GTR Evolution review

Ignore the name. GTR Evolution is a standalone expansion pack for Race 07, with new cars, new tracks and SimBin’s first arcade mode. Arcade mode means you no longer have to fart about qualifying, nor waste time buried in a tire wall trying to work out which button reactivates the driver aid you unwittingly deactivated moments before the last bend. Other modes have the usual crazy settings for unhinged people, and multiplayer thrusts you into an online asylum of imbeciles and psychos.

The game engine still has a whiff of the ’90s about it, and the physics engine is from that alternative reality where vehicles handle like go-karts or plow over all manner of obstacle like soapy-bottomed filing cabinets. Race 07 owners who’ve been drooling over SimBin’s newer Lizard engine might wonder if they should spend the money on snacks instead. Then there are the myriad minor irritations, such as being penalised for clipping a corner when heading backwards across it out of control, or are instantly pitted for goofing about in arcade mode.

It’ll probably come as a shock to hear that none of this matters. The nuts and bolts of the game – its ease of use, the noises it makes, how much fun you have – hold the thing together so tightly that you don’t hear the odd rattle and squeak. It’ll annoy you every now and then, but you’ll be unable to resist coming back.

Oct 9, 2008