MOTORSTORM (PS3)
I have to admit, when I revisited MotorStorm recently, it was with the expectation that time might not have been kind on the game. It’s a familiar curse, one that has afflicted innumerable launch titles down the years. To a small handful of first-party exclusives comes the burden of showcasing hardware to an expectant gaming public, delivering the kind of technical whizz-bangs we could expect others to build on in the years that would follow. Often this, coupled with a liberal dose of corporate hype and hyperbole, tends to leave such games feeling a little more ordinary when the dust has settled. This absolutely isn’t the case with MotorStorm, however.
Beneath the seeming smoke-screen of luxury high-end visuals, extravagant crash physics and anarchic, destructive racing playing out amidst hostile surrounds, beats the heart of a tough but refreshingly uncomplicated arcade racer. During a period when the Need For Speed and Burnout games were streamlining the racing model, simplifying courses, speeding up the action and shifting the core experience towards twitch reactions rather than vehicle handling, Evolution Studios’ racer would mark an unexpected tonic to this racing apathy.
Stay extra vigilant at the beginning of races, carnage is never far away
MotorStorm demands commitment. If you’re expecting to breeze around each new course and win instantly, then you’re in for a harsh lesson. Learning the divergent routes that each track hides is key, as is the ability to weigh up risk-versus-reward choices and also appreciating how the myriad surfaces affect different vehicles. The AI is tough and competitors are not afraid to get their elbows out. Every win is hard-earned and as a result, the game feels extremely rewarding.
It’s a pleasantly streamlined experience. There are no complicated levelling systems, you don’t need to micro-manage funds or wade through reams of tutorials. Every event is a single race across three laps, with the defining differences being the course and the vehicle category. Placing in the top three will earn the player points towards new vehicles and new races. It’s challenging from the get-go and only gets tougher as you move into the level four categories. But it also has a knack of dragging you back for more. Unfortunately, as was the habit of the time, there’s no two-player split-screen, with Evolution instead focusing on what would be for many PlayStation 3 owners, their first taste of online gaming. Here, its mad, hi-octane competition and small margins for error really excelled.
It’s a pleasantly streamlined experience. There are no complicated levelling systems, you don’t need to micro-manage funds or wade through reams of tutorials. Every event is a single race across three laps, with the defining differences being the course and the vehicle category. Placing in the top three will earn the player points towards new vehicles and new races. It’s challenging from the get-go and only gets tougher as you move into the level four categories. But it also has a knack of dragging you back for more. Unfortunately, as was the habit of the time, there’s no two-player split-screen, with Evolution instead focusing on what would be for many PlayStation 3 owners, their first taste of online gaming. Here, its mad, hi-octane competition and small margins for error really excelled.
FOCAL POINT: SIDEWINDER GULCH
Whether or not you advance towards the latter stages of MotorStorm’s challenging Festival mode will depend on conquering its most fiendish course, Sidewinder Gulch. This brutal track requires a lot of practice. There are plenty of route branches, but many of them are either fraught with risk or not especially fast. Consequently, the player must explore a range of crossover bridges, moving from right to left and back again, to extract the most from their lap time. You’ll encounter a bit of everything, from tight corners, to narrow snaking paths, rocky jumps, high-speed blitzes and some banked corners that, with a bit of skill, allow the player to power away with a good bit of pace. If you’ve any say in the matter, opt for a rally car or a bike, as this is an especially difficult track for bigger vehicles where the muddy, central basins are uncompetitive.
Its vehicles are an absolute triumph, with a remarkably eclectic range racing against one another at one time and all competitive in their own way. Smaller vehicles, such as bikes, ATVs and rally cars, benefit from nimble handling and strong acceleration and their size means they’re perfect for tackling the high-risk, high-reward routes that consist of perilous, narrow ledges and hold-your-breath jumps. However, get embroiled in the pack and you’ll soon learn the extent of their frailties. They’re easily bullied, jostled and smashed by the larger vehicles and crashes cost valuable time.
Larger vehicles, such as the big rigs and racing trucks, are equally fun. What they lack in acceleration and mobility they make up for in greater stability on uneven surfaces. They come into their own on the flatter, more open basins. Then you have the mudpluggers, which come alive on wet, muddy sections that degrade as races unfold, something that starts to chip away at the handling and traction of your competitors.
Larger vehicles, such as the big rigs and racing trucks, are equally fun. What they lack in acceleration and mobility they make up for in greater stability on uneven surfaces. They come into their own on the flatter, more open basins. Then you have the mudpluggers, which come alive on wet, muddy sections that degrade as races unfold, something that starts to chip away at the handling and traction of your competitors.
A serious test of skill and patience, MotorStorm won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. It isn’t blessed with a great turn of pace and there are times, particularly when travelling through mud or travelling up a gradient, where you’ll be wringing your pad, willing things to speed up. At times, it can feel almost pedestrian, but the sheer amount of carnage, along with the persistently challenging landscapes you’re having to navigate, means it’s not something you'll dwell on.
Indeed, so good a job have Evolution done of establishing close, exciting and at times hair-raising competition, that some of the game’s more fundamental weaknesses are successfully papered over. For example, handling at low speed is highly suspect, but you’ll be too preoccupied with keeping clear of barrel-rolling buggies and deadly rock formations to notice. To enjoy the MotorStorm experience, you have to take the rough with the smooth. The physics engine is a prime example of this. Everything’s a little airy and there’s no question, you’ll be robbed of the odd good result through an errant, moon-physics bounce off a seemingly innocuous bit of scenery, or have your buggy incongruously crumple to pieces as you mount a ramp. But it happens to the opposition too: you can delight in nudging them down a ravine or into a wall, or watch on in glee as a bottleneck causes competitors to jam together. Any game that allows you to propel over the finish line through your vehicle exploding due to nitrous overuse is a winner in my book.
Indeed, so good a job have Evolution done of establishing close, exciting and at times hair-raising competition, that some of the game’s more fundamental weaknesses are successfully papered over. For example, handling at low speed is highly suspect, but you’ll be too preoccupied with keeping clear of barrel-rolling buggies and deadly rock formations to notice. To enjoy the MotorStorm experience, you have to take the rough with the smooth. The physics engine is a prime example of this. Everything’s a little airy and there’s no question, you’ll be robbed of the odd good result through an errant, moon-physics bounce off a seemingly innocuous bit of scenery, or have your buggy incongruously crumple to pieces as you mount a ramp. But it happens to the opposition too: you can delight in nudging them down a ravine or into a wall, or watch on in glee as a bottleneck causes competitors to jam together. Any game that allows you to propel over the finish line through your vehicle exploding due to nitrous overuse is a winner in my book.
The courses feel vast. Picking the right route is crucial to staying ahead of the competition
It’s very distinctive and looks absolutely fantastic. The huge, open canyons of Monument Valley, bathed in glorious lighting and filled with activity, was the epitome of ‘next-gen’ in 2007. The crashes remain impressive, whilst the busy mixture of vehicles at the start line and the swathes of fans add to the excitement. All these years later, epic courses such as The Grizzly, Sidewinder Gulch and Rain God Mesa don’t really have equivalents. If anything, the propensity towards city and open-world racers over the course of the seventh-gen, only served to make MotorStorm a more singular experience. This is summed up nicely by an eclectic but well-suited soundtrack and the juvenile but nevertheless likeable loading screen pointers.
MotorStorm is its own thing and it’s hard not to like it for that. A spike of first-party non-conformity, especially when the world is watching, will always be welcome. It probably hasn’t been paid its dues; it’s a great racer and far more than a snazzy tech demo. It will frustrate the hell out of you at times, but winning is addictive and when it’s this challenging, it only motivates you more to try to master the superb courses and tricky vehicles. An excellent combination of technical ambition and old-school racing sensibilities.
MotorStorm is its own thing and it’s hard not to like it for that. A spike of first-party non-conformity, especially when the world is watching, will always be welcome. It probably hasn’t been paid its dues; it’s a great racer and far more than a snazzy tech demo. It will frustrate the hell out of you at times, but winning is addictive and when it’s this challenging, it only motivates you more to try to master the superb courses and tricky vehicles. An excellent combination of technical ambition and old-school racing sensibilities.
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VERDICT
"...far more than a snazzy tech demo. MotorStorm is an excellent combination of technical ambition and old-school racing sensibilities. It's tough and at times frustrating, but there's nothing else quite like it." OVERALL: 8/10 |