Behind The Wheel Of GT5: Racing Rivals

I’ve talked about how Gran Turismo 5 fares as a product and where it sits in its franchise; now let’s look at how it stands amongst its competition.

For years the Gran Turismo series was king of console racing simulation, sitting untouched at the throne for over a decade and remaining the pinnacle of graphical fidelity. Sure, there were imitators -- it’s quite similar to the GTA III open world issue, actually -- but Gran Turismo stayed on top due to its sheer quantity of cars and tracks, incredible production values and, most importantly, superior physics and handling model. Most copycats were content to cash in on this success -- it might not seem like it now with the likes of Call Of Duty and Uncharted around, but the Gran Turismo franchise is one of the biggest sellers in the industry -- or use it as foundation to go in a different direction, but GT’s presence on top was significant and defined the racing genre for years, much in the same way as Burnout did for Arcade racing. Microsoft’s increasing success and presence in the industry, however, brought with it a new challenger, one that in my eyes eventually overtook Gran Turismo for the lead.

There’s no denying that Forza Motorsport found success pretty quickly (after Forza 2 in particular) and soon became Gran Turismo’s main competitor. More significant, however, was just how serious of a rival Forza ended up being, and how, indirectly, it challenged not only GT but the entire genre to lift its game. Like previous attempts, the original Forza was mostly a copy of the PS2 generation Gran Turismos: GT3 and GT4. It took what worked from those games, added customisation, and focused on tire physics specifically rather than weight and momentum as I described in my last post. It had similar tracks -- including the obligatory New York street circuit and notorious Nürburgring Nordschleife (which I’ll cover in more detail soon) -- and a comparable range of vehicles; showcased a similar dedication and respect to cars and Motorsport to that of Polyphony’s franchise; and delivered on ideas of precision, consistency and accuracy just as Gran Turismo did. It was a competent game and a remarkable introduction to a new series, but it had nothing on its inspiration and, combined with various flaws, mostly underwhelmed the audience it was chasing. It was Forza Motorsport 2 and the transition into the HD generation of consoles that saw things change, and it is here where it passed Polyphony’s baby and took the chequered flag.

The reasons Forza 2 took the lead are simple to list but complex to understand. On paper we have improved graphics thanks to a generation change, a stronger emphasis on customisation and (importantly) community, and refinement in every facet of the production, making it an extremely well made game. Under the hood, however, we have the physics and handling engine which saw remarkable refinement and alterations that didn’t just deliver an improved level of control, but one with nuance and subtlety that, in hindsight, Gran Turismo was lacking. That’s not to say that GT’s achievements weren’t impressive or that it didn’t contain complexities to its own engine, but rather that its position on top for so long allowed Polyphony to become complacent with their handling model, so much so that only minor improvements were considered necessary. Forza 2 demonstrated what could be done and, crucially, why it should be, and the disparity between it and Gran Turismo 4 (the last game since Gran Turismo 5 was taking so long to develop) was so strong that it was almost unfair.

And it is unfair, for the most part, comparing a current generation game -- long since outclassed, yet again, by its sequel Forza 3 -- to one from the last generation, but on console racing simulation terms these two games were the only respectable ones and Polyphony’s pursuit for perfection allowed their competition to reach the top of the podium. The release of Gran Turismo 5, after years of delays and uncertainty, was supposed to be when the series retook first place and sat on that throne once again but, after playing it comprehensively, the Forza series still has it beat. Now this opinion is obviously mine and, I’ll quite happily admit, is debatable depending on how you approach the two: in terms of features, graphics (for the most part) and content Gran Turismo 5 is the clear leader as I described in my first post, but approach it from a driver’s perspective (so to speak) where the handling is crucial, and it’s another story. That nuance and subtlety I mentioned in Forza exists in Gran Turismo 5, too, which is commendable and pleasing to see, but it still lacks a lot of the small details -- the stuff most people wouldn’t notice -- that Forza has. I will do my best to articulate these and describe in detail why both Forza 3 and GT5 are what they are, but for now the level of depth that Forza 3’s physics/handling model has keeps it in front. There’s simply more that you can do with Forza’s system and now that Polyphony have indicated that they understand that (by including some of Turn 10’s innovation in their own game), it appears that it will take some refinement and the release of Gran Turismo 6 before the two will be on par, if it can’t retake its position as the leader altogether.

Move beyond the inevitable comparison between Gran Turismo and Forza -- preferably before the fanboys bring both games down with their immature insults and obvious ignorance -- and you find that other games have stepped up to the plate too, making the present day even more interesting and the past domination a relic of videogame history. Need For Speed: Shift, another mainstream and relatively popular title, delivers impressive graphics that match Gran Turismo 5’s beauty; Codemasters’ GRiD tapped into what it was like to race rather than drive (meaning techniques for executing passes and avoiding crashes mattered, rather than aiming for apexes and judicial use of the accelerator); and even a game like Race Pro -- one that definitely flew under the radar for most people -- matches the big two franchises when it comes to handling. I will explore all of these games (and many more) in future posts but the point is that while Gran Turismo might have been king for an incredibly long time, now it’s just another pawn fighting to get noticed and struggling to win, and Polyphony’s blissful ignorance of this fact makes Gran Turismo 5 even more disappointing than it needs to be.

It’s a fantastic game, I’ve already explained that, but it’s no longer the clear winner and has been surpassed by its rivals even though Polyphony (and Sony, for that matter) would suggest otherwise. What it brings to the table is wonderful -- if long overdue -- and it’s great to see that, for the most part, Gran Turismo 5 delivered on expectations, but in the time it took to do so everyone else ended up doing it first, ensuring that the title was left behind even though it thought it was ahead. As a fan of the franchise, that’s a little discouraging, but as an even bigger fan of genre competition (because it means I get to play more games), this result makes the race fascinating to watch, and even better to participate in.

Next time I will take a look at Gran Turismo 5’s licenses, break down the various features I’ve constantly made reference to in these recent posts, and also look at the handling system a little more closely. Before that, however, I turn my attention to Test Drive Unlimited 2, and how it fares in this incredibly competitive genre.

Striving For Perfection

I have been playing games in the racing genre for as long as I can remember, starting with fantastic games like Super Mario Kart and Unirally on the SNES and continuing until the current day with titles like Midnight Club: LA and Race Pro. If it has two or four wheels and goes fast, I'm running it through its paces out of a simple love for all things cars and by extension, motorsport. Even if the game is fairly average -- which a lot of them are -- chances are I will still enjoy myself anyway. I can't describe this enjoyment nor do I plan to; all I can say is that to me, it's just part of the passion I have for the sport in real life. I can, however, try and communicate what makes the genre tick for me.

When it comes to realistic racing games (read: simulators), there is one thing in particular that I feel is the defining reason as to why I would play them over and over again: precision.

The desire to be precise around a race track comes from a desire to be perfect, the desire to have that one perfect lap or race. Now clearly it's impossible to achieve such a goal as there will always be a corner that could have been taken faster on an otherwise brilliant lap, or a race that could have panned out differently, but this is also beside the point. It is the desire in and of itself which makes racing enjoyable, intense and exhilarating and ultimately what makes striving for perfection so rewarding.

A lot of drivers in the real world will tell you that they race to win. They are in it to win it and anything less is a disappointment. There is a reason they say it too; to win in a race is to achieve the highest possible outcome, to be better than the rest and to get as close as is possible to perfection. When victory doesn't happen, motivation will come from the desire to be on the top of that podium and thus the cycle continues.

Winning isn't everything though. In the real world, most race events are part of a bigger picture, just one small aspect of an entire championship or series of events. Winning one race may be achieving the highest possible outcome, but it's an outcome that is only relevant to that race. There is always more to strive for, be it more race victories or winning the overall championship at the end of the year. Beyond that, there's consecutive championships to win, or a move into another series to measure success there. Throughout the goal always remains the same: to achieve perfection.

Polyphony Digital have a reputation for being perfectionists. Their Gran Turismo series is renowned for constant delays while they strive for perfection, as well as for achieving things in the racing genre that were not only innovative but also imitated the real world as best as possible at a time when technology was only just starting to allow such an option. Billed as 'The Real Driving Simulator', the franchise set out to allow gamers the chance to experience what it was like to drive a wide-range of cars around circuits in a realistic manner. The franchise established the benchmark for realistic racing games and remained unchallenged for many years. Sure, attempts to beat it were made but none were really note-worthy until the release of Turn 10's Forza Motorsport on the original Xbox. Forza copied the best features of Gran Turismo, refined them and then added its own take on what it believed the genre was about, as well as what it needed. Tyre physics in particular was a defining feature of the original Forza with an emphasis on portraying the effects that wheelspin and weight distribution could have on a car's handling. It allowed players to gauge grip level, something that throughout a race (particularly longer ones) would change as the tyres wore out and lost some of their tread. This feedback -- visually (sliding), aurally (tyres screeching) and through the use of the Xbox controller's rumble (feel) -- gave, in my view, players a more realistic representation of what it was like to race, demonstrating how things change over the course of a race as well as the effects these changes would have on how the player approached not only the track, but the way they drove the car as well. This was further refined in Forza 2 and the end result was a game that, in my opinion, took over from Gran Turismo as the king of simulated racing games.

This brings us to the current day where, fortunately, the competition between the two well-established franchises is a casual one. They are rival franchises on rival platforms, but they both share a common goal in providing an experience that many people out there would love to do in the real world. It's this common goal that is seeing both franchises refine what they have already done as well as introduce more in order to achieve that goal. It is also competition that has inspired other developers who share the vision, to strive for the same goal. I may have been a little critical of it in my last post, but I am extremely impressed with SimBin's first attempt at a console simulation game in Race Pro and I seriously cannot wait to see what they do next.

As is probably obvious, I am one of these people who would love to do it in the real world but unfortunately motorsport is extremely expensive and I do not have the financial capacity to pursue it. Naturally, the next best thing is these racing games and I'm very thankful that these developers share a common goal and strive for perfection. By doing so, they give people like me the ability to enjoy their passion in a way that watching it passively cannot and that's a very rewarding feeling. It may not be the real thing, but it will suffice if it means we can aim for victory, aim to be better than the rest and most importantly, strive for that same perfection that our favourite drivers do in real life. If that's not the next best thing, then I don't know what is.

Always Connected: Racing Games

Always Connected is a series of posts about online gameplay with today's post taking a look at my time with some racing games.

Last week I took a look at my time playing both Gears of War games online and detailed how I was disappointed in the community that surrounds the two games for generally being disrespectful and inconsiderate of you as a player. Whenever I compare that experience with the other games I have played online, specifically the various racing games, I always find myself confused and curious as to why they have been so different.

It's not always different though as bad multiplayer sessions can happen in any game. Naturally it depends on who you end up versing, something that you have no control over when using a game's matchmaking system. The racing games that come to mind when I think about my bad racing experiences are the Project Gotham Racing series. I have been playing the series online for as long as it has been offered, beginning with Project Gotham Racing 2 and finishing with the last game to be released Project Gotham Racing 4.

I can't say I am surprised when I think about the bad times I have had with the game, because the more Arcade nature of the handling system and racing means that it is easier to be an idiot and crash into people on the track, with no repercussions to penalise the players who do it. Braking for corners can result in eager players behind you smashing into you to use you as their brake, with the end result seeing you slamming into the wall while they pass for the position and carry on to do it to the next unlucky person. Racing side-by-side with someone may see them purposefully swerve into you with the aim to make you spin out. Hell, some people even drive around the track the wrong way with the sole intention to slam head-on into whoever they see first. Like Gears of War before it, it's disappointing but you have to expect it with any game really. I won't deny that across all the racing games I have played online, the PGR series has been the most prolific with bad multiplayer sessions but despite that I still firmly believe that it is one of the most fun games I have ever had the pleasure of playing against other people. With perhaps a touch of irony, I would argue that the reason is again because of the more Arcade-like nature that the game has allowing it to be more accessible to a wide variety of players with different levels of skill. Car damage is cosmetic, it doesn't affect the performance of the vehicle at all and means that if a player was to crash they wouldn't suffer too badly in a race and may only lose a few positions rather than be forced to retire. This is a good thing because it means less players get frustrated if they aren't doing so well and have a desire to press on due to the unpredictability that comes with racing. Combine that with the reward of Kudos (points) for pulling off daring maneuvers like power-sliding around the corners and getting up on two-wheels and you just have a damn fun racing game.


Another racing game I have played online heaps is Forza Motorsport 2. With it being a simulation game and therefore a more serious racer, I was expecting it to be another game where players act like fools, only worse due to the game featuring damage that can affect your car's performance to a point where a snail would be moving faster or that I would be forced to retire. Much to my surprise I found the game was fantastic to play online with the community surrounding it being open to all levels of skill and more importantly being respectful of other drivers. Apologies were offered over the in-game chat if someone caused an accident unintentionally; people helped out with car setups if players were struggling; offered tips for people who couldn't take a particular corner right and it was just generally warm and welcoming. Now I'm no slouch when it comes to racing games and didn't need the help being offered but I still observed it happening and was definitely impressed. Of course there were still some races that weren't as fun as they could be which is again due to the nature of being matched up with randoms, but my time with Forza 2 was very pleasant. I even met a group of people who I'm now friends with in the game who also happened to be on par with my skill level, something that made it even more fun for me as the racing was close, competitive and a real blast to participate in. To put it simply, there is nothing like sharing a common interest (cars, racing) with a group of people who are also on the same page as you and who are happy to race just to have a race. I can only hope that other people that are into racing games can find a similar experience to share because it has certainly influenced my opinion of playing games online.

Moving onto some other racing games, the Burnout franchise has been another great series to play online although I can't really offer any comments about playing it with anonymous people because I have only played with friends. Each of the three games that offer online play in the series (Burnout 3: Takedown, Burnout Revenge and Burnout Paradise) have been great fun to play online and each offer a different experience. The recent Midnight Club: Los Angeles is also quite fun to play online with it reminding me of an old favourite, Test Drive Unlimited. Both games allow you to just simply cruise around their locations (LA for Midnight Club, Oahu for TDU) and as you would expect that can be fun when chilling with your mates.

As you can see my time playing various racing games online has been a positive one both with friends and people I don't know. It's nice to be able to say that because anonymous people are unpredictable and I can only hope that the positive experiences continue to happen in the future. Whether it is Arcade games like Project Gotham Racing or Burnout, or a more serious racer such as Forza 2, it is nice to be able to fire up a racing game and enjoy some races online. Simbin's first console game Race Pro is next on my agenda and it comes out next week. Here's hoping that playing it online is also something I end up enjoying.

Always Connected: Competitive Play

Always Connected is a series of posts about online gameplay. Part one focused on cooperative gameplay and now part two is focusing on competitive play.

The obvious opposite to playing cooperatively is to instead play competitively. Playing games against one another is nothing new, with modes like Deathmatch being staples of FPS games for a very long time. Online gaming has only increased the popularity of competition with PC gamers playing against each other over the Internet for many years. With the consoles now online enabled as well, those experiences have transferred to the consoles and now it is quite easy to fire up a game of Halo, search for a match and be playing within minutes.

For someone like me, the fact that the consoles are online now means that I can actually play multiplayer games. It doesn't matter whether it is cooperatively or competitively, before online gaming I generally didn't get to play multiplayer in any game due to not having any friends that were also into gaming. This has changed in the more recent years, ironically as online gaming has become more popular, as my wonderful girlfriend is a gamer and so is our best friend. Regardless of that though, I maintain that online gaming has changed my life for the better because it provides me the choice to play something with other people if and when I want to. Don't get me wrong, I have had some multiplayer experiences in the past, with Mario Kart 64 and Perfect Dark being played a lot during my childhood but the reality is that I didn't really play games with other people until online gaming became a normal feature of the consoles.

Now that I do play games online I find myself thinking about the various things that go with it. Anonymity is the first thing that comes to mind and how the various people from around the world act and react to different situations. Using my own experiences again as an example, the first night of my Xbox Live subscription showed me two very different sides of online play and how it can be both a good and bad thing. Easing myself into the service I spent the first half of the night playing with some friends who were already used to playing online but also realised that it was new to me. These friends were patient, answered any silly questions I may have asked and also demonstrated to me that playing online can be a fun and rewarding thing to do. We raced each other in Burnout 3: Takedown, shot each other in Halo 2 and when we weren't playing anything, just chatted. Doing this showed me that while we were playing against each other, socialising and enjoying our games together was great and we all had a wonderful time that night.

Later that night the other side of online play was shown, the side that is referred to in the industry when discussing the reasons why people are put off playing online. I'm sure I don't need to elaborate much further on the issue so instead I will say that it was a surprise and I could not help but feel disappointed in the gamers out there who decide to act and react like that while playing games. Games are supposedly meant to be about fun and yet here these people are caring more about ruining the experience for others than having an enjoyable time for themselves. It comes across as sad and as has been said countless times before, really hinders any progress we hope to achieve in evolving our medium and expanding its audience. I am used to it now, but on that first night it was off-putting and like many others I was considering canceling my subscription and never playing online again. In fact the only reason I continued to play online was because of my friends and thankfully the end result has been a few new friends made and countless, memorable times online in the various games that I own. I now believe that online gaming is important and I am glad to see that it has become more popular over the recent years, but it has a long way to go yet and I really hope that the journey is improved as we near the overall destination.

To extend on the above, I can't help but compare the various online sessions that I have had and wonder why these experiences vary to the degree that they do. Without meaning to generalise, it's easy to use a FPS title (and really, take your pick) as an example of games where disappointing and perhaps even insulting online sessions can and will take place. They are arguably the games in which competition is at its most fierce and players seem to be more aggressive with their attitudes because of the competition and desire to win the match. Some out there would even argue that the violence is a factor, but that is a topic for another day. When I compare my time playing Gears of War online with say, a racing game in Forza Motorsport 2, the attitude and general manner of players is vastly different and it is something I have found myself pondering many times. Racing online in Forza has been a more laid-back affair for me, with other players being respectful of you as a driver and not biting your head off if you make a mistake and accidentally cause a crash that takes you and them out of the race. The community of people who play that game seem to be nicer, more willing to just have fun with the game and are open to other players not necessarily being as skilled as they are. It makes for a more enjoyable time and really, that is what it should be about. I will look into my times playing these games and others in future posts of the series but for now I will say that comparing them has been baffling and intriguing and no doubt something that I will continue to analyse in the future.

Competitive gaming has even seen players form careers out of the experience with big name tournaments like Major League Gaming and the now defunct Championship Gaming Series allowing players to test their skills against players all around the world for prize money, sponsorships and even a little fame. These tournaments have become more popular over the years but due to not really having direction or an identity unfortunately haven't found a way to satisfy audiences nor expand the interest of competitive gaming as a whole. As someone who wants to see the industry progress and evolve as much as it can, that is disappointing but is also quite understandable given that games are much more fun if you are playing rather than someone else.

In the end, competitive gaming is here to stay thanks to online play connecting players across the world and that looks set to continue as connection speeds increase, gaming evolves and more and more people start to play and enjoy games. Combine that with the wonderful cooperative experiences that can be had, plus who knows what to come and you have a very bright future for people who want to play with or against each other.

Will First Place Be Decided?

In the past few weeks I have been asked a question by quite a few people including my girlfriend, my cousin and a few online friends. When my girlfriend asked it I thought nothing of it and happily answered it to the best of my ability. When my cousin asked it a few days later, I again answered it with the answer I thought was correct. When I got asked it a few more times by some people online, I begun to question my own answer and then realised that I actually have no idea what my answer is. Basically, consistently being asked this question saw me realise that I hadn't actually decided on an answer. So what's the question?

What is my favourite racing game of all time?

Now if we were to be more precise and say, ask what my favourite Arcade racing game would be well then the answer to the question would probably be rather easy. Same thing applies to the Simulation racing genre as well, it wouldn't be too hard I don't think to answer the question. However, include the entire racing genre (which would then include Arcade, Simulation and Fictional racing titles) and the more I think about it the harder it seems to be for me to choose a particular game and nominate it as my favourite. I mean, I have played so many fantastic racing games over the years across all sub-genres and naturally having so many wonderful experiences makes it hard to just choose one. I do plan on doing so though so I can answer such a question again if it ever pops up in the future (and perhaps I will also do it for other genres) so that means it's time to make a list! A list of games from three sub-genres (Arcade, Simulation and Fictional) that I had an absolute blast playing and that I feel are best examples of their particular sub-genre.

F-Zero GX

This was my introduction to the F-Zero franchise so naturally I hold it close to my heart and regard it as my favourite game from the franchise. However even if it wasn't the first game I played, I dare say it would still be my favourite of the franchise. Only one word comes to mind when I think of this game and that is perfect. Why perfect? Well it just seems to be as such; the track design, sense of speed, character choice and perhaps most importantly, the difficulty curve are all perfectly balanced as far as I'm concerned. It's quick and easy to get into but it also happens to be one of (if not the) hardest racing games I have ever played. The desire to master this game gets stronger with every race and while normally such a challenging game would become frustrating to the point of it never being played again, F-Zero GX was just different. Sure it annoyed me when I failed a race or mission but that constant failure only drove the desire and dedication to beat it even further. I did manage it eventually too and it is one of my most proudest gaming achievements to date. Add in a beautiful looking game and some really awesome tunes from the soundtrack and like I said, perfect is the only word that seems to come to mind.

Mario Kart DS/Mario Kart Super Circuit

There was always going to be a Mario Kart game on this list but when I think about it I just can't choose just one. So instead, I nominate both handheld versions as being the best but for different reasons. I won't go into those reasons (subject for another day) but both games have provided me with endless hours of entertainment. Mario Kart is perhaps the best pick up and play racing game around and no race will ever be the same. Most people go for Super Mario Kart (SNES) or Mario Kart 64 (N64) as their best Mario Kart game and a few years ago I would have agreed with them but after experiencing a portable Mario Kart I don't think the console versions will ever match them anymore. They will be fun of course but for me I feel that Mario Kart is the sort of game that is perfect for handheld gaming. Perhaps I'll elaborate on why I feel this way in the near future, but for now the handheld versions remain my pick of the franchise.

Burnout 2: Point Of Impact

Ah my beloved Burnout franchise. I love each and every installment and don't expect that to change any time soon. I love the fact that every couple of versions or so Criterion change things up and completely reinvent the series to make it fresh, unique and yet ever so familiar at the same time. I can't think of any other franchise that does that (regularly anyway). Anyway while I also hold Burnout 3: Takedown (the majority's pick as best Burnout game from what I can gather) and the recent Burnout Paradise in very high regard my favourite Burnout game is still Burnout 2. To me it was the exact definition of what Burnout was; fast and crazy racing through a variety of very well designed tracks that had you on the edge of your seat the entire time. It also introduced Crash mode which was absolutely awesome fun and took advantage of the destruction engine perfectly. I still play this game regularly and it still looks absolutely gorgeous too. This is what Arcade racing is about.

Wave Race: Blue Storm

Some might be surprised if they read this and saw Wave Race being included but I'm happy to include it. It provided a different take on the genre which I'm always welcome to and it was definitely awesome to hoon around on a Jet-Ski while jumping over waves and weaving in and out of those buoys. It helped of course that the water effects were lovely to look at and the music wasn't half bad either. Some would argue that the original on the N64 was the better game and I can certainly see why they choose it, but for me Blue Storm was the better game as it included everything that made the original awesome and added a few more things to make a better overall experience. Out of all the franchises that could be released on the Wii, I really hope Wave Race sees a return.

Gran Turismo 4

The Gran Turismo franchise was also guaranteed to be on this list. The original showed me what was possible with racing games in gaming and provided an experience I had been craving for ages before it was released: that of being able to drive any car of my choice around a circuit and have the experience feel as close to the real thing as possible. It's obvious that games won't completely mimic what it is like to drive a car around a track, but Gran Turismo is certainly close enough for me. As the franchise continued on we saw new tracks that became classics, more cars and of course graphical upgrades as well and all were awesome additions. The franchise has also taught me a lot about cars, from who makes what (although I knew most of that already) to manufacturer's histories to what certain car parts do. The fact that a game can teach me things and provide a fun experience is fantastic as far as I am concerned and I'll always admire and appreciate the perfectionism that Polyphony aim for with this franchise. I nominate GT4 as my favourite from the franchise because I feel it is the most complete version yet. I dare say that Gran Turismo 5 (when I finally get a PS3 and when that finally releases) will take that crown though.

Forza 2

The other simulation franchise close to my heart, Forza again provided another take on an experience I love so much: the ability to drive cars of my choice on a race track. Forza introduced what I feel to be a much better tyre based physics system than Gran Turismo and as such, it was quite the different experience as a result. Forza 2 improved on that physics system dramatically and because of this reason alone I feel that Forza 2 is the best simulation racing game I have played to date. Gran Turismo 5 could beat it, Forza 3 could beat it - I don't know and I don't care at the moment. Forza 2 is where it is at for me at the moment and I still play it regularly a year on from its release. It might not have the best graphics around or the biggest choice in cars or tracks, but that is irrelevant to me. I mean come on, I can sit here lapping the same track for 100 laps and not even notice...

Project Gotham Racing 2 and 4

Arcade crossed with Simulation crossed with style = one unique but massively fun racing game. I absolutely love this franchise and feel that each installment has been brilliant. If I had to choose a title as the best my choice would be with PGR 2 as I feel it had the best of everything. The best cities and therefore track design, the best cars, the best difficulty curve (PGR 2 is still the hardest game to obtain those Platinums in as far as I am concerned and is also one of the hardest racing games I have played so far) and also perhaps the best online play of the series as well. I still fire it up to race around Sydney, Mexico and the other cities and I still have a blast each and every time. PGR 4 gets included in this segment though because it is pretty much on par with PGR 2 for me. It may not have the best of everything like PGR 2 does, but what PGR 4 has provided is the same sort of fun that PGR 2 did and that's why it is included. Plus it had a fantastic weather system which also happened to look beautiful. I've talked about how I feel about weather and games in another post and its inclusion in PGR 4 was a welcome one.

Note: PGR 2 also had weather.

Test Drive Unlimited

Not really a racing game and more of a driving game, Test Drive Unlimited is included purely because it again provided an experience that I was craving for a long time. The chance to hop into any car I wanted and just go for a cruise. Whether it be cruising in a city or out in the countryside, it didn't matter to me as long as I got to go cruising. The fact that TDU had both because it was set on the Hawaii island of Oahu was just the icing on the cake as far as I was concerned. It had some flaws and wasn't as gorgeous as other racing games on the market but who cares? I certainly don't because I was (and still am) too busy just enjoying the fact that I can just drive.

There, the racing games I feel are my favourite out of all the ones I have played so far. As is evident by the fact I had to include more than one title in some instances, it was extremely hard choosing between titles to form this list. Some were obvious standouts while others took quite some thought before I could decide. Now I get an even harder task as I decide on what I think is my favourite racing game of all time. Excuse me while I figure it out and once I do, I will reveal the answer here.

What I'm Playing

I originally intended the What I'm Playing entries to be weekly, detailing what I was playing for that week and also offering thoughts on a few things. Obviously, it hasn't been a weekly entry and I apologise for that, but I do still intend on keeping it a regular thing and here's hoping I can find a way to balance my time so that it can be a regular piece.

Anyway, this week I have been playing the following:

Burnout Paradise

Picked this up on Friday night and according to the in-game timer, have already played it for over 25 hours. See what I mean about time getting away from me easily?
Anyway, I have been playing it so much because it's just so damn awesome. Whether it is doing the races, Road Rages, Marked Man challenges or Stunt Runs; Or whether it is mucking around online with friends, Paradise is an absolute blast to play and I look forward to playing it some more in this coming week.

Mass Effect

I have returned to this game after a short break, this time playing through it for the second time. I decided to re-use my character from the first run although this time I'm being a bit more of an arsehole while I go for the Renegade achievement. I'm also going to try some other options in the game but I won't detail them here to save for spoilers. It's still a brilliant game though and it actually feels weird seeing different things happen in the game knowing that it was different the first time.

Undertow

I finished this in Co-Op with my friend a few weeks ago but I am still playing this gradually because I am an achievement whore and only need one achievement to 200/200 the game. The final achievement is 10,000 kills although thankfully it is nowhere near as hard as the 10,000 kills achievement (Seriously...) from Gears of War. I won't be dedicating 8 months of my gaming life to Undertow, put it that way.

Forza 2

I will always be playing this. At least, until either Forza 3 releases or I get a PS3 and Gran Turismo 5. I'm still setting various lap times for various reasons and I am also still playing it online every now and then. I just recently purchased some Microsoft Points too, so next time I fire up the game I will be buying the two DLC tracks - Motegi and Road America - and setting lap times on those as well.

Rez HD

As I mentioned above, I picked up some MS Points recently and there is just no way in hell I was going to pass up on the opportunity to finally play this game. I have been wanting to do so ever since learning about original version and I now finally have the chance to experience it for myself. Awesome times ahead!

In other news, I just recently finished my second play through of BioShock and despite having finished it once, I was still blown away by just how real Rapture feels and how immersive the game is. So expect a post on that (I suppose it was only a matter of time considering this blog is inspired by the game...) in the near future. You can also expect one on Mass Effect, Burnout Paradise and possibly even Rez.

And those are just the posts on particular games...

What I'm Playing

Yes I realise I haven't been updating this blog lately and as such, I also haven't been keeping up to date with what I have been playing. I apologise for that (not that anyone reads it but anyway) but I have been reasonably busy. That and I didn't have access to my computer or the internet for a couple of days. I aim to get back into the swing of things shortly though so patience is your virtue, or something. Moving right along...

Forza 2:

Yes I'm still playing this and still doing what I was a couple of weeks ago; Setting time trial times and playing it online to build up my Online Credits. I'm very close to the latter which means I will have this game 1000d soon but even once I obtain my last achievement I will still be playing this game for a while. Online racing is awesome fun (especially with friends) and I don't see myself stopping that anytime soon. Plus doing the Time Trial times is giving me a little bit of a challenge which is always nice. I have gotten most of my times into the top 200 now and I'll be doing the rest in the coming days.

I'm also seeing how I fare in the Hot Lap Tournament/s that Turn10 are running. Last week's one on Sebring was the first one I tried and much to my surprise/amusement, I managed to place 48th in it. Not bad for my first attempt at the Hot Lap challenge. This week's one is on Road Atlanta using a R1 car. I seem to perform better with the racing cars so I'm hoping to break the top 50 again. We'll see what happens.

Rainbow Six: Vegas:

Yes, still playing this as well. I finished it (on Normal) last week so now I'm gonna do some Terrorist Hunt missions and see if I can get some more achievements. I'm not sure whether I will go through the Campaign again on Realistic though. Normal was hard enough...

New Super Mario Bros:

I'm actually playing a DS game again! Excuse the excitement there but I haven't really played my DS ever since finishing the 5 games that I bought alongside the DS a couple of years ago. So yeah, it's nice to be playing a DS game again. Anyway so far it's been fun. I have only made it to the third World so I'm not too far in, but it's been a nice change from all the 360 gaming I have been doing that's for sure. Plus it's been ages since I last played a (2-D) Mario game.

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Anyway as you can probably tell from only 3 games being listed, I haven't exactly been playing much lately. There's a few reasons for that. Obviously I have been busy as I said earlier but I also haven't really been playing because I was/am going through the 'Gaming Blues'. Like, I want to play games but I look at my collection and just think to myself "meh", which isn't cool. Hopefully I can reignite my interest in the games that I own soon, or grow a money making tree so I can go and get a new game. We'll see eh?

What I'm playing this week

While the Xbox Live Gamercard on the right side of this blog will always be a good indication as to what I'm playing, I figured that I should write a post each week detailing which games are currently vying for my attention. Whether Civ decides to do something similar or not, well that's up to him. If anything though, these posts will be a good excuse for me to offer a few thoughts on a game (say for example, if I recently purchased it) or to detail my progress for future reference. So without further ado, here is what I have been playing in the past week or so.

Mass Effect

Unfortunately for me, I missed the launch of this game due to various reasons. While most of you were out saving the galaxy from a Rogue Spectre, I was silently weeping as I saw nearly everyone on my friends list playing the game and a massive amount of forum posts discussing the newly released game. I can however say that the (extra) wait was worth it, as this game has completely blown me away. I expected it would, actually (something I will elaborate on in a future post) but even with particularly high expectations for the game, I have been blown away with the game's brilliance. It's everything I wanted it to be and so much more. I may not have progressed too far into the story just yet (despite playing it for nearly 30 hours), but I honestly couldn't care either. I'm massively (no pun intended) immersed within this game and I look forward to continuing my adventures aboard the Normandy and throughout the Milky Way in the near future.

Forza 2

I am re-visiting this title after not having played it for quite a few months. There were a few reasons behind that, with the main one being that the game was freezing a lot due to my 360's disc drive (or so it seems) not reading games as well as it used to anymore. Regardless of that though, my return to the game has been an enjoyable one. I have been playing it online with a few friends which has been pretty damn fun. Not only that but it is helping me gain some Online Credits so I can get my final achievement from the game. I have also been setting lap times in the Time Trials (and I will be doing Hot Laps after that) after realising that my originally set times were wiped when Turn10 (the developers) wiped the scoreboards due to a few reasons. My original times were quite high (top 200 in the world) so they unfortunately got wiped and I'm now working on getting back up there.

Rainbow Six: Vegas

When I first got this game, I played through it once in Co-Op and then left it on the shelf to gather dust after that. I don't know why I didn't play it but it got ignored in favour of other games that I was playing at the time. I'm playing it now to finish it by myself and despite the fact that I am finding it quite hard, I'm loving it. The game looks brilliant and I don't think that is just because it is set in Sin City. As I said before, I am finding it hard but I think that's just making me enjoy it more as I love a good challenge in my gaming. Not to mention something different, which is what Vegas is compared to what I would normally play.

Okami (PS2)

I started playing through this last month due to the aforementioned 360 problems that I was having. While those problems are now fixed, I still can't help but play this game. Even if only for that absolutely gorgeous art direction alone. Seriously, words cannot describe just how beautiful that art direction is on paper, let alone when you see it in motion. Thankfully the game itself is also pretty damn fun to play, so I'm getting the best of both worlds and loving every minute of it.

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Well, those are the games I have been playing in the past week or so. Check back next week for another update on what I am playing and if by chance people are actually reading this, feel free to let us know what you are playing (and perhaps even why) as well.