So its a new year, a new day, and one where all the shops are shut and there's nothing to do besides spend money on digital gaming purchases.
Most on here will know me as a bias evil Vita fanboy (seriously, the system ownz!) A few others however will also know that despite having a ps4 and a decent gaming PC, my "home" gaming platform of choice is the Wii U.
So I thought given its a new year, I should get a new game. There was one particular Wii U exclusive that really had my attention. I have been a fan of Shin'en's work since they blew my mind of what was possible in portable gaming with Iridion II.
Couple that with my love of futuristic racers, be it F-Zero, Wipeout or even Motorhead or Xtreme G and believe me, my hopes were high for FAST!
So let's get the negatives out in the open first. This is NOT the technical marvel that will blur the line between the Wii U and other 8th gen home consoles. It looks alright, but has sprite trees in the scenery making it clear compromises are made for that 60fps frame rate. It's also very clear that the resolution drops in more complex scenes to facilitate a higher frame rate.
Chuck into that a level of presentation that would seem lacklustre even in a game like Slipstream 5000 and the bar is instantly lowered for what along with Xenoblade Chronicles X, was being hyped up by Nintendo fans as a 2015 killer app.
But you know what? From admittedly early opinions, that's as much criticism as I can level at the game. I was expecting yet another generic futuristic racer which is all style over substance. Hard for the sake of being hard (yes Sega, I know what you did with F-Zero AX to make sure it swallowed up more yen!)
But no.l, so far, rather than view this as a cheap futuristic racer cash in, it feels more like an evolutionary hibrid of F-Zero and Ikaruga. The AI isn't easy, nor is it complex. The key to winning races lies with your own discipline. Learning courses is essential. After that, just make sure you have the correct boost set up is the key to victory.
FAST Racing Neo is actually such a refreshing hark back to arcade gaming. If you have a Wii U, you owe it to yourself to try this game!
I went in expecting a technically outstanding, but mechanically mediocre experience. The end product is actually the total opposite. The visuals are the weakest part of FAST.
RIP Dad 25/11/51 - 13/12/13. You will be missed but never forgotten.
