IndyCar Series - Xbox

Racing with fast cars… that’s one hobby your stereotypical male will never become bored with. It’s in the blood, and in a predominantly male industry, it comes as no surprise that there’s no shortage of racing games. IndyCar is one of the fastest events in the American racing calendar and Codemasters has finally finished its very own virtual equivalent with IndyCar Series for Xbox.

A fine representation of the US motorsport, IndyCar Series delivers immediate high-paced action, authentic handling, and places a heavy emphasis on recreating the sport’s explosive collisions. Designed to be accessible, exciting and entertaining, the game features adrenaline-fuelled, ultra-close pack racing, with up to 33 cars racing on track, and requires total focus to handle the incredible overtaking manoeuvres at speeds well over 200mph.

The concept behind the gameplay is strictly based on the deployment of real life Indy Racing tactics. Simply going as fast as your accelerator thumb can manage won’t work here - you’ve got to look at other options, such as close manoeuvres at high speeds, using the slipstream to overtake, maximising grip in the racing line, and switching fuel settings between speed or economy.

The fact that the game features the official badge stamped on the box means that no elements have been omitted. All the official teams and drivers are in here, as are 14 real tracks, a total of 27 cars, and 15 action-packed races. An authentic Indy 500 mode features the renowned sporting event, allowing you to make it through Bump Day to compete as one of the drivers and race 500 miles on the world-famous Brickyard circuit.

Keeping with the authentic idea is the game’s attention to detail, which, as well as featuring all the official rules and flags, boasts such intricacies as a dynamic track surface that affects grip at differing temperatures. As well as all this, we’re also treated to accurate in-game recreations, which include fully animated pit crews, field marshals, clean-up crews and vehicles.

Naturally, the Xbox hardware does a fine job of making IndyCar Series look stunning. Frame rate, animation, texturing - it’s all there. It does look better than its PS2 counterpart and even rivals the PC version. As a game, IndyCar Series makes the most out a saturated racing genre. It’s a fast, skilful game and one that’s well worth a look. more