GRID Autosport -- Review (PC)

Released: 2014. Developer: Codemasters.

In 2008 Codemasters released their first instalment of the GRID series with Race Driver: Grid. In 2013 they released GRID 2. It took 5 years to develop a sequel to the first Grid yet, in 2014, GRID Autosport has already arrived as a sequel to GRID 2. The fact that it took roughly 1 year to develop, then, makes GRID Autosport feel like a bridge between worlds; something to fill the void until Codemaster’s next big title. It is, after all, the third game of the series on the same hardware. The visuals are roughly the same and the gameplay philosophy remains mostly intact. PC gamers are generally starved of big racing titles (no Forza or Gran Turismo games for them) so Autosport is probably a welcome addition to a sparse library of racing games. Autosport is, however, otherwise unremarkable compared to what went before.

One of the more noticeable and key aspects of modern racing titles is their visual fidelity. Sure, intricate gameplay and depth are also important, but racing titles are – by and large – major showcases of what gaming hardware is capable of. Lush vegetation, highly-detailed tarmac, 3D crowds, detailed trees that flow in the wind, leaves blowing off the tracks, and – of course – the hot waxed beauty of gorgeous supercars all help to encompass racing games as benchmarks of modern technology. Autosport, in this regard, ticks all those boxes and looks incredible. The lush beauty and misty air of the Hockenheimring is excellently contrasted with the sexy and stylish roads of Paris. The variation in tracks and locations helps keep Autosport fresh and varied. The selection of cars is intended to suit different track designs too, with touring cars for professional circuits and tuned street cars for night time city racing. Tearing up the roads of sunny Barcelona in the majestic McLaren F1 never felt better. The overall amount of tracks and cars is impressive, though it is unlikely anyone but the most dedicated will grow to appreciate such depth. Indeed, because Autosport is the third instalment of a series spanning roughly 6 years, the game suffers from diminishing returns.

Autosport offers several driving disciplines, each with its own career progression.

By their very nature racing games find it increasingly difficult to evolve. The core concept of racing – especially in the context of a ‘serious’ racer like GRID – can only ever be expanded upon until realism is reached. All that is left is visual upgrades, new cars and new tracks. The obligatory levelling system and perks can be added to keep-up with modern trends, but it was always going to be challenging for Autosport to innovate when GRID 2 came out just over a year ago. Developers can occasionally revolutionise with great ideas; Autosport was never destined for that fate. This in mind, it is difficult to suggest the visuals and gameplay in Autosport are worth seeing when playing GRID 2 is just as feasible and will yield the same results at a lower cost. Autosport may as well be viewed as an expansion pack. A full RRP expansion pack, it is worth adding. If you hammered GRID 2 and need more tracks and new cars – and have money to burn – then Autosport is ideal. For everyone else, though, Autosport serves as nothing more than an overpriced quick cash-in game for Codemasters to fund their next big title.

The best position to be in as a potential buyer of Autosport is to have not played GRID 2 at all. In that regard, players can appreciate the actual advancements Codemasters did add once upon time. The ‘flashback’ system is still one of the most innovative features of modern racers and helps counter the age-old frustration of losing a 20-minute long race because you crashed right before the finish line. The Forza method of letting players add or remove driving assists is also welcome but, again, is not unique to Autosport. For example, the amount of flashbacks available can be reduced to increase experience gains, or racing lines can be turned on to help newbies ease into this semi-hardcore racer. Races themselves, too, contain mini-objectives to keep the player engaged, with specific rivals to beat and teammate coordination encouraged. Moreover, the fact that a racing game – on the PC of all platforms – contains a split-screen mode is still commendable. Neither innovative nor unique, split-screen gaming is nevertheless an old tradition that should never be abandoned – something Codemasters deserve credit for. All these features, that were once unique and refreshing, are still great additions to any racing title, but their effects in Autosport are diminished. What made previous GRID titles great now makes Autosport functional at best. Solid, but functional. Even so, while Autosport retains all of the best elements of previous titles – and of most other modern racers – the persistent flaws that were present before have still not been dealt with.

The in-car view makes a return.

Upon this review of the game Autosport has been out for a few weeks or so. Yet, despite that, there are numerous issues surrounding the game from corrupted save files to bizarre online shenanigans. One glitch sees AI drivers failing to set-off from the starting grid which leaves players stranded on a never-ending result’s screen, ultimately unable to complete the online custom cup/events competition. Furthermore, the online balancing of players and cars is massively out of sync, with new players almost always racing against players with more skill and better cars. Lower levelled players cannot access car upgrades until they are at the required level and have enough money to purchase such upgrades, therefore they are typically at a huge disadvantage when Autosport matches them against higher ranked players. Meanwhile, GRID 2’s damage indicators return to show players how good or bad you race in relation to smashing their doors in, but clearly this system was not deemed radical enough. Indeed, Autosport now charges players in-game cash for damage caused. The problem with this approach is that, typically, crashes happen as a result of general gameplay; players can end up paying out huge costs even if they race fairly. In all, the online component of Autosport feels rushed and underdeveloped. Worse still, weeks have passed since Autosport’s release yet there appears to be no news of patches or fixes for these annoying bugs and imbalances.

There are more general flaws, too. For one thing, the career mode still requires far too much grinding unless you are able to race without any assists turned on (in which case, good for you). There is still no licensed (or any) music to listen to when racing (engine sounds are great but the option of music would be nice). The difficulty leap between medium AI drivers and hard AI drivers is ridiculous – there is no middle-ground between too easy and too hard. Furthermore, the gameplay still feels like it does not properly reward the best driver; someone can crash and bounce off walls but as long as they have a faster car they can still win. The latter issue was more pronounced in GRID 2 and is noticeably better in Autosport, but the game still lacks the finesse and grace required to elevate it to the pantheon of truly great racing titles.

The game looks great, but has not advanced beyond what GRID 2 had already established.

What keeps GRID Autosport in (mostly) high esteem is the fact that not many mainstream driving games exist on the PC. Had Autosport to contend with Forza Motorsport, Gran Turismo or Driveclub then its inability to evolve or fix existing issues would probably be all the more worse. As it is, Project CARS or the next Need for Speed appear to be its only potential rivals in the coming years. Regardless, the insistence of a full retail price for an otherwise glorified expansion pack is something Autosport can rightly be criticised for, with or without competition. A single year’s development cycle was never going to amount to much beyond what GRID 2 already offered – that much is abundantly clear to anyone who plays Autosport for more than an hour. The content is, indeed, fine but does little to inspire amazement. The cars and tracks look and play well, and there is enough to do until the grinding gets too much, but the retaining of existing flaws from previous instalments, as well as a near-abandonment of its online functionality, leaves Autosport as a rather disappointing, if somewhat functional distraction until Codemasters’ next big racing title arrives.

6/10