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TVG takes a trip to the Pacific and comes away undecided with the return of MotorStorm...
Alongside Resistance: Fall of Man, Evolution Studios' MotorStorm was one of the few titles to set pulses racing when the PlayStation3 first appeared on the scene last year. So it's little surprise to find both titles fast-tracked for the sequel treatment just in time for Christmas this year.
Although the latest MotorStorm 2 build that slipped through the TVG letterbox is clearly labelled as 80% complete, the content on offer seems surprisingly brief with only a couple of tracks to sample and a handful of vehicles to choose between.
Obviously MotorStorm fans won't need reminding that the sequel finds the action switching from Monument Valley to an unspecific island in the Pacific Ocean. The most prominent change is the varied terrain that this brings, most notably the inclusion of a foreboding active volcano that brings the threat of vehicle exploding lava flows. From what we've seen so far the change in location to volcanic rock means that MotorStorm 2 almost downplays the original's most noteworthy feature, there's simply no mud to carve up.
Once again making an appearance after its E3 showing, Cascade Falls at least gave us the opportunity to sample the visual improvements Evolution has been working on in the months since. The trademark multiple routes, banked curves, and sheer vertical drops all make a return, and it all looks a lot more vibrant and immediately striking than it did before ensuring that MotorStorm 2 is at least shaping up to be a visual tour de force.
Still at this relatively late stage into development TVG hopes that there's plenty of tuning left for the last 20%. There's an overly fiddly and fussy nature to collisions and the general handling over rough terrain. Vehicles have a tendency to smash apart when only brushing up against objects and trucks occasionally tip with the smallest change in the terrain. We wouldn't necessarily be complaining if this was a difficulty issue, but the fact remains that MotorStorm is an excessive arcadey racer that urges you to drive on the edge - that feeling just isn't quite there yet, and it can occasionally feel frustrating as a result.
Wildfire pits the action closer to the volcano that promises to be the literal landmark of the game. Forgive us for setting our expectations a little too high, but after witnessing Evolution's accomplishments on a launch title and knowing the potential of the PS3 we imagined something a little more. Although it could still happen in the vast amount of content we have yet to see, we were imagining erupting volcanoes to happen during the course of the race with lava flows that dynamically shaped the course layout. Instead we have extremely static depictions of lava that fail to convince, although the orange hue does at least contrast the ash skies pretty well.
Lava does have a slight influence on the gameplay, but again we were hoping for a little more. Whenever your vehicle hurtles over a pool of lava it will heat the vehicle up with some not entirely convincing flame effects, this in turn means the boost gauge will increase quicker whenever you need to use it. Which is precisely where the carwash stations dotted around the landscape come into play. Driving through these extinguishes the flames and reduces the boost quicker than it would do normally.
Perhaps we're wrong but wouldn't it have added to the urgency if the boost bar was continually rising once your vehicle is on fire; that desperate need to reach a water station with the risk of using an always escalating boost? From our limited hands on we feel that the temperature feature doesn't play enough on the risk-reward dynamic and comes across a little underwhelming as a result; but then again there's still a lot of the game that we've yet to see so we'll hold those reservations for a little while yet.
One feature that we really enjoyed was the shake effect added to the point when your vehicle is on the verge of exploding due to boosting too much. Complimenting the rehashed bleeping alarm it just helps to make the use of boosting even more intuitive, so you're using it like second nature and never having to rely on the visual gauge.
Of the brief selection of vehicles on offer we did manage to sample dirt-bikes, racing trucks, buggies, and rally cars from the original; the bikes still manage to provide the most fun and giving the one-finger salute is still as gratifying. Expanding upon the ability to swing at opponents whenever you were on a bike, the four-wheeled vehicles now have their own attacking option by tapping the R1/L1 buttons. The sideways shunt is perhaps a little incredible, but it does have a surprising effect on MotorStorm's otherwise routine cornering, allowing you to perform a desperate jolt when you're teetering on the edge of a vertical cliff face. New for the sequel is the inclusion of monster trucks. Loose handling as you'd expect from a 4x4x4 are the defining characteristic, and whilst they're infinitely more enjoyable than the rigs from the original their appearance doesn't feel as imposing as what their name suggests.
And that's perhaps a large part of our current disappointment with MotorStorm 2; it just doesn't grab your attention in quite the same way that the original managed. Perhaps it's the march of time, perhaps it's the fact that the hard-rock terrain seems to downplay the original's mud-carving inimitability, but there's something about MotorStorm 2 in its current manifestation that just doesn't feel as excessive and in your face as the original.
Taking on board the few criticisms levelled at the original, MotorStorm 2 does at least feature splitscreen play. Although the promise of four-player action has still not made an appearance in the current build, we did at least manage to sample the two-player carnage in all its glory on a track titled Raingod Spires. Reducing the number of opponents from 16 down to 8 (we assume the 4P splitscreen will remove AI opponents entirely), it seems safe to say that Evolution has managed to duplicate the action largely in its entirety which should go a long way to appeasing those who complained about its omission in the first game.
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TVG Store - Finding you the cheapest price for:
MotorStorm Pacific Rift
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Buy Motorstorm: Pacific Rift (PS3)
Best price: £15.85 from Simply Games with FREE delivery
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Game Information
Available On:
PS3
| Release Date: | Players: |
|---|---|
| Out Now | 1-12 |
| Publisher: | Genre: |
| SCEE | Racing |
| Developer: | PEGi Rating: |
| Evolution Studios | 16+ |
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Added:Thu 16th Jul 2009 10:37, Post No: 14
The racing itself is good but can get repetitive and boring!
Added:Fri 19th Dec 2008 22:58, Post No: 13
fake, almost 2 months past from release and no sight of any dlc...
Added:Thu 04th Dec 2008 09:12, Post No: 12
I have gold medals on all the levels unlocked so far but it says I still need 100 more points to move to the next level. How do I move on?
Added:Wed 12th Nov 2008 14:06, Post No: 11
Motorstorm was little more than a glimmer amongst a bad selection of PS3 launch titles - seriously there's much better arcade racers out there, hopefully Evolution are doing something different than MS3 - particularly after the woeful first week sales - only 29th in the UK Top 40, that's bad by any stretch of the imagination.
Added:Wed 05th Nov 2008 11:39, Post No: 10
Def looking forward to this, loved the first game to death (all golds attained incl all dlc's) :)
Afterall, there isn't anything else like it!
~funkyellowmonkey(ps3 id)~
Added:Mon 15th Sep 2008 23:22, Post No: 9
I was lucky enough to be invited to download the recent demo but if feels more like MotorStorm V1.5 than a true sequel but am hoping it evolves in its last few weeks of development.
Added:Thu 13th Mar 2008 18:35, Post No: 8
great game but if its anything like the rest of sonys games expect it in 2010
Added:Mon 28th Jan 2008 20:35, Post No: 7
uh more weater effects and environments, motorstorm on a snowy set of tracks instead of deserty ones....rain..sleet etc...more mud, better collision detection, biggeronline and in-game races, more than 12 people.
Added:Sun 06th Jan 2008 04:53, Post No: 6
two player would make it the best racing game ever!
Added:Sun 07th Oct 2007 22:07, Post No: 5
Thats Great but make it to were you can customize your vehicle with parts and paint rims tires make it more like that its cool but dont like the standerd cars and no way to make it YOURS!!! just what i as a true dirt track racer would like to see in the next game!