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Author Topic: DC Gamers - Racer Review: Fun 3D racing  (Read 7453 times)

wreckedcarzz

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DC Gamers - Racer Review: Fun 3D racing
« on: July 20, 2008, 11:40 PM »
Review of Racer (my first review here @ DC)

Basic Info
Game NameRacer
Game URLhttp://www.racer.nl/
Game Version Reviewed0.6.0 (Beta)
Test System SpecsIntel Celeron D @ 3.73GHz, 2GB DDR2 RAM, ATi Radeon HD2600 Pro PCIe 256MB DDR2 (ALL are overclocked)
Supported OSesWindows 2000/XP/Vista, Ubuntu, Mac OS X
How To ObtainDownload only
How To Upgrade/UpdateDownload, unzip over old install
PriceFree, open source (I *think*) closed source
Reviewer Donation LinkDonate to Wreckedcarzz, the Reviewer
Relationship btwn. Reviewer and ProductUser/player


Intro:
A single and multiplayer off/online racing game with massive modding capabilities. Currently in beta stage, it has been in development for what appears to be several years (it is a one-man w/ volunteers setup). Allows the player(s) to race, drive or do anything else behind the wheel of a car on almost limitless downloadable tracks and in almost limitless downloadable cars.

Image:
screenshot024.jpg
(This is with advanced options activated, obviously older machines probably won't be capable of this Level Of Detail)

Who is this game designed for:
Gamers on older PCs, or anyone that is into simulation racing games
(It should be noted that all vehicles/tracks are editable, so it can also be turned into an arcade game as well)

The Good
Easy to figure out
Lots of cars and tracks to download
Easy install of additional items
Fast loading
Simple online setup
Settings for both low-end and high-end systems
0.6.0 introduces HDR and several other graphical effects

The Bad
Only ships with one car and one track (designed for addons, but still)
Still in beta
Some tracks are incomplete, and online can be funky with them (not directly the games fault, but the addon tracks')
No damage (collisions = bounce/halt, depending on speed and mass and all that good stuff)
No Xfire In-Game support yet

Why I think you should play this game
It is easy to get started, anyone can understand how it works, and the gameplay is just fun. There is a VERY large user base accross the internet dedicated to car/track making. Bugs are few and far between, and the game size is very small. You can configure just about everything to your needs, and the developer is easily reachable. All in all, very well setup.

How does it compare to similar games
Trackmania beats it in the ease-of-use track editor.
Project Torque definitely beats it in graphics/sounds/gameplay options, however PT takes much longer to setup, is a resource pig, and requires beefy internet to run without lagging.
If you have ever played Midtown Madness, the first two games in the series are very similar to this. All cars and most tracks are editable (with creator permission), however, so the game is yours to sculpt. Graphics and sound wise, they are about equal.

Conclusions
Definately worth a shot, it is a fun game once you get a couple people to race/drive with you. The endless modding possibilities make the replay value pretty much endless. It won't be leaving my PC anytime soon.
9/10 (simply for online/general bugs)


Seriously... it is worth a try at the least. I just upgraded from 0.5.7 -> 0.6.0 and I love the new graphics (I didn't change any options, but you can turn on HDR somewhere, just haven't fiddled yet). The mirror and other things seem to be a bit zippier as well. All around good game.

EDIT: Fixed version, updated info

Target

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Re: DC Gamers - Racer Review: Fun 3D racing
« Reply #1 on: July 22, 2008, 06:21 PM »
completely off topic, but if you're into racing/driving sims (and you seem to be) another choice is RFactor

It's semi free (you can download and play offline for free), there's seems to be a substantial user base (there are many racing leagues), and a number of mods (the local one is based on our sedan car series - V8 supercars)

it's also very customisable, ie pretty much any setting you could change in a real race car is simulated here - this can make it quite challenging if you don't really know or understand what it's all about, but that's part of the fun, right?

wreckedcarzz

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Re: DC Gamers - Racer Review: Fun 3D racing
« Reply #2 on: July 26, 2008, 02:18 AM »
I personally plan on purchasing rFactor sometime in the future and reviewing it here as well, although I try to stick to freeware games as I (and most people) can't go out and spend money on games all the time. $50 here, $30 there, and eventually your $500 in the hole with only 10-15 games!

But yea, rFactor is a good sim racing game (I have played the SP demo version... I guess it is a "demo"...). Also worth a go.