DriveClub Recomp Wiki / Install

How to install DriveClub Recomp

From the ZIP to the first race: where to extract it, which two game folders the launcher needs, the settings to choose first, launch options, Linux and updating.

Download v0.4.2 ZIP Check requirements

No installer
Update + base folders
Version 1.28
v0.4.2

DriveClub Recomp has no installer: the release is a ZIP that runs from any folder. Setting it up means extracting it, pointing the launcher at your own game dump and choosing settings. This guide follows the project’s README and release notes for v0.4.2.

This site does not explain how to obtain, dump or decrypt game files. The port needs a dump of a copy of DriveClub you own, and the release contains none of the game.

Before you start

Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit, with an up-to-date graphics driver (Vulkan 1.3). See requirements.
Your DriveClub dump at version 1.28: CUSA00093 (US, tested) or CUSA00003 (Europe, accepted since 0.2.3). About 40 GB.
The ZIP from the download page, with its SHA-256 checked.

Step-by-step install on Windows

Download driveclub-recomp-0.4.2-win64.zip (169.3 MB) from GitHub and compare its SHA-256 with ef131a47a322e10af6bfdbf9110cff2ccdae511663fb7438a487c25d9c59ffcb.
Extract the whole ZIP to a folder you can write to, such as D:\Games\DriveClubRecomp. Do not run it from inside the ZIP and do not use Program Files.
Open DriveClub.exe. If SmartScreen appears, choose More info → Run anyway (only after the checksum matched). If the .NET 8 Desktop Runtime is missing, accept the launcher’s offer to install it.
Choose the game folders. Press Browse next to the update folder (the one with eboot.bin) and the base game folder (the one with game000.dat). The launcher checks the version and that every game*.dat archive is complete, and names any file that is cut short.
Pick a performance preset (Handheld, Low, Medium, High or Ultra), then adjust frame rate, resolution, anti-aliasing and HDR if you like.
Press Play. The settings are saved and the game starts. The first minutes build the shader cache; stutter fades on later runs.

Nothing is installed in Windows. Your game folders are never modified or copied; the folders you chose are remembered. To remove the port, delete its folder.

Required folder layout

The names of the dump folders do not matter, only what is inside them. This is a typical layout after extracting v0.4.2:

D:\Games\DriveClubRecomp\                 ← the extracted driveclub-recomp-0.4.2-win64.zip
  DriveClub.exe                           ← start here (new .NET 8 launcher)
  DriveClub.Native.exe                    ← classic launcher (Wine/Proton, no .NET)
  WheelSetup.exe  FfbTest.exe  dcmod.exe
  Allow-Firewall.bat                      ← once, for private online play
  runtime\  licenses\  server\  online\  modkit\
  mods\                                   ← loose-file and dcmod mods
  logs\                                   ← driveclub_*.log, launcher.log, crash_*.dmp
  data\user\                              ← driveclub.ini, input_config\default.ini, camera.ini,
                                              cache, screenshots, benchmark\result.txt

D:\DriveClub\Update\                      ← your 1.28 update dump: contains eboot.bin
D:\DriveClub\Base\                        ← your base game dump: contains game000.dat, game001.dat …

Since 0.2.0 a dump that already is 1.28 in one folder works: choose it as the base game folder and leave the update field empty. Since 0.2.2 an eboot.bin that is a plain ELF (already decrypted) is accepted too. Paths with non-ASCII characters (such as a folder named DRIVECLUB™) are noted in launcher.log; if something fails, try a plain path.

Launcher settings worth setting first

Setting	What to choose
Performance preset	Handheld, Low, Medium, High or Ultra pick render and output sizes. Ultra also turns on every Graphics tab feature except neural rendering.
Frame rate	30, 60 (deltatime), 60 with a fixed tick, Unlocked (VRR) for G-Sync/FreeSync displays (up to 3 FPS below refresh, with a Frame cap), or Unlimited (no cap, no V-Sync). Stay under 120 FPS: above it the car’s movement timing breaks.
Anti-aliasing	Game, FSR (3.1 on any card, 4 INT8 on RX 6000+/RTX/Arc, 4.1 on Radeon) or DLSS (RTX). Upscaling modes DLAA/Native, Quality, Balanced, Performance, Ultra Perf.
HDR	Turn on “Use HDR” in Windows first. HDR brightness 100–600 nits (350 default), peak 400–2000 nits (1000 default).
Unlock DLC content	Off by default. Builds unlocked copies of the vehicle, tour and livery lists from your own game archive for the add-on cars, bikes, tours and decals.
Online play	Off, Host a session or Join a session (host’s IP). Run `Allow-Firewall.bat` once; works over a home network or VPN.
Save profile	Four separate careers, a backup at every start (last ten kept), Back up now and Restore buttons.

Launch options and environment variables

Settings live in the launcher, but a few switches help with shortcuts, benchmarks and testing:

Option	Effect
`DriveClub.exe --play`	Starts the game with the saved settings without showing the launcher (the launcher’s “Start the game without this window” does the same).
`BB_BENCHMARK=1` + `--play`	Runs the benchmark headlessly (Fraser Valley, Ferrari 458 Italia, noon, clear, 60 s) and exits with code 0, or 3 if the race did not start. Keys such as `track=chile_race_track_v1,car=fe_f12,tod=18` change it.
`BB_SCENE_OVERLAY=0`	Keeps only the original readouts in the F12 performance overlay.
`BB_RESOURCE_ENTRY_FIX=0`	Turns off the 0.3.2 fix for the car-select freeze (for testing only).
`BB_FONT_CJK_FALLBACK`	Path to a CJK font for characters the game font lacks; `0` or `off` disables the fallback.
`fsr4_invert_jitter=1`, `fsr4_auto_exposure=0`	Lines for `data\user\driveclub.ini` suggested for FSR 4.1 ghosting on some Radeon cards (#348).

Up to eight --mods folders can be active at once (since 0.3.0). Controls are in data\user\input_config\default.ini, the field of view in data\user\camera.ini.

Linux: running the AppImage

The AppImage (driveclub-recomp-0.4.2-x86_64.AppImage, 14.7 MB) is marked experimental. chmod +x it and run it; it opens the native Linux launcher, and PLAY prepares and starts the game. Use DATA FOLDER → Change… to move its data.

Option	Effect
`./driveclub-recomp-0.4.2-x86_64.AppImage`	Opens the native Linux launcher (same folders, display, driving and patch settings as Windows).
`--play`	Starts headlessly with the saved settings.
`--setup UPDATE BASE`	Stores the two game folders once without the launcher.
`update/` and `base/` beside the AppImage	Found automatically.
`DRIVECLUB_UPDATE_DIR`, `DRIVECLUB_BASE_DIR`	Environment variables for the two folders.
`DRIVECLUB_DATA_DIR`	Overrides where settings, the prepared image, saves and logs go (default: `data/` beside the AppImage if writable, else `~/.local/share/driveclub-recomp`).
`portable` marker or `DRIVECLUB_PORTABLE=1`	Selects `data/` when no folder has been chosen.

Updating without losing saves

Built-in updater (since 0.3.1): the launcher offers an Update button when a new release is out and checks the ZIP against SHA256SUMS.txt. Since 0.3.2 it installs the update itself, also under Wine and Proton, and never deletes your update folder.
By hand: extract the new ZIP over your existing folder. Folder choices, settings, saves and mods are kept.
Back up first with Back up now (General → SAVES) if you like; the launcher also keeps the last ten automatic backups.
After 0.4.0 the shader cache is stored by content and was rebuilt once; some updates still rebuild shaders, so expect brief stutter.

Building from source

The BUILDING.md in the repository describes two routes:

Windows: MSYS2 with the CLANG64 toolchain (clang, cmake, ninja, Vulkan headers and loader, SDL3, FFmpeg, Boost and others via pacman). bash build.sh produces out/DriveClubGame.exe; bash packaging/package.sh <version> builds the runtime and launcher and writes the release ZIP. Release builds use BB_PGO=use BB_LTO=ON with a recorded profile.
Linux: Ubuntu 24.04 or newer with the listed apt packages, then bash packaging/appimage/fetch-deps.sh (builds SDL3, a minimal FFmpeg and newer Vulkan headers) and bash build-linux.sh, or bash packaging/appimage/build-appimage.sh <version> for the AppImage.

Frequently asked questions

Where should I extract DriveClub Recomp?

Anywhere you can write to, for example a folder on a game drive or in your user folder. Not Program Files: the launcher writes settings, logs, the shader cache and saves next to itself, and checks that its folder is writable before starting.

What folders does the launcher ask for?

Two: the version 1.28 update folder, which contains eboot.bin, and the base game folder, which contains game000.dat and the other game*.dat archives. If your dump is already 1.28 in one folder, choose it as the base folder and leave the update field empty. The launcher remembers both.

Why does the launcher say “The update folder must be DriveClub version 1.28”?

It reads the version from the folder’s param.sfo, and since 0.2.2 also accepts the folder when eboot.bin is exactly the 1.28 file, which helps merged dumps. A different version, or an eboot.bin that is neither a PS4 SELF nor a plain decrypted ELF, is refused, and the message shows what the file starts with.

Do I need the .NET runtime?

Only for the new launcher that DriveClub.exe opens since 0.4.0: it needs the free .NET 8 Desktop Runtime and offers to install it. Without .NET, or under Wine and Proton, DriveClub.exe opens the classic launcher, DriveClub.Native.exe, which has the same settings.

How do I update to a new release?

Press Update in the launcher when it offers one (since 0.3.1; the ZIP is checked against SHA256SUMS.txt). By hand, extract the new ZIP over your folder. Folder choices, settings, saves and mods are kept. The first start after some updates rebuilds the shader cache, so expect a few minutes of stutter.

Can I build DriveClub Recomp from source?

Yes. On Windows install MSYS2 and, in the CLANG64 shell, the packages listed in BUILDING.md, then run bash build.sh (it produces out/DriveClubGame.exe) or bash packaging/package.sh for a release ZIP. On Linux (Ubuntu 24.04 or newer) run packaging/appimage/fetch-deps.sh, then build-linux.sh or packaging/appimage/build-appimage.sh.