Xboxist

Race Pro Review

At first glance, the world of professional auto racing is an appealing setting for a video game: the thrill of high speed duels between man and machine, the glory of winning and the painful sting of defeat. But in reality, being a race car driver is not all champagne and supermodels. It is actually a very tough job, at least if Atari's newest racing simulator Race Pro is any indication. In this game, you will have to be very quick and cunning to deal with all the corners and find the correct attack points. Prospective racers will have to learn the intricacies of each vehicle and track in order to be crowned true professionals. As the green flag waves, tighten that seat belt and get ready for our Race Pro review.

It must be said right up front that Race Pro is a simulation racing game, which means that some gameplay mechanics you are used to in arcade titles will be lacking here. In career mode, you play as a driver who must purchase contracts in other to compete, however you can't choose which contract you want first so you will have to work your way up the ranks in other to battle with the better cars. You will first start off with the mini cooper series which you will have the option to either do a qualifying race or skip it and pay a fee. Before any race you have the option to set your tuning or have race assistance as in the racing line. Once the race begins...well it just begins and you race through the course. While everything up to this point is fairly solid, once we got out onto the course, the game suddenly felt a little bit lifeless.

What I mean by a lifeless experience is that by focusing entirely on the cars and the mechanics of driving, the game lacks much in the way of flair. There is no music as a default option because you are meant to pay attention to the sound of your car's engine. To be honest, the Xbox 360 does give you personal music options but it is merely a concession to those who would have liked a more arcade-like experience. The graphics are passable, but not amazing when stacked up against other current-gen racers like Prject Gotham, Forza, or GRiD. One great thing about this game is that it includes an inside-cockpit view for real race fanatics. Inside the cockpit you will see a lot of detail such as gear shifting and control of the racers head which is cool, but leaves you wondering if they spent that much detail inside, why not also on the outside scenes? The crash damage was another nice touch since not many racing simulators up until now have been able to do it properly (ahem, Gran Turismo series we're looking at you). But due to the overall lack of eye-candy in the game, even the crash effects leave you at, "yea that's okay I guess."

While this game is obviously a racing simulator aimed at true driving enthusiasts, the tracks (which are modeled after real-world counterparts) do get a bit repetitive. Your mileage will vary depending on whether you are the type of person who never misses an episode of Top Gear and has all of the corners in the Nurburgring memorized. The car classes are also somewhat limited, and unlike other sims you don't have every major car manufacturer, only some recognizable names like Audi and Honda. Sorry, Italian race fans -- no Ferrari or Lamborghini cars are included in this game.

Race Pro includes some multiplayer options as well, although these are not implemented perfectly. For one thing, there is no 2-player split screen option. Instead, the developers have included a system where players pass the controller between themselves at certain points in a race cooperatively, or else compete to get the best time for a certain track. Arcade racing fans will be left shaking their heads at this gameplay decision, but actually the notion of cooperative play is somewhat innovative. Online racing works a bit better, although I experienced some serious server lag when trying to set up a game with more than about 6 cars. Atari has recognized these problems and is working on a fix, so I would recommend being patient.

One thing that really impressed me about Race Pro was that it works as a racing simulator: each car handles differently so drivers will have to change racing tactics depending on the vehicle and the conditions. In that important respect it succeeds, but is it enough to call it a great video game?

We have reached the final stretch of the race where we set up our final analysis. Race Pro definitely has some flaws compared to many other titles which might be a better choice for less serious car fanatics. I honestly have to say in terms of graphics and fun it can't compare to even the first-gen titles like Project Gotham. Race Pro gets kudos for being a quality budget title at only $39.99, but I feel that I was only able to get $20 worth of enjoyment from it. In some important areas it feels lazy and with many other more polished racing titles to choose from, Race Pro comes across feeling a bit rushed. Only the most enthusiastic simulation fans should look into this game. Stay frosty racing fans and watchout for those hairpin turns.