By : NASRIN MODAK SIDDIQI
MUMBAI :
It’s eight pm on a Friday evening and the mood is set at entrepreneur Siddharth Toprani’s apartment at Breach Candy, Mumbai. Games – check, consoles setup – check, accessories connected – check, strong black coffee stocked – check, pizza and beverages ordered – check. It is going to be a long game night for this bunch of millennials, all of who prefer hours of torqued up, heart-pounding action rather than being sloshed at some crowded SoBo (South Bombay) pub. “No alcohol for us on game nights either – it is best to stay sober to focus on the game,” says Toprani.
Tonight, it is time for Mario Kart 2019, something they have been planning to test for months now. In fact, one of the first games that Toprani played after purchasing the Nintendo Wii console from GameStop in Las Vegas, USA, was Mario Kart 2019. “It came bundled with the console and the cool accessories like Wiimote, Nunchucks and the Wii Wheel that had my heart. We’ve been told that this HD re-release that came out last year on the console Nintendo Switch is fast-paced and frantic and we can’t wait to experience a racing simulator with our old favourites - Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Yoshi, Daisy, Bowser and Dry Bowser and fan favourite - Donkey Kong,” says Toprani. After a six-hour long marathon, the verdict is out. Simple, yet engaging, the bunch had fun playing level after level of pure racing with power ups, nitro boosts and drifting karts. It has been one helluva game night for the boys.
Gaming blogger, Rishabh Ullal, says, “Despite the lack of distributors in India for any and all things Nintendo, games like Mario Kart for the Wii system are highly sought after. And why not? You can play every character from the Mario series on 32 different race tracks using special items to win a race. What is even more engaging is that the game supports multiple single-player and multi-player modes including a four-person split screen. Perfect for game night.”
Tech and Gaming Columnist, Jaison Lewis’ choice for a night with friends is Mario Kart 8 on the Switch. “It is a great party game where you can play with up to four people on a single screen. The game entails racing against and taking down friends with fun powerups,” he adds.
F1 2019
A perfect simulation of Formula 1 racing – F1 2019, features all the 21 circuits; 20 drivers and 10 teams present in the 2019 Formula One World Championship. Players can interact with or play as Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher, Sebastian Vettel or even Narain Karthikeyan. “The game gives players an insight into how a real F1 drivers manage their careers, with test drives, pit stops, changing tyres and tuning car engines to win the grand prix,” says Toprani. “Game developers, Codemasters, have done a great job with F1 2019with every minute detail from Formula 1 being carried over to the game, it truly feels like a proper simulation. The game has won numerous awards too. In fact, folks who bought the Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna DLC (Downloadable Content) got to race in their championship winning cars as them. The DLC also includes the 2010 McLaren MP4-25 driven by Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, and the 2010 Ferrari F10 driven by Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa. This was also the first time that Codemasters introduced the Formula 2 racing as a Career Mode,” says Ullal.
However, not everybody is cheering for it. Software engineer, Lakshay Pratap Singh Panwar, doesn’t find the graphics, dialogues, scene interactions and game models of F1 2019 any different from its predecessors and isn’t blown away by the enhanced Artificial Intelligence (AI). “Once you get a hang of AI, you will not want to play against online players at all,” says Panwar.
Forza Horizon 4
This one comes from the Forza Horizon franchise – the first racing games developed by Microsoft studios exclusively for the Xbox 360. Panwar feels the latest Forza Horizon 4 is a masterpiece of a game. “Whether you are using the controller, the wheel or the keyboard, you will love it. The music and graphics are just as awesome as the gameplay itself. Although the physics of the game is not that good, the handling of the cars makes it a tough one. Customisations are great too. Wouldn’t you want to be the fastest in the race and not lose behind just because you pressed the handbrake for too long,” asks Panwar. Even Lewis recommends it. “The game just looks so good and the cars handle so well, that you ought to try it.” “Think of it as a cumulation of Burnout, Formula 1 and Need for Speed (NFS), because the game has every element from these games that makes it a blast to play. A must play for any car racing fan,” adds Ullal.
NFS Heat
Every gamer - amateur or hardcore - has played NFS, the most popular racing series of all time. There have been different versions, some good, some not so good, with the most notable one being the NFS Special Edition and NFS Hot Pursuit. Lewis says that he also enjoyed this one last year. “It is surprising because the last few NFS games have been pretty bad. This time around, they got the formula right with good cop chases and a lot of focus on the driving experience,” he says.
Gamer and Streamer, Ankkita Chauhan, who loves playing with her friends has been playing the first franchise of NFS Heat since school. “I remember spending way too much time on my PC back then when a relative had gifted the game to me. This time, I played it on the PS4 instead and boy what an upgrade it feels! The cop pursuits are absolutely crazy and unpredictable and so many new, insane mods are available too. The details are mind-blowing and makes you want to play the game over again,” she says.
Ullal says “The twenty-fourth instalment in the Need for Speed series that also commemorates the series’ 25th anniversary, is quite a surprise package. Even if NFS Heat doesn’t really sizzle, it is definitely much hotter than many of its previous versions.
Panwar feels that the fact that EA (Electronic Arts) releases this game every two years without paying much attention to the what made NFS popular in the first place may be a bit disappointing at times. “The graphics have been improved only a little and the mode where you can switch from day to night with all the neon lights in night race just wants you to give up the game. The story component is just as bad as any other game in last eight years. The only thing that has gotten better is the customisation which is now simpler. I hope they remake NFS Most Wanted or NFS Underground 2 and give fans what they want because an awesome NFS game is long due for its fans,” says Panwar.
Burnout Paradise
Another favourite of Toprani and his friends is Burnout Paradise. One of the first open world racing video games, the Burnout series changed the racing genre altogether. “It launched over a decade ago, and since the game was available on PC, Playstation 3 and Xbox 360, it had a wider reach,” says Toprani. It’s HD re-release came out in 2018.
Set in a fictional paradise city (Did someone say Miami?), the drive through during racing is beautiful. “The gameplay has new modes, including crash mode, which allows players to gain speed, accelerate, then crash into other cars or obstacles such as signals or barriers to gain points. The more stylish and dramatic the crash - the more points you earn,” informs Toprani.
“The big difference between NFS and Burnout is the utter mayhem that the latter offers. When your in-game driver’s license has statistics for ‘biggest crash for every street in the game,’ you know the whole point is to have fun while racing. It has an easy multiplayer system wherein you hit right on the Direction Pad of the controller and invite your friends to start causing mayhem together,” says Ullal.
Dirt 2.0
Lewis says, “If you were looking for something more serious, Dirt 2.0 is a hardcore rally simulation that will challenge you at every turn.” Easily a game of great adrenaline rush, the game gives you many great moments where you can feel the thrill if you are driving with the steering cam and using a controller wheel. “The graphics are not so great but what works is the realism and the rush you feel after beating past your opponent,” adds Panwar.
