If EA is the king of sports games, the Rainbow Studios would be the king for Motocross racing games. For several years this development team has released a steady stream of “off-road” racing games unto the gaming masses, and fans have loved it. There are three reasons these games are loved: great level designs, wonderful control schemes, and a huge replay factor.

When players first load up MX vs ATV Untamed they will be blown away by the amount of game modes. First up is the quick event, which randomizes everything from event type to duration, vehicle class and type. Players will want to choose this mode if they just want to get a quick racing fix. In the X-Cross Tournament, players will race in eight unique and different racing series, which finally crosses each of them into one ultimate off-road championship. As players progress in this mode they will unlock new gear, vehicles, and cash. Another mode that players will enjoy participating in is the Event Series. In this mode, players will face various challenges as the rules and type of completion changes; if players can complete the first set of events they will have the opportunity to try another set.

The last mode that players have access to is the one that has the most options and where players will spend the majority of their time - Custom Event. There are several events to choose from such as free ride, where players can explore the world, find hidden sprockets and racing events, and get the general lay of the land. In National mode players will be in an outdoor setting, and their goal is to get to the end of the race as fast as they can, as well as trying to get the highest jump off each ramp. If players enjoy trying to pull off various tricks in succession, then Freestyle mode will occupy them for a long time.

In Opencross players will race though the harshest outdoor environments that are loaded with plenty of hazards. Supermoto allows MX, ATV, and Trucks to compete in various races against each other. Endurocross is a competition where players must ride MX bikes though courses that are loaded with plenty of hazards, such as water pits, boulders, and logs that try to stifle players from completing the race. Waypoint racing mode is unique because the only thing players have to do is cross certain waypoint (check) gates to win the race. What makes this unique is players can choose their own route to the gates, since there is no predefined road for them to travel. The last event is the Minimoto, and in this mode players race MX Mini’s around on indoor courses. Needless to say, there is a lot of game modes that will keep players occupied for hours on end.

The multiplayer mode for this game is pretty good, especially since players will be able to play with up to 12 people either online or locally. Once online, players will either be able to play in ranked or non-ranked matches. Although most of the time will be spent playing the minigames, and they are graffiti, snake, or tag. Graffiti is similar to the same game in Tony Hawk - players must mark various landmarks by performing the highest combos off of them. Snake is where players must “fence in” their opponents with their snake barrier until they are the last one still riding. In tag players must collect the ball and try to keep it for more than one minute. The ball is traded each time another place gets in close proximity to the ball carrier and tags them. What is greatly appreciated is the smooth “lag free” online experience, which is always valued in any online game.

One of the reasons that this game has remained so popular is the fact that there are always numerous types of vehicles to race with and the controls are always tight and responsive. Thankfully this has not changed in this game. Players will be able to drive bikes, ATV’s, dune buggies, monster trucks, and more. This is made even better since each vehicle controls and handles differently from one another, so playing the same course multiple times with different vehicles will always be a new experience.

While the game has a really nice framerate, everything else looks really bland. The particle effects are decent but nothing to get excited about. The textures that the game uses are really bland and look washed out. The vehicles are not highly detailed nor are the various levels that players will be competing in. This is made even worse since many other older games released on the Xbox 360 look way better.

The sound effects are also pretty lackluster. While all of the various engine noises and humming are spot on, it lacks the “bang” that other games have. The soundtrack for this game is pretty decent, although it has many older hits from earlier this year; it is nothing to get really excited about. In fact, many players will be using the good old “custom soundtrack” feature while they play this game instead of the one that comes with it.

MX vs ATV Untamed is rated for Everyone.

Gameplay: 7.8
Lack of content is not the problem with this game; what is wrong is the fact that so little has changed in comparison to previous games in the series. Even though the tight controls remain the same, and the selection of vehicles is great, the lack of new gameplay variety is a huge letdown.

Graphics: 6.1
The graphics are very bland and are not as great as competing games that have been recently released.

Sound: 6.5
The soundtrack is decent but it will get old quickly. The engine sounds are nice, but lack the “punch” to really bring it out more.

Difficulty: Medium
This game is not very difficult, but it is frustrating, especially if players like collecting all hidden objectives in the levels. The computer AI is not overly cheap, but they will be challenging in later levels.

Concept: 7.4
The developer must be starting to run out of fresh ideas for their games, as this entire game has a very “been there done that” feeling to it; especially if gamers have played any of the previous game in this franchise.

Multiplayer: 7.6
The multiplayer options are decent and will keep players occupied for a long time, both online and locally.

Overall: 7.4
MX vs ATV Untamed is a good game that really lacks inspiration. As stated earlier this game is very similar to many of the previous games in this series. It is like the developers ran out of ideas, and to make matters worse the graphics are not even up to par. Hopefully next year the development team at Rainbow Studios will revamp their game so they can once again be king of the Motocross hill. While decent, their current product doesn’t quite stand up to the competition.