The untouchable Crash Team Racing is my favorite racing game ever, so I’ve never identified with fans of hardcore, simulation racers. Thankfully, DRIVECLUB is most definitely not such a game. When I went hands-on with Evolution’s PlayStation 4 showcase at E3 this week, I was surprised by how far it had come since last year’s show. The graphics and attention to detail, once impressive, are now positively astounding. More importantly, the driving, once loose and unapproachable, has been tightened to pitch-perfect response and distinctly arcade sensibilities.
That’s not to say DRIVECLUB isn’t a serious racer–on the contrary, there’s plenty of factors to consider in every turn. Cars react to wanton steering appropriately–on a given surface, in certain weather conditions, with particular aerodynamics, your car might slide out a bit, stay locked to the track, or lose control entirely. This unpredictability–perhaps less so to a driving enthusiast–was welcome, because the core steering felt so right. It was easy to acclimate to how early I needed to brake after only a few turns, and with the right touch and timing, I could manage my way around lesser corners confidently. On tighter corners, on more interesting slopes, and at higher speeds, things got messier.
But the important point is how these aspects of the hardcore racing experienced build on a comfortable entry point. The timing for basic driving might be forgiving, giving casual players a chance to stay somewhat competitive, but mastery will demand an unerring, laser-focused eye for the things that intensify racing at a simulation level. And I felt ready to take on these challenges, because my first race wasn’t a colossal, un-fun failure.
Granted, my ease of entrance to DRIVECLUB’s casual-hardcore hybrid racing could be thanks to my vehicle choice. The Ferrari I opted to drive was zippy and responsive, but the Aston Martin my partner Will Robinson drove seemed a bit more sluggish. Despite my car’s agility, it felt quite weighty and comfortably tethered to the track–except on diagonal, downward slopes, where the same amount of braking I’d mastered for flat-land turns would kick me into a power-slide. I’m especially impressed by the way this and a plethora of other mechanical oddities emerge naturally from the calculations and modelling that PS4 horsepower makes easier. Moment-to-moment thrills and surprises emerge from the exact replication of car data from manufacturers and the physical modeling of aerodynamics, weight distribution, and more. It’s the way all these things affect each other–not hard-coded if-then statements–that produces exciting variability in DRIVECLUB’s feel. I suspect even the most accomplished racing fans will learn something about car handling on the most technical level. @page
The same veterans, and the highly competitive among PlayStation Universe readers, will appreciate that Evolution recognizes the competitive consequences behind its absurd attention to detail. For example, sunlight is accurately diluted and refracted by voluminous clouds–every one is rendered in three dimensions. Consequently, on a sunny day, the exact lighting at ground level, and the resulting dashboard glare and track visibility, will change with random cloud configurations. As such, when challenging a friend’s time, their racing conditions will be replicated exactly.
This all starts to sound hyper-technical, and I’d wager the majority of PlayStation gamers don’t want to spend more time thinking about their racer instead of just enjoying the feeling of tearing through exotic locales in the world’s most powerful cars. The racing meta-game certainly doesn’t interest me, which is why I’m pleased to no end by how fun and accessible DRIVECLUB remains for the jump-in-and-play types. The learning curve flattens quickly, but straight ahead, a mountain of technical detail and resulting unpredictability awaits for those who venture to conquer it.
Jaw-dropping detail extends to the game’s visual fidelity. Earlier, I called DRIVECLUB “Evolution’s PS4 showcase.” Much like the handling and satisfying feeling of driving, the game’s visuals have come miles since my demo at E3 2013. It looked good then, but now, it’s nothing short of being PS4’s most photorealistic game, topped only in cinematic beauty by perhaps The Order: 1886. Literal thousands of trees adorn sweeping ravines and mountains in the distance. Striations in window tint are visible in direct sunlight. Cars offer up constant, warped reflections of their immediate surroundings. Every pebble, tar line, and asphalt crack is individually placed, without any repeating textures or patterns. It’s a sight to behold, simultaneously validating Evolution’s decision to delay the planned PS4 launch title to October 2014 and exciting the imagination at what’s going to be possible on PS4 down the line.
Count me among the legions of casual, even disinterested, racing gamers–I’m still extremely excited for DRIVECLUB. Racing games are either hardcore simulators or inviting to casual players–you can’t have both. But DRIVECLUB shatters conventional thought and serves up a mechanically tight, visually striking experience that should appeal to Gran Turismo diehards and the last few Crash Team Racing players alike.