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End of semester is coming up again, which means things are about to get stressful for me. If you've read my previous posts, you might notice a funny pattern, as a lot of them fit into one of two categories:
1) Haha, I'm playing video games while a Zoom lecture is in the background! I don't need to listen to the teacher, everybody else ignores them, too, and I can always catch up on the material when I need it, right? Programmers don't need theory anyway, right?
2) Oh god, oh no, what have I done.
We'll just see how it goes.
For now, let's talk about my absolute favorite genre of 'games for podcasts and/or Zoom lectures': racing!
Simulation-arcade racer by Codemasters, released in 2008.
It is a game in which the player runs their own race team, acting as the primary driver. As players progress they gain sponsors and can hire a teammate to drive alongside them in certain events.
The game begins with the player accepting jobs to drive for other teams to earn money, and once the player gains enough capital they can purchase their own vehicles and drive independently, as well as continuing to drive for other teams should they choose to.
This came out right at the same time as Need for Speed tried to enter the same niche (with ProStreet and Shift), not seeing much success. I was a devoted Need for Speed fan as a kid, but I was always curious about Grid, so here I am, more than a decade later.
Yes, this is a great combination of arcade and simulation. I have no complaints about the handling: it seems realistic while also being easy even on a keyboard. The AI poses a real challenge on higher difficulties, not because of 'rubber-banding', but because they are genuinely good at most racetracks.
I really like the rival system: at the start of every race, your race manager will tell you to watch out for a particular driver, as they are really good and might give you trouble. This is not a brand new idea: a bunch of racing games also use a "bell curve" of AI skills, where most opponents are mediocre and quickly get out of your way, but then one or two drivers will make it really challenging to get to 1st place. Grid, however, makes it very explicit, and I like that they embrace this mechanic.
The flashback mechanic allows you to rewind time for a short period, making it acceptable to race on higher difficulties and not have to restart the whole thing due to a slight slip-up. This seems to be semi-standard feature in racing games now, but it's always nice to see.
There is a decent variety of race tracks (love the inclusion of Mount Haruna, aka Mount Akina!), different types of events, and race cars. Sadly, there is zero customization for cars. It's understandable that they want you to focus on driving as many different vehicles as possible, as opposed to building an attachment to just one car the whole time. So it wouldn't be a problem, but the other bad thing is that the cars all feel quite similar. There is not too much of a learning curve between driving a Ford Mustang and a Formula 3 car. So the point about "drive as many cars as possible" is a bit moot, and the driving does become a bit repetitive. Luckily, the game is not too long, and the different types of disciplines (like drifting and touge racing) are enough to keep me going anyway. *8/10*
I tried to get it running on Linux but failed.
You can read about my experience on WineHQ's App Database.
On Windows, the game ran somewhat smoothly when I switched to Minimal graphics settings, but it did cause a Blue Screen of Death, multiple times! I spent 30 hours on this game, so 1 crash every 10 hours is not too bad, I suppose, but... I can't tell if the game is just broken, or maybe I bought it from a shady storefront?
The game is not available on Steam and GOG, as is the case for most racing games of that era, there are a lot of licensing deals involved between the car manufacturers and soundtracks, and Grid is no exception. However, PCGamingWiki lists one storefront which still sells the game, called 'Zoom Platform'. I've never heard of it, but it seems kinda legit.
Licensing legality is unclear; ZOOM Platform places the burden of delisting on the publisher.
In other words, the publisher might've just forgotten to remove Race Driver: Grid from that storefront, because it's so obscure. I thought it was funny, but now I'm wondering if the whole thing is a scam to get me to buy a game that will BSOD my Windows system, and waste countless hours as I to try to get it working on Linux...
An inferior clone of Need for Speed: Underground.
Hell no. Still, I was going to complete it, with some nice podcasts in the background, as I do have nostalgia for that era of street racing games. However, I could not access the last race due to a bug, so I retired it...
The world is tiny and has no variety. There is only one type of race. The police is extremely boring, and you get no rewards for outrunning them, so it's easier to get arrested. The game is completely unbalanced: unlocking the final races requires you to get close to the maximum number of "Respect Points", which you get by doing stunts during races. This basically requires you to drive a highly overpowered car (can't get these points if you're struggling to win) and/or complete the races many times.
The game is awfully sexist, in case you could not tell by the cover art. Literally every driver is a man, and "girlfriends" are an unlockable reward. If you win a race tournament while "hooking up" with any given girlfriend, she rewards you further by unlocking a sexy dance video with her. Need for Speed Underground looks like feminist propaganda in comparison.
Some positives: the game is actually quite nerdy when it comes to car upgrades (using real performance part manufacturers, providing descriptions of what each little part does, etc) as well as different types of drifting (first game I've ever seen which makes a distinction between power sliding, feint, choku-dori, and even the infamous Kansei dorifto). *This does not make the game worth playing.*
It's a game from 2004 and it looks worse than NFS Underground, so it should run on anything these days, including Linux. There is even a Widescreen Fixes Pack available.
-- gardenappl
