This year, the Xbox has finally been graced with an adequate selection of titles published by respective publishers and <i>Midtown Madness 3</i> is no exception. While the scope of Digital Illusions' latest installment is certainly impressive in terms of graphics and multiplayer value (Xbox Live), there are a few areas that leave it somewhat short of being considered the ultimate Xbox racer.
Taking cues from <i>Paperboy</i> and <i>Crazy Taxi</i>, the gameplay consists of a series of contests, composed in the form of checkpoint and paper delivery-esque events. After creating a new profile, players can opt to choose from three single-player game modes (Blitz, Checkpoint and Cruise respectively). To unlock additional checkpoint levels and vehicles, you'll need to hit the Career Mode, better known as "Go Undercover", essentially completing each area as expressed earlier before time expires. Not exactly the adrenaline rush many would expect (or at least in my case, the title’s namesake alone seems misleading).
Unlike most conventional racing games which exclusively feature exotic/luxury vehicles, <i>MM3</i> practically has you driving just about everything you can imagine. Ever wanted to drive a bus or a garbage truck through the streets of Paris or our nation's capital? You can here, but as exhilarating as that may sound, the execution doesn’t fly nearly as smooth as one might expect. Other vehicles available to gamers include the BMW Mini Cooper, the Lotus Espirit and the Swedish super car, Koenigsegg CC.
Granted, I understand this isn’t intended to be a simulation style racer, but that shouldn’t excuse the quirky physics (even for an arcade style racer such as this). Taking an opposite approach to the <i>Crazy Taxi</i> design which by far was more intricate and challenging, the gameplay here initially starts out slow and unfufilling. The handling didn't feel too solid for my tastes either, at least while I was playing in manual transmission. Thus, I opted for to remain in automatic throughout the duration of my game sessions. Aside from the obvious point of keeping your “foot” on the gas, the only true challenge here lies with avoiding the waves of incoming traffic and making the required turns during any given level. If the pace doesn’t feel too mundane after the first dozen levels, there’s well over 40 checkpoint races in total for you to engage. Toss in the multiplayer levels, and link this baby up with Xbox Live (or a system link cable) and you’ve just scored a few more points in the replay value department. The point-to-point missions are frankly too generic and boring to even remotely consider entertaining. You’ll also recall some of the vehicles which I mentioned are available and sadly most of them have such a lackluster form of speed (or lack thereof), that it’s a mystery as to why they were implemented in the first place.
It’s been said by other editors that there’s nothing respectable about this game, and I’d have to agree to a point. The sound samples are by far some of the poorest I’ve encountered in recent months. Very generic, scripted stuff which compelled me to take advantage of the option to disable the voice-over output altogether. I’ve come to adore women with accents, but some of the passengers you pick up in the taxi mode for example, and Mathilda especially are far off the mark from winning me over. The voice acting is weak and her French accent sounds forced! Of all the most memorable elements <i>Midtown Madness 3</i> has to offer was the mockumentary of a motion-capture artist which was adequately amusing, will quickly become an old-hat after seeing it the second time around.
At present, <i>Midtown Madness 3</i> just doesn’t offer enough to jump start my interests. If you’re looking for a more enjoyable racing game, pick up <i>Midnight Club II</i>.
Stay tuned for a full hands-on review later in the month.
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