Driveclub’s “missing” shadows clarified, split-screen still viable

A NeoGaf user has recently noticed that in some gameplay videos showcasing the upcoming PlayStation 4 exclusive racing simulator Driveclub, under certain conditions, the game’s cars seem to cast no shadows and even “float” on the asphalt, just like in the above image. Taking it to the same forum, Driveclub’s director Paul Rustchynsky has clarified that the issue isn’t because of inaccurate shadows; quite the opposite, in fact.

“I have to admit that it took me a while to get used to this, but it is entirely physically accurate – we don’t use fake shadows or mask sunlight by ambient occlusion, which often hides this ‘effect'”, explains Rustchynsky. “Under strong lighting conditions and from the right angle, there won’t be a shadow visible beneath the car. To show this, I took a car out into the Evo car-park, parked it so the sun was from directly behind, and held a camera up in the air at similar angle to the chase camera. Nothing is faked or baked in this image either 😉 Number plates have been obviously obscured though”.

Additionally, the director promises that Evolution Studios (the game’s developer) is hard-at-work on improving the tunnel lightning. Apparently, upcoming updates won’t just feature additional content, but also graphical improvements. Finally, while there are no immediate plans for a split-screen mode, fans shouldn’t give up hoping. “Tunnel lighting has already been updated to look even better, you’ll hopefully notice the improvements in a future game update ;)”, said the director. Also, “there are no plans currently [for a split-screen mode], bit it’s not out of the question“.

Driveclub launches on October 7th in North America and October 8th in Europe, exclusively on the PlayStation 4. Customers can either pay for it upfront, or get the PlayStation Plus version free-of-charge, which features eleven tracks and ten cars. Driveclub will also feature a Season Pass available for $24.99, and purchasing one will save you a whooping 60% on the cost of purchasing these packs individually, as the total value of them will be around $75.84.