RACE Pro Preview

E3 2008 Preview

For the past several years, SimBin has brought realistic racing simulators to PC gamers all over the world. This fall they will bring their development expertise to Xbox 360 in RACE Pro, the first console-specific (and 360-exclusive) title in the series.

Over 10 real-world tracks are being rendered for the game, as well as several real-world vehicles. The BMW 320si, Puegeot 407, Chevy Lacetti and Honda Accord were a few of the cars being shown off at E3, and they all looked good running on the Xbox 360 hardware. Crashes were met with the usual dose of visual delights: a realistically crumpled front end, blown tires, scratch marks, and other subtle elements that only the current game machines can deliver. The course designs were a little early but their frame rate already seemed solid in single-player mode, showing no signs of pop-up or slowdown.

If there's anything that sets RACE Pro apart from its competitors, it is how the game moves on screen. From a distance it looks like any other racer. But after watching closely I noticed a few subtle differences in how the game handles (it didn't look easy), how corners are dealt with (there appeared to be a lot of resistance) and what happens when you veer off course (the vehicle didn't spin out instantly but appeared to lose most of its traction). They may not be the most massive features, but it's these kinds of things that could push RACE Pro a few miles ahead of the pack.

Among the various championships planned for the game, two were being shown off: Formula 3000 and World Touring Car Championship (WTCC). The former is a high-speed race with Formula 1-type vehicles, while the latter is more of a traditional race collection that includes the aforementioned BMW 320si. It's unknown how the courses will be divided across each championship. More than likely, most will be available regardless of the style of racing.

Unfortunately, that's all Atari was ready to share. But GameZone will keep a close eye on RACE Pro and bring you more details the minute we have them.

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