Driveclub on PC: separate base and update folders, setup and first race
ItsOOGWAY · PC guides & recorded tests
Driveclub on PC: separate base and update folders, setup and first race
How to play Driveclub on PC using the unofficial DriveClub Recomp Windows port. This complete setup guide shows the tools, PKG extraction, the separate base-game and 1.28 update folders, graphics settings, and real racing gameplay.
The key checkpoint: Keep the extracted base game and update separate. The upper launcher field takes update 1.28; the lower field takes the clean base containing game000.dat.
Before you start
- Recorded DriveClub Recomp version 0.2.5, game CUSA00093 with update 1.28.
- Use your own matching game and update files; retain originals.
- Wait for both green checks and Game found before graphics changes.
Resources from this video
Links, downloads & documentation
Every original URL from the video description is collected here, including recorded releases, setup discussions and related videos. Use the version-specific notes when following a recorded build.
Watch the complete video
Open this video on YouTube ↗. Screenshots below link to their exact recorded moments.
Walkthrough 01
Choose the recorded Windows application
This is Driveclub running on my Windows PC, and we're going from the downloaded tools to actually driving a race. But the most important part happens before you press Play. This launcher needs the original game and the update in two separate folders. I got that wrong during my first attempt, so I'll show you the working setup and save you the same confusion. We'll prepare the files, connect both folders, check the graphics settings, and launch the game.
Then I'll leave you with actual racing footage so you can see the result for yourself. I'm using DriveClub Recomp by Overkill Labs, version zero point two point five. This is an unofficial community project, and this walkthrough is for the launcher you see here. There are other Driveclub projects with different instructions, so make sure you're following the right one. You'll need the Windows release of the port, the standalone PKG extractor if your files are still packaged, and your own decrypted Driveclub base game with the matching version one point two eight update.
The game ID in my recording is CUSA zero zero zero nine three. Both packages need to belong to the same release of the game. Check the project's requirements before starting. It needs sixty-four-bit Windows ten or eleven, a compatible processor, and a graphics driver with Vulkan 1.3 support. Leave enough storage for both the packages and the extracted folders. Keeping the original packages while extracting them means you need room for both copies. You do not need to compile the source code for this walkthrough.
We're using the ready-made Windows build.
Walkthrough 02
Extract the base and update separately
Open the DriveClub Recomp GitHub page and go to Releases. Open the release you're using, expand Assets, and download the file ending in win sixty-four dot zip. In this recording, that is the zero point two point five Windows archive. The Source code ZIP is for development; choose the packaged Windows application for these steps. Next, open the standalone shad P S four Plus PKG Extractor release. I'm using version one point one. Download its Windows ZIP as well.
This tool unpacks the game files; it isn't the launcher we'll use to play. Once both ZIPs have finished downloading, extract each one into its own folder. Keep the full contents together. Open the port's extracted folder far enough to find DriveClub dot exe, and open the extractor's folder far enough to find PKG underscore extractor dot exe. The ZIPs, the game packages, and the extracted game folders are different things. The launcher will eventually ask for folders containing the unpacked game data, not either of these ZIP files.
Let's prepare the base game first. In File Explorer, identify the base-game PKG and the separate update PKG. Check their names and game IDs before dragging anything. My update package is marked version one point two eight, while the other package is the base game.
Walkthrough 03
Connect and validate both game folders
Drag the base-game PKG directly onto PKG underscore extractor dot exe. Drop it on the application itself, rather than the empty space beside it. A command window opens and starts extracting the files. Let that process finish. The video is speeding up the waiting, but you should wait for the completion message on your own computer. If extraction reports an error, stop there and check it before continuing. When it's finished, press Enter if the tool asks you to close the window.
You'll have an extracted base-game folder. In this example it is named CUSA zero zero zero nine three. Later, the launcher will check that folder for the base-game data, including game zero zero zero dot dat. Now take the matching one point two eight update PKG and drag it onto the same extractor application. Wait for the update extraction to finish too. In my recording, the resulting folder has the same game ID followed by dash patch.
Here's the part that matters: keep that update folder separate from the base-game folder. For this launcher, you do not need to copy the patch contents over the base game. It has a separate location for each one. You should now have one folder for the port, one for the extracted base game, and one for the extracted update. Their locations can be different from mine. The drive letter and the folder names are examples; the contents inside them are what the launcher checks.
Walkthrough 04
Set a clear graphics baseline
If you've already copied everything together and the launcher rejects the base folder, go back to your original base package and extract a clean base copy into a separate location. Keep the update folder available as well. That's the correction that got my own setup past the folder problem. Open DriveClub dot exe from the extracted port folder. At the top of the Graphics tab, look at the two game-file fields. The update folder is first, and the base-game folder is underneath it.
Click Browse beside Update folder, and select the extracted one point two eight update. Here, that is the CUSA zero zero zero nine three dash patch folder. Select the folder itself, then confirm the choice. Next, click Browse beside Base game folder. Select the extracted base-game folder that contains game zero zero zero dot dat. Don't select the PKG file, the port folder, or a parent directory that only contains another folder inside it. Now check the result before changing the graphics options.
Both folder indicators should be green, and the launcher should say Game found. You can see that successful state here. If one field stays red, read the message under that field. In my unsuccessful attempt, the base-game check specifically said that game zero zero zero dot dat was missing. That points you back to the folder selection or extraction, rather than a graphics setting. Fix that check first. Once both folders are accepted, you're ready for the next step.
Walkthrough 05
Launch and check a race
Let's keep the first test straightforward. I'm choosing the regular sixty FPS option. That is a frame-rate target, not a promise that every computer will hold sixty frames per second. There are two resolution rows: Output resolution and Render resolution. The output is the size of the final picture, while render resolution controls the size of the three-dimensional scene before it reaches that output. In my final launch settings, both are set to fourteen-forty p.
Widescreen is off, the anti-aliasing option is Game, and anisotropic filtering is sixteen times. Those are the settings used for this recording. If your hardware struggles, start with a lower resolution and test again. Change one setting at a time so you can tell which change helped. This version also lists FSR three point one and D L A A for RTX cards. Those options are anti-aliasing modes here; don't confuse their labels with a frame-generation switch.
I haven't shown a comparison between them in this recording, so I'm keeping the demonstration on the Game setting. Once the folders are green and your settings are chosen, press Play. Give the game time to start. We'll shorten the repeated logo and loading screens in the video, then keep the transition into the first race.
Walkthrough 06
Collect the right error evidence
We're in the game. If you're using a keyboard, the project's default controls use W to accelerate, S to brake, A and D to steer, and Space for the handbrake. C changes the camera. You can also use a compatible controller. The first race is the useful check here: confirm that steering, acceleration, braking, and game audio are working. I'll stop talking foRAMoment so you can hear the game and watch a continuous section of the drive.
This is a demonstration of the setup on my machine, rather than a controlled performance benchmark. A successful launch doesn't prove that every event or every graphics option is problem-free. The project is still developing, and the first run can also include shader-related stutters. If you want to troubleshoot performance, repeat the same event with one changed setting. Comparing a crowded corner against an empty straight won't tell you much. And if the game crashes, keep the log from that run before trying something else.
For a folder error, check the base-game data, the separate update, and the matching game version first. For a launch or crash problem after those checks pass, open the logs folder beside DriveClub dot exe. The project asks for the newest game log, launcher dot log, and a crash dump if one was created. Include what you were doing when the problem happened. You now have the whole path from packaged files to a working race: extract the base game, extract the update separately, select both folders, confirm Game found, then choose your settings and Play.
I'll put the exact project and tool links in the description so you can follow the same version shown here.
If your result differs
| Situation | Next useful check |
|---|---|
| Your result differs from the recording | Compare the exact recorded version, folder checkpoint and error before changing another setting. |
| The application closes or reports an error | Keep the current log and note the stage, game version and last changed setting. |
| A progress or FPS number looks promising | Check the matching scene and what that counter measures; the recording does not establish complete-game compatibility. |
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