APEX for XBOX. Anybody played this one?
02-24-03, 04:22 PM
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APEX for XBOX. Anybody played this one?
I was reading Penny Arcade and Gabe is going nuts over this racing game called APEX. From the description, it sounds like a fun mix of RPG elements and racing. Start a car company, create a sports car and race it. If you're successful, you'll sell more cars and be able to make better cars for racing.
I've never seen it in the stores. Anyone here have it or played it? What did you think?
I've never seen it in the stores. Anyone here have it or played it? What did you think?
02-24-03, 07:18 PM
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A rep from Infogrames gave me a copy. I don't like racing games, but I named my company Earl and it was hilarious. I even got to pick the shiny bling bling "E" emblem. The Earl beat the Lotus on my first and only race.
Fear the Earl.
Fear the Earl.
02-24-03, 08:27 PM
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I wrote a summary of my thoughts on the game in this thread here.
Here's what I wrote:
CONS:
The option to 'tune' your car is severely limited. The car can be set to the following:
Handling: Drift around corners or normal.
Gear ratio: Low, Normal, High
Downforce: Low, Normal, High
Launching the car from the start is a no-brainer. You could hold down the accelerator and your car would do minimal wheelspin everytime. You don't get to "find" the optimal RPM to hold your engine at prior to the green light because it's not going to matter.
The AI is pretty good but only because it has the "rubberband" effect. You could fall behind the pack, but catch-up within 15-20 seconds if you stay on the road. When in the lead, you can never pull away even if you drive a clean line. The pack will always catch you so long as they don't force each other of the road or crash into each other going into a turn.
The sound of cars bumping each other sounds like two tool boxes hitting each other.
You don't really get to design your own car. You get to select from a pool of cars already designed. It's just a matter of you selecting which ones you want to build to label as your own. Very limited selection.
PROS:
Graphics, graphics, graphics!
The backgrounds and cars themselves are amazing to look at. I find myself going off the road because I'm watching the scenery. It feels so 'alive'. Firetrucks are moving, police lights are turning, balloons, planes landing, flags moving in the wind, waterfall, and that's just to name a few.
The bass from the engine rev of some of these cars is shaking my windows!
Custom soundtrack is supported which is a plus, but I drive with the music set 'OFF' anyway.
"Rubberband AI" can also be viewed as a plus since it keeps the game close. You are always fighting for 1st place from start to finish. This keeps the game fun. Although you could never pull away, good/defensive driving will keep you in the lead.
Building your own Auto Empire is a fun novelty but I wonder how long this will last. It is fun to watch your manufacturing plant grow and become more modernized. The number of staff members will grow as well.
So there it is. The game is definitely an arcade racer and is nowhere close to being a sim. I personally enjoy it more than PGR because I'm not a fan of the kudos system. The handling around turns feels better in Sega GT2002 but that's to be expected because of the arcade-feel to this game.
Feel free to post questions.
Here's what I wrote:
CONS:
The option to 'tune' your car is severely limited. The car can be set to the following:
Handling: Drift around corners or normal.
Gear ratio: Low, Normal, High
Downforce: Low, Normal, High
Launching the car from the start is a no-brainer. You could hold down the accelerator and your car would do minimal wheelspin everytime. You don't get to "find" the optimal RPM to hold your engine at prior to the green light because it's not going to matter.
The AI is pretty good but only because it has the "rubberband" effect. You could fall behind the pack, but catch-up within 15-20 seconds if you stay on the road. When in the lead, you can never pull away even if you drive a clean line. The pack will always catch you so long as they don't force each other of the road or crash into each other going into a turn.
The sound of cars bumping each other sounds like two tool boxes hitting each other.
You don't really get to design your own car. You get to select from a pool of cars already designed. It's just a matter of you selecting which ones you want to build to label as your own. Very limited selection.
PROS:
Graphics, graphics, graphics!
The backgrounds and cars themselves are amazing to look at. I find myself going off the road because I'm watching the scenery. It feels so 'alive'. Firetrucks are moving, police lights are turning, balloons, planes landing, flags moving in the wind, waterfall, and that's just to name a few.
The bass from the engine rev of some of these cars is shaking my windows!
Custom soundtrack is supported which is a plus, but I drive with the music set 'OFF' anyway.
"Rubberband AI" can also be viewed as a plus since it keeps the game close. You are always fighting for 1st place from start to finish. This keeps the game fun. Although you could never pull away, good/defensive driving will keep you in the lead.
Building your own Auto Empire is a fun novelty but I wonder how long this will last. It is fun to watch your manufacturing plant grow and become more modernized. The number of staff members will grow as well.
So there it is. The game is definitely an arcade racer and is nowhere close to being a sim. I personally enjoy it more than PGR because I'm not a fan of the kudos system. The handling around turns feels better in Sega GT2002 but that's to be expected because of the arcade-feel to this game.
Feel free to post questions.
