Can Gameloft nab pole position from Firemint?
Last week I moseyed on down to Gameloft’s London offices, where I was furnished with iPhones, DSi's and cups of water, and asked to demo their upcoming games. One of those games, and the one I'm going to offer opinion on here, was GT Racing -- a racing game with a firm emphasis on simulation. The game is due to hit the App Store shortly, and so, without further ado, lets take a look at what can be expected form the title.
First things first; GT Racing is a looker, easily rivalling the impressive benchmark set by Firemint’s Real Racing. The car models look fantastic, and the stunning scenery really helps bring the tracks to life. As well as the throaty sounds of the car engines and the more than satisfactory in-game tunes on offer, the game allows you to listen to your own music on the radio, which is a very welcome feature indeed.
Not wanting to get bogged down in the complexities of the career (which features in excess of 60 races), I jumped straight into the arcade mode, not before spending a good few minutes perusing the impressive selection of licensed cars on offer however. It was probably longer than a few minutes thinking back, as the game boasts over 100 licensed cars from 24 prestigous manufacturers such as Ferrari, Lamborghini and Mercedes, amongst others. I ended up choosing an Audi (might have been an A4? You’ll have to excuse my limited knowledge of cars and models), chose one of the fourteen tracks on offer, and got the old engine running.
The game supports numerous control schemes, catering to racing fans of all tastes. I stuck with what I assumed was the default scheme, where the car accelerated automatically, and the accelerometer was left to control the steering. This worked well, although it took some time to get used to the sensitivity. At first I was negotiating corners like a blind, drunk man with deformed limbs, ploughing into barriers left, right and centre. After a few more laps however, the steering gradually felt more natural, and I could see my improvement reflected in my ever decreasing lap times.
As well as the expected racing elements of the game, GT Racing also features extensive tuning and customisation mechanics, although I didn’t have enough time with the game to gauge to what extent this affected the cars on the track. As stated previously, the game is more of a racing simulator than an arcade experience, and such a simulation has it's limitations on a touch screen device. Although the accelerometer emulates a steering wheel to a certain extent, the racing just isn't as immersive as on a console. This problem isn't just isolated to GT Racing however, with all App Store racers suffering from the same problem.
There's no denying that GT Racing is looking incredibly promising; once again though, Gameloft have borrowed from the success of others a little too notiecably. GT Racing is a Gran Turismo clone through and through. From the game's name and logo, to the license plate tests in the main game, everything reeks of Sony's genre defining racer. Of course, this doesn’t affect the quality of the game (which is the usual high standards we've come to expect from the developer) but it does add ammunition to the argument that Gameloft are very uninspired in the development department.
GT Racing was originally scheduled for the end of January, so look out for it on the App Store imminently.
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