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Test Drive Off Road Wide Open Review
Chris Leyton
00/12/0000
The Test Drive franchise has gone through a revival after last years Le Mans, can Off Road Wide Open continue this.
The Test Drive franchise has had a bumpy past, ranging from the awful Test Drive 4 to last yearâs subliminal Test Drive Le Mans. Roads and racecars have been ditched this time, to make way for expansive environments and off-road tracks, can it help put Test Drive back on the map?
The latest title in the franchise, Test Drive: Off Road Wide Open, promises an advanced âgo-anywhereâ system, with over 50 license vehicles including the likes of the Chevy® Avalanche, AM General Humvee, Jeep® Wrangler, Ford® Broncoâ˘, Dodge® T Rex and the Shelby® S.P. 360â˘, racing over 30 of the most rugged terrain tracks around.
Youâll realise that this is quite a shallow racer from the start, only three modes are available; Single Race, Championship and Free Roam. As youâd expect the bulk of the game lies in the Championship mode, starting out as a rookie youâve got to progress through the stages, securing points to advance and money to purchase new vehicles.
The simplicity of game modes is carried out into the actual game; this is an arcade racer pure and simple. Realistic handling and physics are chucked out the window, to make way for gravity defying jumps and cars spinning out of control at the slightest divot or collision. Unfortunately itâs just a little too simple, racing revolves around merely steering and accelerating through the course, because itâs off-road thereâs seems to be little point in the brake button, let alone the handbrake.
To spice up the action TD: OFWO features some aggressive opponent AI. At first youâll be left in their trails as they know the shortcuts and tricks of the tracks, paying attention to one of the gameâs tips helps out here; following the leader isnât a bad idea. Eventually youâll be able to give all of them a fair race, which is when they start to get nasty. Frequently youâll be sent into a spin as they nudge you from behind, leaving you cursing the screen as you spin out pointing the wrong way and theyâre left unharmed to continue on.
Visually the game is second-class, the courses are based on quite big environments that explain the occasional pop-up, however textures are drab and lack definition or detail. Considering that Angel Studios gave us the visually superior Smugglers Run and its sequel, this comes as something of a surprise considering their similarities.
The cars themselves are poorly constructed, again with a lack of detail and a technique that tries to reflect surrounding lights, but comes off as laughable. Fortunately the framerate stays constant throughout, no matter how frantic the action becomes on-screen.
