Auto Modellista

Capcom's 'alternative' driving game gets a thorough grilling.

More Images

In the world of PS2 racing games only one name really jumps up and bites you on the metaphorical nose, Gran Turismo. It is fast becoming the benchmark of all racing games across many platforms, too. How and why would anyone want to even try and compete with it? It’s lost on me but still they try and with Capcom’s new offering, Auto Modellista, they have certainly pulled out all the stops.

At first it seems like your average racing game. It is based around the Japanese racing scene with all the leading manufacturers cars being available, Toyota, Mazda, Mitsubishi, as well as a range of authentic Japanese courses, from Shinjuku to Uwe Rokkou. The real selling point of this game has to be that it uses cell shading to give the cars a really stylised look. It’s not just the look which is good in this game, it’s the game play options, which although not extensive, are accessible and very addictive. There are two main game play options, firstly the garage life mode which is very similar in many respects to the main Gran Turismo one with the notable exception that in Auto Modellista you can edit your garage as well as your car. Here you can look at your wonderful cell shaded car and kit her out with extras which become available as you complete in more competitions. The best plus point at this stage over Gran Turismo is that you don’t have to earn money to get new parts they are simply unlocked as you progress. It is good to see that these parts seem to have a direct effect on the car’s driveability and control.

The second major section is the head to head mode which is good for a laugh with friends but can get a little boring, the tracks being a tad repetitive, and at times, seemingly merging into one.

One down side with the game is a lack of a training mode so it can get a bit annoying when you struggle in the all important final race of a season and again and again you can only practice when you complete all the other tracks of a season. It is partially saved from complete annoyance by the clever introduction of emails which give you driving hints if you do particularly badly on a certain track. Nice little extra there Capcom.

When I heard this was a cell-shaded game I instantly thought of Jet Set Radio Future. The style was definitely its biggest celling (see what I did there) point, and I was worried that Auto Modellista was just doing this to try and pretend they were doing a different type of game to Gran Turismo. It was pleasant to see when the game was started that the cell-shading, far from being a gimmick, actually enhanced the driving experience. You got a real sense of design ‘craftsmanship’ when you drove onto the track with your own honed car.

It is a shame, then, that the handling is so basic and ultimately quite unrealistic. The brakes allow you to stop almost instantly from 150 mph and cornering is far too easy. Fortunately there are enough tracks and cars to keep you amused for a very long time so you can watch several cars turn on a penny before it starts to annoy you!

The sound too is a slight let down. If you’re into cheesy Japanese hardcore, you’ll probably disagree with me but I don’t really like coming away from a game with a throbbing headache. You can’t even get away from the audio during the races as an annoyingly incoherent Japanese man tries repeatedly to tell you how you are doing in the race. It is obvious he is speaking English but they are most definitely not sentences.

All in all it is a good, honest, fun game, which successfully integrates cell-shaded graphics deftly into the game (something which is rarely achieved). The options at times are not varied enough but the amount of fun stuff you can do to your car will always occupy you for at least a few hours. It does have its downsides with an infuriating sound track and commentator, sometimes unrealistic handling and lack of a training mode, but generally speaking it is still a ‘good’ game. If I was to recommend one racing game for the PS2 then it would still have to be something from the Gran Turismo series but if you are after something different in looks and style look no further than Auto Modellista.

72%

By Chris Monk