Some disappointment with The Crew for PC

So, taking part in the "Get The Crew for free on PC" event that I mentioned here, I encountered a big problem, the game just wouldn't load. It was stuck on a "Installing 5/6" screen that never did change, despite verifing the files and downloading both Uplay and The Crew twice (after uninstalling both each time, save for the last and final solution).

I searched the internet, after performing the usual tasks associated with such an error (like making sure Windows, video drivers, DirectX and everything else I could think of was up to date) and came across a very odd, but effective fix.

Turns out the problem is InstHelper.exe located in: \Ubisoft\Ubisoft Game Launcher\games\The Crew (Worldwide)\Support. The advice given was to rename to InstHelper1.exe and remember to re-rename it back if the game needs to be updated (you would think Ubisoft could just address this issue, but....).

Now, with the game problem remedied, I went through both tutorials (the original brother-gets-killed-and-get-srung-from-jail-after-5-years and the new Calling all Units addition) and race across the countryside to the house I picked in Saint Mary. My son, on the Xbox, was going to meet me there. 

Sadly, that story doesn't have a happy ending and I have only myself to blame for it. Despite the day in age for which we live in, I just took it for granted that The Crew was like quite a few other cross-platform games on the market and have the ability to connect the players in one big communal environment. War Thunder does this, for example. However, The Crew does not.

My son went to the same house in Saint Mary, but it was in another dimension. I didn't even have to ask if he was interested in downloading a PC copy of the game for himself, since he is much further along than I am (he finished the original storyline a mere two weeks after school and weekends).

I don't want to really start over either, but just perhaps, there might be somebody more steady to play with out there, so I will keep this option open. Besides, all the tricks I learned from the Xbox copy applies here, like the ability to level up in a very big hurry.

Get The Crew (and other games) for PC Free!

From now to December 18th, 2016, you can get The Crew and seven other games through the Uplay Launcher at where I got mine from.

If you don't have an account nor the Launcher installed (a 60.4 mb exe file), just click the link and follow the instructions (be patient, I noticed it took a little longer then usual for the pages to redirect during the process). 

Also, plan on taking part in other activities, these downloads are not small.

The Crew - December Community Challenge

Another Community Challenge in The Crew. This time, it's a Aston Martin Vanquish that's up for grabs (for those lucky 100 per platform who place the highest in score). Read more here Community Challenge

Considering what I read about concerning the last Community Challenge and my chances this time around, I will take a more "guaranteed" approach to collecting my prize. 

The wide, open road....

One of the more interesting bugs/glitches that came with the Calling All Units update was the strange disappearance of traffic for some of the events, like the new Transporter Missions. Even getting any police involvement seems to be a hit or miss event, on occasion. I do hope this problem gets addressed in the very near future.

Captured right after I realized this was going to be a very lonely affair.... 

The road to the Huracán

One of the most talked about and anticipated vehicles to be added to The Crew in the Calling All Units update was the Lamborghini Huracán. The real world car was released in 2014, to replace the aging Gallardo, after it's ten year run.

 

At first, it was to be available as an exclusive gift for those players who started out after the game first launched (announced here Lamborghini Huracán for free ), but with talk on the forums about the playerbase being able to collect through the new Loot Crates, everyone has a chance to own one (subject to a random drop rotation, I will cover this below).

The first three vehicles I collected from the Loot Crates are pictured above. No rhyme or reason, but there they were. Also, let me be very clear, I don't have either the previous Wild Run, nor the current Calling All Units expansions, just the plain Jane game. Then, the Huracán came up as the next vehicle to be won. Here is how I finally put one in my garage....

So, what separates me from those who were promised this vehicle in the announcement? If I had to guess, perhaps the paint, the sticker and some sense of entitlement over not receiving one, despite being told I would (some are having technical issues based on the criteria in the announcement).

However, those random prize drops keep on rolling, since this is the next one up for grabs....

When big isn't big enough

Something odd is going on in The Crew. Even since the launch of Calling All Units, there have been a few noticeable and unwanted changes in gameplay, like when gravity is temporally turned off. 

Two reasons I picked the Cadillac Escalade in police pursuits is because of it's size, running roadblocks and fending off ramming police units should be a much easier task, when compared to a sports car or exotic. I also was counting on the game models to have some kind of weight factor, larger vehicles being heavier and thus, sticking to the road and other terrain better.

Seems that isn't the case here....

After reading a few comments from other players on the forums, I am not the only one this is happening to.

Curious to see if this effect is game wide, vehicle and/or event specific, I switched over and started a few experiments with one of my recent prizes from the mission crates, the Hummer H1 Alpha. This military spec vehicle is larger, heavier and has a much larger footprint for traction and control, over the Escalade. At least, that is the theory I am testing.

The initial results appear promising....