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Way back when App Store was but a youngster, a grainy YouTube video surfaced of what appeared to be an incomprehensibly impressive looking sim-racer for the iPhone. Under the weight of comments like “no way dis is fake” and “you can tell it’s a video and a not a game…” the footage slipped back into obscurity and away from the judgemental eyes of the growing iDevice community. It wasn’t until Firemint (the Australian team behind Real Racing) later unleashed a whole host of new videos and screenshots that iPhone gamers really started to get excited. Does Real Racing live up to the hype? Well in a word: yes.
With Real Racing being launched into a community already enamoured by EA’s mobile iteration of Need for Speed, it feels like a natural reaction to compare the two. Both games opt for a default automatic accelerator, tilt-to-steer controls and touchscreen braking, but that’s really where the similarities end. Whereas NFS was an all out cheesy arcade racer, Real Racing tries to drift more into the realms of realistic simulation akin to an iPhone version of say, Forza or Gran Turismo. Visually the game stands up well to its influences. The current hardware is never going to able to produce the same level of detail seen in Microsoft and Sony’s flagship sim-racers but that hasn’t stopped Firemint from squeezing everything it can out of Apple’s handheld. Real-time lighting dazzles you with lens flare as you fly out of the corners while your virtual hands grapple for control as the steering wheel twitches and shakes under the duress of top speed. The level of detail is truly impressive with all the in-game information displayed in real time on various screens and gauges dotted about your car’s dashboard.
Perhaps Real Racing’s only downfall is the lack of information regarding the cars themselves. While other sim-racers hinge around having a huge roster of licensed vehicles – complete with detailed specs on performance, Real Racing’s unlicensed hatchbacks, saloons and muscle cars feel rather empty on the information front. There is a choice of a number of different cars per vehicle class but other than engine size and very slight aesthetic changes there isn’t a huge amount to sway your decision between them.
With two updates already available, Firemint has proven it’s committed to ironing out the sim-racing title’s bugs. Despite the unlicensed cars feeling a touch shallow, Real Racing delivers what is undeniably a gorgeous looking experience that will have fans of Forza/Gran Turismo grinning from ear to ear all day long.
Version reviewed: 1.2
