PREVIEW - nail'd
- Written by Rick Wallace 7/2/2010 |
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I am a sucker for offroad games whether its MX, buggies or ATV’s. So when I visited SouthPeak’s booth at E3 to get hands on time with the new offroad title “nail’d” I was very excited. This new ATV racer brought to us by Deep Silver and Techland is a fast paced action thrill ride. The game is all about speed folks and honestly at times I couldn’t even keep up with it. Yes, it can be that fast but that’s what makes it fun and exciting. You’ll have to be quick with your reflexes and think fast at every turn and jump. Thank goodness I was not hung over or my eyes would never have been able to keep up with this game’s speed. It definitely takes some practice to really have some great lap times. |
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So at first, I stood and watched and listened to the developer talk and explain the game. He showed me several paths you can take when racing on each and every track as well as many rings you can jump through in order to gain boost. You make your own track basically. The game does not focus on tricks or stunts when making large jumps. So that is one big difference between this game and PURE. What the game does focus on is gaining boost by making perfect landings from outlandish jumps. When you land perfectly on all 4 tires you’ll continually add boost which is key to winning races. The game allows you to steer yourself in mid air to set up those landings, or to avoid obstacles such as trees or other riders. You’ll even want to aim for certain targets that will earn you extra boost on top of perfect landings.
At this time the game boasts 14 tracks in 4 locations but in all honesty those 14 tracks seem like 100 with all the different paths you can take to victory. There is so much to see and explore while racing. In the same breath it’s tough to really look around and get a feel for the environment because you are always pedal to the metal.
The environments looked great even in this early build. There were some spots on the track that did not seem to be marked very well and I found myself turning the wrong way, but for the most part you’ll ride smoothly from one section to another. Flying off cliffs is breathtaking and then heart stopping when you try to make that perfect landing or aiming for one of the extra boost target. |
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I can’t really comment a whole lot on the sounds of the game due to all the noise at E3 around you. So I don’t want to speculate on any types of engine sounds or music until I get to play this in a more controlled atmosphere. I also didn't get any time with the customization the game boasts or any of the options the main menu may present.
Now while I only got some limited time with the game in single player mode, I did however get some questions answered pertaining to multiplayer. It seems that the game will allow for up to 12 players online simultaneously. Trust me, at the speeds this game goes that’s going to get insane. You’ll have Leaderboards, private matches, ranked matches and more. When I asked about DLC, I got the typical “We are not talking about that right now, but yes it’s a possibility” answer. This was the answer I expected of course. |
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Now understand that the game was early code and I did run into a few issues here and there but ones that I believe were a direct result of early code. I think the development team is on the right track with this game and it could end up being a racing title that folks will enjoy for quite a while after its release. We all know that PURE was one hell of a game, but it focused on stunts and racing. Nail’d is just pure racing, no pun intended. You won’t leave off the gas until you cross the finish line. If you love racing games, especially of the offroad variety, then you will want to keep this title on your radar. As we get more information on the game we will pass it along to you and we’ll also have a full review of the game when it finally hits retail. Even for an early build the game was enjoyable, fast and furious and has us really excited for its release. |
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SUGGESTIONS |
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I would love to see some sort of a track editor in the game as well as the ability to create your own custom races online. Make sure there is plenty of customization for the online community as thats usually what makes or breaks a game. Looking good so far. |
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