Back in the driver’s seat of Grid Autosport
I decided to put down the flaming arrows and death touch from Shroud of the Avatar and jump behind the wheel in Grid Autosport. I’ve been away from the racing games too long and the need to speed through a chicane at breakneck speeds has been missing from my life. I’m not sure if I’m ready to face the frustrations of Assetto Corsa just yet, so Autosport it is!
I decided the series of the day would be Open Wheel. I’ve done a couple of the other series, but the thrill of being strapped to a large engine with nothing but a couple of pieces of carbon fiber separating us sounded great! But right off the bat something felt wrong. No, the graphics are quite excellent, the controller worked fine and the tracks were nicely rendered. No, it was something with me.
I noticed it when I went out for a qualifying lap. I hadn’t been doing the qualifying laps which is why I always ended up dead last. I quickly realized I wasn’t crashing into the walls or sliding off the track into the sandpits. What’s gone wrong here? Why all of a sudden can I drive this car like I know what I’m doing?
Following the indicators I choose decent lines, hit the apex and held off braking until I was in the red. Not every lap was a gem and I overcooked a few turns, but by and large I was on the straight and narrow. Much to my surprise and thinking the game was broken or at the very least defective, I managed to come in 1st. And not just once, but several times. I even came in first and won the season. Sadly, I have a boat anchor of a teammate who can’t seem to figure out which pedal is used for making the car go fast and drives like Mr. Magoo in a rain storm. What the hell is wrong with that guy and how can I fire him?
But now that I seem to have found my driving rhythm I was at it for hours! The first couple of seasons were somewhat short, but get a couple of seasons under your belt and it becomes quite the commitment. But holy hell it was fun! I had the sound turned up and music from the Echo laying on top of that. I even had to remind myself to blink.
The Grid games and the Dirt series have been a lot of fun, but this is beefed up little. It’s still got some arcade mechanics, but it’s far more simulator that Dirt.
By the time I was done, I’d managed to reach Lvl 10 for Open Wheel and the wicked harpy narrator kept telling me I needed to up the difficulty. Oh really now? I manage to get one day’s worth of racing where I don’t crash into every other car on the track and you think I need to turn the dial up to 11? Shut up ya devil! You just tell me I’ve won the season, made the sponsors happy and then zip it!
During the last sale I did buy the XP Boost and one or two other DLC packs so there is plenty more to play with this game. I’m going to have to jump back in next weekend and try one of the other series. I wonder if I’ll be kissing the wall like usual?
