Race Driver: GRID Demo

Racing simulators must take a lot of factors into consideration to provide you with a suitable experience, since there are many things that can turn away players. Thus, a too realistic depiction of the races would irritate more casual gamers, while a too arcade approach might make it unworthy in the eyes of hardcore players.

Race Driver: GRID, on the other hand, managed to strike almost the perfect balance between the two, by employing a realistic damage system along vaguely arcade-ish car control mechanics, which makes them easy to handle but very difficult to master. Hence, the game holds all the ingredients for success, with all that is missing being a collection of challenging events and some purpose to the overall gameplay.

To that effect, GRID takes you through the story of a race driver who's on his way to become the best at what he does, by winning every event he comes across. Although you compete for other teams and use their cars at first, after you put together enough money you can buy your own garage and start competing with your own cars, in order to really start bringing in the cash. To achieve this, you must attract sponsors and feature their logos on your cars, as well as win the races you enter.

As the Race Driver series accustomed you, there are a large number of different events you can enter, all of which require specific rides in order to be eligible. Thus, from classic touring car races on official tracks, to Formula One and street drift challenges, all of your abilities are put to the test during the career mode. The purpose of the campaign is for you to receive the licenses for every type of event from the three available continents, as well as buy the most expensive vehicles money can afford.

Naturally, the graphic quality present in the game is sublime, with exquisite special effects and more than convincing models and textures when it comes to the vehicles. The road and the environment are also very detailed, while post-processing effects like motion blur and depth of field bring the experience much closer to the real thing, especially when you use the cockpit view.

Although it might try to achieve too many things at once, Race Driver: GRID manages to stick to its promises and deliver an unforgettable racing experience all around. Thus, if you are passionate about cars and speed, the game at hand should definitely be on top of your priority list, especially if you do not limit yourself to one type of race.