Scott "E"
Second Unit
- Joined
- May 3, 2002
- Messages
- 309
As promised here are my impressions of Sega GT after 4 hours of solid playtime.
Control
I figure this is the most important aspect of any racing game, so I'll start here. The word overhaul will come to mind if you played the original Sega GT. Not that the control in the first was horrible, it's just that it took a good amount of time to get used to it and this led to a lot of disappointed gamers. Well, gamers rejoice, WOW Entertainment has made one of, if not the best handling racer yet. Every car handles as you would expect it to, a NSX will be very responsive and precise and a 1970 Vette is very good at doing 360's
The control is on par with Gran Turismo and Rally Sport Challenge, and IMO is the best of the 3.
AI
This is one part of the game I didn't really know what to expect going in. Well, this is the part that I feel makes this game really shine. If you've ever played any of the Gran Turismo games, then you will be shocked to see that the cars in Sega GT actually respond when there are other cars near them. It's great to see an AI car come speeding up behind you and actually trick you into thinking their going one way only to be fooled when they go the other. They will also try to avoid hitting you if you obviously have the advantage going into a turn. You'll also notice them actually racing each other, very cool.
Graphics
There are both high points and low points to be found here. I'll start with the low points. If you drive off the road and into the dirt or grass, you get absolutely no visual sign that you have, what's up with that? The only other complaint would be that the effect they use to try to give you a better sense of speed.. When I first saw it I thought there was something wrong with my disk, only to find out that there wasn't. I haven't gone back to the options yet to see if there is an option to turn this off. Still the racing game with the best sense of speed is Moto GP, that blur effect is incredible.
Now the high points. The interface is a huge improvement over the original, with a simple but clean look that allows for easy menu navigation. The overall look of the game is very impressive, although I still give the edge to Rally Sport as the prettiest overall racer on the Xbox. The car models are by far the best you will see on any platform, there has got to be a ton of polys on each model. The environments all look good, they could of used a little more attention here, although some courses don't need any attention at all, there gorgeous. It's not enough to affect the overall look, besides who has time to look at the surroundings when you're trying to keep that NSX off your butt There is also 480p and 16x9 support.
Audio
Oh the power of Dolby Digital. Once again we get treated to a game with great use of directional sound. You really come to appreciate this when you've got a Skyline coming up on your left side and have a Vette on the right, you can actually tell the difference between the rumble of the Vette's V8 and the whistle of the Skylines turbo, priceless. A feature that should be standard for any racer on the Xbox is supported here, the use of user created soundtracks. The overall sound in the game is top notch and IMO is the new king of the best audio in an Xbox racer, the previous king being Moto GP.
Gameplay
This is the most impressive part of the game and what IMO makes it a AAA title. I'll say this, if you want to compare Sega GT to GT3, Sega GT IMO is more of a sim than GT3 is. You'll actually develop a sense of ownership of the car. The harder you race your car the quicker certain parts (engine, breaks, etc.) are going to wear out, but don't worry, you won't be overhauling parts every 2 races and the prices are reasonable. Damage, although not visible will effect the way your car handles during a race, you'll find yourself driving more defensively to avoid losing to much money in repair bills. I also love the garage, you can take 6 pictures during the replay of your last race, you can then pick 1 of the 6 pictures to hang in your garage. All the trophies and awards you win are also displayed in the garage, heck you can even buy plants and things to decorate it. If there is one part that needs work it is in the number of tracks, I've counted 8 so far, 9 if you include the drag race. The tracks themselves though are great, plenty of places to pass, great transitions and very good flow.
Conclusion
When all is said and done, Sega GT IMO has lived up to the hype and actually surprised me in some areas. From the outstanding audio and almost human AI, to the precise control and the sense of owning the car, Sega GT is a game that deserves to be in your Xbox game library.
Control
I figure this is the most important aspect of any racing game, so I'll start here. The word overhaul will come to mind if you played the original Sega GT. Not that the control in the first was horrible, it's just that it took a good amount of time to get used to it and this led to a lot of disappointed gamers. Well, gamers rejoice, WOW Entertainment has made one of, if not the best handling racer yet. Every car handles as you would expect it to, a NSX will be very responsive and precise and a 1970 Vette is very good at doing 360's
The control is on par with Gran Turismo and Rally Sport Challenge, and IMO is the best of the 3. AI
This is one part of the game I didn't really know what to expect going in. Well, this is the part that I feel makes this game really shine. If you've ever played any of the Gran Turismo games, then you will be shocked to see that the cars in Sega GT actually respond when there are other cars near them. It's great to see an AI car come speeding up behind you and actually trick you into thinking their going one way only to be fooled when they go the other. They will also try to avoid hitting you if you obviously have the advantage going into a turn. You'll also notice them actually racing each other, very cool.
Graphics
There are both high points and low points to be found here. I'll start with the low points. If you drive off the road and into the dirt or grass, you get absolutely no visual sign that you have, what's up with that? The only other complaint would be that the effect they use to try to give you a better sense of speed.. When I first saw it I thought there was something wrong with my disk, only to find out that there wasn't. I haven't gone back to the options yet to see if there is an option to turn this off. Still the racing game with the best sense of speed is Moto GP, that blur effect is incredible.
Now the high points. The interface is a huge improvement over the original, with a simple but clean look that allows for easy menu navigation. The overall look of the game is very impressive, although I still give the edge to Rally Sport as the prettiest overall racer on the Xbox. The car models are by far the best you will see on any platform, there has got to be a ton of polys on each model. The environments all look good, they could of used a little more attention here, although some courses don't need any attention at all, there gorgeous. It's not enough to affect the overall look, besides who has time to look at the surroundings when you're trying to keep that NSX off your butt
There is also 480p and 16x9 support.Audio
Oh the power of Dolby Digital. Once again we get treated to a game with great use of directional sound. You really come to appreciate this when you've got a Skyline coming up on your left side and have a Vette on the right, you can actually tell the difference between the rumble of the Vette's V8 and the whistle of the Skylines turbo, priceless. A feature that should be standard for any racer on the Xbox is supported here, the use of user created soundtracks. The overall sound in the game is top notch and IMO is the new king of the best audio in an Xbox racer, the previous king being Moto GP.
Gameplay
This is the most impressive part of the game and what IMO makes it a AAA title. I'll say this, if you want to compare Sega GT to GT3, Sega GT IMO is more of a sim than GT3 is. You'll actually develop a sense of ownership of the car. The harder you race your car the quicker certain parts (engine, breaks, etc.) are going to wear out, but don't worry, you won't be overhauling parts every 2 races and the prices are reasonable. Damage, although not visible will effect the way your car handles during a race, you'll find yourself driving more defensively to avoid losing to much money in repair bills. I also love the garage, you can take 6 pictures during the replay of your last race, you can then pick 1 of the 6 pictures to hang in your garage. All the trophies and awards you win are also displayed in the garage, heck you can even buy plants and things to decorate it. If there is one part that needs work it is in the number of tracks, I've counted 8 so far, 9 if you include the drag race. The tracks themselves though are great, plenty of places to pass, great transitions and very good flow.
Conclusion
When all is said and done, Sega GT IMO has lived up to the hype and actually surprised me in some areas. From the outstanding audio and almost human AI, to the precise control and the sense of owning the car, Sega GT is a game that deserves to be in your Xbox game library.
