May 2010 was a great time for arcade racing fans and those who like kart racers in particular as you had three titles to choose from, all of which released a matter of days apart from each other. So first up on May 19th you had United Front's ModNation Racers which personally, though I liked in terms of a creation tool, I had major issues with in terms of it being a fun game to play.
Next into the ring you had Disney's Black Rock Studio's offering up Split/Second, a TV show style racing tournament that focussed on destruction of the environment and other competitors.
Finally you had Blur from Project Gotham Racing creators Bizarre Creations, a game that at a glance was a straight up Mario Kart clone but on closer inspection was much much more.
As previously stated in my review, Blur unfortunately was the guy that came out of the standings in last place and therefore suffered despite critical praise and good sales figures, and ultimately caused Bizarre to close. Split/Second however managed to be the top dog of the three and sold the most copies alongside receiving similar praise from critics to what Blur did.
Now as a 14 year old boy I could only afford one of the three and Blur was my pick, now a man I managed to get hold of Split/Second and put it through its paces to see whether it really was as good as its biggest rival and one of my all time favourite games.
Split/Second is a fictional reality TV show wherein racers compete against each other to win the season championship. The appeal of the show extends beyond the adrenaline fuelled racing but into the element of environmental destruction. Racers are given power over activating 'Power Plays', thereby causing buildings to explode and collapse, racetrack routes to change and of course things to...well...violently explode. Imagine the film Death Race but directed by Michael Bay and you'll be along the right lines here.
Power Plays are earned by drifting, surviving nearby explosions and drafting other competitors. This fills a three segment meter under your car allowing you to deploy up to three weaker 'Level 1' Power Plays or one stronger and sometimes track altering 'Level 2' Power Play.
The rest of the game follows suit of a normal racing game, race around a track and try to place in the top three, however this formula becomes much more difficult to focus on when the track is constantly exploding and changing around you. Its a game that calls for cool heads and quick reflexes in a time when all you can do is panic; which by the way is great fun.
There are a variety of game modes besides standard circuit races such as an elimination mode, two different obstacle avoidance modes (one avoiding missiles from a chopper and one avoiding exploding barrels falling from trucks) as well as a time attack mode. This stuff is average for an arcade racing game, however when put into the Split/Second formula of blowing stuff up every couple of seconds, it becomes much more entertaining and at times almost original.
You have one season to play, this season is split up into 12 TV style episodes (bookended each side with an intro for what's to come and a sneak peek at the next episode), which in turn have 6 events. The final event in each episode is an 'Elite' race, Elite races advance your position on the season leaderboard which in turn will decide the winner of Split/Second. This is interesting because its possible to complete the game and not actually win and unless you are an extremely persistent player, will be most likely as the A.I is extremely aggressive and unforgiving due to a sometimes outrageous rubber band effect. A.I opponents will also have a tendency to wreck you in a power play and set you back into last place, on the final straight of the race.
Though this is extremely frustrating, the game never stops being fun to play. Its like a big dumb action movie, it may be extremely stupid when you look closely, but ultimately its a great time regardless.
Split/Second's presentation is really something. The game look simply fantastic with some gorgeous & highly detailed urban environments alongside a great lighting system. Factor in the excellent pyrotechnics and great camera work for slow motion explosions & route changing catastrophe's and you have yourself one good looking racing game. Its no contender against the likes of Forza and Gran Turismo, but it'll give games such as Need for Speed a run for it's money.
The UI is also great with the in game HUD floating around the car rather than cluttering up the sides of the screen. Its minimalistic, futuristic and only tells you what you need to know.
The soundtrack is also great though it almost feels out of place. It would be better suited to an action game however this does fit the mood of Split/Second well and really helps amplify the atmosphere of this TV show racing tournament. Though its nothing special and I wont be listening to it on a regular basis, in terms of use in the game it works very well.
The big question I posed earlier is how does it compete against Blur? Well ultimately it comes down to the Multiplayer. Blur remains one of my all time favourite multiplayer games due to its retro feel yet modern take on the genre as well as a robust levelling system and a great community to boot. Split/Second as of now has no community to speak of whatsoever, I couldn't find a single game unlike Blur's still active and loyal online community.
Though Split/Second takes the crown for being the better singleplayer game, Blur rules the multiplayer ring simply due to the fact that its the one out of the two still running.
As a whole Split/Second is a great buy for arcade racing fans and is great fun for splitscreen multiplayer. Its good length and challenging career mode will last you for several hours, especially for those who wish to gain 1st position in every event. Its also a gorgeous looking and technically sound game. However if you're after something longer lasting in terms of online lifespan, check out Blur.
Split/Second: Velocity – 8/10
+Unique Concept
+Exhilarating Experience
+Simply Gorgeous Visuals
-Tough A.I Can Be Frustrating
-Multiplayer Is Dead
