Pure Feces
Being a fan of arcade off-road games (especially with lots of air and the ability to boost); this game seemed like a no brainer. Unfortunately, as much as I lament to say it, I hate the game.
Pros--Good presentation, lots of customization for the ATVs.
--Freestyle events are fun when the lethargic controls and cam are not messing it up.
--I like the boost system.
THANK GOD that the load times are short if you need to restrart a race(which, if you want to place (especially first), you will HAVE TO if you make a mistake in all of the events other than the first couple of cups).
Cons--Extreme difficulty spike (as in one mistake and you may as well start over). As in most racing games, the A.I. racers perform flawlessly 99% of the time; thus, you have to race tracks over and over again hoping that the other racers make enough mistakes to where you can place in the top 3.
--veeery sluggish handling...feels like I'm driving through thick mud; further more, there is no way to make tight turns....it is waaay too easy to go flying off the track.
--annoying, slow camera which can dictate the movement of your ATV. Since the camera lags behind your movement, it is often impossible to tell how high up in the air you are after a jump. A great deal of times what appears to be a high, trick compelling jump, ends up not; thus, you end up eating dirt after attempting a trick or two.
--some of the music is generic and annoying and you can't switch songs(I know that's subjective...I prefer the hard rock/metal soundtracks of MX vs. ATV and Nail'd)
--generic, annoying characters (I'd much rather be able to customize my own driver).
--While it is not a bad looking game, it has blurry graphics (kinda has that N64 blur effect going on).
--your rider will fall off the ATV randomly (especially if you are in the lead)..
--tracks lack character and are poorly designed.
--takes to long for the computer to reset you if you fall or get stuck on/in the environment....which leads to another major negative. Your ATV will get stuck on small rocks and tires (and then the game resets you). This is an offroad game for ****'s sake. A little rock should not make an offroad vehicle come to a dead stop!
--Many of the parts unlocked from winning are either the exact same or worse than what is already available. What's the point?
--"Improving" the ATV's numerical stats honestly does not seem to make a difference in the respective areas (speed, handling, etc). I have made it to the last stages and my "Class A" ATVs (whether specced for races, freestyle, or sprint events) are no better than the initial Class D vehicles.
--In a nutshell, ****ing FRUSTRATING. If you have hypertension, this game will probably induce a stroke.
--Because of the unpredictable physics and camera, the game makes it very hard to actually improve. The best bet for winning is to completely memorize the tracks.
--Not worth the $5 I paid for it.
I really want to like this game (I liked the demo); however, the more I play it, the more I hate it. There are too many small things that make Pure extremely frustrating. I WISH there was a handbrake (for better turning) and a way to turn off the cinematic cam. I'm sure that part of my problem is that I'm just not good at the game; however, I have played enough games like this to at least stand behind my opinions confidently. It's a shame, because there are not enough games like this these days (fast arcade racers filled with boost and crazy air). I will just stick with Nail'd and Sega All-Stars Racing for now. Ah well....
Fin.