Ford Racing 2 is
most definitely not first on PC race day. Although it delivers a number of
unique challenges that go beyond the basic racing routine and more Ford cars
and trucks are offered than you can shake a Fiesta at, the game is plagued by
dated physics and a sense that you've already seen the same thingonly better.
If it were released a few years prior, just as Electronic Arts' Need for Speed
was finding its footing, Ford Racing 2 would have fared a lot better. As it is,
Empire's latest racer unfortunately does not offer enough excitement for the
arcade crowd or nearly enough complexity for simulation hounds.
Ford Racing 2 veers
somewhat from the path taken by its forgotten predecessor. Whereas the original
featured a barely adequate dozen drivable Ford automobiles, the new game sports
more than 30 vintage, current, and concept models. Whereas the original zeroed
in almost exclusively on a "career," the new game steers clear of
such intricacies in favor of a wide variety of "challenges" that
range from traditional head to head racing to solo slalom and time-limited
affairs.
Aside from these
key distinctions, both games share similar key design traits. For starters,
Ford Racing 2 is once again an exclusive Ford club, so you won't find any
Lamborghinis or BMWs in here. This exclusivity wouldn't matter so much if each
of the 30 plus vehicles delivered a unique and plausible ride, but designer
Razorworks simply hasn't implemented this. Granted, a circa 1940s pickup truck
does behave slightly differently from a Ford Focus rally car and a Jetsons inspired
Ford concept car, but none of these three are truly believable or truly
distinct.
Ford Racing 2 is
divided into two general elements the Ford Challenge and the Ford Collection.
The former consists of approximately 30 preset challenges comprising the events
listed above and is considered the game's central feature. The latter allows
you to create and customize your own events. To advance in the Challenge and
add more items and locations to the Collection, you must unlock vehicles,
tracks, and much more by winning the game's few unlocked races.
Windows
Xp,7,Vista,8
Ram: 128 Mb
Video Memory: 32 MB
HDD:150 MBCpu: 500MHz