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Joystiq Review: Full Auto (X360)


PaleGringo
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http://www.joystiq.com/2006/02/20/joystiq-review-full-auto/

 

Now I'm not saying that I'm one that's easily swayed by reviews. Hands-on experience or previous experience with similar products is what I base my opinions off of.

 

So prior to the release of Sega's Full Auto, I had nothing to go off of other than it reminded me A LOT of Twisted Metal, except less fun. And launching so close to Burnout: Revenge 360 seemed like a bad move anyhow. Still, it wasn't until I downloaded the demo that I gave it a fair chance.

 

And it did not impress me.

 

I can barely see myself renting it, much less buying it. I'm not trying to disenfranchise anybody - if you have it, great, play it and love it for what it is. If you don't though, seriously think about playing the demo or renting it first.

 

For those that like brevity, here's some quotes from the above article to capture the essence of the review:

 

In many regards, Full Auto feels like this, a big clump of dough that never made it to the oven. The ingredients are there, but the final product is raw and never rises to the level achieved by great racing titles.

 

at its heart, Full Auto is an arcade racer. And if the game was measured on this element alone, it would crash and burn... out of existence. At first glance, Full Auto's most unforgivable flaw is its wonky frame rate, which dips below acceptable any time a huge explosion rocks the screen, which, given the game's other elements, happens at least once a race.

 

Despite these frame rate issues, it's the weightlessness of the cars, the sense that they're detached from the road that will likely sour your experience in the long run. Sure, physics are tossed to the roadside in any true arcade racer, but here, the effect is so pronounced that there are no discernable differences between the various driving terrains, be they concrete, gravel, dirt, or even air—traction doesn't exist.

 

It's almost as if the "unwreck" feature (the ability to rewind time) was an afterthought, built to compensate for the flawed racing mechanics. So you've taken a sharp turn and smashed into an oncoming car? Just rewind it back. Now you've taken it too wide and smacked into the wall? Rewind it again. Heck, if you can't get it right this third time, there's still enough juice left in the unwreck meter to give it another shot. It's a rare feature that erases the frustrating elements of a game, but at the same time, is never actually fun.

 

The glossy coats of paint can't hide the fact that the car models are generic and unappealing, as are the environments, which, despite changes of scenery, lack the range of lighting effects we've come to expect on the Xbox 360. The developers have filled the sky with light, but forgot to create a source.

 

Gamer points addicts might be interested in pursuing all of the Full Auto medals, but there's little sense that you're actually becoming more skilled at the game when reaching the top goal of an event. Many times, you just get lucky.

 

Unfortunately, Full Auto's sound falls flat. Car engines sound like lawnmowers. When you hit the self-destruct button, it sounds like a balloon pop. Trust us, when Burnout: Takedown [sic] hits the 360, you'll understand what a glorified self-destruct explosion ought to sound like.

 

As for the music, the second-rate licensed audio tracks, an amalgamation of techno and hard rock, didn't suit our tastes, so we fired up some custom tunes. Unfortunately, whenever the game hits a load screen (upon restarting a race or choosing a new race event) the game switches back to its default music. Oh, and about those load screens... try 15 seconds to restart an event or 10 seconds to exit it in order to select (not start) a new event.

 

There was no shortage of ideas when Full Auto was in its development stage. Unfortunately, when it comes to video games, it's not the thought that counts.

 

Overall Rating: 5.5 / 10

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I read many reviews and visited many forums before I made my choice. There have been bad reviews, good reviews and a few great reviews. I tried to read as many as I could. I just purchased Full Auto last night and I'm very happy with my purchase. The demo does not do this game justice at all. All the reviews that I've read say the single player gets boring. Not to me yet but I can really see that happening. Full Auto on Live is where it's at. It's just much more fun racing and blowing up actual people rather than AI.

 

To me the game wasn't going to be the next greatest or biggest thing. I don't even think that Sega claimed it to be. (Except for maybe the UNWRECK feature which is pretty neat.) It's simple. It's just a fun game. It's racing fun and it's blowing stuff up fun. I can see how this game isn't for everyone but my purchase I couldn't be happier with.

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