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| | Title:
Ford Bold Moves Street Racing
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System:
Xbox
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Genre:
Racing
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Publisher:
Eidos Interactive
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Developer:
Razorworks
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Release:
Fall 2006
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Online:
No
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ESRB:
Everyone (E)
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A plus-side to the track designs is that they are visually, very well designed. The reflection from window panes on distant buildings and the sun glares look very good. The ambient scenery gives each track a visual depth that’s very easy on the eyes. However, the tracks fall into a drawback with NO pedestrians, no traffic, no alternative routes, and nothing to destroy other than newspaper stands. Many of the races turn slightly boring because of the lack of interactivity. At least, though, the cars look nice. Each vehicle is well modeled. The Focus RS and GT90 look especially nice. The refractive details for some of the vehicles are better than others but the ambient light reflections looks great on every vehicle. And on a high-def television the game’s resolution looks absolutely stunning on the Xbox. The PS2 counterpart doesn’t look bad, either. In comparison to other racers, though, it’s not quite as texturally efficient as Forza Motorsport or Gran Turismo 4 but it has a better running framerate than both games. Even with teams of three (up to 9 cars on the screen at once) the game keeps its FPS smooth and well paced.
Speaking of team racing...there are up to two teammates that accompany a player during a race. Players can give teammates commands using the face buttons; players can either have teammates to draft, which works as a turbo boost, or to block opponents from passing them. Drafting can make a race extremely intense, and with the A.I. using the same tactics, the game actually becomes quite a fun experience. Winning championships in the Team mode allows players to unlock challenges, which in turn allow players to win extra cash, which in turn allows players to buy better vehicles.
Challenges are a good addition to the game; there are 32 challenges in total, and a handful of different tasks for each challenge. Depending on the championship players win, and what position they come in, determines what challenge opens up. The harder the championship, the harder the challenge that’s unlocked. Some challenges include time trails or solo racing. Other challenges are a bit unique, such as team duel, elimination or overtake. In team duel, players start off a quarter lap behind their opponents. After every other lap, a teammate and an opponent joins the race until there’s two teams with three members. It’s a bit like a rally, yet original in its own right. Solo or team elimination is exactly what it sounds like: every lap two racers are eliminated until one racer remains. In overtake, players will have to pass up a set amount of opponents (sometimes 15, other times 35) within a limited amount of time. Passing opponents without bumping them will count as a clean pass, and 3 clean passes award players with more time. While there are a lot of challenges, expert racing fans will be able to sweep through them pretty quickly. The toughest challenges are the time trails, and that’s because players will really have to study the track and effectively know how to race with each vehicle on the track.
In regards to the audio aspects of the game...the audio is decent. Each vehicle sounds distinct and the accompanying sound effects convey the appropriate atmosphere for each race. However, if you’re expecting any serious growls from these cars, it’s too bad, because you’re only going to end up with a soft purr. And there’s no in-game music, supposedly the option to have custom soundtracks is available for the Xbox, but it didn’t make sense on how to use them in the game.
Overall, if you have an Xbox you won’t be getting any Live support with this game, and if you have a PS2, expect a mediocre arcade experience. The game does some things quite well, like the graphics for the cars and tracks. Other things are completely absent, like blur effects--which worked wonders for Burnout--or replays. If you already have Forza Motorsport or Gran Turismo 4, there isn’t a real reason to invest in this game unless you want street-based tracks with a good framerate. However, if you’re not a gear head and you like arcade racers at a budget-price, then this game isn’t all too bad. Still, with the mediocre sounds and lacking options to customize your car, this game is worth a rental, at best.
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| The Core Score |
Overall
7.2 |
| Fun |
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7.6 |
| Gameplay |
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6.7 |
| Graphics |
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9 |
| Audio |
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6 |
| Replay |
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6.9 |
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| Kid Safe Score |
| 10 Great |
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Perfectly safe content for the entire family |
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