What Exactly IS a Good Racing Game?

I didnt enjoy rush n crush much. The only racing game we play with constitency that we enjoy a lot is Snow Tails. We really have fun with it and havent gotten tired of it because there are tracks with obstacles such as trees, narrow bottlenecks and because of the way the damage system works: if you hit a wall or another dog sledder you take damage, which reduces your speed cards and gives a press your luck element versus reduced options. it is great.

Have yet to try rallyman which is supposedly good too.

Sagrilarus wrote:

3. Bidding. Goes back to the whole "I'm not tied to one car" thing.

If you're not tied to car it's not a racing game. At that point it's a gambling game and, though it may be good, it's not about racing. It's about gambling on racing.

Sorry for being restrictive, but I'm invoking Branham's Razor -- this is me, these are mine. I like the simultaneous movement idea and I think that is something to put on the short list. But one of the critters on the board has to be me or I'm not racing.

S.

Well, okay. I misspoke a bit. You *do* have direct control of certain car(s) based on pre-race bidding. If you're the high bidder on the Red car, then that car is "yours" for this race and how it finishes directly impacts you and your payouts. You'll want that car to finish in the best place possible.

But you race more than one race, so the car you're in control of might change.

The "during the race betting" is a side game to this, though one that can be very lucrative. Yeah, this might affect your actual racing performance of "your" car. But for that race, it's still "yours."

I can respect your viewpoint, though, and see where you're coming from. If "I own ONE car" is the prereq, then it's hard to go wrong on the old standby Formula D...you just need a group of at least six to make it fun. There you've got dice rolling, some blocking, risk management (how fast will you take this curve so you can come out of it in as high a gear as possible?) That would be my recommend outside of Top Race.

I want to re-iterate the above sentiment--PLAY FAST. It is a race. Analysis paralysis is the death of decent racing games. I like MAGICAL ATHELETE, SPEED CIRCUIT, and WIN, PLACE & SHOW for different reasons. All of them need someone to keep things going. Letting someone hem and haw and "j'adoube" bullshit their pieces all over the place will just kill the game for everyone. Keep it light, keep it quick, and keep going.

Definitely keeping an eye on this thread, because there's something wonderfully evident about a racing game. Just about anyone "gets" them instantly.

The best racing game I've ever played is Das Motorsport Spiel. We had a league going for a while, but it petered out after the new year. I definitely want to try another league later on this year, maybe selecting our racers a little more carefully. That one works best because it really emphasizes the split-second decision making that you need, and the idea that you don't get takebacks. It's lucky and pretty simple, but it's also a ton of fun.

And Magical Athlete. That game is stupider like a fox. I just love it.

GMT has that game Thunder Alley on the P500. It's not very far along, but it does look like something I'd like.

Ken B. wrote:

Sagrilarus wrote:

3. Bidding. Goes back to the whole "I'm not tied to one car" thing.

If you're not tied to car it's not a racing game. At that point it's a gambling game and, though it may be good, it's not about racing. It's about gambling on racing.

Sorry for being restrictive, but I'm invoking Branham's Razor -- this is me, these are mine. I like the simultaneous movement idea and I think that is something to put on the short list. But one of the critters on the board has to be me or I'm not racing.

S.

Well, okay. I misspoke a bit. You *do* have direct control of certain car(s) based on pre-race bidding. If you're the high bidder on the Red car, then that car is "yours" for this race and how it finishes directly impacts you and your payouts. You'll want that car to finish in the best place possible.

But you race more than one race, so the car you're in control of might change.

The "during the race betting" is a side game to this, though one that can be very lucrative. Yeah, this might affect your actual racing performance of "your" car. But for that race, it's still "yours."

I can respect your viewpoint, though, and see where you're coming from. If "I own ONE car" is the prereq, then it's hard to go wrong on the old standby Formula D...you just need a group of at least six to make it fun. There you've got dice rolling, some blocking, risk management (how fast will you take this curve so you can come out of it in as high a gear as possible?) That would be my recommend outside of Top Race.

The problem with just controlling one car in a racing game is that you can very quickly find yourself in a position where you cannot win, no way no how. We usually race Das Motorport Spiel with two cars each, just to keep people in the game. And even then, it works best when you're playing for points in a league.

If Branham's Razor wasn't being invoked I'd also name The Really Nasty Horse Racing Game as great. Barnes was the one I learned about that game from and it is a blast.

Magical Athelete I sold as fast as I could. Did not enjoy altho I thought I would. Found it annoying as hell after only three or four games.

So Top Race adds betting? Ugh. I'd rather stick with Detroit-Cleveland Grand Prix or Formel Einz. However, if Top Race has four maps that's still a good option as you just ignore the betting rules.

Can this be broadened? Powerboats is a great one, and I've always had a soft spot for Circus Maximus.

Notahandle wrote: So Top Race adds betting? Ugh. I'd rather stick with Detroit-Cleveland Grand Prix or Formel Einz. However, if Top Race has four maps that's still a good option as you just ignore the betting rules.

You can totally ignore the betting (as well as the stock variant, Pit Stop, and other rules included.)

Personally I'm not sure why you would, but you can.

Because it makes car ownership more impersonal, so it feels less like a race game, more like a betting game. It's more suitable for horses than cars.

Notahandle wrote: Because it makes car ownership more impersonal, so it feels less like a race game, more like a betting game. It's more suitable for horses than cars.

Fair enough. For me, the betting keeps everything interesting from start to finish, but yeah, you might feel like a spectator betting on the race--even as far as the pre-game "bidding" is concerned, where maybe you're just cornering exclusive bets on certain cars. Also, the moving multiple cars along with all of this keeps the interactivity and involvement higher, at least for the people I'm playing with.

Does that make it less of a pure racing game? Maybe. But it sure as hell is fun!