Racing simulation fans have adhered to the Forza Motorsport franchise for a little less than four years now, and rightly so. Combining a well chosen armoury of cars with extensive tuning and precise paint customization has helped Turn 10's flagship game mould into the definitive racing title, even overtaking Arcade titles such as Bizarre Creations Project Gotham series and Codemasters smash hit: GRID. Having produced successful racing titles for the PC, Swedish developers SimBin decided to take a leap from their familiar territory and have a go themselves at the Xbox 360 with their simulator title, Race Pro.
Given the awesome physics on hand in Race Pro, you'd expect an abundant of tracks and vehicles to go with them. SimBin initially state that 350 car models are available to tire-roar around the 13 tracks with - but there are only 48 actual vehicles. While this is a shame as I expected a lot more, DLC has reportedly been confirmed for release on a monthly basis which would make up for the paltry selection given from the get-go.
As is the base for all racing titles, career mode pits you as an upcoming rookie. A simple system is in place, with race finishes equalling points, equalling higher leagues, equalling faster cars. This may seem tedious for some, but if you purchased Race Pro for a quick blast around a track to show off your power sliding skills, then you've purchased the wrong title. The emphasis here is with driving skill, knowledge, and a solid case for actually wanting to play the game.
After being given your very first contract, it's your choice on whether you choose to take the amateur, semi-pro or pro path. Racing at amateur gives you full freedom of tweaking assists, bright green and yellow chevrons to guide you round the track and ridiculously lenient AI who seem to mistake the accelerator for the brake pedal on numerous occasions. Pro on the other hand removes all kind of assistance and throws extremely precise, seasoned drivers on the grid who offer scintillating challenges. This is what needs to be done though, as driving professionally brings out the real Race Pro and the real skills that you (might) possess. At times it may be boring even to the most die-hard racer, but it's expected from such scarily amounts of realism.
Qualifying isn't compulsory, and races range from 3 laps over 2 tracks near the beginning, and finish up on 5+ laps over 6/7 tracks. Earning points to unlock new contracts gets tiresome, but there are some exciting cars to be driven along the way. Spreading from Mini's to Koenigsegg CCGT's and Formula BMW's, there is reward to be found through extensive lapping. The later-acquired cars are especially wonderful as mastering them alone is something to behold.
Vehicles are modelled well and they each have extremely unique feels. Taking a corner in a BMW touring car is hugely different to taking the same corner in a Formula class rocket car. Customization is extensive - aerodynamics, brake pressure, suspension - they're all there. The essence here really is with dedication and learning the tracks and vehicles on hand. If you don't, even with the amateur headband on - odds are you'll mess up the beautifully crafted tire walls more than once.
The interior cockpit view is a pleasant place to race from and the tracks themselves are fresh. However, each tracks backdrop has a terrible habit of being so empty that you might just spot tumbleweed if you play in HD, or even a lone Werewolf. Speeding down a 78 mile back-straight at 150 MPH is the certainly fun, but with Race Pro there's just nothing to look at. No family member to spot in the fields opposite. No camera man in the stands.
One downside to Race Pro is that this is the first racing game without a racing soundtrack. The menu music is tedious and although all the sounds are there in the usual places such as engines and tire roar, I couldn't help but miss the upbeat tunes which regularly appear in racing games. Be sure to have a stereo on hand, or music on your Xbox 360, as Race Pro isn't a game you want to be playing with no good tunes. Your co-driver/manager is unbelievably dull, and the only time he ever bothers with you is after a long, hard race, upon which you're greeted with "You won!" in a Microsoft SAM-esque voice.
Similar to the single-player career, online qualifying rounds determine positioning on the grid and then you race. Whether people decide to want to qualify is another thing, as I often found myself qualifying with just one other player because everyone else quit. Unlike the single player campaign, qualifying is necessary and frankly isn't needed - just let us race. Xbox Live is abundant with idiots, so if you ever do manage to get through a 12-man qualifier, you'll more than likely be spun off the track more than once. Put this with the chilling realism Race Pro runs on and unless you've got crazy skills, you'll have to find new friends at the back of the grid.
Bottom Line:
Sadly, Race Pro just isn't polished enough to take a place in the league with Forza, GRID, or PGR. Despite having a rather decent yet limited selection of cars and solid gameplay mechanics, no music what-so-ever, a small number of tracks and an extremely repetitive career mode will scare away the non-petrolheads. However, notorious die-hard simulation fans will erase the already non-existent backgrounds and the dreary guy-in-your-ear, and fully appreciate the great physics and wealth of tuning options.
Recommendation:
If you have to, do so. Race Pro is not a game for the faint hearted, and in this case - beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
Given the awesome physics on hand in Race Pro, you'd expect an abundant of tracks and vehicles to go with them. SimBin initially state that 350 car models are available to tire-roar around the 13 tracks with - but there are only 48 actual vehicles. While this is a shame as I expected a lot more, DLC has reportedly been confirmed for release on a monthly basis which would make up for the paltry selection given from the get-go.
As is the base for all racing titles, career mode pits you as an upcoming rookie. A simple system is in place, with race finishes equalling points, equalling higher leagues, equalling faster cars. This may seem tedious for some, but if you purchased Race Pro for a quick blast around a track to show off your power sliding skills, then you've purchased the wrong title. The emphasis here is with driving skill, knowledge, and a solid case for actually wanting to play the game.
After being given your very first contract, it's your choice on whether you choose to take the amateur, semi-pro or pro path. Racing at amateur gives you full freedom of tweaking assists, bright green and yellow chevrons to guide you round the track and ridiculously lenient AI who seem to mistake the accelerator for the brake pedal on numerous occasions. Pro on the other hand removes all kind of assistance and throws extremely precise, seasoned drivers on the grid who offer scintillating challenges. This is what needs to be done though, as driving professionally brings out the real Race Pro and the real skills that you (might) possess. At times it may be boring even to the most die-hard racer, but it's expected from such scarily amounts of realism.
Qualifying isn't compulsory, and races range from 3 laps over 2 tracks near the beginning, and finish up on 5+ laps over 6/7 tracks. Earning points to unlock new contracts gets tiresome, but there are some exciting cars to be driven along the way. Spreading from Mini's to Koenigsegg CCGT's and Formula BMW's, there is reward to be found through extensive lapping. The later-acquired cars are especially wonderful as mastering them alone is something to behold.
Vehicles are modelled well and they each have extremely unique feels. Taking a corner in a BMW touring car is hugely different to taking the same corner in a Formula class rocket car. Customization is extensive - aerodynamics, brake pressure, suspension - they're all there. The essence here really is with dedication and learning the tracks and vehicles on hand. If you don't, even with the amateur headband on - odds are you'll mess up the beautifully crafted tire walls more than once.
The interior cockpit view is a pleasant place to race from and the tracks themselves are fresh. However, each tracks backdrop has a terrible habit of being so empty that you might just spot tumbleweed if you play in HD, or even a lone Werewolf. Speeding down a 78 mile back-straight at 150 MPH is the certainly fun, but with Race Pro there's just nothing to look at. No family member to spot in the fields opposite. No camera man in the stands.
One downside to Race Pro is that this is the first racing game without a racing soundtrack. The menu music is tedious and although all the sounds are there in the usual places such as engines and tire roar, I couldn't help but miss the upbeat tunes which regularly appear in racing games. Be sure to have a stereo on hand, or music on your Xbox 360, as Race Pro isn't a game you want to be playing with no good tunes. Your co-driver/manager is unbelievably dull, and the only time he ever bothers with you is after a long, hard race, upon which you're greeted with "You won!" in a Microsoft SAM-esque voice.
Similar to the single-player career, online qualifying rounds determine positioning on the grid and then you race. Whether people decide to want to qualify is another thing, as I often found myself qualifying with just one other player because everyone else quit. Unlike the single player campaign, qualifying is necessary and frankly isn't needed - just let us race. Xbox Live is abundant with idiots, so if you ever do manage to get through a 12-man qualifier, you'll more than likely be spun off the track more than once. Put this with the chilling realism Race Pro runs on and unless you've got crazy skills, you'll have to find new friends at the back of the grid.
Bottom Line:
Sadly, Race Pro just isn't polished enough to take a place in the league with Forza, GRID, or PGR. Despite having a rather decent yet limited selection of cars and solid gameplay mechanics, no music what-so-ever, a small number of tracks and an extremely repetitive career mode will scare away the non-petrolheads. However, notorious die-hard simulation fans will erase the already non-existent backgrounds and the dreary guy-in-your-ear, and fully appreciate the great physics and wealth of tuning options.
Recommendation:
If you have to, do so. Race Pro is not a game for the faint hearted, and in this case - beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.