Yoyoma207:
With the new Avatar T-shirts that cast a vote as to whether Carmine should live or die in Gears of War 3----which should I buy? ...
OXM SAYS:
Well, personally, we'd love to see some blood spill, so we're tempted to say you should just buy the "Carmine Mu...MORE
Posted on: May 23, 2008
Grid
WORDS BY: Paul Curthoys
Blasting through the apexes of an S-turn, it’s hard to tell what’s chattering faster: our wheels or our heartbeat. Somehow we cling to the line with a tiny countersteer, barely avoiding a spin, and miraculously exit with enough speed to flash past the leader. That’s just a taste of the exhilarating moments that Grid delivers again and again. Like Dirt before it, Codemasters’ latest is another fine showcase for its long-simmering genius for racing. It’s official — PGR has been dethroned.
Codemasters’ hypey tagline for the game proclaims that “It’s all about the race,” but actually, Grid soars because of its accomplishments in graphics, A.I., handling, career mode, and even in its instant replays, which is a good place to start. You know how when you blow it in a racing game, you grouchily restart the event and try again? Grid doesn’t mind at all — in fact, it streamlines the whole process by allowing you to watch the instant replay of your crash and pick a moment to respawn back into the action. You get only a few of these “flashbacks” (the number depends on the difficulty level), so you can’t go crazy, but we dug how much Codemasters respected the way most people actually play its games.
But those are small potatoes compared to what else the game accomplishes. As always with a Codemasters racing game, the handling is grade-A butter — from open-wheel speed demons to hulking Detroit muscle cars, these rides are a treat to drive. Only the drifting is a bit tricky, requiring a featherlight touch on the triggers.
The on-track action is far from Need for Speed–type brainless, but you can survive knocks and bumps as long as you’re crafty about taking good lines and braking hard when you should. Like you, the very human-feeling A.I. opponents will make a mess of things sometimes, and it’s damn cool to see the car in front of you spin away into the sand. Or to hear a metallic shriek behind you, and notice that whoever was dogging your heels suddenly isn’t.
And it’s all so pretty! This whole game is gorgeous: everything from small moments like fog lingering over hills to ruined parts exploding off your wrecked car to the lightning-fast sense of speed is built to dazzle — and does.
Everything gels beautifully in the well-constructed career mode. The usual arc from rookie to legend is followed, but that’s where the “usuals” end. Grid expertly mixes demolition derbies with touring cars, building a team with freelancing, famous tracks with fun fantasy courses, and dreamy high-end machines like the Audi R10 with brawny beasts like a 
’70 Mustang. Good 12-player battles on Live make a tasty whipped cream and cherry on top, but there’s nothing innovative there — just pick a car and track, then try to run your friends into the wall.
Of course, every relationship has room for improvement, and our love for Grid is not blind. In a disappointing departure from Travis Pastrana’s 
sharp performance in Dirt, the two not-famous voices who act as your business manager and coach are sometimes shrill, often obvious, and occasionally even creepy. Sure, it’s a small thing…but doing it better would’ve been a small thing, too.
Same with our other main complaint — as you’re racing along through events, suddenly your season will end, and you can race Le Mans as the finale if you like. Like us, you’ll probably go, “Wait…where did seasons come from?” The game makes no mention of them beforehand or in any of the stat screens, so it’s an odd but ultimately irrelevant surprise that the game should’ve taken a moment to establish.
The other potential downside depends on your preferences. We loved how Grid ditches sacred cows like tuning, pit stops, and qualifying, and just cuts you loose on the track. Purists can howl about heresy and return to Forza 2 because, yes, realism is not Grid’s forte — entertainment is. This game isn’t about simulating racing; it’s about creating fun out of it. And it succeeds beautifully, one thrilling white knuckle at a time.
On Xbox 360
- Fantastic graphics, A.I., and handling.
- Creative, absorbing career.
- Lousy voices; multiplayer could be deeper.
- Will anyone ever find a smart solution to the first-turn carnage in racing games?
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Sun, 08/08/2010 - 20:25
Posted by inter4522
This is such a great game. I play it all the time. watch online free movies
Thu, 07/31/2008 - 14:11
Posted by xxWhiteJonesxx
all i can say is that i hated realistic racing games b4 i played the demo for this game
得肃
Mon, 07/21/2008 - 01:00
Posted by lambo carl
its a great game and the graphic are brill
Mon, 06/09/2008 - 12:27
Posted by btfu73
Technically it is possible for the speedometer to read 50 while spinning in the sand. The speedometer is based on the tires spinning not the whole car speed. Haven't you ever burned out or slipped on ice while driving, same concept.
Wed, 06/04/2008 - 17:01
Posted by Paul OXM
Well, it's not trying to compete with Forza's realistic physics -- that's how. The review's pretty clear about that...
Wed, 06/04/2008 - 13:47
Posted by tabicat
I don't know how you guys could give this game a high score. The physics are terrible. At one point during the demo, I was in the sand spinning like a top while my speedometer read 50 mph. That's physically impossible for a car to do that.
I'll stick with Forza 2, thanks.
Thu, 05/29/2008 - 07:34
Posted by chukky1728
Multiplayer? "pick a car and track, then try to run your friends into the wall" Isn't there already a series like that? It's called "Burnout".
Thu, 05/29/2008 - 01:16
Posted by Spybreak
I can't wait for this game, I loved DiRT and I love PGR, yawn when I play Forza 2 though. Yea I'm more of an arcade racer but not Ridge Racer lol. I'm glad they finally got online to work, that was absent in DiRT and I can't believe you go oh well online is there but nothing special.
Wed, 05/28/2008 - 12:31
Posted by willjoea
Played the demo and loved it. I knew it was going to rate well. Can't wait !! Ok Codemasters F-1 next. I wonder what four letter word they'll use for the title...
'Dirt'...'Grid'...'????'
Wed, 05/28/2008 - 10:43
Posted by CCRacerWins
Wow!, 9.0!
Just got my 360 back from the repair center. Grid will be great fill-in until the next release of Forza.
Tue, 05/27/2008 - 20:34
Posted by madsick1
Take that chukky!
Tue, 05/27/2008 - 09:46
Posted by Gamer911
wow, this game looks awesome
Mon, 05/26/2008 - 15:18
Posted by Paul OXM
hey chukky -- straight from the review above: "Good 12-player battles on Live"
Sun, 05/25/2008 - 07:33
Posted by chukky1728
It sounds exciting and shiny, but with no mention of online multiplayer, how can it knock the PGR series off its perch? Yes I will stick to Forza 2 and patiently wait for Turn 10's next iteration.
Sun, 05/25/2008 - 06:30
Posted by Alex GREAT 75
Yes another Codemasters racing game. I had a lot of fun playing the Dirt demo with my Dad but maybe I might acually by this one. I wonder what Codemasters next racing game will be? If you like racing games please at least try the demo of Grid.
Sat, 05/24/2008 - 12:24
Posted by Rahulword
I knew this game would get a good rating, after playing the demo on LIVE its so freakin awesome. I thought the controls were hard to get used to but in a while everything is fine. Looking forward in purchasing this game when it comes out.
Sat, 05/24/2008 - 10:42
Posted by PaperLantern
:)
Thanks Paul!
Fri, 05/23/2008 - 22:56
Posted by Paul OXM
Hey Paper...good freakin' idea. You should get a job at Codemasters.
Fri, 05/23/2008 - 20:46
Posted by CAWeissen
I absolutely cannot wait for Grid to come out! Dirt was spectacular and I loved every bit of it, and Grid's demo was amazing. I'm definitely picking this one up. See you all on the track!
_________________
Gamertag: CAWeissen
Fri, 05/23/2008 - 18:56
Posted by cart00nstrip
Uh, shadow? Burnout Paradise isn't that old and it's FULL of street racing. And don't forget Midnight Club: Los Angeles coming in Sept. And GTA4 has some fun street racing in it, too!
00
This sounds like lots of fun, tho'...
00
gt: cart00nstrip
Fri, 05/23/2008 - 16:52
Posted by shadowover93
What ever happen to street racing games?I liked those better.
Fri, 05/23/2008 - 16:25
Posted by PaperLantern
Whoa I didn't know the game was this close to being released!
I didn't really like the demo; but then again, I only played it for about 5 minutes before I became bored.
I know a solution to avoid massive crashes on the first turn: Make everyone's car a ghost on the first turn... so no other car can bump into it. That way you separate the skilled drivers from the n00bs, and by the time the second turn comes up, there should be enough distance between drivers that the second turn crash can be avoided sometimes.