MotorStorm: Arctic Edge Review

2022-11-22

MotorStorm: Arctic Edge continues the successful MotorStorm series, though with several changes – most noticeably, it's been developed by a different studio, and is no longer available for the PS3, having come out for the PS2 and PSP instead.

Still, this shouldn't drive you away from trying it, as MotorStorm: Arctic Edge is a surprisingly effective combination of various elements from the previous games, plus a few new ideas.

Gameplay

You'll be driving in an all new environment – a snowy one, as the game's title suggests. There's no sign of the forests and deserts that surrounded the tracks in the previous games, and the new setting freshens up the game's feeling very nicely. You'll once again have to race against other players while avoiding the dangers nature poses to you, this time in the form of avalanches and slippery bridges.

An interesting addition to the gameplay is the ability to intentionally cause an avalanche by sounding your car's horn – a perfect way to kick that guy in front of you out of the lead, but also a perfect way to go down the slope with him if you're not careful.

There's a fine balance between using a light and a heavy vehicle, as each offers its own advantages and drawbacks – for example, if you're driving a light one, you'll have no problem crossing the frozen bridge obstacles (provided you don't slip of course), while heavier ones may even cause the bridge to crumble under their weight. On the other hand, an avalanche can spell the end of the line for a light car, while their heavier counterparts can just plow through the accumulated snow and keep going.

Graphics and System Requirements

The new frozen environments are beautiful and captivating, with great effects and highly-detailed assets. You need to keep reminding yourself you're playing a PS2 game – that's how impressive MotorStorm: Arctic Edge looks. Still, the console's shortcomings do come through from time to time, and you may notice some pixelated elements on your screen. This will by no means ruin the impression that the game makes as a whole though.

Both of the game's versions take advantage of their respective hardware very well, and have some differences in what they offer you with regards to that – for example, the PSP version only supports online play, while the regular PS2 version allows you to play head to head with your friend in a split screen mode, popular for console racers.

Other

The realism related to the snow on the tracks can sometimes get a bit too annoying for the game's own good – especially as you progress on to the more difficult tracks, which are appropriately more heavily covered with snow. The game becomes quite a challenge to handle well under those circumstances, but we guess this can be seen as a plus for veteran players.

Conclusion

The new developers have handled the title very well, and Arctic Edge certainly lives up to the success enjoyed by its predecessors, despite moving back a generation in terms of hardware.

Rock Band Unplugged Review
The Rock Band games have been so successful among players, both casual and more hardcore, that many developers have been left pulling out their hairs for not having thought of the idea sooner. The franchise is now moving away from its traditional platfo...
Singularity Review
Raven Software, known for some recent successful titles like Wolfenstein and X-Men: Origins, are back with yet another potential hit. Singularity, based in the Cold War period, follows a science fiction alternate storyline for what actually happened at ...
Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny Review
The “Soul” series of fighting games are known among most gamers for several things – the unique combat system, where each character fights in their own different style, and the various cameo appearances by popular culture characters. Soul Calibur: Broke...
Metal Drift Review
Metal Drift is a fast-paced combination of racing and shooting action, all set in a competitive online environment. The game features a unique and innovative setting, lots of room for experimentation by the player, and last but not least, captivating st...
Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Review
Ninja Gaiden is widely recognized as one of the most difficult games in the history of gaming. The original may be decades old, but it still causes some of the older gamers to remember the endless hours spent trying to pass one single level. Of course, ...
New Super Mario Bros. Wii Review
Many of us grew up with the exploits of Mario and Luigi, controlling them with a joystick in our hands. The series' popularity is phenomenal, and even non-gamers can easily recognize the characters nowadays. The newest game in the franchise, Super Mario...
Need for Speed: Shift Review
Racing fans have for long been praising several franchises in the genre – one of which is the all-popular Need for Speed. Need for Speed: Shift is the newest game in the series, and it made some great changes to the gameplay, making the game a lot more ...
Naughty Bear Review
There are some games where you simply have to get over the idea that you're playing something with a weird premise, and need to adjust for a while before you start liking it. Naughty Bear is one of those games, with a style and setting that are somewhat...
Red Faction: Guerrilla Review
When the first Red Faction came out a few years ago, it made a great impression on the crowds thanks to the capabilities of its Geo-Mod engine – at that time, it was the first ever shooter to offer completely destructible environments. And we're not tal...
The Sims 3: Ambitions Review
We don't think anybody expected The Sims to become so popular before the first game came out. And the success it reached can hardly be compared to anything else – since the game series is, literally, the most commercially successful one in the history o...
Need for Speed: Nitro Review
EA have been doing some strange things with the Need for Speed series lately. Many gamers associated the title with fast-paced, arcade racer gameplay, which naturally left a lot of them puzzled when the developers decided to move towards a more realisti...
Prototype Review
Prototype is a very innovative sandbox action game. Spanning over an entire city much like GTA and Mirror's Edge, it offers a very unique style of play that also proves to be highly addictive. Its intricate single player story adds up to the experience ...
Resident Evil 5 Review
You can hardly have an excuse for not having heard of the Resident Evil franchise at least once in your life – it's a hugely popular and successful one, which started out from a series of console games and was later made into a movie with several sequel...
Painkiller: Resurrection Review
Those of us who sometimes crave for the good old days of mowing down mindless hordes of demonic enemies a la Doom were left highly satisfied with the Painkiller series. It encompassed everything gamers loved about the fast-paced action style of the past...
MAG Review
First person shooters have been growing in all aspects since the genre first came to be – better graphics, better AI for the enemies, more explosions, etc – but the one thing that has always been slow to progress, has been the limit on player numbers. D...
Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Ris...
Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising, as a sequel to a mildly successful game, had to make a good impression on gamers to redeem the mistakes that were made in its predecessor. And for the most part, the developers have succeeded – even though the game...
Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Sto...
A while ago, the developers of the Mario series realized they couldn't just keep repeating the same old platformer formula over and over again and hope to keep players interested – so they expanded the franchise into other genres, such as racing games a...
Prison Break: The Conspiracy Review
Various TV shows have had their own video games, and not all of them have enjoyed great success. Prison Break, being one of the best-known series on television nowadays, was bound to get one sooner or later – and many fans of the show were worried if th...
Fight Night Round 4 Review
Fight Night Round 4 is the fourth installment in EA's highly successful Fight Night boxing franchise, offering even more captivating gameplay, better graphics, as well as even more licensed real-life boxers than before. Considering all of its qualities ...
The Conduit Review
Wii shooters seem to be rather hard to get right – most of the results we've seen so far haven't been that impressive, with the exception of some classic titles like Metroid 3 and MoH: Heroes 2. When a shooter for that particular console fails, most tim...
Tony Hawk: Ride Review
When it comes to skating games, there's generally one well-known leader – the Tony Hawk series. Named after one of the most prominent practitioners of the sport, the series has seen great success and popularity among gamers, delivering a unique arcade e...
Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis Review
It's very reassuring to see a quality adventure show up every now and then, especially of the good old point-and-click style. Secret Files 2: Puritas Cordis is the sequel to a mildly successful title, which even though didn't bring anything new to the g...
Fallen Earth Review
The MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online) games genre has been primarily dominated by fantasy and space themes. Thus, it really sparked our interest when we heard of a new MMO title coming out with a post-apocalyptic theme. Knowing the success of some titl...
Eschalon: Book II Review
The first Eschalon game came from an unknown developer, Basilisk Games, and it managed to build a good reputation for the small indie company. And now, with the release of the second installment in the series, Eschalon: Book II, they're surely on their ...
East India Company Review
The name “East India Company” is probably already a pretty good indication of what this game is about to the more history-savvy among you. In case it doesn't ring any bells though, the game is set during the 17th century, while the conquest of the Asian...
Rabbids Go Home Review
Rayman fans are probably all too familiar with the Rabbids, the primary antagonists in all of the Rayman games. The pesky, insane creatures did their best to make life as hard as possible for your favorite character in his games, and their popularity am...
Still Life 2 Review
When Still Life came out some years ago, it left fans hugely divided in their reactions to the game – on one hand, mostly everyone was impressed with how well the game had been designed; on the other, its ending left many to criticize it and according t...