Japanese Drift Master Announces March Release Date

If you are into racing, odds are you are also at least familiar with Initial D, Akira, and OutRun. These masterpieces have aged like a fine wine, and helped build the neon-clad street racing aesthetic that endures to this day.

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Almost 29 years after SEGA released OutRun, Polish developer Gaming Factory has announced the release date for its new game that combines these iconic vibes into one modern racing package.

JDM: Japanese Drift Master is coming to PC on March 26, and will be available on Steam, the Epic Games Store, and GOG. Gaming Factory announced the date via a beautiful trailer.

The release date trailer is short but it gives a good taste of what to expect. JDM: Japanese Drift Master looks gorgeous, and the developers’ attention to detail especially in more mundane corners like residential quarters make the map feel alive.

According to Gaming Factory, the world in JDM: Japanese Drift Master spans 250km of roads, and at first glance it seems it will avoid the ’empty open world’ pitfall.

The game’s fully-licensed drift car lineup looks the part as well, which is essential in a game that’s experienced entirely through your rides. The Miata cultists in particular will be happy to see that you can make that bad boy blink in the game.

Cultural Fusion Racing

One of the coolest things about JDM: Japanese Drift Master is the story it tries to tell. Rather than going for a generic protagonist like a bored teen that likes racing and that’s that, Gaming Factory put together a cool mix.

Split image three male video game protagonists

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You play the role of a Polish driver whose dream is to make it into the big leagues of Japanese drifting. Besides the events playing out in the streets of the fictional province of Guntama, JDM: Japanese Drift Master comes with tidy manga panels to help tell the story, in an obvious and very welcome tribute to Initial D.

If you are craving your Japanese drift gaming fix, the developers have put out a prologue in August last year called JDM: Rise of the Scorpion. This is available as a free demo on Steam, and though it lacks in scope, it’s a welcome sign of things to come.