Methoddan

Thanks for the info, has helped :)

OK, I'm a complete noob when it comes to modding. But I am curious about something. How, in a nutshell, do you get a custom car model into the game? Is it necessary to import and 'adapt' a car from a different game - or can you, if you had the time and patience, completely make up your own car? That seems sensible to me, seeing as all the cars in the game were made from scratch by the developers - so why should somebody else not be able to? Say I had a 3D model of a car. I'm a noob with 3D modelling too, so I have no idea whether this model includes/can be made to have animations, spinning wheels etc - but what file format(s) would it have to be to turn it into a TDU2 car, and would one go from 3D model to finished in-game car that you can drive? - Dan

No problem :) I'm not much into modding or programming, so there's only so much I can do to help; but I'll try my best. I'm assuming that, like me, you unpacked your game by downloading the archive with the four files, placing them in the game directory, and running 'unpack.cmd'. That, for me anyway, created a 'backup' folder in my main game directory, inside which all of the .big and .map files are - I currently have none in the main game directory, meaning the game is running from the unpacked files instead - which include the modded car files. I don't know if this has anything to do with it, but I'm running the game with Knyazev'x TDU2 Universal Launcher (I upgraded to v1.5 today, though it did work with the v1.0 I had before). Obviously whatever I'm doing doesn't require any .big or .map files in the game folder, as it's working fine now. I have no clue whether any applied updates/patches or the fact that I have the exploration pack has anything to do with it, but I doubt it. I guess my advice would be try to universal launcher if you don't have it; and if that's already what you're doing ... erm... hope that somebody that knows a bit more than me can help you out :s Also yes - props to Reventon09, he's done some awesome work. I love how he's released a nice variety of cars from different ages for the game, there's something for everybody. I'd LOVE to see the TVR Cerbera Speed 12 in this game (hint hint)...

Sure :) I googled 'TDU2 unpack' and it was one of the first results that I clicked on to find out how to unpack the game. I think it was somewhere on this site, actually. I downloaded the little thing and started extracting; in the meantime I read the comments on the post. One person said their game kept crashing, and they found out it was because one file had been put in a 'backup' folder; so they put the file back into the game directory and it worked again. So, I thought - without having tested it beforehand - that I may as well put whatever was put into the backup folder back into the game directory to start with, to avoid the problem altogether. So I did. Then, I went about replacing all the mod car files in the various bnk directories of the now unpacked game, tried running it, and the mods didn't work, hence my confusion. I then looked at the game folder, and noticed that actually, those files i'd taken out of 'backup' back into the game folder were actually the original, packed files of the game - and that when I launched the game, it was reading off of them instead of the new unpacked folders where I had my modded files; so I put them (all '.big' and '.map' files if I remember - or something like that anyway) back in the 'backup' folder, tried again, and this time it all worked how it should; the mods were in the game, working perfectly. - Dan

Hello, I thought I'd have a look what car replacement mods had been released for TDU2, found a few I liked and downloaded them. I figured out that in order to install, I'd have to unpack my game. I found a little archive to download for that, followed the unpack command, let it do its thing; and that bit seems to have gone smoothly. Next step, which seemed fairly straightforward, and was the same for all the car mods I had downloaded, was to backup the original .bnk files and replace them with the new ones from each mod, in the various subdirectories of the vehicles folder, such as 'high', 'interiors', 'med' and 'rim'. So, I took the original files I intended on replacing and put them in a backup folder, somewhere completely different, on a different hard drive of my computer even, and then put the files that came with the mods into the game's bnk folders instead. And I did this for each mod, in each directory as it should be. However, when I start the game (through the 1.5 universal launcher, if that's of any relevance), the game works fine, no crashes or anything, but the mods haven't taken effect, and what I find really weird considering that the original car files aren't even on the same hard drive any more, is that the original cars show up, instead of the mod ones. One thing I am wondering; each mod came with files for 'high' and 'med' res, but the original game has files for 'low' res as well, under the 'med' directory. I tried changing the graphics settings a few times in case that had anything to do with it; but the original cars were still there. Also, one of the mods did have a replavement file for the 'low' res version (as well as med and high res) so it's very odd that that one didn't work. Obviously, I must be missing something. Is there some sort of magicmap equivalent for TDU2, or have I missed out some important step here ? I've double checked and yes, none of the original files (for the cars intended to be replaced) are still in the game directory, and the directories do contain all the files for the mod cars. If anyone could enlighten me, I'd sure appreciate it; these mods seem to be working for everybody else, so the problem must be somewhere on my end. - Dan EDIT: sorted it out. Apparently it had something to do with certain files not being in a backup folder.

Hmm... didn't think of that... maybe *they* should have thought of that when deciding to limit the amount of cars and cut so many out... - Dan

Hi, I just got TDU2 and so far have mixed views on it. I'm not here to write a review, but I'll sum it up by saying that I found that a lot of the things I didn't like in the first game have been greatly improved upon... whilst a lot of things I loved in the first game have been changed for the worse. One thing I'm disappointed in is the car selection. And that's the one of the biggest parts of the game's appeal. I was surprised to see that there are just over 100 cars in this game, as it feels that there are only a fraction of what was in the first game. I understand that they had licensing issues with lamborghini, so that explains that... and potentially some other cars - but what about the companies they didn't have issues with ? The first game had 3 TVRs, this one only has 1. Where did the lotus elise and exige go? What about the mclaren F1? What about the countless other cars that were in the first game, but for some reason aren't in this one, despite the car make being present ? I can understand licensing issues - but where there are none I see no logic in this move. Sure, they've given us some new cars that weren't in the first game... but it feels like they've taken away much more. Cut a long story short; anybody who finds a way to import cars from the first game into the second (on PC of course) is my god. I also understand that they have a new physics engine - if the first game's car physics are incompatible with the new game's ones, there's surely a way to make the car from the first game use the physics from a different car in the second ? (ex. TVR Tuscan from first game could easily get away with Sagaris physics from the second) I'm really hoping somebody can find a way to do this... I'm so certain it must be possible, and fairly easy if you know what to look for and what to change. - Dan

Though I have nothing against them, I'm not one of those people who blindly thinks that whatever the newest ferrari is, is the coolest car around; until the next one comes out... One aspect I really appreciated in TDU is that they have a nice selection of classics - something I hope they will further expand in the sequel. I recently bought the game Mafia II and so have have been very impressed by it - I'm not here to write a video game review so I'll just say that there's a very nice range of cars from the 30s-50s, with good engine sounds to match too; all in very high quality. For licensing purposes they're not real cars - but they've done a good job at making them as near as the same as they can; and you'd have to be really pedantic to complain about the small differences. I don't have the skills or programs necessary to import these into TDU myself, unfortunately, but if somebody is willing to do one or more, then I'm happy to try and find the required model (sound too?) files from my Mafia II disc and send them over - I'd only hope that you import the Duesenberg first :) http://www.igcd.net/images/030/822.jpg - Dan P.S. Somebody seriously has to get the TVR Speed 12 from Forza 3 into TDU...

Yo, All sorted now. I think what was making it so hard is, having completed nearly all the missions before this funny glitch took place anyway; I was looking for missions that I didn't know if I'd completed or not - as the map no longer showed the completed ones on it. So, if I'd drive to the location of a mission and it wasn't there, either I'd already won it; or I hadn't explored enough and had to look harder. This made exploring very tedious indeed... but I've finally found them all. Dan

Thanks for replying; though I have tried that - that's why i'm so confused. The map I found zooms in really well and really pinpoints the locations of the missions - I have found a handful with it; which is how I managed to finish all the hiker missions; yet with most of the others, I've driven round and round every round within 2km - quite a wide circle seeing as the map shows *exactly* where the missions are (or are supposed to be anyway) ... I just don't get it. Are there prerequisites or something ?

Once you get used to them, bikes are much better than cars. That said, this is probably the only game in which I think that. A lot of it lies in the controller you use - I find the xbox 360 controller a hundred times better for racing games than the keyboard - as when you press the keyboard button's it either 'on' or 'off' whereas with triggers you can have all the values in between depending on how hard you pull. Makes huge changes to the way the vehicles steer and accelerate. The main advantage is that unlike nearly all of the cars in the game, bikes have grip - and lots of it. I don't think any of my bikes has ever skidded in the game - something that can't be said for the cars. You just have to get used to the fact that when going fast, you have to brake earlier for corners than you would in a car, and often you need to steer a lot harder than you would in a car. Once you get used to it though... it makes the cars look bad. No matter what the performance numbers are compared to the cars of the game, you can win any race with the MV agusta [watever it's called] F4 ... tamburini I think the name is (?) - tune it all the way and your oppositon will be left behind you on the horizon. I once lapped everybody except the guys in 2nd and 3rd place with it :)

Hi, After having played through most of the game, I finally beat all the races, speed trials, and extra missions that had come up in that time. The map was now empty. It felt good to have completed every challenge, yet sad that there was nothing left. Then whilst looking up the statistics, I realise that actually only half the 'extra' missions (courier, models, car transport, hikers) had actually been done... so where were the others ? After lots of driving around, and some help from a map I found online, I found a few more; and managed to complete all the hiker missions. I still have 9 car transport missions left and.... I can't remember ow many but a few models and courier missions too. Yet nothing's showing up on the map. I'm aware of the fact that you have to drive to the missions locations and find it before you can see it on the map. Yet, even when helped by the super-detailed hi-res map I found, showing in clear details the location of every mission (amongst other things) , well... that's where the real confusion starts. I haven't tried every one yet; though I'd chosen half a dozen missions at random from this map I found. This was a map that seemed to receive quite good praise, by the way, not a misleading false one. I could see very clearly where, exactly on what road, they were. Yet when I drove there in the game, there was nothing to be fond... and yes, I did check that they weren't missions I hadn't done already. so what's really confusing me is why missions I have *not* already done don't seem to be there when I go to find them. Even more confusing is the last time I played my game (though it was never like this before) when I go on the map, and show only "extra" missions... it doesn't show hiker or courier - whether I choose 'all', 'complete' or 'incomplete' . They always used to be on there. That's strange... But that's not really the problem. Is anybody aware of something along the lines of having to find the missions before you can do it - you don't have to find them in a select order or anything do you ? It's quite frustrating as it would be nice to complete the game, and unlock the last three cars... Thanks in advance for any help and advice, ~Dan

OK, I feel stupid now. It's typical, but I'm not complaining. I just had another go and won - by a fair bit. That's seem unbelievable after the huge amount of failed attempt, and even huger amount of obscenities that came from my mouth all throughout the afternoon and evening. If anybody else is struggling - here's the answer: Pagani Zonda, fully tuned of course. It seems there is actually another class A car that doesn't slide off the road - yet this one's faster than the CLK GTR. OK, never mind everybody - but I'll keep this up just in case somebody finds it one day needing some advice. - Dan

Hi all, I know this is fairly long post but please bear with me, if only skimming through :) I like this game a lot as it's to me a very good blend of simulation and arcade - neither too much of one or the other. So I've been playing it a lot. And gotten very far. I'm currently in champion level, and on the last race in that level. So far, with luck and practice, I've been able to beat every other race in the game, sometimes first time, sometimes after two or three retries. I've just had a quick search on google and some forums to see what other people find the hardest race... Most people seem to be saying Tantalus. Well, I finished it first time round, gold cup, with over a minute to spare. Mercedes CLK GTR, fully tuned. Always tune your vehicles, it givbes you quite an edge over the opposition, and most of the time attack races aren't too hard to beat with the right vehicles. Oh, another little bit of advice - don't just randomly choose the most powerful car for races. For example, the Saleen. It's fast, yes, bt it's got about as much grip as an ice cube - just slips and slides all over the place. The Mercedes CLK GTR seems to be the only class A car with some amount of grip - thanks to which I've been able to actually go around corners at over 2km/h without flying off the road into the forest. I've won many races with this car. I also recommend the Ford GT for class B cars, from personal experience. Anyway now that I've given some advice that I hope will help others... maybe somebody has some for me ? I'm stuck on "The Canyon's Revenge". It's the last champion level race I have left. I couldn't see any mention of it when I googled for opinions on the hardest TDU race, yet even though I won every other race so far in no more than 5 tries, I've been at this one dozens of times, with no luck and lots of swearing (I'm a little bit like the angry video game nerd when it gets to hard racing games lol). This is true of every race - the other players are demented psychopaths that seem to be bent on ramming you, and spinning your car. But that's just the beginning - usually the trick is, get past them all then just try to keep 1st place. Somehow no matter what car I use in this race, the other players always have the fastest cars in the game, and even if I do overtake them, if they get past me once it's nigh on impossible to get back to 1st place. In a 13km race that basically means restart ever time you crash. Which, dang it, is very often. I can't be that bad a racer to have gotten so far on my own, yet I just can't do this race without crashing sometime, somewhere. The problem here is grip. As I mentioned before, the only class A car I have that grips somewhat is the Merc CLK GTR - yet againt koeniggseggs, saleens (which typically drive flawlessly when the AI is controlling them... huh nothing like the erratic slip'n'slide behaviour I get, no matter how careful I am with them), Enzos, MC12s, etc it just doesn't have the top speed to match - and I get overtaken for good on the straights. So I find myself forced to choose a faster car - and hope it'll have a bit of grip. Which one of the others seem to. I've tried it many times with the Mclaren F1 GTR. It's very fast, 0-60 in under 3 seconds (after tuning, anyway) and I can at least half the time I try get past the opposition and into first place after the first two or three bends of the track. Then it's just a case of staying 1st for the remaining 13km. Which I just can't do, time after time after time. If I drive carefully, say at 80% where it seems possible to actually stick to the road, I get overtaken and find it really hard to get back to first. And if I go fast, the car slips and slides off into the side. Even on the straights, without bumps. the 'perfect' drag road, the car will still decide to randomly slide into the scenery without me touching any steering controls at some point in the race. Oh, and the reset button doesn't do anything 'til you hit a tree, and even then it takes 2 or 3 seconds to do anything. Then you find yourself in 7th place or something. The furthest I've gotten was up to the 9th out of 10 checkpoints in 1st place. Twice. The first time, the car decided to do its random drift-off-the-road right at the end, since it seemed to have forrgotten to do so before; and the second time I got overtaken by somebody seeminlgly doing about 5000km/h right at the end. The other 8,2 million times I've tried this race haven't been so lucky. Tantalus was easy for me - I had over a minute to spare the first time I tried it. Yet I just can't win this. Maybe I'm usibng the wrong car. Maybe there's a trick with setting the steering sensitivity to all the way one way or the other. I'm using an Xbox 360 controller so have much more control over brake/throttle than the keyboard - that's not the problem. If anybody who's reading this has actually completed this race, please just take the time to tell me how. At least, if you remember, which car you used or which you'd recommend. It's just so annoying getting so far and being stuck on this last race for so long... - Dan

Oh... well in that case how come nobody's done this one ? I shall be very grateful to whomever may do the grand favour of importing the TVR cerbera speed 12 into Test Drive Unlimited. No seriously, it'd kick ass - I have neither forza 3 nor any hacking capabilities but if it doesn't take too much time I hope somebody could do this for not just me, but everybody who's been wanting to see this car in TDU. - Dan

This sucks so bad. Forza 2, Forza 3, and race driver grid have perfect models of this car... even 2005's GT4 has a pretty decent one. just not on PC. Why is the most insane car ever built not on PC ? It sucks so hard the 3D model files can't be imported from a console disc... if only some hacker knew a way...

Sounds simple enough... though of course that affects the day, too. I did look, but couldn't see any newer day/night mods - except one that's still WIP ... where can I find them ? (P.S. I've just been checking out your Island Paradise mod - it's awesome !) - Dan

Hi, Thanks for the mod, it's great to see somebody's put the effort into doing this for us all. I downloaded it , installed it and it works fine. Now please don't get this wrong; I'm not complaining - I'm grateful you've made us this mod - just somehow when the night comes in my game, it's not very dark... It doesn't go any darker than this: http://lh6.ggpht.com/ryzza007/SFOyPk7UHgI/AAAAAAAAAY4/vM0TUDFVFe0/s800/20080116235140.jpg And I just see that others are getting a 'proper' night like this: http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/ac164/TheDuck48/TDU/20100410232430.jpg If it's just a case of changing the values on some of the settings in one of the files, would you mind please telling me what to change ? - Dan

Unfortunately requirements would be high for a game like TDU... a lot of it is in the world size. Have you noticed how typically, an FPS game in a 'closed' environment can run smoothly in much better graphics than a more vast open-world type game would on the same computer ? Sure, the engine contributes partly but so does world size. I can play Chronicles of Riddick, Dark Athena in nearly full graphics settings on my computer, it looks simply awesome and runs smoothly - however games involving big worls such as Far Cry 2 r Sacred 2 can't run so smoothly - due to the GPU having to churn out so much more data per second. Plus it's a lot easier for the developers to stick to the same engine and just upgrade a few bits. That's just my two cents anyway :)

Ah yeah ! That'd be awesome ! Customisable pets so you can make the same as your real pets in the game - I'd let my cat, Vocal Cat (which currently holds the title of first result in a google image search for 'vocal cat' lol) ride shotgun !

Thanks for confirming that :) Just didn't want the controller to potentially be a waste of money...

Hi, I love this game, it's fun to play, and I've probably done about half of the races by now. I do, on the other hand, find it very difficult to drive in this game. What I mean is; being on PC, you don't have the control you would on a console controller pad (or in a real car) - there's no 'halfway' acceleration or steering - either you're pressing the button and it goes all out/all the way , or you're not and it doesn't do anything. I can't drive at casual speeds unless I'm constantly pressing and letting go of the 'up' key (which isn't exactly casual seeing as it's jerkily stopping and starting the car all the time) ; and steering is a nightmare... when you're going fast, push the key as hard as you like but the car will hardly budge around the corner. Try and drive in a straight line and the slightest press will send you spinning off the road... I'm contemplating buying the xbox 360 controller which works with windows for this as theoretically, with the triggers and joysticks you'd have a bit more control over the car (as you do in the console version, which I've played at a friend's house), and could moderate just how much you steer/accelerate... can anybody confirm if this is actually the case in practice ? Arcade style racing games are much easier to play on PC; and mùore simulation ones... well, GRID is just impossible, I can't make it past the first race for the same reason - either the car exaggerately understeers around corners, or it's spinning out of control when i'm trying to go in a straight line... but hey that's Grid, I'm asking about TDU here :) Dan

I saw that one lol :) Certainly a crazy idea !

There's a decent model, which wouldn't need much upgrading in Forza 2 (http://www.msxbox-world.com/assets/gallery/albums/Xbox-360-Screenshots/Forza%202%20-%20U%20Class/normal_192_168_1_49-image258.jpg) and a pretty much perfect model in GRID (http://img520.imageshack.us/img520/2721/griddlcs12tq4.jpg) Problem is forza's on X360 , and in GRID the car's in the 8-ball pack which is only for X360 and PS3 ; I'm not a modder, but I'd expect it to probably be quite difficult - if possible at all - to import one of these models.

Couldn't find any log files :( Unfortunately it also caused my game to crash... I didn't realise it was this at first, so I did a clean reinstall of everything, tried the game, it worked, tried to install the car, the install gave the same error message; and then the game crashed whenever I tried to play it... so I reinstalled again and I guess I'll just have to play without it. It's not the end of the world.