indianapolis500legends
Latest
DS Daily: Vrrrrroooom
Whenever a new console is released, a racing game is inevitably in the launch lineup. Usually these games are showcases for the system's graphical abilities, using hyper-realistic graphics to "sell" the feeling of really being in the car.While the DS also launched with racing games like Ridge Racer DS, it can't, and shouldn't, rely on hyper-realistic graphics. Without state-of-the-art graphics, and with no possibility of a steering wheel attachment, a handheld racing game can't provide the same immersive experience as its console equivalent, and therefore must get by purely on the strength of its racing engine. The "fun factor," as GamePro would say, is the only consideration.With a few new racing games on the way, it seems like a good time to ask: do you play handheld racing games? Obviously we're not talking about kart racing here, since we get that question answered every Thursday.
PAX 07 hands-on: Indy 500 Legends (Wii, DS), Homie Rollerz, WordJong (DS)
Destineer had a bunch of new stuff on display for the Wii and DS. Indianapolis 500 Legends (Wii) was a racing game with an impressive historical bent. The game starts you in 1961, with each subsequent year to 1971 representing a new difficulty level, and presents (in addition to the full Indy 500) mission objectives based on actual races, organized by driver. Each year has three drivers, and each driver has at least three missions, for about 100 different missions, involving tasks like passing a rival or surviving a crash scenario. The track was modeled on the real Indianapolis Speedway and changes by year to match the authentic appearance at the time; almost every car's engine noise is recorded from that actual model. It's an incredible effort for what turns out to be a not-spectacular-looking Wii racing game with extremely touchy motion-based steering. I kind of got used to it, but we still felt like I was fighting the controls most of the time. The tire-changing pit-stop minigame was fun, though! The game fared quite a bit better on the DS, though-- graphics that were disappointing on the Wii looked much better on the DS, and the game contains the same drivers, missions, and structure. The stylus-based steering works much better in my opinion than waggle. I don't know how interested in historical racing games on the DS you are (I'm usually not very) but I enjoyed my five minutes with it, at least.
