‘JDM: Japanese Drift Master’ game coming next month

There’s a new game packed with Japanese cars coming soon. It’s been compared to the upcoming Tokyo Xtreme Racer reboot, but with a focus on drifting instead of expressway racing. Despite the somewhat cheesy title of JDM: Japanese Drift Master, the game looks to be entertaining with beautifully rendered cars.

JDM is described as a “simcade” racing game and features a wide range of vehicles. The cars are customizable and go as far back as an S30 Z and Hako GT-R. Also making appearances in demo videos are 80s icons like the AE86, S13 and Miata; 90s heroes such as the FD RX-7, A80 Supra, S15 and R34 GT-R; and post-Y2K favorites including the 350Z, RX-8, and both generations of the BRZ.

Even the background cars are interesting. We almost wish examples like the EK Civic or Nissan Stagea were playable. It appears that the developer, Gaming Factory, has obtained licenses from Nissan, Mazda, and Subaru but not others, and while earlier videos feature Toyotas they are notably absent from more recent ones. It’s not clear if properly named models will make the final cut.

Perhaps most impressive is that the game will feature 250 kilometers’ worth of open world roads with diverse landscapes. It takes place in a fictional location called “Guntama” inspired by Japan, and links winding mountain roads to a Tokyo-like city.

The drifting seems a bit too easy and arcade-like rather than realistic, but it still looks like fun. JDM: Japanese Drift Master is scheduled for a March 26, 2025 release on Steam.