[[/note]] and Platform/XboxSeriesXAndS.

** Pre-ordering from UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} gave you an exclusive Pagani Zonda Tricolore (that you had to unlock by getting the required A1 license through regular gameplay).

* MagicPlasticSurgery: Downplayed, you can change the shape of your head and face but you have to wear bandages for an hour in real time before they come off. There's even an achievement on UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} called "Mummy" which involves completing 20 multiplayer challenges while wearing the bandages.

The first ''Test Drive Unlimited'' was released for UsefulNotes/{{Xbox 360}} in 2006 and later released for UsefulNotes/PlayStation2, UsefulNotes/MicrosoftWindows, and UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable in 2007. It is set on the UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}an island of Oʻahu (where the state's capital and largest city Honolulu is located). The second game, ''Test Drive Unlimited 2'' (''[=TDU2=]''), was released for Windows, Xbox 360, and UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 in 2011. It added the [[UsefulNotes/{{Spain}} Spanish]] island of Ibiza as a location and revamped Oʻahu to keep things interesting for returning players. Both those games were developed by Eden Games, who previously made the ''V-Rally'' games.

A third ''TDU'' game, titled ''Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown'' (''TDUSC''), is currently in the works by Kylotonn and will be published by Nacon. It will feature a 1:1 recreation of [[UsefulNotes/HongKong Hong Kong Island]] and will run on the framework of the developer's ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldRallyChampionship WRC 8]]'' game. ''TDUSC'' will be released for Windows (via UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and the UsefulNotes/EpicGamesStore), UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch,[[note]]making ''Unlimited Solar Crown'' the first ''Test Drive'' game on a Creator/{{Nintendo}} platform since ''Test Drive 2001'' (2000) for UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor and the first-ever ''TDU'' game on such[[/note]] and UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS.

* SequelHook: After winning the final cup event in ''2'', Tess hopes to see everyone soon for a new season of ''Solar Crown''. We'll get a new "season" in 2023.

''Test Drive Unlimited'' is a sub-series of {{Driving Game}}s in the ''VideoGame/TestDrive'' series. As a ContinuityReboot of [[VideoGameLongRunners the long-running series]], these games are set on fairly accurate recreations of real islands where players are [[WideOpenSandbox free to roam around]] in [[CoolCar gorgeous cars]], beautiful houses, and even do a bit of gambling if one wants to. The first game, first released for UsefulNotes/{{Xbox 360}} in 2006 and later released for UsefulNotes/PlayStation2, UsefulNotes/MicrosoftWindows, and UsefulNotes/PlayStationPortable in 2007, is set on the UsefulNotes/{{Hawaii}}an island of Oʻahu (where the state's capital and largest city Honolulu is located). The second game, released for Windows, Xbox 360, and UsefulNotes/PlayStation3 in 2011, adds the [[UsefulNotes/{{Spain}} Spanish]] island of Ibiza as a location and revamps Oʻahu to keep things interesting for returning players. Both those games were developed by Eden Games, who previously made the ''V-Rally'' games.

A third ''TDU'' game, titled ''Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown'', is currently in the works by Kylotonn and will be published by Nacon. It will feature a 1:1 recreation of [[UsefulNotes/HongKong Hong Kong Island]] and will run on the framework of the developer's ''[[UsefulNotes/WorldRallyChampionship WRC 8]]'' game. ''TDUSC'' will be released for Windows (via UsefulNotes/{{Steam}} and the UsefulNotes/EpicGamesStore), UsefulNotes/PlayStation5, UsefulNotes/NintendoSwitch,[[note]]making ''Unlimited Solar Crown'' the first ''Test Drive'' game on a Creator/{{Nintendo}} platform since ''Test Drive 2001'' (2000) for UsefulNotes/GameBoyColor and the first-ever ''TDU'' game on such[[/note]] and UsefulNotes/XboxSeriesXAndS.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/test_drive_unlimited_1_and_2.jpg]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/test_drive_unlimited_solar_crown.jpg]]

** The driving schools in ''Test Drive Unlimited 2''. They force the handling model to be set to Sport, meaning if you're used to Full Assistance then be ready to spin out with some of the lessons having tight time limits and unforgiving conditions where touching an obstacle or another car you need to overtake fails you instantly. At least the instructors don't chew you out and encourage you to try again.

* [[{{DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist}} Getting Arrested is a Slap on the Wrist]]: Much like the ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeed: World'' and ''[[VideoGame/NeedForSpeedMostWanted2012 Most Wanted]]'' (2012) examples on their pages. Getting busted only results in a $1,000 or so fine which a little F.R.I.M. session can replace. It's even beneficial as it helps your Social level if several players had joined the chase to stop you. The most painful part is the fact that it will reset your Outlaw rank and said fine increases with your Outlaw rank.

** The second game begins with what's supposedly your birthday party, and Tess Wintory giving you a high-performance Ferrari California to try out. Once you're on the road for a while, though, you'll hear Tess's echoing voice asking you to wake up, upon which it's revealed that all of that was AllJustADream, and that you're actually ''Tess's chauffeur'', and that you fell asleep in ''her'' California..

* FictionFiveHundred: You'll slowly become this as you complete races and missions or otherwise gain money through F.R.I.M. Multiple homes on both Oʻahu, Hawaii to Ibiza, Spain on the other side of the world with extremely expensive, rare, and/or vintage super cars stored in mansions, palaces and even a yacht or two.

** Some of the speed trap challenges in the first game. For one thing many of traps are ''after'' the corners, necessitating a very well executed turn (especially not easy if using digital input). For another, there's a timer running, so there may only be time to do over one of the traps at most. And lastly, the traffic is always on and usually heavy, requiring ''very'' precise driving and a leap of faith or two. Often a perfect run comes to a crashing halt in the grille of a truck that no human could possibly react to in time.

* ObviousBeta: ''TDU 2'' suffered from a massive amount of bugs and server failures when it was released. The PC version of the game would often times flat out refuse to let players play due to server overload.

* WideOpenSandbox: Undoubtedly one of the most impressive exhibits of this trope in video game history - and arguably retooled the formula first jumpstarted by ''VideoGame/MidnightClub'', providing the new template for modern-day open-world sandbox racing games like ''VideoGame/ForzaHorizon'', both games' renditions of Oahu and Ibiza are to scale and are surprisingly pretty accurate even if they take some liberties. Once you've bought your first house and first car, (that is, about three minutes after starting), you are perfectly free to drive ([[UnlockableContent almost]]) all over the island. And there are no invisible walls hampering you.

* LongTitle: ''Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown''. Nope, there's no colon to break it up either.

* PimpedOutCar: ''Solar Crown'' will have customization features, if the customized Range Rover in the trailer is an indication.

* ContinuityReboot: ''Unlimited'' could be a fresh reboot of the entire ''Test Drive'' series, after the faltered ''Overdrive'' and ''Eve of Destruction''.

* CallBack: Two of the default AI names in ''1'' are called Dennis and Donald, which are perhaps references to the previous game, Overdrive.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tdusc_teaser.jpg]]

* LighterAndSofter: ''Unlimited'' uses bright colorful graphics and more soothing music, as opposed to ''Overdrive'' which relies on dark tones, SeriousBusiness storyline, and HeavyMetal music. The GenreShift WideOpenSandbox helped this trope.

* ContinuityReboot: ''Unlimited'' could be a fresh reboot of the entire ''Test Drive'' series.

* WideOpenSandbox: Undoubtedly one of the most impressive exhibits of this trope in video game history - and arguably retooled the formula first jumpstarted by ''VideoGame/MidnightClub'', both games' renditions of Oahu and Ibiza are to scale and are surprisingly pretty accurate even if they take some liberties. Once you've bought your first house and first car, (that is, about three minutes after starting), you are perfectly free to drive ([[UnlockableContent almost]]) all over the island. And there are no invisible walls hampering you.

* WideOpenSandbox: Undoubtedly one of the most impressive exhibits of this trope in video game history - and arguably the codifier for modern-day open-world sandbox racing games like ''VideoGame/ForzaHorizon'', both games' renditions of Oahu and Ibiza are to scale and are surprisingly pretty accurate even if they take some liberties. Once you've bought your first house and first car, (that is, about three minutes after starting), you are perfectly free to drive ([[UnlockableContent almost]]) all over the island. And there are no invisible walls hampering you.

* LeftHanging[=/=]BigLippedAlligatorMoment: The opening cinematic in ''Unlimited'' is never explained, resolved, or even alluded to in the game.

* [[{{DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist}} Getting Arrested is a Slap on the Wrist]]: Much like the ''VideoGame/NeedForSpeed: World'' and ''[[VideoGame/NeedForSpeedMostWanted Most Wanted]]'' (2012) examples on their pages. Getting busted only results in a $1,000 or so fine which a little F.R.I.M. session can replace. It's even beneficial as it helps your Social level if several players had joined the chase to stop you. The most painful part is the fact that it will reset your Outlaw rank and said fine increases with your Outlaw rank.