Rainbow Studios has released another arcade dirt-racing game - the formula that has made the company such a respected developer.
The makers of the Motorcross Madness and ATV Offroad fury series were expected to dish up a top-notch effort with the latest arrival, and that`s what they did. MX vs ATV Unleashed lets gamers finally find out which would prevail in a battle of the two.
But it doesn`t stop there. The game also puts you in control of biplanes, golf carts and helicopters. Even outrageous monster trucks can be driven around the many dirt tracks scattered along beaches, forests and deserts.
The tracks are all very entertaining, especially the outdoor ones with their high-air jumps.
The machines on offer don`t seem to have much different from each other as far as performance goes, which means that rider skill is more important - and this is great in my book. It`s an easy game to learn, but hard to master, as you need to have the perfect amount of "air" on each jump to complete a clean lap.
Before riding up a jump, players have to align the bike and prepare for lift-off, but once in the air don`t think that it`s now smooth flying. You still have to align the bike with the ground and make sure that your jump takes you exactly the distance you need to go.
It`s difficult mastering the jumping, since there are many variations of jumps throughout the track, but that makes the game fun. I found that no track has two of the same sections, so each is challenging time after time and that means a long playability factor.
The physics are the best part - flying through the air on an ATV and making the landing perfectly is always rewarding since the realism of the rides means it is not easy. At the same time, the game is definitely an arcade game, and it has a single-player career-mode which will keep you busy until your friends come over, because that`s when the best fun starts.
Taking on mates and battling for the most stunt points and best lap times leads to hours of entertainment. After collecting as many stunt points as possible, by doing the best stunts you can manage, players get to unlock numerous items from the store. These include biking gear like gloves and helmets, as well as loads more.
The only downsides are the long loading times (I routinely make a cup of coffee during championship-event loadings) and the music, which isn`t to my liking but includes all the latest hip-hop, punk-rock and rap-metal songs, so I suspect most gamers will enjoy the soundtrack.
At least it perfectly complements the game`s relentless action and outrageous stunts.
Overall Rainbow Studios has done a great job at keeping the dirt-racing crown with MX vs ATV Unleashed. Anyone looking for great arcade-like racing will enjoy this one.
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