Latest Mini Previews
Tom Clancy's EndWar - Ears OnMidnight Club: LA - MultiplayerFar Cry 2 - MultiplayerGears of War 2 - Hands OnNeed For Speed UndercoverUser Reviews
There are currently 1 User Reviews for Full AutoWrite your own review for this game today and you will receive 100 Gamer Points.
Click here to register
Full Auto - First Look Mini Preview
Jon Wilcox
14/07/2005
TVG take a ride in SEGA`s destructive racing title on Xbox 360...
Ok, so the Xbox 360 demos at E3 2005 were powered by single-core Alpha dev kits, in other words, G5 Macsâ¦but weâve still played an Xbox 360 title. With the Xbox 360âs controller. And we werenât dreaming.
It might not have been Gears of War, Perfect Dark Zero, Kameo or PGR3, but the experience was still something to cherish as we stood in front of the screen and sampled the forthcoming delights of SEGAâs Full Auto. Feeling like the twisted off-spring of Criterion Gamesâ Burnout and cult Seventies movie âDeathrace 2000â, Full Auto is an arcade racer where the gamer takes the wheel of one of 20 high-performance cars armed to the teeth with the sort of heavy weaponry that wouldnât look out of place in a war across five zones and ten gamemodes.
The somewhat superfluous storyline to Full Auto is superficial and only serves as an excuse for the gameplay to exist at all; set in the near future, the city of Staunton is overrun by The Shepherds, a mysterious group who forces the playerâs character into racing in a series of races and driving a weaponised car. For those of you looking for a title with a more in-depth narrative, may we suggest Final Fantasy XI, which is also set to launch on Xbox 360.
Visually, Full Auto doesnât really showcase just what should be possible in the next-generation, with most of the gameâs graphical features already accomplished on titles including Forza â“ in fact the game certainly retains a strong visual leaning towards being an arcade racer. Where the game does pick up the points is in the physics and AI stakes, with the developerâs proprietary engine able to calculate and animate explosions and vehicular damage in real-time meaning that in theory players will never see the same crash twice.
The control system created by developers Pseudo Interactive so far seems to be solid yet a little frustrating at time. Using standard Xbox racing controls (right-trigger acceleration, left analogue stick steering), the right stick takes control of the aiming and firing of the weapons. In the demo at E3, our car was armed with missiles, and the process of aiming and firing the device (done by clicking the right stick) proved to be tricky at times. That said, it certainly throws an interesting dynamic into the arcade racing genre and takes the weaponisation of WipEout to a further stage. The control system may prove to be a sticking point for some gamers, but itâs pretty clear that once mastered, Full Auto should prove to be a thrilling ride. The game is also set to feature an 8-player Live experience, although no details have to been provided about the various modes in the game.
The main gameplay feature integrated into Full Auto is âUnwreckâ, which reverses time allowing various mistakes and decisions to be corrected â“ perhaps the main characters is related to the Prince of Persia (or even Blinx) â“ the ability is limited to a meter, but can be easily replenished through causing the destruction of cars and buildings. The ability didnât feel tacked on in the demo and is integrated well into the overall gameplay, at this stage at least. In some respects the Unwreck feature seems to be very closely aligned to the special abilities allowed for Rockstar Gamesâ Midnight Club 3, and if the full game is as much fun as that franchise, then SEGA might be onto an early next-generation winner.
