18 June,2017 11:03 AM IST | Mumbai | Jaison Lewis
MXGP3 is the official game for Motocross and it is a celebration of the sport unlike any other, but is it for you?
Motorcross is not a popular sport in India. Of course, we do have a few fans who appreciate the game, but it is no F1 in terms of popularity. That said, MXGP3 is a simulator. It's not perfect, but it can make you a fan of the sport.
When we started out, the game seemed tedious and tough, it was very hard to get ahead of competition and the AI doesn't let up. Land in an odd angle and you are sure to be run over. The competition doesn't even let you go ahead, sometimes blocking your otherwise open path. We soldiered on and slowly started appreciating these tiny inconveniences and a small expedition on Google helped us learn about the sport, which in turn made the game more fun.
The career mode really hit home helping us really get into the Motocross, though the character building options are limited and menu selection outdated. The progress of your character as a rider, and the skill upgrades made even the rounds we were losing worth it. It takes a lot of perseverance to get better at MXGP3. Despite the drab menu selection section, the gameplay is pretty solid. The handling of the bike in MXGP3 is near flawless, every little flick of the controller gets a response from your rider. The AI is a pain in the a'' and you will learn to love them for it. The tracks are very detailed and learning about the corners will help you get an edge. The bikes can also be configured to suit your riding style but you need to discover that over time and tweak your bike accordingly. The music feels good initially, but over time, it seemed repetitive, so we muted it.
Though as mentioned, this game is not perfect, one sore spot is the graphics. We ran the game on a PS4 Pro and the entire game seemed to have a layer of slime on it. It did not look realistic and the dirt did not react to the bike in a realistic way. Milestone needs to understand they are competing with other racing titles and looking like PS3's Motostorm will not help your cause. This slime is amplified when the conditions are wet and don't get us started on the rain.
The game seems to be sponsored heavily by Monster Energy and the logos are everywhere, but this sponsorship we feel is more evident during the rain. The raindrops, for some strange reason, are green and look a lot like the Monster logo. We don't know if it is intentional but the developers need to sort out this issue. Riding in wet conditions is bad enough but these unusual raindrops just make it unnecessarily tedious.
The tutorial mode is also really silly, it's just a bunch of images and buttons you need to press to achieve the desired result. You can't even look it up while in the practice mode known as Compound.
The game is a great way to discover Motocross, we just wish it was more refined in its look. It is a definite must buy for Motocross fans and if you are looking to get in to the sport. If you are looking for some arcade fun, you need to find that elsewhere.
