Concept Car Series 2010

PRESENTATION - The interface setup is pretty basic. There are 5 modes to choose from. Practice, Single Race, Splitscreen, Championship & Rally mode. There are 8 different tracks to choose from with the option to reverse them. You can pick the number of laps you want for every race. The camera can be set to 3 different views close up, far, & a road view.

GRAPHICS -Concept Car Series 2010 is a solid looking game. The Cars are very polished & accurate. The levels are not nearly as polished as they could be. The lackluster background makes the cars standout & thats not exactly a good thing. Every map has a different style ranging from egypt, to snowy to islands & from sunsets & bright days.

Collisions don't cause the car any damage.

GAMEPLAY - The gameplay is where the game really shines. For a indie racer this is probably the closest a driving game will come to simulation. You must really learn the game to be successful in the races. Stirring, turning, & shifting gears are very important.

Concept car series 2010 controls are standard. There are commands for Stirring, switching gears, acceleration, brake, & camera view.

There are 3 different difficulties to choose from, each have 4 cars available(12 total cars in the game). Beginner which has the slowest group of cars & decent drivers. Advanced which have cars that are faster with better drivers. Pro which is the hardest difficulty where everything is uped a couple notches.

The A.I. can be forgiving if you crash. However it may take a couple laps to get back into a solid position. And sometimes you will never catch up to the top 4 drivers at all.

The cars dont have stats like handling, speed or anything. However there is 2 options to choose for your playing style. Grip helps make your car handle easier. Speed makes your car a bit faster. So its a compromise of how you want to play.

SOUND - The cars sound realistic with engines purring, the crash & brake sound effects are there like it should be. The soundtrack is underwehlming which is mainly dull instrumentals. Good thing you can play songs off your Hard drive while still able to listen to the cars & the environment your racing in.

LASTING APPEAL - Everything is done well for a indie game. Nothing left a sour taste in my mouth other than the lack of cars per difficulty. Also the lack of customization was a disappointing but expect for the pricetag. Theres enough modes to keep things interesting & fun. The replay value is there & can keep you busy whenever your in the mood for a racing game. For any fans of driving games that dont wanna spend 35-60 dollars on a racing game, Concept Car Series 2010 is a MUST BUY for 80MSP.

Pros

+ Driving

+ Realistic cars

+ Multiple tracks

+ A.I.

+ Racing Options

+ Game Modes

+ Only 80 MSPs

Cons

- Lack of customization for cars

- Lack of cars available

- The environment lacks of detail

In high speed racing games, the emphasis is often centered around Realism, Competition, and Customization, and usually prioritized in that order. Unfortunately, Concept Car Series 2010 really only manages to master the second one, Competition.

Concept Car Series 2010 is an indie game through-and-through, and unfortunately, tackling Realism requires more hours and resources than any indie game would reasonably have – there’s a reason why we wait years for the Forza or GTR series. My main complaint about realism would be the physics of the game – I’m not convinced that the cars would actually handle the way they are portrayed, and while some level of attention is paid to surfaces and inclines, it doesn’t seem to be accurate enough for my liking, but perhaps I’m just being too picky. The handling extremes will nevertheless remain untested, as there is no way to manipulate track conditions or weather, other than simply running a track in reverse. The “customization” touted by the game is hardly detailed enough for the diehard enthusiast, offering only one of three preset choices, rather than an actual car tune-up. This physics assessment is not all bad, however: the cars make excellent use of the pressure-sensitive triggers on the 360 controller, allowing the player to have control over acceleration and deceleration levels.

Artistically, the game is hardly breaking new ground. Concept Car Series 2010 proudly shows off its own 3D visuals, and while they do seem a generation or two behind the times, they are diligently modeled and carefully crafted – it would be irresponsible of me to not point out the obvious, that this game was a labour of love for the car enthusiast.

As far as Competition, the multiplayer offers a small boon to the game, but the only offering is splitscreen rather than full online support, and online support comes only in the way of leaderboards for comparing one’s greatness. If you want to compete against the greats, you better hope they live close-by, or that you are content with a simple leaderboard. This is not to belittle online leaderboards. They are a fantastic feature, and any online functionality is an added bonus to an indie game. The lament is only that the online features of this game are not more fully developed.

I can’t say that I was amazed by Concept Car Series 2010. I can say that there was an impressive attention to detail on some aspects of the game, and I only wish that such effort was applied everywhere to make a truly impressive, immersive, and competitive experience. Perhaps a 2011 sequel will offer more online features, more varied physics, and a deeper customization?