Namco-Bandai's excellent Moto GP
brings the professional motorcycle racing circuit to the palm of your hand
in an accessible, challenging title with multiple modes of play, solid
controls plus a good selection of courses and bikes. The game offers both
arcade style and deeper season modes, along with time trial and online
racing. From a visual standpoint, the game looks good with an excellent
frame rate and good modeling. While it doesn't offer as many extras as you
would like, the unlockables are still decent, making this a solid package
for motorcycle fans.
Moto GP is one of the better-produced
and more intense racing titles on the PSP to date, making the player feel
like they are literally in the driver's seat. The game's adrenaline
charged gameplay is quite intense and challenging. There are more than a
dozen real-world tracks taken from the actual 2005 season included here,
with each modeled and laid out exactly as their real world counterparts
are. Each course offers a surprising amount of challenge with long straight-aways, tight curves and corners that will test your racing skills.
Learning when to brake, using the proper turn angle and using the racing
lines are critical if you want to succeed in the game. You need to be on
the lookout for devastating turns, and brake accordingly or else you'll
crash and lose precious time. While you can get away with taking the
shortcuts over grass in some of the arcade modes, you are severely
penalized, and even disqualified if you do this in the time trial or
season mode. You definitely need to master and memorize each course, which
takes some practice, but this pays off once you learn to anticipate turns
and corners. You'll also have to look out for rival drivers, who can be
surprisingly aggressive at the later stages and leave you with very little
room for error.
Moto GP's controls and interface are
easy to understand and allow players to have a great deal of precision
when turning, which is one of the key areas to success in the game. The
main function of steering uses either the analog or digital controller and
which one is more effective depends on your preference. While the analog
offers greater accuracy in terms of its precision, novice players should
find the simpler digital cross pad a bit easier to use. No matter which
one you choose, you still have to contend with the bike's physics, which
are realistic enough to add to the challenge, but not excessively so that
it ends up detracting from the entertainment. Braking and acceleration are
also easy to understand, and you need to know when to speed up and when to
slow down. Mastering the art of turning into corners, and learning to
balance your bike in spins isn't always the easiest things, and its always
tempting to press down hard on the accelerator during the straight-aways.
However, this approach can lead to disaster if you don't properly look
ahead and find yourself turning too late at the end of one. A few major
crashes should teach you a bit of self-control, and once you get into the
game's flow, it becomes easier to time your braking and turning.
Other
on-track strategies play a key role in your success or failure. Some of
these skills, such as successfully drifting through the turns are more
subtle and definitely takes some practice to master. It's worth it since
you get the hang of it, races become much easier. As you progress and gain
experience, Moto GP becomes a much more enjoyable, less frustrating
experience. You can choose multiple camera views which range from behind
the bike to a first person perspective. The behind angles are much
preferred in this instance, since the first person angle makes it hard to
judge where you are and anticipate turns, at least until you get the feel
of the game down. Moto GP's overall feel is pretty solid and the bikes
feel like they should on the track. They all share similar
characteristics, though the handling of each depends largely on which one
you choose before the race. Picking a bike with strong handling makes
turning easier but costs you in speed while the faster bikes offer more
speed but are harder to controls. Finding a balanced bike that suits your
racing style is one of the more challenging aspects of the game.
The game includes multiple modes of play
offering players the opportunity to race against real-world competitors
and legends on actual motorbikes. Players can choose to compete in simple
arcade style rounds, where the objective is simple, though you can only
play a single round. You can also practice your technique and racing
skills using the time trial mode, which allows you to race multiple laps
as you try and shave those precious seconds off your time. There's also an
extensive season mode which allows you to compete in a series of races
throughout the world in an attempt to win the championship crown. Moto GP
also includes a wireless mode that allows you to compete against other
players via the PSP's ad-hoc connection. Finally, once you have completed
certain challenges, you can race One-on-One against some of the legendary
riders. If you win, you can unlock that rider and use them later in the
game. All of these various game modes add plenty of depth and give this
portable title a surprising amount of depth and replay value.
From a visual standpoint, Moto GP's
graphics engine delivers a solidly engaging experience. The courses
offered in the game offer a remarkable degree of realism and show a great
deal of polish. Moto GP runs at a smooth frame-rate throughout, offering a
great sensation of speed, especially in its first-person mode. It has a
somewhat dry presentation in terms of menu and HUD design, but it more
than compensates with an impressive level of detail in the bikes and track
side objects that makes for a realistic, engaging experience. Moto GP's
bike models are impressive, and the many real-world manufacturers and
drivers lend the game an impressive authenticity. Its sound effects are
decent, with the engines roaring throughout, and a driving rock soundtrack
that compliments the action perfectly. While it won't win any awards for
originality, Moto GP's presentation is excellent and uses the PSP's
processing power effectively to create an intense racing experience.
Moto
GP's visuals are decent, but the gameplay will keep players coming back.
The game's mixture of arcade style and deeper simulation elements makes
for an excellent racer with plenty of depth. The arcade-oriented racing
sections of Moto GP are fairly exciting and offer players a way to jump
right into the action. Those who want to go deeper can try the more
elaborate multi-race modes which aren't as forgiving but offers more in
the way of depth and additional challenge. The AI is sophisticated enough
to make a decent challenge, but the gameplay is never overly frustrating
or annoying. Overall, the game offers a decent balance between the two
styles of play. Moto GP is a solid racer that offers some solid gameplay
with excellent play mechanics, realistic controls and realistic physics to
create an enjoyable bike racing title with more than enough modes, extras
and features to satisfy gamers.
Grade: B
