Evolution GT Preview

I love to race cars in a virtual environment. There's the thrill of driving a car that most of us will never have the chance to do in the real world. There's the taste of various exotic and lush tracks I'll never visit in person. Though I seem to get worse and worse as the games get better, I still enjoy a good racing game. Black Bean's upcoming Evolution GT is a solid racing game that will test your skills with a grand variety of experiences for your senses.

Though the sampled version only contains a few of the 35 cars to drive, it is enough to give you an idea of what to expect. From the Audi, Renault and SEAT Leon racers, I stuck mostly with the Renault. My sister had one in the 80s (no, not a racer, but a sedan!), so I had to stick with something I knew. The city course was very tricky to learn. It took many miserable runs to get somewhat of a feel for it, as well as the car's physics. Every aspect of the experience was very sleek and full of energy. The course looked tight and genuine. It doesn't appear that there were any shortcuts taken, though that is the standard route for many racing developers. Maybe I am just too used to oval-tracked NASCAR style racing, but this seemed very fresh and the audio helped complete the illusion of being there.

The full game consists of 28 tracks from cities like London to country landscapes like the Highlands of Scotland. The AI promises to envelope you in realism and challenge. The game will learn your abilities as you progress, and "crank it up", accordingly. I can tell you from the accelerating and braking, it seems to deliver everything they promise in realism. You can play a variety of options such as Career or Challenge mode. The former allows you to gain points and rise in the ranks as your progress (including equipment upgrades as your rewards allow), while the latter is just a test of your skills with more of a one-on-one situation to see what you're made of.

I have read of some users having problems with the downloaded demo available from their site, but I imagine such issues are resolved by now. I'd recommend trying this out, and getting ready for the final retail release. It's a lot of fun, and with a good PC surround audio system, you'll be enveloped in a unique, world class racing experience that doesn't come around often. I look forward to the final release to test out more of the cars and courses they promise to deliver.