Remote Control racing games aren’t always the popular choice yet is done correctly they can be fantastic fun for all ages. Motorstorm RC takes it four previous entries, shrinks them down to tiny racers akin to something like Super Skidmarks and throws you one of the most insanely addictive games to grace the PSN in a while.
Visually the tracks are distinctive enough to define each of the previous games and the game is well priced too for its content. The single player experience is all about getting the fastest time in a challenge be it over a 3 lap race, a one lap time trial, an overtaking trial or by racking up drift points. Each challenge is awarded trophies depending on your time and everything is compared to your friends online or anyone else’s times that can be downloaded. How the game hooks you in is by overlaying other peoples time with a coloured arrow showing their route and pace. Suddenly half an hours gone by as you struggle to work out how your mate managed to shave a few hundredths off their time. There’s also the pitboard which constantly tells you which friend has just beat your time and who you’ve just trumped. Competition against each other indirectly is really what spurs the game on.
There is just a couple of flies in the ointment and the most apparent is the games very unique handling. It takes a very long time to get to used to the cars available in Motorstorm RC. Some are simply too fast for their own good but most are too heavy on the rear and so when you break you’ll loop the back of the car round. It’s annoying, it’s infuriating, it’s shout at the screen and rage quit in a can. While everyone has the same problems, what can sometimes be a shame is that the tracks appear to be heavily mottled and so sometimes it feels like it’s ganging up on you when you’ve driven what seems the perfect lap and it’s a second slower because you’ve landed on uneven ground slightly awkwardly and you are heavily penalised for it. It takes a lot of time and patience to get the most out of each track.
With the recent update however I must add there has become a very frustrating save bug which fades your screen to black to tell you there’s been a saving error. Since the game seems to save almost every two minutes, you’ll find this ruins a fair chunk of your runs and currently, I’ve left the game alone for a bit while it’s sorted.
Positives
~Great twist on the series and great fun entry to the genre
~Lives the mantra easy to pick up, hard to master
~Hits online leader-boards and time trial competition against friends down to a tee
~Great graphics and sound
Negatives
~The save bug can render the game unplayable if it’s having an off day
~Rage quit inducing handling may alienate some
Conclusion
It will throw you from euphoria to rage and back again within the space of five minutes but I cannot deny there is a charm and hypnotic craze about Motorstorm RC which has me hooked – while the game is stable. Fun, frenzied and great for a quick ten minutes gaming when you can – a welcome addition to the franchise indeed.