ModNation Racers - Thoughts and Impressions.

[the7k]

So... anyone got it yet? I just got my copy in the mail yesterday, and I've been enjoying the hell out of it.

The AI is already getting pretty brutal, though... dunno if I'll actually be able to unlock everything. Also, loading times are a bit of a hassle... I didn't find them anywhere near as bad as everyone else, but maybe I somehow have more patience that them.

Anyway, AI troubles and loading times aside, it's been great. Making stuff is a lot of fun, and playing online with strangers is a blast. I'd like to say how fun it is to play with friends, but I haven't seen any of you suckers on yet.

[dsheinem]

So... anyone got it yet? I just got my copy in the mail yesterday, and I've been enjoying the hell out of it.

The AI is already getting pretty brutal, though... dunno if I'll actually be able to unlock everything. Also, loading times are a bit of a hassle... I didn't find them anywhere near as bad as everyone else, but maybe I somehow have more patience that them.

Anyway, AI troubles and loading times aside, it's been great. Making stuff is a lot of fun, and playing online with strangers is a blast. I'd like to say how fun it is to play with friends, but I haven't seen any of you suckers on yet.

I played the demo, but since the loading took almost as much time as the race, I lost any enthusiasm I had for the game. Seriously, it took like 2 minutes to get from the race selection screen to the first movement off the line - only to complete a 3 minute race and then have to wait again for everything to load.

If they don't patch it and significantly decrease that time (which they are planning to do - we'll see) I won't be buying this. As is, the racing itself was fairly fun but not compelling enough to buy the game at full price - I'll wait until it hits the bargain bin IF they fix the loading problems.

[the7k]

Weird. It doesn't seem to take anywhere near that long for me. I did have to download a patch before I played, but I didn't figure that was the real patch. I mean, everything has to be patched directly after release these days.

While there is about a 2 minute loading screen when I start the game up, after that it's not so bad. Maybe somewhere between 15-30 seconds, I'm not sure.

The only time I've gotten pissed off at the loading screen was just recently, when I was having to retry a race over and over again because of the bastard AI... and I'm pretty sure it wasn't the loading screen I was really pissed off at.

[Xonticus]

So... anyone got it yet? I just got my copy in the mail yesterday, and I've been enjoying the hell out of it.

The AI is already getting pretty brutal, though... dunno if I'll actually be able to unlock everything. Also, loading times are a bit of a hassle... I didn't find them anywhere near as bad as everyone else, but maybe I somehow have more patience that them.

Anyway, AI troubles and loading times aside, it's been great. Making stuff is a lot of fun, and playing online with strangers is a blast. I'd like to say how fun it is to play with friends, but I haven't seen any of you suckers on yet.

I played the demo, but since the loading took almost as much time as the race, I lost any enthusiasm I had for the game. Seriously, it took like 2 minutes to get from the race selection screen to the first movement off the line - only to complete a 3 minute race and then have to wait again for everything to load.

If they don't patch it and significantly decrease that time (which they are planning to do - we'll see) I won't be buying this. As is, the racing itself was fairly fun but not compelling enough to buy the game at full price - I'll wait until it hits the bargain bin IF they fix the loading problems.

I haven't bought the full game yet, but I played the beta and the load times were alright, if anything they were the only bad part of the game! The problem I have with the demo is that it doesn't show off some of the better parts of the game, like any of the social interaction.

[Veno]

I think people are just over exaggerating the load times. I've played the demo with a friend a few times, and we only had to wait about 30-45 seconds. Not anywhere near 2 minutes. It's not long, but it's noticable, and it might not be as fast as other games. I personally don't have any problems with it though. Too bad I can't afford the actual game.

[dsheinem]

I think people are just over exaggerating the load times.

[Veno]

Maybe I just felt it was between 30-45 seconds. Guess they are pretty long, but it doesn't bother me or my friend too much.

[durkada]

Best cart racer.

I don't know how successful it will be -- I can only hope. The major problem with the game, I think, comes down to aesthetics vs content. Cart racing is cute, and suggests a more casual play style, while ModNation demands your attention. ModNation has the chaos found in other cart games, but rewards tactics and skill like none other. You play Mario to laugh, you play this to win. This is reflected in the fact that bad driving is punished, good driving is rewarded; the risk vs rewards is a constant decision the player has to make in regards to their boost levels, power-ups, short-cuts, etc. ModNation allows every attack to be negated by defense, and allows for some offense where no other cart racer does. And, as I mentioned, you must drive and drive well -- ModNation allows you to screw up your game by running into walls, and other boneheaded moves.

But those are all qualities I like. This is a skillful racer! I laugh a bit, and people with mic's laugh, but for the most part, people realize this is an intense and exhilarating game.

One of my other major concerns was about the tracks. This game is often compared, I think somewhat unfairly, to Little Big Planet. Little Big Planet allows you to create a script -- a narrative -- and to create complicated objects from scratch. ModNation allows you to make racing tracks using many of the pre-allocated gadgets. What surprised me is how varied and exciting these creations are. Many of the tracks I played with high ratings are vastly superior to what is offered in the base game.

The mods are magnificent. The way players can customize their characters is a model for all other games. If only the people in Home could look like and be created with such variety as this -- the same goes for Xbox Live Avatars and Miis. Within 2 minutes I created cthulhubub. He looks unique compared to all the other mods I come across, but nonetheless, harmonious with the rest of the games aesthetic. And damn... the amazing likenesses people are able to capture! Sylvester the cat, Marvin the Martian, Shaun of the Dead...

Clearly something needs to be done in the match-making department. A player can wait 10 minutes or more for an XP race to start -- a race that will take two minutes to complete. And then, upon completion, you have to rejoin the lobby and endure another arduous wait. Casual matches are easy by comparison -- you join a group, and can stay there race after race, even vetoing the rules set by the host.

Between this and Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, I am in cart racing bliss. The competition to Mario Kart, despite a few promising starts (Crash Team Racing, Pacman World Rally, etc), has been weak. Now, with the stake poised over Mario's heart, ModNation drives it home. Mario Kart is dead to me.

Yes. I think Sonic All-Stars out-does Mario. With the latest patch, the game went from one with flawed promise, to promise fulfilled. It exists somewhere in between the casual fun of Mario and the demanding ModNation: a beautiful, technical racer, that rewards good play in a light-hearted way.

[durkada]

I think people are just over exaggerating the load times.

Mine has never taken that long to load. While pulling from disk it also connects via network. Perhaps it's a server problem or link related. My load times rarely exceeds 30 seconds

[lisalover1]

Best cart racer.

I don't know how successful it will be -- I can only hope. The major problem with the game, I think, comes down to aesthetics vs content. Cart racing is cute, and suggests a more casual play style, while ModNation demands your attention. ModNation has the chaos found in other cart games, but rewards tactics and skill like none other. You play Mario to laugh, you play this to win. This is reflected in the fact that bad driving is punished, good driving is rewarded; the risk vs rewards is a constant decision the player has to make in regards to their boost levels, power-ups, short-cuts, etc. ModNation allows every attack to be negated by defense, and allows for some offense where no other cart racer does. And, as I mentioned, you must drive and drive well -- ModNation allows you to screw up your game by running into walls, and other boneheaded moves.

But those are all qualities I like. This is a skillful racer! I laugh a bit, and people with mic's laugh, but for the most part, people realize this is an intense and exhilarating game.

One of my other major concerns was about the tracks. This game is often compared, I think somewhat unfairly, to Little Big Planet. Little Big Planet allows you to create a script -- a narrative -- and to create complicated objects from scratch. ModNation allows you to make racing tracks using many of the pre-allocated gadgets. What surprised me is how varied and exciting these creations are. Many of the tracks I played with high ratings are vastly superior to what is offered in the base game.

The mods are magnificent. The way players can customize their characters is a model for all other games. If only the people in Home could look like and be created with such variety as this -- the same goes for Xbox Live Avatars and Miis. Within 2 minutes I created cthulhubub. He looks unique compared to all the other mods I come across, but nonetheless, harmonious with the rest of the games aesthetic. And damn... the amazing likenesses people are able to capture! Sylvester the cat, Marvin the Martian, Shaun of the Dead...

Clearly something needs to be done in the match-making department. A player can wait 10 minutes or more for an XP race to start -- a race that will take two minutes to complete. And then, upon completion, you have to rejoin the lobby and endure another arduous wait. Casual matches are easy by comparison -- you join a group, and can stay there race after race, even vetoing the rules set by the host.

Between this and Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing, I am in cart racing bliss. The competition to Mario Kart, despite a few promising starts (Crash Team Racing, Pacman World Rally, etc), has been weak. Now, with the stake poised over Mario's heart, ModNation drives it home. Mario Kart is dead to me.

Yes. I think Sonic All-Stars out-does Mario. With the latest patch, the game went from one with flawed promise, to promise fulfilled. It exists somewhere in between the casual fun of Mario and the demanding ModNation: a beautiful, technical racer, that rewards good play in a light-hearted way.

Jeez, you really must hate Mario Kart; it's all you've been talking about since you returned to the forums. What don't you like about it?