The racing genre is hotly contested on the PSP, with Ridge Racer and Midnight Club III vying for first position. We recently had an opportunity to go "hands on" with the game, and left feeling a little disappointed - yet, strangely, still satisfied. Before we played this game we had high hopes. In Rivals EA have removed the free-roaming aspect of Underground 2 and tweaked some of the settings to ensure this is the best Underground yet.
The graphics in Rivals aren't nearly as good as Ridge Racer, and feature a few jaggies. The car models are decent, but the game doesn't look as good as the console counterpart - which is to be expected.
Turbo!
The handling is also a little slippery, making the game a little harder to control than we'd have hoped. Instead of using the analog nub it is likely that the player will be relegated to using the directional pad. This is one of the first games we've played on the PSP where the game controls better with the directional pad.
When it was announced that the PSP had a disk based system many were concerned about the loading that this would mean for handheld gaming. We haven't been affected by long loading until this game. The loading screens can be between ten and fifteen seconds long, which is long enough to be annoying and boring.
EA have definitely tried to make sure the Underground experience feels very similar on the PSP to the home consoles. Gamers have their own Pocket Garage which can hold all the cars they are likely to collect throughout the single player mode.
The single player mode consists of a variety of races, such as lap knockouts and time trials. The races are definitely shorter than before, which we can only assmue is because EA want to make the game more accessible. The single player mode will take a decent time to play through, as performance and visual upgrades can be unlocked. Surprisingly though, and one of the biggest disappointments in the game is the lack of a drag mode, which was one of the best features of the previous Underground games.
Wi-Fi multiplayer is also supported, which should ensure for some intense races. We were unable to test out of the multiplayer, but it should be great fun, with each player able to draw on their own Pocket Garage for cars to race.
There is a wart in the pack
The track design is typical of the previous outings. Yet again the game is set entirely at night and takes place in urban settings. The lighting effects look great and the blur effect is back with this game. This game is far better looking than Need for Speed: Underground 2 on the Nintendo DS.
PALGN can't help but feel that Rivals has been rushed out a little to quickly. The lack of a drag mode, average graphics, lengthy load times and slippery handling are a little disappointing, but EA have successfully managed to keep the game feeling like an Underground title, and this will keep the fans happy. We're not too sure if we'd recommend it over Ridge Racer, though.
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