GRID

To start off GRID is not the super customizable Gran Turismo orgasm that most "racers" are use to. GRID is instead the newest installment from Code Masters that focuses on the actual racing and interaction on the course. So instead of having the only Daihatsu Midget with 500 horsepower you are equally matched up to 12 opponents who tough it out for the win.

Story:

First and foremost GRID is a driving arcade game, story is one of those little things that can be tossed away and forgotten about. The only real story is that you actually have rivals and people who are considered "good" and you have to beat them.

Your role is basically a driver for hire that takes what he/she can get. But let’s face it this is a racing game not Mass Effect.

Game play:

The first thing you will notice about GRID is that it doesn't approach you like a normal racing series genre, it presents itself as something different. GRID wants to focus you on your team and how your team will make money. If you are the type that likes to micromanage then you will like the game just for that.

But for someone that has religiously played the GT series, PGR and Forza this game is something fresh. You are never taken out of your garage when managing your teammates or your cars so it actually feels like you are a team manager. Instead of always coming back to the same boring "home" screen you go back to your lovely garage to drool over your ridiculous looking cars.

If you're one that loves the customizable aspect of most racing games you'll be sadly disappointed. The limit to your customization stops with your paint, no wheels, no engines, no fart pipes. This game is about racing not making a more ridiculous car than your competitors.

Most expect racing sims to be spot on representations of the cars that they are piloting, but suffice to say that 95% of people playing these games will never see 90% of these cars let alone drive them; there’s room for interpretation. The game does an amazing job of blending realistic diving physics with an arcade like feel that doesn't make you feel so disconnected with your car or so limited by your skill. The diving gives realistic feedback to the driver, you feel that car A over steers or car B plows a lot, there is a very palpable aspect to driving different cars. Although if you decide to drive with assists on you will drive better, where as in other games they feel like a hindrance.

Since GRID focuses more on better driving rather than eleventy billion horsepower modded out bean rockets the game is much harder than your average sim. One aspect that makes it much harder than any other series out there is the amazing AI that GRID employs. Take for example the GT series, the cars are slow and predictable and not really fun to race around. GRID on the other hand really throws the racing community a curveball, the driving behavior get more aggressive the higher you move up the field. Cars will block push and generally be totally dicks to you so they will get a better position. But the cars can also spin out by being too ballsy or careless, like the real world drivers crash.

GRID also offers many different driving styles to play around with so you can find your niche and really excel at it; personally I rock the drifting championships. Each graphical locale has a different name for the same style of racing, basically. Japanese have pro-tuned, USA has Grand Touring, same thing different cars different tracks. But a very diverse play arena and it gives a nice break so it’s not always come in first by racing around a track. Its go around and either be more stylized, or just more ballsy to nab first and the fat cash.

GRID is also not a racing game that focuses solely on being first in every single event. GRID will reward you no matter what position you come in, all you have to really worry about is pleasing your sponsors. Your sponsors will reward you if you come in first or make a podium finish, it depends on who is your sponsor. Even if you are an O.C.D. perfectionist the game is still fun.

GRID also brings a new feature to racing, its called flashbacks. Flashbacks are a feature that, when you fuck up, you can rewind to a moment where you aren’t all over the road to help you grab a better spot or win the race. It’s a great new feature that really goes for something new rather than just another racing game with production cars.

The cars in GRID are also very spectacular; GRID doesn’t fill the game with bullshit cars like Daihatsu midgets and 1970s Honda Life Step Vans that do absolutely nothing for you. It instead packs your arsenal with really badass cars that any race head would love to drive. Although not a sim with every car ever manufactured it takes a very diverse fill of cars from the world 43 cars in total from top USA muscle machines to top Japanese tuning cars. The models are superbly detailed and really let the driver know it’s a next gen title. Instead of having to beat a certain area with X:XX amount of time to unlock cars, you can just straight up buy them, like in the real world. It also gives you a chance to manage an eBay account to buy and sell cars so your garage isn’t so cluttered or just because you think the TVR is a horrible car.

Also unlike the GT series you can actually mess up your cars which will affect how they drive, in that race and not globally. So if you ram your opponent at 120mph then yes you will get some damage to your bumper, or yes your bumper will fly off if you hit a parked van. Its just another element of GRID that makes it a more cohesive package.

Interface:

Since GRID is not your typical racing game it approaches you in a different way, instead of a bunch of boring menus and aloof home screens it keeps you in your garage with the racing events sectioned out in a “tool box” fashion that looks natural to a car freak. The garage style of interface really feels homey to me and keeps emphasizing to me that, “yes this is a racing game.”

GRID also brings you into a race in a much more theatric fashion and shows you just who you need to fuck up beat in order to win.

The game interaction is just a total different experience for any seasoned racer.

Graphics:

In this day and age graphics are becoming more and more important

to the spoiled ass 1080p nut hugging teens and gaming aficionados. GRID looks beautiful, cars are modeled so well you might as well be looking at it IRL. Lighting and camera blurs and flares and just general environments look amazing and spot on. For someone that has actually raced in a real racecar and on a track the feeling you get from the cockpit view is like déjà-vu for me.

GRID also does an amazing job with the scenery, maybe not the highest priority on a racers mind but it just makes the whole experience that much more visceral. Having more interactive crowds and a variety of ambiance in the game is amazing. When you get on the Nuremberg you will sure as hell know it.

The replays that GRID offers make it feel like a big blockbuster car scene rather “just” another replay of me destroying the field. With dynamic camera angles and epic music the replays in themselves are treats.

One part that stands out in particular is when you get to do a midnight touge battle its pitch black with nothing but your headlights to guide you. You can’t see shit, but it’s not something to complain about it really makes you feel that you are barreling down some mountain road in the dead of night with an opponent hot on your tail. The effects are just plain amazing in the game.

Sound:

For a racing game sound is critical, the cars sound amazing and near to what you would expect. Although a lot of the cars tend to sound similar at higher speeds, my guess is to give the same illusion of going fast as shit regardless of the car.

It’s not just the sound of the engines themselves but it’s everything else in the car you can hear. For instance if I am driving my car over the rumble strips I hear that familiar noise, or when I hop over a bump I can hear my shocks compensate and squeak as normal race coil-overs do. The tire screeches are also very distinctive, not all tires are the same thus not all tires will sound the same. When in a demo-derby event the dry rotted junkyard tires both grip and sound different than your super sticky racing compound tires. When spinning out the noises are different; in the game I find myself listening to the tires to tell me when I will spin out rather than being backed into a ditch wondering what the fuck happened.

For games getting better and better all the components making a harmonious interaction really make a game great.

Online play:

Since this is one of the first games that I have reviewed with a definitive online section it does show where Code Masters spent there time; a hint, it wasn’t here.

Having played thousands of Halo 3 online matches I have been spoiled by a really optimized multiplayer hopper and ranking system. So I obviously felt let down when I played scrubs on the intarwebs. It made me feel like I was playing in an old school TCP/IP LAN game with friends; it wasn’t enjoyable to me and felt lacking. Games are set up by particular hosts and then the participants (up to 12) will vote on what they want to play. There are no default playlists or a particular area that you can play in, it is really up to the host and its party members to decide. Having played for a while it seems most everyone enjoys the drifting aspect in the game. My guess is that it isn’t that hard to do, and you can get pretty good at it. Yet only a few people can get massive scores and make it look easy.

This was one area of the game that I really felt let down in, I really wanted better ranking and more ways to show off and let everyone know why racing is the only genre I am good at. It might also be that there isn’t that large of an online following for the game, yet.

Verdict:

To say this game isn’t good would be a straight out lie on my part, to say this game is the best is also a stretch. But within its genre it is defiantly unique and has some things that really set it apart. Although having a lacking online component really made me bitter, the game is still by far the most enjoyable racing game I have played this year and in recent memory.

89/100

Mass Effect

Mass Effect

Foreword: I have never really made it a point to play RPG’s. It has never really been interesting to me to specialize in anything and have “powers” that you can get and skill up and have “levels”. Mass effect has changed that for me, and I now realize that even though some RPGs can be diluted down to a crappy 3^rd or 1^st person shooter, it is better not to. So just keep in mind that this is the first RPG that I have felt utterly compelled to finish.

Story:

In the year 2148 the human race found an ancient technology on Mars, this technology allowed the humans to travel at FTL speeds (faster than light) and reach beyond the galaxy. This discovery is hailed as the single greatest in all of human history. The technology to hurl objects across the galaxy is called Mass Effect. This leads to human’s first contact with other alien life, Turians, a battle then ensues. Instead of destroying each other, a peace

ful pact is struck between the races. This is where you come in about quarter of a century after the discovery of the ancient ruins you play as a custom created character whose name will inevitably end with Shepard. You are at the command of the Normandy, a joint venture between the Turian and Human alliance. The Normandy is one of the most sophisticated and advance warships out there with stealth technology that renders it “invisible”.

The main story in Mass Effect is just plain good it doesn’t wax on ab

out nonsensical bullshit for filler; it is a genuinely great plot. The story really draws you in and makes you a part of it rather than being some no name that doesn’t get recognition for their efforts. The Ending is truly one to behold not too overdramatic but defiantly will keep you on the edge of your seat. I cannot emphasize the quality of the story, great writing and great story elements. The main story is long, in quantifiable terms its on the order of ten to fifteen hours of actual play, it can get even longer if you are one of those that like to complete side quests. The side quests will keep anyone busy for a while, and extend game play time for a while. It took us roughly 25 hours to finish the story and poke around a few systems and complete random quests.

Game play:

The fun really starts from the get go, you get to make a character. For some this is the best part of the game, just because they can make the goofiest looking twat they can think of, or in our case make the most pissed off looking SOB…ever. The character customization doesn’t give a lot of wiggle room although there is enough space to really customize the look. One thing we noticed after we completed the game was that we had become akin to our little Bobby Sheppard. It felt somewhat alien to play as something that wasn’t Bobby Shepard, but change is good, and fun.

Although when I first started to play the game I treated it much like an FPS, I soon realized that I had way more fun to have. The actual combat and power selection is devised into two different radials that will display your abilities and your available weapons. The menus are very unobtrusive and when selecting either one, time in the game will stop, allowing the user a chance to take a breath and formulate their plan of attack. Even in heated battles the menus do not feel clunky or a nuisance to operate, they become second nature to operate and memorize.

Movement through stages is very fluid and interaction between the NPCs is very well done. Voice acting is top notch and there is a huge amount of scripted dialog.

Combat is a really integral part of the game and it does it very well. Everyone can choose from four different weapons and can decide to train in a certain few, although later in the game you can have inter-class specialization. The powers or abilities will vary between what you wish to place your points in. For example if you place a lot of your points in assault rifle training then you will get appropriate powerups, like overkill. This newly gained ability can be used in conjunction with you assault rifle to provide better accuracy and rate of fire. It doesn’t just have to be weapon upgrades but it can also be powers that defend you and fuck up space pirates. The way these systems are put together is really slick and lends itself to gamers of any genre.

Combat isn’t limited to ground pounding with your squad but it is split up with your vehicle, the Mako. The Mako is a 6 wheel drive vehicle that can pretty much scale anything and will make short work of anything that wants to tango. The armaments on the Mako are pretty substantial which includes a mass accelerator main turret and standard machine gun. The vehicle controls are personally not a favorite of mine but its easy to get use to, now traversing endless planes on a world might seem boring not when you have jet boosters. The jet boosters on the Mako give the vehicle a slight upward boost so if you decide that you would rather turn the canyon walls into a half pipe and try to do a 1080 you can sure as hell try. Most of the fun I had in the vehicle aspect of the game was driving like a jackass, bobbing and weaving to dodge fire then boosting to take pot shots at unsuspecting foes.

My only nit pick is the vehicle controls, the movements are turret centric rather than a vehicle centric movement scheme. What I mean by this is that when the turret is turned 90 degrees away from center and you push forward on the control stick you do not go anywhere. Also when the turret is looking rearward going forward (with respect to the vehicle) you now have to pull back on the control stick. It doesn’t ruin the game although I would have liked some more options to change the control scheme.

Interface:

Mass Effect’s UI is very streamlined, with menu functionality and great intuitive controls. Nothing becomes frustrating, at least not as far as the menus go. There isn’t too much bulk to Mass Effect, it keeps the users input limited to pop up menus and radial selection menus. Nothing feels out of place when running through dialog menus which are very similar to other Bioware games. The game really doesn’t have all that much to distract the user with when they first start up, its pretty much to the point.

Graphics:

Pretty graphics are not everything, but god damn does it help. Mass Effect’s graphics are astonishing it is very obvious that the people at Bioware took their time on detail. Everything in the game looks great and textures are starting to become photorealistic with light effects that are amazing and not overwhelming to look at. This is one game others will look to for guidance as Bioware has really set a new standard. With that said I do have a few gripes about them, on our first play through there seemed to be a lot of texture pop-in; now that were playing through the second, third and fourth times its less noticeable, yet still prevalent. When I say that do not construe it as “huge graphics glitches” or “not next gen look” I am only nit picking because there is so little to do so on with Mass Effect. Now I am sure there is someone that really hated the game for that exact reason, but it is such a small concern in a game that is so absolutely expansive.

Sound:

One area that many gamers don’t often look for in games is the soundtrack, unless it’s a guitar hero game. Some games will try to pass off crappy songs as in game music or try to blow you away you with orchestral scores. Mass Effect does a great job of blending the mission music and instance music as well as its main scores for cut scenes. It is not overbearing or intrusive when you discover a new world or kill your boss it is great background music that does set a great tone for the situation. And even when going to a map or to a menu the sound is not repetitive and annoying it is very pleasing to hear. This can be seen if you own the OST for Mass Effect, most of the songs are less than two minutes long which shows that the attention was directed towards meshing the songs to specific points rather then having a song come in media res just because there was a good riff and sort of sounds good.

Once again there is just one or two nitpicks, when I play a game I am using all my senses, not just my eyes I like to hear and see new things from great games Mass Effect delivers; except that there are a few sounds that I can pick up that sound awfully familiar. I am not saying that the game uses that old Lucas Arts sound clip for a falling shot person. It is more like some of the option menu beeps are very familiar with the ring of a PSP selection menu, or the sound of being shot into FTL travel sounds like old reused stock noise. But once again those are VERY picky gripes nothing that will tarnish the beautifully polished veneer of this amazing game.

Final word:

Buy this game! Even if you are not a RPG fan when you start to play around with this game the game just feels alive.

Now to stay consistent with our ratings I would go ahead and say this is up there with great story and visuals of Assassins Creed and Halo 3, but I will go one further and say it was much better. So mathematically I have a range of 91-100 to work with, and although I had one or two nitpicks I cannot in any healthy state of mind give it something less than 98/100.