As far as racing games go, we might have seen just about every instance there could be. Zombie-invasions, heists, racing, and more populate the genre with thousands upon thousands of titles, making it probably the largest collection of games out there, probably matching the FPS genre, although not the shooter genre as a whole. It comes to little surprise then that new car games have turned to new mechanics, be it in-game or even console related, to up the ante on their competitors and provide something new to the public in order to boost the sales of this same title.
The Crew is one such game, making use of the massively connected consoles like the PS4 and Xbox One, along with the PC, to create a racing game deeply rooted into co-op play and teamwork. This is because the “crew” is not merely a cool sounding name to get on the ears of potential buyers, but it reflects what you will be doing in the game, which is creating a team of skilled drivers in order to take over all of the United States. Which you really can, since Ivory Tower have gone to the incredible lengths of recreating all 50 states, realistically taking almost an hour to cross the whole map from end to end, keeping in mind that the usual performance of a similar car would go at over 100mph. Even though the game did not make headlines because of its quality but rather because its publisher was at it again, Ivory Tower have been hard at work to improve the game in all its aspects, and in fairness it has managed to quite brilliantly.
The expansion, called Wild Run, is a massive piece of work, unlike any dlc or patch ever released by Ubisoft, so it makes sense that it is called an expansion. The first thing which one will notice is that graphics look better; sleeker, sharper textures will make you drool over your dream car so bad you’ll have to abstain from choosing that car in the game. Jokes apart, if the cars looked beautiful in the base game, they will absolutely enchant you here. Apparently the texture upgrade is even noticeable without purchasing Wild Run, so for those who are willing to give the game a second go to check out whether to get the expansion or not, they can enjoy the upgraded visuals.
Something which is brought by with the expansion though are the Monster Trucks and Motorcycles. Driving a Monster Truck through the streets of America is sure to be a massive show, especially with all the confusion it will create. Imagining it happen in real life would definitely be shocking, but thanks to how well the map is recreated in the game, you can almost see what it would look like in The Crew. Sure, there will be no one screaming in the game, as there would surely be bystanders who would rupture their lungs while screaming, but the visuals would come very close to capturing that scene. Bikes, on the other hand, will never achieve that level of confusion, getting even by a showing of awesomeness which only bikes can do. In fact, I myself am interested in getting a bike for myself, and after playing this my desire to own one has shot upwards. Too bad my mother would kill me before I’d even mount the damn thing.
Another important aspect of the Wild Run expansion is the new Summit mode, which is a brand new concept, and a very interesting one. It basically consists of earning tickets from events based on game modes such as drag racing, drifting and others. These events are also done online, so showing off your skills is essential. Rubbing your face in it is not supposed to be part of the package, but as long as you do it right, and not mentioning the moms or sisters of whoever you just beat, you are still a good guy. Players who place well enough in the Summit will receive exclusive rewards in the form of cars which are probably not unlockable anywhere else, meaning that the reward is both useable, since it is a car, and unique, in that other players will likely not have one like it. For players who tend to be extremely competitive, like me, being the top dog and earning such rewards is enough of a motivation to train my ass off and place among the highest in these events, so hopefully this new mode will incite players to continuously train and keep beating their own scores so that maybe one day there will be no one left to beat except themselves. It really is a rush of excitement!
Ivory Tower really have killed it with this expansion, as it not only does a huge favour to the longevity and enjoyment of the game, but it teaches a lesson in how expansions should be made, meaning a huge chunk of content at a reasonable price and which fixes existing issues and creates no more. The addition of the new cars by themselves is already enough to get players drooling, but the new Summit mode is a fantastic bonus, one which will definitely keep motivating players to improve upon their skills. I for one am already thinking about ways in which my drifting can be better, so that in the next event, do not expect to have my score below yours very easily. Game on!
Disclaimer:All scores given within our reviews are based on the artist’s personal opinion; this should in no way impede your decision to purchase the game.
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