Reviewed: November 30, 2003
Reviewed by: JoLene Lark
Publisher
Gotham Games
Developer
Empire Interactive
Released: November 3, 2003
Genre: Racing
Players: 2
ESRB: Everyone
7
6
7
6
7.0
Supported Features
Ford enthusiasts everywhere should take note of this new game that Gotham Games has developed. If you have the slightest desire to drive Ford vehicles ranging from the ’68 Mustang, Taurus stock car, or for the truck enthusiasts a flare side ford f-150 this game will be worthy of a few hours of your time. Ford Racing 2 is the more advanced sequel of the original Ford Racing and is the next step in this ongoing racing series that I am sure will continue.
Ford Racing 2 features:
- Select from over 30 different Ford vehicles including stock cars, trucks, concept cars, and all-American muscle cars, something for every style.
- Choose from a diverse set of tracks including Road Tracks, City Limits, Ovals, Spring Break and Lost World.
- Race head-to-head against your friends in split-screen action.
- Complete over 30 exciting challenges to unlock new cars, tracks and game modes while at the same time testing your skills to the limit.
- Experience a wide variety of racing themes including Concepts, Movie Stars, Living Legends and many more.
Once your Xbox creates your driver profile be ready to start practicing to learn the controls. The cars in this game all have different levels of handling and it was nice to see this difference in the many game modes. There are two game types called Ford challenge and Ford collection. The Ford challenge is comprised of a series of races and driving tests that if you succeed allow you to be able to utilize the challenges vehicle, track and race type when you decide to use your Ford collection. The Ford collection allows you to use the items you have won to create your own races.
There are eight race types found in Ford Racing 2
- Standard- a challenge for first place against 1-5 opponents in a race lasting from 1-9 laps
- Elimination- a race against 5 opponents over 3 laps, the last 2 vehicles are eliminated out of each of the first 2 laps, the last lap is a head to head race to the finish line
- Duel- a 3 lap race in which you compete against 3 challengers. After you win each lap you race against a new opponent.
- Drafting- You must follow your opponent without touching them. Your power on the screen decreases as you follow you opponent but increases if you hit them so be careful hitting them as this is a sure way to lose.
- Driving Skills- drive through the gates positioned around the race track and if you pass through the gates successfully you will get one second added to your time countdown. If you don’t finish your lap before time runs out you will lose this race.
- Seconds Out- collect the time bonuses and you will have one second off your lap time in order to win by beating the target time
- Racing Line- beat the target time by staying on the line. If you veer off the line it will change from green to red and a time penalty will occur.
- Time attack- you vs. the track’s target time, if you beat the time you win
The game developers did a better job animating so many different years and types of Ford vehicles for this game. Each vehicle was very well represented in this game. Each race also was decent graphically as far as the vehicles went but I can’t say that about the track’s graphics. On the track where you are going through a cave you are driving a big F-150 in a height area where a pinto wouldn’t even drive thought. Another area of disbelief was the lava track where the lava kept pulsing and would only slightly slow you down instead of melting your vehicle as it should have done. Each track was decent graphically however improvements would be ideal in the next version to make this game go to the next graphical level that other games such as E.A. Sports Nascar series currently utilizes.
Another area worth mentioning is the graphical setup during a multi-player game. If you have a standard TV player one is on the top ½ of the screen and player two is on the bottom half of the screen. If you happen to own a wide screen TV the screen is split vertically showing player one on the left and player two on the right. The other display options allow you to see your speed in miles per hour or kilometers per hour, having a rear view mirror in the default screen mode called bumper mode or no mirror at all in the chase view.
Overall, sound quality was superb however the music provided with this game was limited. It is advisable to import your own play list to make your playing time more enjoyable. Sound effects were numerous and of high quality. They did not skimp on the sound effects and they were not repetitive. Finally remember that the sound levels are adjustable so it is best to modify these settings as I had to in order to enjoy my driving more.
Game length is infinite as you would expect with any racer. Most cars were won on the first try but there were quite a few that I had to redo the race 2-3 times in order to receive the car or track. Thus, as I mentioned before if you are Ford fanatic you will be playing this game for quite a long time.
Multi-player gaming is available in Ford Racing 2. However it is limited as it is only a 2 player game. Having the option to have more than 2 players would be great as it would make it more multi-player friendly.
Overall, Ford Racing 2 is an above-average racing game that a Ford fanatic will fall in love with. Other people will probably look else where for a higher quality racing experience, and there are plenty to choose from with recent releases like Need for Speed Underground, Project Gotham 2 and even Midtown Madness 3. However from a historical perspective this game is an excellent showcase of Ford’s vehicle history.