Review NaN of 3
, from Minneapolis, MN
Price Paid:
$50.00
from Electronics Boutique Summary:
Overall, this is the best motocross I have ever played. The graphics are phenomenal, the gameplay is extremely fast, there are tons of options, tons of tracks, tons of riders, and plenty of things to do to keep even the most hardcore gamer interested. Perhaps the single greatest strength of the game though, is that it completely immerses you in the motocross experience through the game's very fun career mode.
Most dirt bike or offroad games so-called "career mode" is nothing more than going from one race to the next, picking up points along the way. However, in MXRider, the career mode is amazingly deep, and it allows you to earn team sponsorships with terms and conditions that you must fulfill. For example, some teams will offer you less money and require that you finish in the top 5 of each race, some teams offer more money but want you to finish in the top 3, and one team's ridiculous offer even goes so far as to require you to win every single race! You have the option of accepting one of the offers, or if you want, you can decline their offers and remain as an independent privateer. If you don't fulfill the terms of the teams' contract, however, then you will be fired. If you accept a teams' offer, then you get to wear that teams' racing gear for the duration of the season, or until you get fired. Its a nice touch that it makes so real.
The career mode in MXRider has two options, Novice and Expert. In the Novice setting, there are eight races during the season, and its much easier to get team offers, and they're also more lenient. You can also turn on the Invisible Walls so you don't inadvertantly fly off the track. In the Expert setting, there are 16 races during the season, and there are no Invisible Walls to save you. The team offers are much tougher to come by, and their conditions are really strict. That makes it a good challenge and is very fun. You can practice on the track before each race, and in the Expert mode you can run a one lap qualification trial to determine your starting position at the gate. The better your time, the better your starting position. I was routinely getting the holeshot because I had the best starting position at the front gate by getting the best one lap qualifying time.
One other aspect to the career mode is you have a few options regarding the settings on your bike. You have to change the tire tread depending on the surface of the track you're racing on, and you can also adjust the engine type, and the bike's suspension. Some suspension types work better on certain tracks, but I found the soft suspension and a low-end, quick accelerating engine to work best. On a few tracks the factory setting suspension works well, but the soft suspension doesn't allow you to jump as high or far, thus preventing you from flying off the track.
Just these small additions to the career mode go a long way to make this game better than anything else available right now. Hopefully, the so-called "career mode" of other similar games will be forever retired, never to make a comeback. I hope that all future dirt bike games follow this trend, because it adds a huge amount of fun to the game, and the career actually feels like a real career now. Hats off to Paradigm Entertainment for making such a deep game. Report this review >>
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5 of 5
