Tech Blog

[#1]

I hate racing games. I love blur . From Bizarre Creations (the same people that birthed Project Gotham Racing and Geometry Wars ) this multi-platform racing combat game stands alone on the market as an insane mashup between modern shooters and kart racing. At least one online forum has dubbed it “Call of Burnout 2: Modern Mario Kart” - and they’re right. This isn’t Modnation Racers and it certainly isn’t Split/Second . blur is a game all its own and it’s really, really good.

So what’s the deal with blur ? Well, it’s a racing game that looks like a sim... but it’s not. It’s a kart racing game with licensed cars and an awesome array of weapons and power-ups that can totally change the game from second to second. Unlike Mario Kart Wii, blur doesn’t cheat; there are no instant-hit blue shells. If you’re skilled and out in front of the pack, you can win it... but you better watch your back, because there are 19 players gunning for you.

Power up and get in the game.
The power-ups include the shunt , a missile that locks onto the next person in front of you; bolts are a three shot machine gun that can really throw your opponent of his or her line; barge is an EMP burst in a cirlce around your car that will cancel power-ups and knock racers beside you to the side; shields protect you from incoming hits and let you glide around corners without losing speed; mines are  dropped behind you to incap someone on your rear bumper; nitro gives you a massive speed boost; repair eliminates the damage that has been done to your car; and shock drops three pillars of lightning onto the track right in front of the leader.

All of these power-ups can be avoided or mitigated if you’re skilled. They can also be fired backwards: a rear-fired shunt is unguided but can cancel out incoming shunts. Two rear-fired bolts will do the same, and they’re great for picking off that guy who’s drafting you. Forward fired mines are tossed straight ahead 100 yards... great for wrecking the guy who’s desperately heading for a repair. Rear fired nitro is (competitor)="right" />As you progress through the game you’ll get new licensed cars, as well as mods that will change the way you race and the way power-ups work. There’s always something to keep coming back for, adding huge value to this title.

I... like a racing game?

I don’t know why I took to blur . It could be the gorgeous interface, it could be the licensed cars, it could be the absolutely frantic action where you make progress even if you lose. The game starts out friendly but gets tough in a hurry. There are three difficulty levels if you can’t hack it - I can’t do hard, I did half the game on normal, and due to my complete lack of racing skills I shifted to easy for the last quarter.

Both single player and multiplayer are separate games. There are few unlocks that bridge the gap, most of the bonuses that you receive will be exclusive to the mode that you’re playing. While single player can be harsh, it’s worth persevering through. There are a ton of things to do and challenges to beat, meaning that this game delivers on value in single player alone. There’s a ton of replayability.

Multiplayer, however, is the BUY blur mode . Racing against up to 19 others on fast tracks with scads of weapons everywhere is absolutely exhilarating. I haven’t won a single race yet, but I’m still having fun... because blur isn’t about first place. It’s about not being last and wrecking as many cars as you can on the way to the finish line. It delivers on that in a big, big way. I’m not having any problems getting into full matches. There have been some complaints that team racing is buggy, but this appears to be exclusive to the Xbox 360 version, and the PS3 version is solid in that respect.

What's even better: blur supports four player local multi. Havoc is a good way to describe the results. The local multiplayer would be worth the entry price of the game alone, so it's a welcome addition here. Framerates are relatively good even in this chaotic mode, making it a fun experience for everyone playing.

blur is an incredibly fun, polished game. It’s not Split/Second , and it’s not Modnation Racers so comparing it to those two games doesn’t make a lot of sense. While I enjoy both of them as well (I’m not sure how it happened, but blur has turned me into a racing game player. So very, very odd.) I’ve spent twice as much time with blur as I have with S/S and MNR put together. If you’re looking for fun, beautiful, hilarious kart racing you owe it to yourself to check blur out.

blur is available for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.

Rating: 90%