Motocross fanatics were ultimately left cold.Fortunately, Milestone have got back on their toppled bike and learnt their lesson. But even they managed to stumble spectacularly: MUD: FIM Motocross was a complete stick in the, err, mud, an obvious nod to Codemasters’ DiRT not only in name, but also in its Americanised aggressive attitude. Can anybody else.The passionate biker heads at Milestone seemed like the perfect outfit to develop a truly authentic motocross game a team that is well-versed with niche bike racing games having developed the long-running SBK and MotoGP series. While a fun game in its own right, it wasn’t exactly a realistic depiction of motocross, a gruelling, physically-demanding form of motorsport where riders are lucky to complete a race with all their bones intact.Round fourteen of MXGP this weekend will see Tony Cairoli and Jeffrey Herlings set for a sand battle for the first time at Lommel since 2012. And yet despite the family-friendly facing, Motocross Madness’ cutesy riders were a fearless bunch who had little regard for their own safety – none of them even wore a helmet.Slick live action montages introduce you to the real world locations, adding an air of authenticity to remind you that you’re playing a game based on a licensed motorsport, while the career mode is pure Milestone paint-by-numbers.Once again, you’ll spend the career mode in a now all-too-familiar office environment lobby, starting out as a Wildcard rider looking to attract sponsorship on the road to becoming a champion. Gone is MUD’s stylised presentation, cartoony comic book-esque riders, over-forgiving physics and a licensed, pummelling punk rock soundtrack that could easily pass as an EA Trax B-side album, replaced with a sophisticated sheen that’s pleasingly true to life.In terms of presentation and structure, if you’ve played any of Milestone’s recent racing titles, you’ll know exactly what to expect. However, despite Milestone’s conformity to the license, there are still three locations missing from the real world championship which may disappoint its loyal followers.As with Milestone’s current crop of console titles, MXGP adopts a more authentic approach as you have probably gathered by now. All-in-all, there are 14 tracks in MXGP, which are said to be 1:1 accurate according to Milestone, as a result of their extensive on-site research and collaboration with the real riders to accurately convey the look, feel and ambience of each course. There are no less than 60 official teams and riders from the real life MX1 and MX2 classes, from Italy’s star rider Antonio Cairoli (as a seven-times world champion, he’s effectively the motocross equivalent to Michael Schumacher) and David Philippaerts (another former Italian world champion), to seasoned riders such as Davide Guarneri and Alessandro Lupino.Likewise, all the rules and locations from the 2013 championship calendar are present and correct. Riding HighThe clue is in the not-so-subtle title: brandishing its ‘Official Motocross Videogame’ badge means there’s a lengthy list of licensed content that will mean absolutely nothing to you unless you’re a dedicated motocross follower.It’s all good fan-service, and is indicative of Milestone’s passion for a motorsport that’s woefully underexposed in the UK. It adds a modicum of soul to what is an otherwise lifeless regime at times.As you progress, negotiate new contracts and rank up, you’ll unlock a range of helmets, bikes and photographs of the real life MXGP. Initially, you start out with the slower MX2 class before progressing to the more challenging MX1 speed machines.Meanwhile, social feeds relay comments from your fictional fanbase and rival riders who react to your current standing in the championship – beating them will earn you additional fans – and the ‘MXGP Mag’ keeps you informed of the overall race standings, giving some much-needed context to the whole process in the wake of commentaries or video supplements. While you can opt out of qualifying sessions and just stick to races if you prefer, bear in mind you still have to complete two races in the same location which can become repetitive, especially as some races can last a long time, which may become a drag for some.It’s an ideal learning curve for novice riders, but the lack of risk does rob you of exhilaration.Dial up the difficulty, and prepare yourself for an almighty challenge – not only do you have to manage independent front and rear brakes, but you’ll spend more of your time on the dirt than on your bike. Base handling provides plenty of stability and also has the benefit of joint brakes, so you don’t have to worry about falling off at every corner. Some of the real riders were directly involved with influencing the nuances of the handling in order to achieve authenticity, and it certainly shows. Negiotating the uneven terrain requires a technical approach that contrasts heavily with the high speed thrills of MotoGP (motocross bikes average about 30 – 40mph in real life), but it’s fun and rewarding when you get the balancing act just right.As with MotoGP ’13, there are three different handling models catering for varyingskill levels: Base, Medium and Pro. There’s a very tangible feeling of connection between bike and terrain in MXGP which few bike racing games manage to achieve, and yet Milestone manage to improve in each successive game. In stark contrast to MUD, MXGP implements a dual stick control scheme that should now be standard for bike racing games, allowing you to adjust the angle of the bike and the rider weight independently with delicate dabs of the left and right stick simultaneously.It works wonderfully well in practice – you always feel like your inputs are directly affecting the bike you’ll instinctively lean into corners to gain speed and adjust your momentum to land jumps. MXGP’s handling model is deep and complex, yet intuitive, leaning closer to simulation than arcade in the same vein as MotoGP ‘13.
![]() It’s a similar story in the pre and post-race cut scenes, too, where the rider’s arms bend unnaturally in peculiar places. Honestly, they look as if they don’t have a single bone in their bodies. Take a tumble however, and the ragdoll physics seem comically exaggerated – try not to laugh after witnessing your hapless rider flopping about during a bail. Build citra emulator macThe graphics, for example, are inconsistent. Muddy MakeupUnfortunately, MXGP suffers from the same pitfalls that have plagued Milestone’s recent titles. Crucially, MXGP is fun to play no matter what setting you apply. Timing is crucial, and you’ll inevitably overshoot off the track at first, but it’s oh-so-satisfying to pull off, and makes for some good photo opportunities with the game’s easy-to-use photo mode.There’s certainly enough challenge for enthusiasts to relish, then, but also plenty of stabilisers for novice riders. Point both analogue sticks in the direction you want to Scrub, and your rider will curl the bike in mid-air to minimise the time spent in the air, thus shaving off vital seconds. Excel 365 for mac share excel fileThey may have taken the time to motion capture her (a first for a videogame, apparently – if that even is an achievement to shout about), but they seemingly forgot to texture her, which wouldn’t be a problem if we didn’t have to endure a close-up of her frightening face at the start of every race.Likewise, the engine sounds leave a lot to be desired – the weedy, monotonous murmurs grate after a few laps, other riders on the track are muted and there’s no in-game music to drown them out and pump up the action if you’re that way inclined.Then there’s the AI, which is arguably the game’s biggest flaw. The worst culprit by a mile, however, goes to the ghoulish Monster Energy girl that greets you at the start of every race, a crude character model that has all the detail of a PS1 spectator.
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