Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition
Alrighty, my first attempt at a review...
I'd like to note before I start that I've yet to play any other Midnight Club games on any other console, so my review is purely analytical, not comparative. This game may or may not be worse, as good, or better than its counterparts - I wouldn't know.
Technical Review
Graphics - 10: Stunning visuals. It was my first PSP game, and it gave me a misleading first impression. :-X The dynamic lighting is done perfectly over models with wonderfully-high poly counts. The cars look real, and so does the area. I've yet to notice a flaw.
Audio- 7: Pretty much as one would expect. The songs are okay - nothing great, nothing awful. It'd be cool if you could use custom mp3's, though. :0
Control - 9: I liked the control quite a bit. Although you have to steer with the analog stick, I had no problem with it, and you can customize all the button functions, so you can't complain there.
Overall Technical Score - 9: If you're the kind of guy who's into the game's presentation, you're gonna like this.
Gameplay Review
Style - 7.5: The game's got a pretty cool feel to it. However, racing games like this aren't the most original things in town, so that docked a few points.
Story - 5: Racing games aren't really made to tell stories, though they did throw movie clips and characters in to spice it up a bit. However, the driver you control is not an actual story character - all the movie clips are in first person, and you're never given a name. I didn't like that.
Difficulty - 8.5: Almost all the time, it's challenging, but not frustrating. On occasion, some races are too easy, and some are too hard (those are the 'frustrating' moments), but it all balances out pretty nicely.
Variety - 8: [Compared to a racing game] This game mixes it up well. Cars are very customizable, right down to the color of your exhaust pipe. There are three different cities, each with quite a few racing paths (with shortcuts, of course - though you're supposed to follow a path, the whole city's open to drive through at all times). I docked a little because I'm used to racing games with a lot of powerups, and this one's only got 3, where each kind of car can only use 1.
Flow - 3: Don't get me wrong - the gamplay is quite smooth and enjoyable. It's the loading time. Oh, the loading time! You wait at least 30 seconds (never counted) to load the game, then another 30 or more to load the city, then another 30 or more when you enter a race. It'll usually take you about 2 minutes just to start racing, which is a total drag (no pun intended). Plus, when you're in the garage, it lags up and loads whenever you want to look at a different car, and it's quite annoying.
Overall Gameplay Score - 7: The loading time is what kills the gameplay, after it has had its share of raping it and cutting its limbs off. >_>
Final Score: 8.
If racing games or loading times piss you off, don't get it. Otherwise, you may want to consider buying this, or at least renting it. It's quite fun. :]
