RACE Pro Preview

Race Pro is the first console title for the racing-oriented development team, SimBin. Not only is team providing a unique experience for the consoles, it’s exclusive to the Xbox 360. As for the experience that Race Pro is set to offer, fans of the racing simulation genre should be excited to hear that this is as real as racing gets on the Xbox 360.

How authentic does it get? Well, to start off with the basics, if you try to cut the track to get ahead, you’ll be penalized by the game. If you attempt to cut the track more than a few times, be prepared to be disqualified from the race. So if you’re a gamer who tends to fly off the track more often then not, then you better get used to having to start over and learn how to drive with techniques to keep you on the track.

The preview build currently shows off 47 vehicles ranging from the Viper SRT10 to the Koenigsegg CCXR. Each car is rated on criteria such as power, torque, weight, top speed, and brand info. On top of having 47 vehicles to choose from, Race Pro has dozens upon dozens of paint details to choose from that vary from sponsors and teams. Out of all of the cars, the Formula One (F1) cars were the most intriguing to use since there aren’t many racing titles based around these licensed cars anymore.

Make no mistake; Race Pro is a simulation title that thrives on being realistic. When crashing into a wall, there’ll be damage done to your car with your bumper falling off, doors being dented, mirrors being smashed and a few other minor details. If you decide that the race is a lost cause and want to try and t-bone a competitor, you better be ready to be thrown off the track while your opposition isn’t harmed at all. This happened to be the biggest downside of Race Pro since the computer A.I. tends to stick on a rail and never passes one another after the first lap. Without this little hiccup, Race Pro would’ve been a much more enjoyable experience. But with the shoddy computer A.I. and the lack of their aggressiveness or randomness, Race Pro doesn’t offer many thrilling instances within its races.

Currently, Race Pro includes 13 tracks to race on that aren’t overwhelmingly detailed. From Valencia to Wisconsin, you’ll have a few options when it comes to your track selection. The downside is that developers haven’t added many accessories to the environments outside a few random spectators and billboards. When you slide off the track – which will happen more often than not if you aren’t adept at racing titles – you’ll notice the lack of texture detail on the ground. So as of right now, you shouldn’t be reserving your copy of Race Pro based on its graphical features.

SimBin is also setting Race Pro up to be a racing title to appeal to their worldwide audience. Among the options gamers have the ability to change include several different languages (English, Italian, French, German and Spanish) and the measurements (Metric System to the Imperial System). So if you’ve ever wanted to play your game in Spanish, then here’s your chance.

Trying to find racing matches online were unsuccessful, so there’s no telling how the online is shaping up but at least there’s a plethora of offline racing modes. Single Race, Career Mode, Championship, Hot Seat, Time Attack, and Open Practice are there for gamers to spend their free time with each offering something a little different. Single Race is your standard mode that allows you to jump right into a race. Career Mode is set to offer a long and enduring single-player mode with tons of races to boost your reputation and racing teams to join. Championship is a series of races to compete in while Hot Seat is a two-player mode where players can take turns controlling the car after every lap and/or competing against each other’s time trials. Time Attack is your typical time trials mode and Open Practice is there to freely drive around the tracks to improve your driving skills. All in all, Race Pro is a beefy simulator when it comes to game modes.

With Race Pro set to release on February 17, gamers will know soon have their hands on one of the 2009’s first racing titles. Come back in a few weeks and we’ll have our full review on Atari’s exclusive Xbox 360 racer.