Hands On: Midtown Madness 2 - IGN (original) (raw)
Double the cities means more carnage.
We got a copy of Midtown Madness 2 in the office today, and other than weeping at the lack of multiplayer (it's not in this beta build), we got right to business. Within five minutes of launch, I had crashed two cars, and caused irreparable damage to thousands of pedestrian's self-worth.
The descriptions of the new gameplay in a recent interview with Producer Jay Panek of the game are proving to be right on the mark. The first thing that hits you in the new game is just how friggin' large it is, with two full-scale cities that each offer a denser experience than the first game. While there are still some bugs with car AI, the physics are tighter than the original, as well as more cartoonish (you can figure out how that makes sense on your own). The crashes are even juicier, as you can tell from the Double Decker smasher pic I've included for your pleasure.
The one thing I forgot about MM is just how fast the racing can get when you get behind the wheel of a top-end car. I revved up the engine of a London patrol car and hung on for life as I tried to navigate San Francisco's Embarcadero Center without slamming straight into a wall. The cruise mode is as fun as ever, and allowed me to check out some of the new secrets and jumps that the design team has talked about. While I didn't see any of the flatbeds that allowed you to get airborn in the original, I did find some hidden ramps in buildings, or on structures themselves, like the sculpture at Justin Herman Plaza that allowed me to get a nice bird's eye view of the waterfront, before getting a mole's eye view of the grass.
London feels akin to Chicago in the original game, but that's probably due to the lack of insane hills that make SF such a great place to race. Thanks to the Thames, there are plenty of drawbridge jumps to navigate, and thanks to London's old world city planning, there are tons of tiny alleys and side streets to navigate. I took to the tunnels of the underground transit system, found myself a great way to cut under the river and around the city, and made sure to politely ram my car into Trafalgar square on my way to a checkpoint. The addition of the parked cars in London seems like a minor addition, but unlike regular walls, once you've hit a car (or two, or three), you'll have yourself a world of trouble, especially on the more narrow roads. The cars fly around because of the physics engine, and you may find yourself trapped between vehicles, revving your way out of a wreck while you watch your time fly away.
Of the new cars, I had a chance to try out the London Cab, the Mini Cooper, and the Double Decker bus, all fine additions to the original selections of cars. The cab's a little slow on the get-go, but it's pretty meaty in terms of size, and has no trouble whomping through pesky cars. The Mini Cooper is a blast, incredibly light but a great size for taking those small alleys and crowded freeways. And do I even need to describe the Double Decker bus? "And on the left, we have the set of cars I've just pushed into a crunchy pile. Passengers, the next stop will be hell." I've always been a fan of the big fat vehicles in the game, and I can't wait to check out the interior view of the bus (interior views aren't in this current build).
In addition to the Blitz, Checkpoint and Circuit races from the first game there's the Crash Course Tour, a set of small but wacky games that, when completed, unlock new cars like the Aston Martin DB7 Vantage and the Light Tactical Vehicle. They range from cop chases to big, big jumps, and they're a perfect addition to the MM objectives. I've just begun to chew into this one, and hopefully it'll keep me busy for a while. There are a whole lotta competitions, in case you're wondering, and at this point I'm just beginning to scratch the surface. I've been finding a lot of weird, wild areas in both cities, so I can't wait to see what sort of races are in store in later stages. You can rest easy though -- there's plenty of racing through oncoming traffic in MM2, though freeways are nowhere near the focus that they were in the original game.
And in case you're wondering, I haven't unlocked any of the special cars yet -- I'm trying though, I'm trying... but those pedestrians always distract me from my goals. Mmmmm... pedestrians. We'll be getting a multiplayer playable in the next week or so, so look for a multiplayer hands-on with more car and track info then.
-- Vincent Lopez
In This Article
