Sega Rally demo (360 & PS3)

[nonny]

Been reading the comments here, I think I'll have to check out the demo myself and form my own opinion.

Surprised to see such a divided opinion in here as I've only just hit this thread after reading a glowing UK IGN review. Hmm now I dont know what to think.

Is it possible the final release is better than the demo? I dont expect the game to be everything Sega Rally of the past has been and more, but I would at least expect it to retain all of its classic gameplay traits and give it some HD gloss.

I think I might still end up buying this is the 6 player multiplayer online holds some weight.

[SUMIRE]

I tried this and thought it looked and played really nice. I did find it almost impossible to actually place anywhere other than last though.

[Leon Retro]

People moaning about other people talking about the original game and nostalgia, are being stupid. Of course people are going to make comparisons and reminisce.

The developer of this new Sega Rally has constantly made it quite clear that they have tried to stick closely to the original games look and feel.

Why have they done this? ... Well... it's because there have been loads of Rally games, but not many that feel or look like Sega Rally.

The fact is, there are many many fans of the original game. The arcade machine has been in arcades for over 10years, and has been played by lots of people in that time; even this decade.


You'd think, by reading some peoples views, that making a game for fans of an old game, is a 'crime'.

Why not make new versions of classic titles, which stick quite closely to the original design? .... If things turn-out well, the fans of the old version will buy it, and it may even attract new gamers.

I don't like all this negativity towards long-time gamers, who hunger for updated versions of their favourite games of yesteryear. If the fans didn't expect new versions of their favourite games to look and feel similar to the way they once did, the dev may as well make an original game.

Outrun2 got everything right when it came to updating the 1986 original. The visuals are still bright, colourful, and familiar. The gameplay is just as easy to get to grips with, but it's also improved, with more depth.

This new edition of Sega Rally doesn't come close to what Sega achieved with Outrun2. The game looks and feels like a modern imitation of Sega Rally, rather than a brilliant inspired update.

The problems? .... It may look shiny and colourful, but it still doesn't shout "Sega". There is a lack of charm and details, that you'd expect from a Sega racer made in Japan. The cars are too floaty. What is going on there? ... It's obvious that they tried to nail the feel, but didn't succeed. The control of the cars isn't as satisfying or as precise as the originals too.

Am I just retro-obsessed, or have I been spoilt by what Sega achieved with Outrun2? .... It's a bit of both. I think many Sega Rally fans will feel the same as me. This game seems o.k on the surface, but spend time with it, and you'll realise that it doen't have any heart.

I just hope Outrun 3, Daytona3 etc... are made in Japan. Please Sega!

[charlesr]

The the control of the cars in the original was pretty lame (I think) - pretty revolutionary at the time, but doesn't really stand up now. This isn't much better. Different though. In my time, I've thrown about £500 into the arcade machine....

edit: to expand (on the original), the sudden switch between grip and drift is disconcerting and had to be constantly predicted.

I'm not sure I agree with the point about the "charm and details". The original was extremely sparse, with huge swathes of track edges completely empty and monotextured if I remember rightly. There seems a lot more going on in this new version, although if you are saying that they could have used the power of the modern consoles to pack even more stuff in there, then I'll conceed there's room for more detail.

[JP]

Is it possible the final release is better than the demo?

The problem with the demo for me wasn't about quality in any way, the quality of the demo is top notch!

What I'm unsure of is whether I like the way it handles. Again, it doesn't handle badly or need improving as such. As in any game, just because you don't enjoy it doesn't mean that it's a bad game it just means that you don't enjoy it.

Because people are so split about this trying it yourself is the only way to really make a judgement.

[MonkeyJuggleDX]

What I'm unsure of is whether I like the way it handles.

Agreed on that. It feels too floaty for me compared to say, Ridge Racer 7. It's like there is no weight to the cars at all and the demo is waaaaaaaay too easy!

Jury is still out on this one so I guess I'll rent/borrow before making my purchase or probably wait and get it pre-owned.

[hudson]

Agreed on that. It feels too floaty for me compared to say, Ridge Racer 7.

Isn't that characteristic the essence of Sega Rally?

I likes it, but only in bumper view. Which is a shame as the car models look great.

[Yoshimax]

People moaning about other people talking about the original game and nostalgia, are being stupid. Of course people are going to make comparisons and reminisce.

Wow - Quite an assertion - and totally uncalled for people are entitled to their opinion labelling them stupid is, well, stupid.

I just hope Outrun 3, Daytona3 etc... are made in Japan. Please Sega!

Oh yeah totally but I'd rather they were made by AM#2 so the quality was assured rather than just any "Sega Japan" as the last SEGA RALLY game made by Sega Japan was, well, utter ****e - You seem to have conveniently forgotten to mention it though

[On The Edge of Insanity]

The cheap cash in on the tenth anniversary of Sega Rally you mean? I don't think they put any time into that, it looked much worse than Sega Rally 2 graphically.

And surely you mean AM5 (i.e. Sega Rosso), as they made Sega Rally 1 and 2.

[Brad]

I quite liked it. Doesn't look that great; not compared to Motorstorm anyway but the handling was good and that track deformation stuff actually works. By the final lap the car was bumping around as I drove over the trenches caused by the previous laps.

[goemon74]

I could also compare the PS3 to the 360 version during the demos, I realized that the PS3 version looks not only better, it also runs a bit smoother than the 360 version (especially when you wait at the beginning of the race when the camera moves around your car). On the other hand the controls with the standard setup in the PS3 version suck, just because the L and R triggers suck (you can really feel your finger is slipping off the button during the race).

[Sane]

I really liked the 360 demo, ended up playing it for 2 hours straight between my friend and me seeing who could get the best time. Definite purchase for me.

[rmoxon]

The the control of the cars in the original was pretty lame (I think) - pretty revolutionary at the time, but doesn't really stand up now. This isn't much better. Different though. In my time, I've thrown about £500 into the arcade machine....

edit: to expand (on the original), the sudden switch between grip and drift is disconcerting and had to be constantly predicted.

I'm not sure I agree with the point about the "charm and details". The original was extremely sparse, with huge swathes of track edges completely empty and monotextured if I remember rightly. There seems a lot more going on in this new version, although if you are saying that they could have used the power of the modern consoles to pack even more stuff in there, then I'll conceed there's room for more detail.

All that may be true, but the fact is that they managed to make the orginal Sega Rally steer flawlessly on a saturn pad, and while anyone could play it, like all great racing games it was still hard to master and get the best times.

In Comparison the handling in this game is just too sensitive and not half as fun.

It also seems as impossibley hard as the DC version of Sega Rally 2

[JP]

I can't remember who asked earlier but I've found some comparison shots for all three versions:

XBox 360

PS3

PSP

I think all three hold up well next to each other and the only problem with the graphics would be if something really stood out against the other two, which doesn't seem to be.

It seems that they run at the same speed also and the decider could well be the PS3 controller for people.

My favourite out of the 3 was actually the PSP version so if I buy one new it may well be that version! These arcade games often feel more suited on a handheld to me.

[Yoshimax]

The cheap cash in on the tenth anniversary of Sega Rally you mean? I don't think they put any time into that, it looked much worse than Sega Rally 2 graphically.

And surely you mean AM5 (i.e. Sega Rosso), as they made Sega Rally 1 and 2.

Yeah that one - regardless of "time put in" it's still a bit off placing all your faith in them when that's was the last thing they output - this is light years ahead of it both in terms of capturing some of the essence of the original and being a game worthy of the name.

and nah - I did mean AM#2 as El Leon was talking about Outrun & Daytona 3 which were both by them - AM5 don't exist anymore afaik