MotoGP 07

Chris Vermeulen is totally out of control. In the space of about two minutes he’s taken Casey Stoner off the track, crashed a couple of times, sent sparks showering off his boot on the corner, pulled an endo right before the finish line, and still, somehow, he managed to finish third. My boyfriend, aka the unfortunate Casey Stoner is shaking his head at me. What a disaster! I don’t care, I’m having a blast.

…All this fun, and more, can be yours with MotoGP 07 for the PS2.

I know there is a glut of racing games out there at the moment, and with such choice it’s easy to get picky. One game may show the glint of light off the shiniest of shiny vehicles, and let you race along streets that look so real you’d swear you were watching live racing; another offers customisation of vehicles, or a campaign where you can build up your reputation, or buy different cars. MotoGP 07 offers none of these things. But you know what? It’s still really good.

What the game does offer is some great riding, and the ability to race against the world’s best, on some bloody awesome tracks. They’re all here: Rossi, Pedrosa, Stoner, Melandri, de Puniet, Barros and the rest; and so are the tracks: Losail, Le Mans, Donington Park, Laguna Seca, Phillip Island and heaps more.

The controls, which are never going to be as completely satisfying as riding the bike yourself, do still manage to keep things interesting and give you a greater degree of control, especially compared to the previous MotoGP on the PS2. You can choose whether you would like the basic ‘x to accelerate, square to break’, or choose to be able to control the front and rear brake separately (bring on the endos!), or even control the gear shifting yourself, for a real simulation feel. It’s worth pointing out that the bikes themselves handle a lot better than they do in MotoGP, and the riding looks a lot smoother too. (Or maybe I’m just getting better at approaching those corners!)

As with most racing games, MotoGP 07 offers a nice selection of races, including a quick race, time attack trial, championship mode, ‘challenges’, and MotoGP scenarios. As well as those there are options for multiplayer gaming, including a quick race, time attack and championship mode. If you’re used to racing games, you’ll already know how most of these play out.

I must confess, I’m much more of a Superbikes fan than I am of MotoGP (go Haga!), but all the same, it’s brilliant to race against all the big names in motorbike racing – and MotoGP 07 really is the ticket if you want to relive the season now it’s over. This title offers a lot of subtle improvements over the previous one, such as the above points mentioned, but also with good music, excellent replays and player profiles with some quite interesting tidbits about your favourite riders – all of which outweighs the (at times) long loading times and lack of a real campaign. It’s a must for GP fans, and recommended for racing enthusiasts.

"Awesomely fast and fun."

7.5 Good