{"rewrite":{"id":"r_639960dd240ced4e92f618c7","clusterId":"c_e6d66c6105e0d312e8449cbc","slug":"jdm-ph4ntom-driver-announced-for-steam-with-combat-racing-in-a-yokai-ruled-prefecture","model":"deepseek-v4-1-flash","headline":"Gaming Factory Announces JDM: Ph4ntom Driver Yokai Racing Spin-Off","summary":"Gaming Factory announced the open-world racing game JDM: Ph4ntom Driver on October 15, with a Steam store page going live the same day. The PC game is set in Gunkon Prefecture, a spirit-world version of the fictional Guntama Prefecture from JDM: Japanese Drift Master, where oni and yokai have overrun the land. Players use modified cars as weapons, ramming enemies at high speed or drifting to swing the rear end, since the vehicles carry no swords or guns. A supernatural power called Hakai adds a score element. The single-player campaign tells its story through hand-drawn manga cutscenes and a conversation system, and a multiplayer mode is planned. The release date and price are undecided, and Japanese is supported. The project began as an expansion for JDM: Japanese Drift Master but became a standalone spin-off after the team changed the game's fundamental mechanics.","whyItMatters":"Gaming Factory is moving a street-racing series into fantasy combat in a single spin-off rather than folding that shift into the existing JDM: Japanese Drift Master, which Game Spark says will still receive a livery system and further updates.","webCardHtml":"\u003cp\u003eThe spin-off keeps cars as the only weapon. Because no machine carries swords or guns, fights come down to ramming speed and drift control, and drifting and boosting can be done at the same time. A trailer shown by IGN includes scenes of cars destroying red crystal-like objects placed on roads, which the sources describe as a survival task alongside defeating enemies. Players meet the Demon King Shoton-Doji in a decisive confrontation.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eExploration yields new vehicles and parts, and the car designs are original but drawn from the earlier game and fitted to this setting. The campaign is built as a single-player mode, with cutscenes in a drawn manga style and a conversation system like the one in JDM: Japanese Drift Master, and the sources describe it as voluminous. Multiplayer details will come later. Gamers can start here without the earlier title, though the game hides references for returning players.\u003c/p\u003e","blueskyPost":"JDM: Ph4ntom Driver dropped the guns entirely, so the drift-and-ram combat is the whole moveset. It also began as an expansion for JDM: Japanese Drift Master before the mechanics change forced it to stand alone.","twitterPost":"JDM: Ph4ntom Driver gives cars no guns, so ramming and drifting are the only weapons. It started as an expansion for JDM: Japanese Drift Master.","threadsPost":"Cars in JDM: Ph4ntom Driver carry no swords or guns, so ramming and drifting are the entire combat system, not a side option. The project started as an expansion for JDM: Japanese Drift Master and only became a standalone spin-off once those mechanics changed.","newsletterBlurb":"Gaming Factory has announced JDM: Ph4ntom Driver, an open-world racer where modified cars are the weapon against oni and yokai in a spirit-world prefecture. The Steam page is live, and a multiplayer mode is planned, but the release date and price are undecided. The project started as an expansion for JDM: Japanese Drift Master before becoming its own title.","attributionJson":"[{\"source\":\"Denfaminicogamer\",\"url\":\"https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/news/261015n\",\"title\":\"Vehicle battle game 'JDM: Ph4ntom Driver' announced, in which you race through a prefecture ruled by yokai, 'Guntama Prefecture,' and annihilate enemies with driving technique. Roam an open world overrun by apparitions and yokai\"},{\"source\":\"Automaton\",\"url\":\"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20261015-473558/\",\"title\":\"Open-World Racer \\\"JDM: Ph4ntom Driver\\\" Announced. For Some Reason, a Otherworldly Version of Guntama Prefecture, a High-Lethality Street Racer Game Where You Run Over Yokai\"},{\"source\":\"Game Spark\",\"url\":\"http://www.gamespark.jp/article/2026/10/15/173626.html\",\"title\":\"How Did a Japan-Set Open-World Racing Game End Up Like This!? A Combat-Focused Spin-Off Where You Ram Cars Into Demons and Ogres, 'JDM: Ph4ntom Driver' Announced - Gun tama Prefecture, in the Spirit World\"}]","lintFlagsJson":null,"lintHits":0,"costUsd":0,"inputTokens":7197,"outputTokens":1158,"status":"published","repairAttempts":0,"nextRepairAt":null,"factsAttemptedAt":1792031850,"createdAt":"2026-10-15T02:33:16.000Z","publishedAt":"2026-10-15T02:36:10.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-15T03:32:52.000Z"},"cluster":{"id":"c_e6d66c6105e0d312e8449cbc","canonicalTitle":"妖怪に支配された県「群魂県」を駆け抜けドライブテクで敵を殲滅する車両バトルゲーム『JDM: Ph4ntom Driver』発表。怪異・妖怪の跋扈するオープンワールドを駆け巡る","representativeArticleId":"a_b7f743365df5c337d4978daf","sourceCount":3,"writtenSourceCount":3,"writeAttempts":0,"isSolo":false,"entitiesJson":"{\"anime_titles\":[],\"manga_titles\":[],\"work_titles\":[\"JDM: Ph4ntom Driver\",\"JDM: Japanese Drift Master\"],\"studios\":[],\"people\":[],\"type\":\"announcement\",\"domain\":\"games\",\"is_roundup\":false}","contentType":"news","status":"written","firstSeenAt":"2026-10-15T01:37:18.000Z","lastSeenAt":"2026-10-15T03:15:03.000Z","updatedAt":"2026-10-15T03:32:52.000Z"},"attribution":[{"source":"Automaton","url":"https://automaton-media.com/articles/newsjp/20261015-473558/","title":"「群魂県」オープンワールドレース『JDM: Ph4ntom Driver』発表。なぜか異界化した群玉県、妖怪たちを轢きまくる殺意高め走り屋ゲーム"},{"source":"Denfaminicogamer","url":"https://news.denfaminicogamer.jp/news/261015n","title":"妖怪に支配された県「群魂県」を駆け抜けドライブテクで敵を殲滅する車両バトルゲーム『JDM: Ph4ntom Driver』発表。怪異・妖怪の跋扈するオープンワールドを駆け巡る"},{"source":"Game Spark","url":"http://www.gamespark.jp/article/2026/10/15/173626.html","title":"日本舞台オープンワールドレーシングがどうしてこうなった！？悪鬼羅刹に車で突っ込む戦闘重視なスピンオフ『JDM: Ph4ntom Driver』発表―群玉県、霊界に"}],"entities":{"anime_titles":[],"manga_titles":[],"work_titles":["JDM: Ph4ntom Driver","JDM: Japanese Drift Master"],"studios":[],"people":[],"type":"announcement","domain":"games","is_roundup":false},"keyFacts":["Gaming Factory announced JDM: Ph4ntom Driver on October 15, and its Steam store page went live the same day.","The game is planned for PC via Steam, and its release date and price are undecided.","JDM: Ph4ntom Driver is set in Gunkon Prefecture, a spirit-world version of the fictional Guntama Prefecture from JDM: Japanese Drift Master.","Players fight yokai by using their cars as weapons, and a supernatural power called Hakai adds a score element.","The single-player campaign uses hand-drawn manga cutscenes and a conversation system, and a multiplayer mode is planned."]}