Moto Racer 2: Bigger and better than its predecessor, Moto Racer 2 offers more tracks, more bikes, and a custom track-editing feature that seriously enhances the game's replay value.
Bigger and better than its predecessor, Moto
Racer 2 from Electronic Arts and Delphine offers more tracks, more bikes, and a
custom track-editing feature that seriously enhances the game's replay value.
This is still not a true motorcycle simulation, but as arcade racers go, Moto
Racer 2 is one of the best.
Like the original game, Moto Racer 2 allows you
to race superbikes or motocross dirt bikes on a variety of tracks. There are
eight different bikes in each category, each with its own ratings for brakes,
grip, top speed, and acceleration. As in the previous version, the quality of
your brakes is meaningless, because you rarely use the things. Top speed and
acceleration are usually the most important items to consider, though a good
grip rating becomes vital in bad weather conditions.
One of the game's strengths is the sheer number
of tracks available to you right at the outset - a whopping 32. True, eight of
these tracks are repetitive simple loops that are intended as templates for the
track editor (more on that in a second), but the other 24 tracks still represent
a refreshing change from the usual "win on every track and we'll unlock
one more" formula. The tracks are split evenly between superbike and
motocross courses, and the environments include city streets, a rain forest,
the desert, and the countryside of Brittany.
Gameplay is pretty much like the original Moto
Racer. The game is not a motorcycle simulation, but it does feel sufficiently
different from most car-racing games. Also, Moto Racer 2 does a great job of
conveying the sheer speed of each race: When you top 150mph in Moto Racer 2,
you really feel like you're going that fast. The difficulty levels are well
stepped so that you can win pretty easily on the lowest setting but will be
hard-pressed to place in the top three on the highest.
After playing Motocross Madness, some gamers may
be disappointed by the limited - and relatively tame - tricks available in Moto
Racer 2's motocross mode. Some other gameplay elements are disappointing as
well, such as the fact that your speed drops almost to zero when you brush
another bike - even though that bike continues to fly along at its previous
pace. Also, the hard-to-spot curbs along the side of most tracks have the same
deadening effect on your bike and will virtually eliminate you from contention
after a single bump on the highest difficulty setting. Rarely will you ever
crash in this game, unless you hit an obstacle during a wheelie (and then you
might as well give up, as the game waits for an excruciatingly long time before
setting you back on your bike). In fact, if you hit a jump poorly during a
motocross race and start flying off the track, an invisible barrier will snap
you right back in bounds, and you won't even lose control of your bike.
Obviously, the game was intended for fast-paced
arcade action, and on that level it performs admirably. So long as you're not
looking for a pure motorcycle sim with realistic physics and tons of motocross
tricks to land, you simply can't go wrong with Moto Racer 2. With two racing
modes, thrilling gameplay, a ton of tracks, and a track editor, Moto Racer 2
offers a whole lot of action for any arcade racing fan.
Processor= 500MHz
RAM= 128MB
Graphics= 32MB
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