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Racing games on the iPhone came of age with the release of Firemint Real Racing, a game which managed to deliver console quality visuals and a brilliant control scheme that was built around the iPhone’s strengths. Draw Race from developer Red Lynx is yet another racing game, but the studio behind cult favourite Red Lynx Trials has approached the genre from a completely different direction.
As the name suggests, Draw Race is about drawing. At the start of each race you’re presented with a complete overhead view of the track and asked to draw. By tracing your finger around the circuit you draw on the racing line that your car is going to take. The speed of the drawing will determine the speed your car will travel at, so a slowly drawn line will see your car creep along, while a hastily drawn line will see it approaching its top speed.
Initially your races against the AI prove to be quite simple, with the basic track designs allowing you to draw a line as fast as possible without having to worry too much about if you’re actually guiding your car along the ideal racing line. Short races are also much easier to do well in, as you’re less likely to make a mistake drawing two laps in a row than you are if you have to draw five laps. When one slight mistake can cost you, drawing five perfect laps is trickier than it sounds.
The core mechanics take some getting used to, but the harder courses and opponents unlocked as you win races really up the challenge and will get you hooked. To win the advanced stages you’ll need to know when you draw slow lines and when it’s OK to power down a straight, and just when you think you can’t do any better the game’s online leaderboards show you how far away from perfection you really are.
Draw Race can be played with up to three players, although the gameplay isn’t best suited to this. Each player takes it in turns to draw out their racing line for the set number of laps and then the game plays back the race with all competitors on the track at the same time. It’s a nice novelty and something you’ll want to try out a few times, but you’ll get more fun competing against your own best times in the Time Trial mode.
At just 59p (at time of writing) and with more tracks promised in future updates, Draw Race is highly recommended. It’s not nearly as accomplished as some of the iPhone’s advanced racers, but it’s good addictive fun.
Version 1.05 reviewed
