First impressions of Japanese Drift Master

This week, one of my most anticipated games of 2025 was released. Japanese Drift Master offered a demo, that was subsequently pulled ahead of the game’s release, making the wait all the more painful.

Thankfully on May 21st, the game was officially launched and this was just the start, with the game’s developer Gaming Factory already releasing the first patch and indicating there’s more content on the way.

As a racing fan who enjoyed the preview / demo of the game back in 2023, I purchased the game and have been driving it this weekend, so it’s time to detail my first impressions.

First impressions of JDM

I’ll start by sharing my setup. I’m sitting on a Next Level Racing GT Track racing sim, with a Moza R12 racing wheel and pedals in front of a 49″ Samsung Ultrawide running 5120×1440 resolution.

Firing up the game, I immediately see it goes full screen which is great to see the game fully supports this resolution. I get through the intro screens and see the main menu, some of which is locked including Challenge Mode, Tuner Shop and Car setup, presumably unlocked either through future releases or progress in the game.

It was time to dive in and tell JDM about my setup to customise the racing experience. It was here I found my first issue. While I was able to use my Moza setup in the demo, it seems the full game does not support it, at least not yet.

When selecting the gearbox, I found the options limited, selecting either auto, or a H-pattern manual gearbox, but as someone with a Moza sequential shifter and Moza Handbrake, it seems I was out of luck.

Both of these feel like mainstream racing sim components that should be supported out of the box.

Instead I had a backup plan, the Logitech G Pro Wheel and Pedals clipped to my desk, thankfully that worked instantly (with paddle gear selection mapped to up/down gears).

I”m going to assume the developers will add support for additional inputs in future releases and those with Moza, Fanatec, Logitech and other brands can all use the equipment we invested in, with this game.

Once we load into the game, we’re met with a very on-brand series of Manga cartoon graphics to tell the story, some of the female characters were definitely designed to appeal to the predominantly male audience which felt unnecessary and cheapened the game a little.

Once the game loaded, I expected there would be improvements to the graphics from the demo and wow was I impressed. There wasn’t just a little improvement, but virtually an entirely new lighting engine added, making environments come to life. This was best evidenced by a storm at night time where the lightning lit up the rain-soaked track, shining brightly through the trees, illuminating car as it slides sideways around the corner.

There’s other moments where the sunlight hits the Japanese Maple trees just right as your tyre smoke consumes the majority of the screen, and leaves fall like snow on an warm autumn day.

I remember distinctly, the experience of driving down a road and spotting another, twists and turns running down the side of the mountain and thinking to myself – I must drift that road! And drift I did.

The driving mechanic in the game is one of the best I’ve played since Need for Speed Underground 2, just all grown up and configurable. You have a choice to select for Arcade or Simcade, as well as options around ABS, ESP (stability control) and more that can be adjusted to match your skill and appetite for a challenge.

The most points are scored when drifting at a severe angle and at the highest speed, both of which are only possible if you’re absolutely dialed in and feel part of the car. When you get it just right, you enter a flow state, transitioning from left to right with ease like a 2025 programmer armed with AI.

In terms of Career, you’ll have lots of challenges around the large map to experience different driving modes. While the game certainly focuses heavily on drifting, there are also drag and grip events as well.

When it comes to cars, there’s definitely a showcase of JDM celebrities to chose from, but only once you’ve put in the hours to earn the dollars to buy and upgrade your baby. You could probably guess the formula, start off with a slow, busted car you’d happily call yours at the age of 16, through to a very expensive, high horsepower dedicated drift machine.

There’s currently 25 cars in the game, and compared to other racing titles that have hundreds, that can feel very light on, but something that’ll be addressed with future updates. Personally I’d love to see the game add some Japanese-wannabe cars, particularly those that are fan favourites for a 2JZ swap.

In terms of Career Mode, I haven’t progressed to far down this road as yet, with a focus on exploring the map, a few challenges here or there, but mostly just enjoying the visuals and the drift mechanic.

Outside the issue with the lack of Moza support, I’m thoroughly enjoying Japanese Drift Master and expect to pour, many, many more hours into this game over the coming weeks and months.

More information at https://jdmgame.com/

Update:

Having put some more hours in, the game is unlocking and revealing more parts of itself. Here’s some more screenshots from the game.

These include shots of exploration around the map, but then a more focused attempt to progress the career. After a few challenges, the Tuner and Paint shops unlock. The challenge then becomes a grind to earn money and upgrade your car, while being conscious there are other cars to buy, so be careful not to over-invest.

The amount of configurable parts on the car is impressive, going to finer details like your gear shift knob, steering wheel etc. You’ll need to make some decisions about how you spend your dollars (or Yen), choosing between visual and performance upgrades.