Milestone has been toiling away with their MotoGP series, little by little since their UE4 engine change, bringing in improvements that their fans would enjoy. The latest installment is quite an interesting one with their new riding system mimics something that’s getting outlawed in real life, so this game might become a sort of a time capsule then.
So is MotoGP 22 worthy of becoming that notion? Perhaps so.
Presentation
There are slight tweaks to the graphics it seems, with the night race at Qatar being more vibrant and rain puddles being more realistic, it’s nice to see the dev team giving it is all over its almost decades-old engine.
But one of the new key features is their throwback challenge mode, which is Nine seasons. A semi-documentary look at one of the more interesting times in the modern era of Motorcycle racing. Their attention to detail is pretty accurate, with not only the accurate adverts all over the tracks, to the graphics timing board in-game being true to form as well.
And on the audio side, it’s mostly the same engine notes for all of the categories from the previous game (from MotoGP to Moto3) but one very neat addition for the custom rider side that you can now choose between your Preferred gender pronouns and all of the commentators will reflect appropriately. A pretty good addition by the developers.
Gameplay
One of the big gameplay changes was the addition of MotoGP’s version of the Drag Reduction System (DRS), which is a Ride Height Adjustment System, where at the straights during any time, you can press a button to lower your bike for more speed. It makes the handling more challenging if a rival is close and enables close racing.
Though the AI themselves are having some trouble with this new system, as they do keep overshooting the corners when they activate it and they feel very inconsistent between tracks, where some tracks they can be better than you but others you can even go around 10+ seconds ahead, which is unrealistic for a sport like MotoGP.
But for the career mode, Milestone has implemented a shorter calendar which is a very welcome change but it could be improved upon by letting us choose which tracks we could race in. Or perhaps even seeing riders switching teams for the longer run of career mode. Perhaps.
And including all of last year’s additions (Practice modes and the running back to the bike after a crash), Milestone has improved upon last year’s base game, making a good stride with their very loyal fanbase and with the new tutorial system in place as well, welcome new fans to the game series as well.
Content
For its low price (when compared to its more expensive four-wheeled counterparts), MotoGP 22 is a pretty filler package with its career mode and that 2009 challenge mode making it a more pretty good 5 to 6-ish hour game time, without the infinite replayability of it’s Multiplayer component. A solid package all around.
Personal Enjoyment
It is rather enjoyable to play the MotoGP games as a way to gauge how the motorcycle side of the racing game genre is doing, and Milestone has been a shining example for them with this game and the Ride series doing pretty good numbers.
It’s not as serious as the likes of the other racing titles with dedicated peripherals and such, but it still has some attention to detail that helps the game feel as authentic on the controller as you would see on the actual races.
And though its newest mode feels like watching an Amazon documentary while playing the challenge mode, it does help with knowing the legends of the sport whilst reliving its many historic twists and turns, a fun way for newcomers to enjoy this series before watching the real thing.
I wouldn’t mind recommending this one to fans of the racing genre who would want to step out of their comfort zone and experience the bike DRS for themselves.
Verdict
MotoGP 22 is a great alternative to the current racing game meta with its cheap price point and fast and furious action within the motorcycle genre. A neat little way to enjoy some racing and even learn their history as well.
Played on Xbox Series S, Review copy purchased by reviewer.
MotoGP 22
A great alternative to the current racing game meta with its cheap price point and fast and furious action within the motorcycle genre. A neat little way to enjoy some racing and even learn their history as well.
- Presentation 8.5
- Gameplay 7.5
- Content 8
- Personal Enjoyment 8