Gaming Target - Xbox: MotoGP 2

Written by Adam Woolcott on May 26, 2003

Full Review: Xbox Live has arrived.

The original Moto GP was surely one of the most underrated Xbox games of last year Ц those who looked past the ho-hum demo that circulated and played the actual game found an outstanding motorcycle simulation that was a few problems shy of true greatness. However, the game received a rare second life after fading into obscurity, thanks to Microsoft letting Climax and THQ create an Xbox Live demo of Moto GP, letting every new Live owner experience a wonderful racing game, and giving those who owned the original GP a treat of using their own customized bike online. The success of this Live demo shows even today Ц with new Live kits in stores that have some different games to try, Moto GP still gets packed in.

This brings us to Moto GP 2. Surely, on the surface this sequel seems more like a tweaked version of the original Ц and it really is; a blend of both the offline and online play wrapped into one solid game, with advancements that Moto GP fans craved and begged for. Even so, Moto GP succeeds despite this mindset, as all Climax has done is tweaked the game into something amazingly special, online and offline. Simply, Moto GP 2 has essentially taken the unclaimed throne as the Gran Turismo of motorcycle games Ц and won't be giving that throne up anytime, I suspect.

Where the greatness of Moto GP 2 shows up first is when you first boot the game. When you start up, the game requires you to log in Ц and not just with any profile; instead, it would prefer your Xbox Live Gamertag. This leads to the absolute best integration of Live so far; one that not only affects you when you play online, but offline as well. While playing through the single player modes such as Career or Stunt Mode, the scores you register offline will tally up online, putting you on the worldwide leaderboard with thousands of other MGP 2 players. Needless to say, even if you never intend on playing this game online, letting your scores tally on the СNet will keep the blood pumping, trying to top your old times to move up a very, very competitive community. Of course, if you don't have Live, it doesn't matter, but you'll still log in with an offline profile that lets you track all the good stuff; just not over XBL.

The biggest change to the overall game is the addition of 6 new tracks, for a full MGP circuit of 16, and 1 bonus track, the Sheridan training course. Playing through the championship mode is the best way to see the tracks, as you unlock them as you progress, making it a necessary evil. When you do kick into the Career, you can customize your rider in many ways, from the color and style of the bike (there's new 4 stroke bikes along with the old 2 stroke bikes Ц both handle and perform differently than the other), to the font style and logos on the bike itself. This is great for creating your own racing team online, to stand out with the tons of unique designs.

The Training aspect of Career is changed around a lot as well, with a smaller generic training mode, and mixing in course specific tasks when on the circuits. Some consist of navigating rough corners and tricky chicanes, and others are just general follow the leader races, where you have to stay within 5 seconds of the guy you're racing (Moto GP fans should know how this goes). These challenges are hit or miss though, really the poorest part of the game, as the placement of the barriers that were put in to show the correct racing line are a bit shaky and not laid out that well, leading to some frustration Ц instead of showing the racing line and driving you insane with barriers, why not just let the player find that line to actually beat the clock their own way? What makes it tough is these are necessary to acquire skill points that tweak your bike from a jalopy to a super-machine.

Also, there's the requisite time trial and single race modes offline, along with system link and Live play for multiplayer action. Like its predecessor, Moto GP 2's online play is bliss, with 16 players maximum lag-free, and even with a setting to put those annoying backwards riders to pasture. The best non-Career aspect of the game modes is definitely Stunt Mode, which can be played online and offline, letting you worry less about finishing first and instead putting on a show of your best tricky skills, such as performing Endo's, Wheelies, burnouts, and the mighty powerslide. Even when playing offline, with a logged in Live ID the stats are tracked, so you can show off your best score in Stunt races Ц or be embarrassed when you see you're ranked closer to the bottom than the top.

Really though, the star of the show is the races themselves, and the tight, rewarding simulation gameplay that is the norm for Moto GP 2. This is where the Gran Turismo aspect kicks in, as like the Turismo series, this game is all about skill and bike management instead of psychotic arcade style hijinx. Simply put, it forces you to learn how to brake and take turns and how to come out of them at optimal speed, for those best times online. If you don't, you WILL bail out and get a serious case of rug burn, only it will be nice hot pavement instead Ц which I'm sure feels incredibly amazing. This of course was the norm in the original MGP, and only is improved with this excellent sequel. It's also madly addictive, as it's nothing to play through a season in a couple of days and want to get right back into it (or, of course, play online all day and night, yakking with the MGP community racers) Ц and since there's a ton of tracks, by the time you end one season and begin another, the tracks are fresh again and new challenges await. Thanks to the return of the tight, responsive control, not only does this game look good, it controls like an absolute dream.

Several new tricks were up Climax's sleeve when it comes to the races Ц some benefits offline, others online, sometimes both. For instance, there's a new trick that weeds out shortcutting bastards Ц if you leave the track at any time, it tacks on penalty seconds. So if you get a lap time of, say, 1:45, but were off the track for 10 seconds or so, playing in the grass, your time will actually be 1:55. As such, emphasis on staying on the track is required if you plan on breaking any world records. This works both online and offline, since the records are tracked whether or not you're in an online game. So stay off the grass, punk!

One of the biggest pet peeves of the previous game was the lifeless, robotic AI for single player races. This made the game rather easy, as the game was more artificial than intelligent, leading to less shelf life even if you loved the game. Thankfully, this has been tweaked, and MGP 2 is much more rewarding to play offline. In fact, the game forces you to play on all the difficulty levels if you want to get a fully maxed out rider Ц the awarded skill points can only be fully completed on the Legend difficulty Ц which is no small feat, as the AI is incredibly challenging and smart, and, whaddya know, actually realizes you're on the track, and will fight to keep you away from their position. And if you're hooked on Live stat tracking (as anyone would to become the best damn MGP player of all times, or at least for the 3 o'clock hour), this will become madly important to be superbikerdude, world's #1 bikerdude. Or something.

When you add all the intangibles up Ц deep, rewarding single player modes, rich, addictive online play, and equal access to leaderboards, Moto GP 2 easily assumes the throne of the best motorcycle sim Ц not be default, but because the game is that damn good. Climax caught lightning in a bottle with this series, and after delivering an enjoyable game last year, has ushered in a true classic racer in the same category as a Gran Turismo, a Project Gotham Racing, or a Need for Speed. Truly, Moto GP 2 is not only a must-own killer app for Xbox Live, but also a definitive killer app for the Xbox Ц and given that it's exclusive to the Xbox (and PC, but who's counting), it's a system seller caliber video game that will do nothing but move more Live kits into broadband compatible homes.

When looking at Moto GP 2 graphically, it doesn't look that much better than the previous version. However, the tweaks to the engine are subtle, but after extended play, it stands out more and more, creating a beautiful game. The bikes themselves are largely unchanged in terms of design Ц what's new is the different animations for when you fall off that bike, depending on what happens, be it you just flipped off or got knocked on your bum after colliding with an opposing racer. What's different though is the environments, thanks to the new tricks the game plays on you. For instance, not only do the reflections of the ground look great when it rains, as well as the kicking up of water when in a pile with other racers, blinding your screen (not to mention the hydroplaning that results from going so fast on a wet track), but the bikes handle totally different on this wet surface, and results in more care when navigating turns. Thankfully, there isn't any snow around; that would be a real interesting trick.

Like the last game, Moto GP 2 is loaded with crazy graphical filters for making the game weirder than ever. Old favorites like the toon shading filter, which turns the game into Jet Set Radio, and the wacky wireframe return, along with brand new tricks like a blurred screen that makes races almost impossible, and a kaleidoscope filter that looks even stranger. These are unlocked as you progress through the Career mode, and can be played with while you check replays of your last race. It's a nice, quirky touch, along with the numerous other quirks Climax stuck in (such as wacky minigames that can only be found by doing a certain thing at a certain time that's certainly showed off if you look in the right place, that's for certain).

If there's one thing that probably hasn't been tweaked, it's the sound. It's largely unchanged Ц but given last year's game, it really doesn't have to be. As with the previous MGP game, #2 supports the mighty custom soundtrack, so the music is only as good as you want it to be when racing. As always, any tracks that are about riding a bike or racing come highly recommended, and anyone caught with wack tracks by Britney Spears or Nelly will have their Live account revoked and you'll be laughed at all day by other MGP'ers.

The other sounds are largely unchanged besides the new screaming fan track that plays when you near a grandstand Ц the same generic engine noises and skidding effects return Ц even the music that plays in the menu screens is just a remix of the original. It doesn't really even matter though, as you'll be so engrossed in the actual game that it won't even be thought of once you finish that first race and become addicted to the spectacular gameplay. Of course, this is forgetting the most hilarious portion of the original game being mixed in for MGP 2 as well Ц this being the brrrrrrrrrring diiiiiiiiiiiiing diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing mode. Yes, instead of the engine noises, you get legally insane people making all sorts of faux motorbike sounds, which is a bit cheesy, but with the right person will crack you up laughing in the ridiculousness of it.