Test Drive 4

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1997 video game

title: "Test Drive 4" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1997-video-games", "accolade,-inc.-games", "lake-district-in-fiction", "midway-studios-newcastle-games", "multiplayer-and-single-player-video-games", "munich-in-fiction", "playstation-(console)-games", "racing-video-games-set-in-the-united-states", "sports-video-games-set-in-germany", "sports-video-games-set-in-japan", "test-drive", "video-games-developed-in-the-united-kingdom", "video-games-set-in-cumbria", "video-games-set-in-kyoto", "video-games-set-in-san-francisco", "video-games-set-in-switzerland", "video-games-set-in-washington,-d.c.", "windows-games"] description: "1997 video game" topic_path: "technology/operating-systems" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Test_Drive_4" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary 1997 video game ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox video game"]

FieldValue
titleTest Drive 4
imageTest Drive 4.JPG
captionNorth American cover art featuring the 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 (left) and the 1997 Dodge Viper GTS (right)
developerPitbull Syndicate
publisherAccolade
producer
platformsPlayStation, Windows
seriesTest Drive
releasedPlayStation Microsoft Windows
genreRacing
modesSingle-player, multiplayer
::

| title = Test Drive 4 | image = Test Drive 4.JPG | caption = North American cover art featuring the 1966 Shelby Cobra 427 (left) and the 1997 Dodge Viper GTS (right) | developer = Pitbull Syndicate | publisher = Accolade | producer = | platforms = PlayStation, Windows | series = Test Drive | released = PlayStation Microsoft Windows | genre = Racing | modes = Single-player, multiplayer

Test Drive 4 is a 1997 racing video game developed by Pitbull Syndicate and published by Accolade for PlayStation and Windows. It offers 14 supercars and muscle cars, and tasks the player with beating computer opponents in tracks set in real life locales. The game's tracks are long courses with rural roads and urban streets, and commonly feature traffic and short corners. The player has to arrive at each checkpoint (a banner with text such as "Stage 1" or "Stage 2") before the Checkpoint Timer expires, resulting in additional time, and crossing the finish line is required to complete the race. Test Drive 4s commercial success briefly made Test Drive the best selling racing franchise, but the game received mixed reviews. In 1999 the game was republished under the Greatest Hits label after selling 850,000 copies within one year of its release.

Gameplay

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/29/Test_Drive_4_PS1_Capture.png" caption="The player (shown driving a 1966 [[Shelby Cobra]]) in third place during a race in [[Keswick, Cumbria]], [[England]], [[United Kingdom]]."] ::

Test Drive 4 offers 14 supercars and muscle cars, and tasks the player with beating computer opponents in tracks set in five real life locales: Keswick, Cumbria, San Francisco, Bern, Kyoto, and Washington, D.C.; the Windows version adds a sixth location: Munich. The game's tracks are long courses with rural roads and urban streets, and commonly feature traffic and short corners. The player has to arrive at each checkpoint (a banner with text such as "Stage 1" or "Stage 2") before the Checkpoint Timer expires, resulting in additional time, and crossing the finish line is required to complete the race. The police car can chase and stop a player who exceeds the speed limit; to counter this, the player either stops in front of the police car or outruns it. Only a few vehicles are available to the player from the outset, with the rest needing to be won or purchased as the game progresses.

In singleplayer, the player can participate in a Single Race, a Cup, or a Drag Race. The game also offers multiplayer; the Windows version of the game has three Network Options: serial, modem, and LAN, while the PlayStation version supports the PlayStation Link Cable.

Development and release

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cd/Dodge_Viper_GTS_-Flickr-Alexandre_Prévot(1).jpg" caption="Dodge Viper]] is one of the fourteen vehicles licensed for ''Test Drive 4''."] ::

English video game developer Pitbull Syndicate was established in December 1996 by eight experienced programmers and artists. In 1997, the studio designed Test Drive 4 in collaboration with publisher Accolade. According to Accolade president and CEO Jim Barnett, the game exploits 3D graphics to offer a satisfactory driving experience. Its fourteen vehicles were used under license from car designers such as Chrysler, the owner of the Dodge and Plymouth automobile brands. In contrast to multi-lap circuits found in most other racing games, Test Drive 4 only had linear point-to-point courses. The game's race tracks are realistically modeled after real places such as Kyoto, Japan and Washington, DC. Test Drive 4s techno-oriented soundtrack includes licensed songs from the bands Orbital and The Younger, Younger 28's; Accolade executive producer Chris Downend considered the two bands suitable for the game's energetic gameplay style.

Test Drive 4 was displayed at the 1997 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), and Accolade announced its November release date. Prior to its completion, the publisher spent $2 million on a promotional campaign for the game; television commercials ran on ESPN, Speedvision, and MTV during the final two weeks of November, and radio advertisements appeared on The Howard Stern Show in December. Accolade vice president Stan Roach said that the company anticipated the game to be the highest-selling racing title of the winter season (and also its most successful product "in years"), and that the advertisements are the first time they signed promotional deals with broadcasting media since the beginning of the "16-bit market". Accolade published the game on 3 November for PlayStation, and 24 November for Microsoft Windows. The Windows release came in two versions, one with support for 3dfx video cards, and another with a software renderer. Electronic Arts imported its PlayStation version to Japan on 2 April 1998.

Reception

Sales

the game sold over 850,000 copies. Because of its commercial success, the PlayStation version was republished under the Greatest Hits label. Accolade stated in a press release that the commercial successes of the game and the off-road-themed Test Drive: Off-Road caused Test Drive to become the top-selling racing series at the time.

Critical reviews

| Allgame = (PS) | CGSP = (PC) | CGW = (PC) | Edge = 6/10 (PS) | EGM = 6.125/10 (PS) | Fam = 27/40 (PS) | GameRev = B (PS) | GSpot = 5.5/10 (PS) | IGN = 7/10 (PS) | NGen = (PS) | OPM = (PS) | PCGUS = 63% (PC) | GR = 71% (PS)

Reviews for Test Drive 4 were divergent, disagreeing on many aspects of the game, and ranged from mediocre to moderately positive. For example, reviewers for Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM) and GameSpot both felt the inclusion of oncoming cars and police cars help liven up the action and were a distinctive feature of the Test Drive series, The sensitivity of the controls was cited as a problem by most critics, particularly when driving at high speed. *IGN*s Jaz Rignall added: "Also, the car's weight-shift response is not fluid, so there's no feeling of feedback -- once you lose control, it's very difficult to avoid spinning out." He said the controls are the one issue which made Test Drive 4 a good, rather than great game: "Had Test Drive 4 been more polished and better refined in the handling department, it would have been close to getting a 9. As it stands, it misses out on an 8 by a whisker."

Kelly Rickards and Kraig Kujawa of EGM and Glenn Rubenstein of GameSpot instead felt what held the game back was that its gameplay is simply too basic and generic to stand out, though Rickards still compared it positively to the Need for Speed series, calling it "the game Need for Speed II should have been." Rickards was among a number of critics who commented positively on the game's clash of modern cars with 1960s muscle cars, its diverse locales, and its drag strip. Rubenstein acknowledged that the drag strip is a unique feature in what he nonetheless maintained is an overall generic game.

The music was another subject of diverse opinions; GamePro called it "engaging and catchy", Test Drive 4 received "average" reviews on the PlayStation according to the review aggregation website GameRankings.

Sequel and legacy

Pitbull Syndicate developed a 1998 sequel, Test Drive 5; it features more vehicles and tracks and competed with Need for Speed III: Hot Pursuit. Accolade published Test Drive Off-Road 2 in 1998, which uses a modified version of the Test Drive 4 engine and includes licensed off-road vehicles.

References

References

  1. ''Test Drive 4'' (PlayStation) manual
  2. ''Test Drive 4'' (Windows) manual
  3. "GameSpy: Pitbull Syndicate Company Profile".
  4. [https://www.questia.com/newspaper/1G1-231581691/pitbull-s-founder-sinks-teeth-into-new-venture]{{dead link. (July 2021)
  5. . (19 June 1997). ["Get Ready To Pit The Most Exotic Modern Supercars Against The Raw Power Of Classic "Muscle Cars" In Accolade's Test Drive 4!"](http://www.accolade.com/press/6.19.td4.htm). *Accolade, Inc.*.
  6. (22 August 1997). "Test Drive 4 - IGN".
  7. "Archived copy".
  8. "Jack Nicklaus 4 Hits Stores Today".
  9. "Test Drive 4 Hits TV and Radio".
  10. "TEST DRIVE 4 - Press Release".
  11. (24 March 1998). "Accolade Kicks Off 1998 With Record Selling Franchise, 12 New Titles And An Increased Focus On Sony PlayStation Market". Accolade, Inc..
  12. IGN Staff. (9 January 2002). "PlayStation Greatest Hits: Complete List".
  13. Marriott, Scott Alan. "Test Drive 4 (PS) - Review". [[All Media Network]].
  14. Royal, Tim. (1998). "Test Drive 4". Strategy Plus, Inc..
  15. Goble, Gord. (March 1998). "Flat Tire (''Test Drive 4'' Review)". Ziff Davis.
  16. Edge staff. (25 December 1997). "Test Drive 4 (PS)". [[Future plc]].
  17. (January 1998). "Review Crew: Test Drive 4". [[Ziff Davis]].
  18. "テストドライブ4 [PS]". [[Enterbrain]].
  19. Tony V.. (February 1998). "Test Drive 4 Review (PS)". [[CraveOnline]].
  20. Rubenstein, Glenn. (9 December 1997). "Test Drive 4 Review (PS) [date mislabeled as "May 2, 2000"]". [[CBS Interactive]].
  21. Rignall, Jaz. (3 November 1997). "Test Drive 4 (PS)". [[Ziff Davis]].
  22. (1997). "Test Drive 4". Ziff Davis.
  23. Smolka, Rob. (April 1998). "Test Drive 4". [[Future US]].
  24. "Test Drive 4 for PlayStation". CBS Interactive.
  25. (January 1998). "Finals". [[Future US.
  26. Boba Fatt. (December 1997). "PlayStation ProReview: Test Drive 4". [[International Data Group.
  27. Olafson, Peter. (1999). "Test Drive 5 Review for PC on GamePro.com". [[International Data Group.
  28. Wigmore, Glenn. "Test Drive Off-Road 2 (PC) - Review". [[All Media Network]].
  29. "Test Drive Off-Road 2 - Review - allgame".

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1997-video-gamesaccolade,-inc.-gameslake-district-in-fictionmidway-studios-newcastle-gamesmultiplayer-and-single-player-video-gamesmunich-in-fictionplaystation-(console)-gamesracing-video-games-set-in-the-united-statessports-video-games-set-in-germanysports-video-games-set-in-japantest-drivevideo-games-developed-in-the-united-kingdomvideo-games-set-in-cumbriavideo-games-set-in-kyotovideo-games-set-in-san-franciscovideo-games-set-in-switzerlandvideo-games-set-in-washington,-d.c.windows-games