The App Store’s low-grav racing space certainly is starting to get crowded, which is just fine by me. And it looks like the latest release to join the ranks, Speed Forge Extreme [App Store] from Rat Square / Chillingo, may just be the best of the lot.

It’s 2142, and the colonization of Mars is underway. Vast settlements have been created to house miners seeking the valuable raw materials of the Red Planet. Crime is rampant, time is abundant and the citizens are looking for some entertainment …

The mining gig on 22nd-century Mars must be a rather fruitful one, considering how much raw materials would be needed to construct a large-scale racing arena made up of 12 futuristic racing tracks. But then, the miners, just like iPhone gamers, need their entertainment. And Speed Forge Extreme delivers.

While Speed Forge largely follows the standard Wipeout-inspired racing formula, it does add in a bit of a twist. To start, most of the game’s 12 tracks deliver the typical low-grav racer experience. Choose from among six different craft (unlocked along the way) in a race against five computer-controlled opponents in a bid to cross the finish line first. Along the way, you can pick up power-ups such as weapons to knock out opponents, shields, and repair kits and make use of speed-pads (while avoiding slow-pads) to help get the job done. In addition to these traditional tracks, Speed Forge includes various arena levels where you and your opponents are placed in a large enclosed space smattered with power-ups, in an effort to destroy the most opponents as fast as possible to come out on top. It’s a nice variation on the formula that helps break up long race sessions. It’s a nice mix.

The game features five different control configurations utilizing different combinations of accelerometer, D-pad, and slider controls, some featuring auto-acceleration. I was able to enjoy the game playing with each method, but favor the tilt-controls. It shouldn’t be hard to find a configuration you’re happy with. Invert-Y and vibration effects are toggles.

Speed Forge is quite impressive, visually. The interesting ship designs, track architecture, and dark Earth- Mars-tone palette lend a very nice atmosphere to the game. (The visuals and overall feel of the motion puts me in mind of UBI Soft’s late ’90s racer POD – Planet of Death.) But where the game’s graphics really shine are on the iPhone 3GS and 3G iPod touch, where the developers were able to take advantage of OpenGL ES 2.0 to deliver a full-screen motion-blur effect that makes for some of the best looking polygons ever seen on an iPhone screen. Unfortunately, such eye candy doesn’t come without a price; the framerate of the game running with motion-blur enabled on my iPhone 3GS feels lower than that of the game running (without motion-blur) on my 2G iPod touch. Happily, the developers allow users to disable the motion-blur effect as well as set its intensity on the latest devices — and Speed Forge running without the effect on my 3GS is as smooth as silk. All that said, the game still looks great on older devices — don’t get me wrong. But, for the record, I prefer playing with motion-blur on despite the framerate impact — it’s just too lovely to miss.

An optional ‘Overbright’ display toggle, available on devices old and new, delivers magnified lighting blooms that give the game a stronger HDR-lighting feel at little or no cost to the framerate.

[ Full HD version | Low Bandwidth version ]

Having spent considerable time with the v1.1 release (a recent update), I can confidently call Speed Forge Extreme my current favorite futuristic racer in the App Store. The camera angle, the well done tracks, the visual effects, the excellent sense of speed — they all come together to deliver what really does feel like a “console” title on the iPhone. I do wish that the developers had opted to add-in online leaderboards and, perhaps even, multiplayer support to really take things to the next level but, lacking these, it’s still a great single-player racing experience. I’d urge everyone to at least have a look at the free, lite version [App Store].

App Store link: Speed Forge Extreme, .99, Speed Forge Extreme Lite, Free

The post Review: Speed Forge Extreme appeared first on AppTrawler.

If the answer is ‘yes’, then Low Grav Racer 2 will probably fulfil all your demon speed needs in one futuristic package. Fans of the classic PlayStation title WipEout or the Xbox’s Quantum Redshift will recognise the gameplay on offer.

For those who don’t, the idea is simple: try to win each race. Included are 18 tracks, from the beautifully named Dante Nebula to the Arkonian Rift – all wrapped in some rather crisp-looking 3D graphics.

You can choose six ships to race and three new classes, each able to utilise a plethora of weapons designed to unleash hell on the other racers.

Also included is the ability to post your scores on leaderboards, and the chance to earn awards, providing you can keep your ship on the track.

Low Grav Racer is available now on the App Store for £1.79. Sunday drivers need not apply.

The post Out Now: Low Grav Racer 2 appeared first on AppTrawler.

This week, 2XL Games‘ highly anticipated off-road racing game 2XL ATV Offroad hit the App Store.  The game is a follow-up to the studio’s 2XL Supercross, a technically impressive dirt-track racing title that, physics and visuals aside, felt a little shallow from an overall gameplay perspective.  We’re happy to report that this latest from 2XL Games takes all of the “good” from Supercross and combines it with highly varied tracks, a proper career mode, and Wi-Fi multiplayer to deliver one of the very best racers in the App Store.

ATV Offroad features three different track types in which to compete.  Supercross tracks, much like those featured in 2XL Supercross are represented but, in addition, an array of Nationals (outdoor tracks) and Freestyle (it’s like stunt racing in a massive fossile pit) tracks have been added to the mix.  Whatever track type you’re racing in, the visuals are breathtaking — especially in the two outdoor types.  From the impressive draw distance to the overall smoothness of the onscreen action to the clouds of dust kicked up by your competitors, the game is an iPhone eye-candy carnival that the PSP has reason to envy.  The visual experience takes me back to the ATV Offroad Fury series on the PS2, but with a better sense of speed.  Yes, this truly is one of the most visually impressive games available for the iPhone.  It is absolutely a full console experience.

The game features an Arcade mode, which allows racing among any of the 16 available tracks across Supercross, Nationals, and Freestyle, as well as a Career mode (which is really the core playmode) and a Wi-Fi multiplayer mode (with Bluetooth on the way).  Online leaderboards provide a skill incentive.

Career mode involves moving through a sequence of 11 Leagues which are events of varied track combinations.  Rank high enough and the next League is unlocked.  I’ve spent a great deal of time playing rather deep into the title and can tell you that, at Medium difficulty anyway, it’s not a cakewalk.  The challenge is apparent and requires some real skill to League up.  But the journey to victory is a most satisfying one.  The requisite track replays to get the needed ranking are nothing but enjoyable.  Adding to the experience is an extensive achievement system that rewards players for skill on the track along the way.

The two available Freestyle tracks, in whichever mode you encounter them, are solo free-for-all’s in a large, terraced pit.  The goal here is to perform as many tricks as possible to rack up points and medal up from bronze to gold.  It’s kind of a Tony Hawk experience on an ATV.  The draw-distance and physics system exhibited here are impressive.

The game’s default control mode is accelerometer tilt, but a virtual stick is available as well.  I find the former to be far superior to the latter in any mode of gameplay.  Tilt control in this title has been very well tuned and offers excellent vehicle control.

In any playmode you can choose from among 15 different drivers and 15 different ATVs to get the race done.  The variation that these choices provide are simply visual rather than physical, but it’s nice to have choices.  And adding to the experience is an impressive sound system that does a great job of letting you know just where the encroaching competitors are on the track behind you.

See the developer’s gameplay video for a closer look.

I am a particular fan of offroad racing games.  I enjoy the heightened in-game physics that they exhibit and don’t at all mind a little travel on the Z-axis (jump, jump, jump).  That said, this is my favorite racing game available for the iPhone.  And the replay value is significant.  Anyone who enjoys a solid, well-rounded racer — and offroad racing in particular — would be a fool to let 2XL Offroad Racing pass them by.

App Store Link: 2XL ATV Offroad, .99

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