Essentially, the game is the same. Since our last review, however, I have upgraded my rig and can actually play GRID on max settings. Last July I tried my best to emphasize how graphically stunning the game was. Now playing at full resolution and having all the options turned to max, the graphics are still jaw dropping a year on. We shall see how FUEL fairs up to the standard that GRID has set.
In terms of gaming advancement, GRID does not really pull anything new out of the magical top hat. Gran Turismo 3 on the PS2 was the first driving game to look truly realistic, something which GRID has done but something it hasn't really improved on. Don't get me wrong, it looks amazing, but it isn't the first time that we've been amazed at how cool a game looks. When GRID was released, the idea and implimentation of PhysX , artificial real time physics calculated by the GPU, was still fiddly at best. You will still see bits flying off cars, but they might not land correctly or just get stuck in the road pointing straight up. These physics glitches are common, but not something to be worried about when you're driving into things at 200mph.
The gameplay hasn't changed in the last year, obviously because there haven't been any patches. It's a very very simple racing game. You get in your car, you drive, get money and buy new cars. There's no tuning, no tweaking, just simple driving. Which, for most of us, is a recipe for 'kick ass'. For most gamers, GRID will be about relaxing, not having to think and just flowing with the road, choosing the right racing line... and trying not to crash.
The online gameplay, however, has changed quite a bit. A year on, the original people that played the game have gone elsewhere. Suprisingly though, you will still find a dozen games to join. The majority of sessions seem to be the Bridgestone Championship, but sometimes you will find a GT1 race or even a couple Japan Drifts. Unfortunately, I can guarantee that you'll be shouting "Fucking crashers!" at your monitor within 30 seconds. A huge majority of players on GRID these days tend to be from a country you've never heard of and speak a language you can't even begin to understand. That's not so much of a problem, because during races you can't type and there is no voice support, however they do tend to crash into you for fun. Everynow and again, you may find a group of good drivers which will give you a good race, and these can generally be found in smaller sessions. This leads us to the conclusion that huge sessions with 10 or more players is a situation you want to avoid like the plague.
Final Thought Byte : The conclusion is fairly simple. Without a single grain of doubt, GRID is still a good game. If you just want to relax and drive around in a car that looks cool, go down to your nearest shop and pick it up for a few quid. The new patch may bring a few improvements, but I really doubt it.
Tags : FUEL, Codemasters, GRID, GT3
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