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by Withouta3 on 03.10.10

Grand Prix style racing video games have been striving towards a level of accuracy that would be indistinguishable from a video filmed from an actual race.  They strive towards ever more realistic graphics, physics and sounds.  I am amazed that these games can still surprise me with these advancements.  But realism does not necessarily beget fun, and all too often fun is sacrificed at the altar of accuracy.

If you want realism in a Grand Prix style motorcycle racing game, than MotoGP 9/10 is just the game for you.  Heck, let us drop the term game.  MotoGP 9/10 is a racing simulator.  If it were not for the interface being a controller and not some sort of prop bike, a perspective rider might consider using the game to train.  But, if you are just looking for a racing game to have some fun, I advise you to look elsewhere.

In the world of Grand Prix racing, all sorts of vehicles utilize the same handful of tracks.  And so, a lot of video games . . . . I mean racing simulators end up using the same tracks.  But considering that MotoGP 9/10 is the only racing simulator that Capcom has produced this generation, I am confident the tracks were not ripped off from another game.  That being said, the accuracy of the tracks is quite amazing.  After running a few races, I pulled up some videos on YouTube, and I just cannot say enough about how closely the simulation and the real thing actually resemble one another.  Every turn and every hill seem to be placed perfectly. 

The standard view is a third person from behind like so many other racers, but you do not get the feel of the accuracy until you first person.  The camera sits where the rider’s head would be.  When you take turns, the camera actually shifts off the center of the bike as the rider leans into the turn.  Then as you tuck in behind the windshield, so does the camera.  This had me leaning in my chair with each turn as if my actual body movements could help me take the turn that much faster. 

Just like on a real motorcycle, handling is totally dependent on the rider shifting his weight around.  In a tight turn, he will lean so far that his knee will actually drag on the pavement, but lean in too far, and down you will go.  Unless you lean forward on a takeoff, the motorcycle will lift the front wheel off the tarmac in a wheelie.  Also, in a straight away, you can tuck in behind the windshield which decreases the drag and increases acceleration and top speed. 

Graphically, the motorcycles are perfect.  Every visible part is modeled and the effects of moving are great.  Opponents riding along side you blur realistically, and the rear brakes throw sparks.  In the rain, the tarmac appears wet and reflects the sky at shallow angles.  The rear wheel will even kick up a spray, but this spray, though it comes from all the opponents, does not come from your own bike, a small missing detail that did not make sense to me. 

As I have clearly described, MotoGP 9/10is an excellent motorcycle racing simulation, but is it fun?  The game helps the player by displaying an ideal racing line that changes colors to denote whether or not you are traveling to fast.  Most turns have three gates, one showing each the entrance, apex, and exit of the turn.  I must say that hitting this line has a certain satisfaction.  Capcom also promises to offer alternative lines to download that might suit other styles of racing. 

The game has the four major modes that are standard among racing sims. In championship mode, you only have to worry about practicing, qualifying, and racing through the standard 17 week season.  The career mode takes the championship mode and adds a few features like managing sponsorships, engineering upgrades, and gaining a reputation.  The arcade mode has the timer that continually ticks down and passing check points, using a slipstream, and overtaking opponents adds time.  Finally, a time trial acts like any other time trial out there. 

The AI seems adept at following the racing line, sometimes frustratingly so.  It is difficult to pass someone if they are always in your line.  In the career mode, your reputation takes a dive every time you collide with an opponent from behind.  That being so, I would hope that the AI would do more to avoid collisions, however all too often I got slammed into from behind just to lose control and end up in the grass.  Now, this is racing, and I can accept a few wrecks, but there are opponents on the track with you during practice and qualifying.  These opponents run text book lines and have bikes that are at least 20 mph faster than you.  Nothing frustrates quite like trying to run a perfect lap just to be sideswiped and knocked into the grass. 

One might wonder why MotoGP 9/10 has the 9/10 in the title when most sports games have just a single number representing the year that game was meant to simulate (think Madden 10).  However, Capcom promises us that as the 2010 MotoGP season progresses they will make updates available for free.  That away, you can compare your gaming experience to how the season goes in reality.

As a writer, I strive to present the facts and allow the consumer to make an educated decision about purchasing a game.  This is especially true in this case.  MotoGP 9/10 is an excellent racing sim, the best I have ever played.  If not for a few minor errors, I would say it is perfect.  Expect to skirt the edge of disaster and experience substantial frustration trying to find exactly where that edge is.  

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