XBox One Archives - Team VVV

MX Vs ATV Review Impressions

Alan Boiston — Thu, 30 Jun 2022 17:10:12 +0000

MX Vs ATV is one of those brands that fans consistently support. It garnered a loyal following based on past iterations and at its core there is always a fun racing game to enjoy. Often there is a similar trait of somewhat dated graphics combined with arcade elements. Moving onto MX Vs ATV Legends and it appears to be more of the same, some fun gameplay, graphics that are sometimes dated, sometimes featuring decent lighting and textures, a mixed bag.

You can check out my review impression on the video below. This tests the Xbox Series X version and goes through a rather brief top line review highlighting a few core strengths and weaknesses. Suffice to say there is fun to be had if you’re a fan of the genre or franchise, however the game does a feature a range of bugs and issues that need to be smoothed out while the UI and navigational experience is dated at best. One purely for fans of the genre.

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SBK is back!

Alan Boiston — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 11:48:51 +0000

World Superbikes has always held a very special place in the hearts of motorbikes fans. There is a very status to these guys that is grounded and quite unlike anything else. Their ability to take commercially available sports bikes and take them to the limit, seeing the bikes wobbling through corners as the riders straddle the absolute limit of performance.

So, it is great excite that we see this latest addition announced, a decade since Milestone’s previous SBK Generations title. Now with new graphics and audio bringing the whole experience bang up to date. No further details yet but enjoy the latest trailer and I’ll keep an eye out for new developments.

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Dakar Desert Rally announced, epic map reading returns

Alan Boiston — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 22:58:29 +0000

Dakar released in 2018 was a much sought after title for an epic racing event which undoubtedly deserves more recognition among both sports and motor racing fans alike. Dakar 2018 had some good ideas and lofty ambitions, but ultimately wasn’t in a place to meet the expectations of gamers. With wonky physics, complex map system, irritating co-driver and numerous bugs. Dakar was an idea, yet the final execution left a lot to be desired, eventually scoring a lowly 4/10 in our review. A sequel might have been expected a year or two later, but all silence on the development front. Had the project been canned? No idea till now, and good news! Dakar Desert Rally has finally been announced and will be releasing in 2022.

The title has a new approach , rather than Dakar 2021 or Dakar 2, Dakar Desert Rally is already setting itself apart. Not a yearly franchise but instead a full reboot, hopefully taking on board both the elements players enjoyed from the 2018 version and combining the positive feedback into making this game all it has the potential to be. Let’s take a look at the trailer:

S, we can say too much, the trailer appears pre-rendered and without actual gameplay we can assess an potential improvements that have been made. However it is epic in approach, bringing new more colourful vibes an that action gaming feel. More news when we have it.

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Redout 2 announced, more future racing thrills

Alan Boiston — Mon, 13 Dec 2021 22:46:51 +0000

A surprise announcement this weekend, Redout 2 will be releasing in 2022. Sequel to Redout (2016), an underrated and somewhat underappreciated title. Redout won our VVV award for Best Indie Racing Game in 2017. An ambitious title with silky smooth fluid visuals of circuits visualised in a vast scale.

Redout introduced an innovative and unique control system to magnificent effect, giving perfect control while always intuitive to play. This combined with various imaginative locations and a stunning in-house soundtrack.

If there was one area lacking it was the design of the craft, which all felt a little soulless and without any real design aesthetic. But if this can be fixed along with a new front end and various online improvements, we could have a great title with could dominate the future racing genre. Trailer below, more news when we have it.

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GRID Legends, first look gameplay and latest screenshots

Alan Boiston — Tue, 07 Dec 2021 18:51:03 +0000

GRID is back, and this time it could finally be the sequel fans have been waiting for. GRID Legends returns to the world of gaming in February 2022 and the package will be bigger than ever. But the first challenge with be communicating the game style to fans and proving its worth. A lot has changed in racing games over the years since 2008 but the fundamentals remain the same, fun handling, intense racing and a story that involves the player and takes them on their own driver journey.

GRID Legends is a huge game, reportedly featuring over 250 Career events, 130 routes on new and returning locations, 48 car classes, the return of Drift and Elimination, Race Creator, and more to be announced. Not forgetting the Story Mode (‘Driven to Glory’), starring award-winning actor Ncuti Gatwa (Sex Education) and written by Brad Kane (Ghost of Tsushima), this all sounds like major production in the making.

One of the big new additions will be crossplay multiplayer across Xbox, PlayStation and PC. Supported with a ‘hop-in’ feature which should make it seamless for players to jump into games with their friends and great racing on the fly. This will no doubt help online numbers and make for the best opportunity to build a long-term and stable online community.

For all of my initial thoughts and reactions along with a stack of gameplay, check out the video below.

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WRC 10 November Expansion Impressions

Alan Boiston — Tue, 30 Nov 2021 12:18:15 +0000

WRC 10 is a game that has exceeded expectations and continues to impress, especially given the year on year nature of the title and the limited time available for overall improvements. This is testament to the Nacon / Kylotonn development team and their R&D departments, in work, planning, overall logistics and ultimately the execution. They have responded to consumer feedback and continue to add to the product on a large scale despite the rug being pulled from under them when the franchise moves to EA in 2023. Back to WRC 2010 and and it has been somewhat of a revelation, new handling building on the intuitive style of WRC 9 while adding more weight to the car and greater feedback. All combined in producing the finest WRC game ever, this supported with free dlc expansions which have been transformative to not only add worthwhile features but also improving the overall gaming experience.

A stunning Acropolis action shot by James McAdam.

The main event of the November expansion is the new Acropolis Rally, with some stunning and highly challenging stages, besides improved Club Mode, the November update also adds the following historical events:

– Rally Argentina in 1994 with Didier Auriol and Bernard Occelli in their Toyota Celica Turbo 4WD,
– Rally Argentina in 2004 with Carlos Sainz and Marc Martí in their Citroen Xsara WRC,
– Rally Germany in 2002 with Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena in their Citroën Xsara WRC,
– the Safari Rally in Kenya in 2000 with Richard Burns and Robert Reid in their Subaru Impreza S5 WRC ’99,
– Rally Mexico in 2016 with Jari-Matti Latvala and Miikka Anttila in their Volkswagen Polo R WRC.

You can see my various thoughts and impressions from this expansion in the video below, and if you’d like to see me racing on livestreams, follow me on Twitch to keep updated.

Also, my first impressions of the various rallies, for those intial runs.

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Ridge Racer 6 added to XBox backward compatibility

Alan Boiston — Sun, 28 Nov 2021 13:28:54 +0000

The list of titles that are backwardly compatible for XBox continues to grow, with many games featuring various elements that improve the overall experience, such as bumps in resolution and / or frame rate. Ridge Racer 6 added to that list this week in a pleasant surprise and this has enabled a welcome return to prominence for this somewhat forgotten series. As far as I have seen, there have been no significant changes to overall performance, though the game does looks smoother and sharper on an oled TV and according to John at Digital Foundry there appears to be HDR in some form which adds greatly to the experience.

Alas in the process of activating my game, the autosave from the XBox Series X overwrote my XBox 360 save, which contained a 100% save of the entire game besides some legendary replays. I confess this was not only disappointing but pretty upsetting to lose that history at the time, skills which I can no longer replicate. However, it does give me the opportunity to run the game again across various livestreams and share that progress with you viewers.

Ridge Racer is a great series and I won’t go into the history here, suffice to say it is always good to see new younger fans brought to the franchise, still one of the most stylish racing series ever made. I’ll leave you to a video with my initial thoughts and impressions below.

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Forza Horizon 5 polished but rubbish with a wheel

Alan Boiston — Fri, 12 Nov 2021 12:13:21 +0000

Forza Horizon 5 has arguably become the leading racing gaming franchise for Xbox over the past few years. The huge success of Forza Horizon 4 cannot be understated and though not a game I found terribly involving, it did appeal to casual gamers on a large scale. On comes Forza Horizon 5, the announcement mere months from release, it potentially forms as the finale of the XBox One generation with Playground Games incredible technical skills. Yet there were no preview hands-on opportunities, this always forms a certain level of apprehension when it comes to new releases and the opinions of selected media and streamers just doesn’t cut it when there is an obvious lack of transparency on objective opinion.

Onto the game and getting it late I wasn’t able to produce the preview content, this also affects my opportunity to grow an audience around the game, hence my coverage will be limited and time to spend on it, even more so. So, my first port of call was to give a hands on and give my impressions and you can see those in the video below.

Suffice to say from a technical construction standpoint it is another work of art on the XBox Series X, however technical online issues are abound on the PC version and all formats appear to have encountered issues with various online modes and server limitations. While the core game follows the tried and tested model, the steering wheel issues that plagued previous iterations remain and rather disappointingly it effectively ended by planned content. So, I might pick it up again on streams in due course to get further into the game, but with the lack of viewer following in missing those previews, it probably won’t be worth the effort.

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RiMS Racing Developer Interview Video Podcast

Alan Boiston — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 10:39:22 +0000

RiMS Racing has been a bit of a blast out of nowhere these past few months, developed by a studio entering into its maiden project. This has been a hugely ambitious undertaking for the newly formed Raceward Studio who have signed up with NACON to build a much needed new competitor to the biking market. With this in mind I sat down with Fabio Respighi (Lead Game Designer) and Alessandro Carullo (Game Designer) to learn more about Raceward studio, the challenges involved in realising a new IP, to the creation of such an enormous enterprise. We discuss many elements that make up the RiMS Racing experience and much of what you can look forward to.

You can hear the entire interview below along with my usual feedback.

RiMS Racing will release on Xbox S/X, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch on 19th August 2021.

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RiMS Racing All Bikes featured in the game revealed

Alan Boiston — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 08:54:07 +0000

RiMS Racing is all about the bikes and though the selection on paper is comparatively small, they are packed to the rafters with detail. Literally hundreds of parts that be exchanged, repaired, optimised in making your bike the best it can be. This detailed experience all adds in building a connection with your bike and making it your own, from every aspect as you improve as a rider, maximising your bike and various elements that form the package.

The confirmed bike list is as follows:

Ducati Panigale V4 R 2020

Aprilia RSV4 1100 Factory 2020

BMW M 1000 RR 2021

Honda CBR1000RR ABS 2019

Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR 2019

MV Agusta F4 RC 2019

Suzuki GSX-R1000R 2019

Yamaha YZF-R1 2020

Some great models, all carefully curated with impressive performance combined with ultra high desirability. In the video below I reveal all of the super bikes featured besides some basic highlights on each model, be it history or performance. I’ll be testing these bikes more on future content along with more reaction on their various performance.

RiMS Racing will release on Xbox S/X, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch on 19th August 2021.

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