Great game spoilt by the A.I - a fair review
The story isnt particularly good at all, the cut scenes didnt engage me in the slightest and by the end of the game i couldnt care less what happened. However, if i wanted a game with an amazing story i'd play Red dead redemption (which is superb by the way) its the cars and gameplay that make racing games so in that sense i'll let it off.
The cars handle and sound great, as do the bikes and there is a good sense of speed. Theres been alot of talk of frustrating police, that they appear from nowhere, arrest you and you get teleported to the police h.q which ocassionaly is the case although for me they aren't much of a problem. If you simply slow down when near them you'll be fine, isnt that big a deal if you ask me. The map can be problematic. It looks great but isnt always helpful when showing you exactly where the next checkpoint is and therefore you may find yourself slamming past a checkpoint but then realising its on a different level for example.
The soundtrack is very good. Awesome licensed tracks, from drum & bass to hip hop etc theres a good selection of tunes that compliment the fast paced action of the races.
Finally the last point im gonna make which inevitably is a negative is the a.i of the opposition. You'll get some people saying its impossible and completely ruins the game while others say its not hard its the player who's not good enough. For me im somewhere in the middle, which i believe is fair. Hard races are unforgiving. If you do make a mistake it will almost definately cost you the win. Easy races are alot easier (hence the name), despite what many people may say they are alot more forgiving. If you crash you shouldnt restart as you have a decent chance of catching the opposition up as long as you drive smoothly.
The most annoying aspect of the a.i is the fact that its not insanely hard, its just that its not fair. The rubberband effect is clearly in play in this game. Very rarely will you be able to get a decent amount of space between you and the second placed car, and if you make a mistake round a corner theres a high chance they will come barrelling past you and drive off into the distance which isnt alot of fun after a 5/6 minute race. The other problem is the fact that the a.i seem to drive tanks for the most part. If you hit oncoming traffic at high speed you'll crash out and take a few seconds to get back in control and driving again (you crash you pay the price - thats fair enough) however, the a.i will plow through traffic without slowing down in the slightest and that will often leave the npc car right in your path.
Ive played this game with and without the updates that supposedly fix these a.i issues to some extent, however for me there is no real difference.
There alot of pro points to this game, great looking, awesome customization, online is decent (rate my ride is really good - some of the vinyl jobs on display take real talent) and the game can be alot of fun. However it is impossible to overlook the blatant unfair a.i and for me this stops the game from being a truly great racer which it had all the basics to be.