Monster Energy Supercross the Official Videogame 2 Review

Milestone

Improving a serial annually is a difficult feat, yet the team at Milestone has managed to make appreciable gains with the release of Monster Energy Supercross two.

A yr agone, the debut was well-received thank you to cornering its niche well. The Unreal Engine had some spotty bug, but the immersion aspect of the racing and environments, as well every bit a solid runway editor, laid a nice foundation for growth.

The sequel takes these areas and expands upon them smartly. Similar a dingy race in the middle of the motocross season, the game is far from perfect—merely Monster Free energy Supercross two manages to divide itself from the pack.

Graphics and Gameplay

In most cases, graphics were a strong signal of last twelvemonth's release.

The aforementioned applies here. On the tracks themselves, things look sharper than before, and it seems like the color palette of the compound is more diverse. Attending to item on the bikes and riders is still apparent, from patches to the wear and tear on tires as a race progresses.

Large stadium races are still impressive, as the track and riders feel pocket-size in scope while cameras and lights flash throughout an consequence. In more rural settings, mud kicks up and puddles form when different atmospheric condition sets in.

Negatives from a year agone carry over, though. Things wait practiced on the tracks just not quite so during the limited cutting scenes, where characters still come off looking blocky. There is withal fiddling in the way of announcer presence, with only a few quips hither and there earlier and after races. Also, there is a large disparity betwixt volume during the menus and gameplay, with the latter coming in much quieter. The inclusion of a fitting soundtrack with punk music and others is a welcome addition at least.

Gameplay itself remains a large selling point. This has pick-up-and-play potential but like its predecessor, yet the skill ceiling is immense. Those who want to really dial in and meliorate tin can learn the ins and outs of a control scheme that has one analog stick decision-making the lean of the bike, and the other the rider.

Thankfully, Milestone seems to accept ironed out some of the issues with physics present in the last game. Whether a rider sticks a landing or goes flying all the same feels random at times, but other odd hiccups seem right. That said, crashes that dislodge a rider from his or her wheel still feel weird, with the passenger often going fully limp for no reason, even on low-speed crashes.

Assists are once again nowadays like in any racing game, so players will decide whether information technology plays more like an arcade game or a directly-up simulation. Nigh typical assists are here, including a colored line helping players navigate the grade, should they choose to use it.

Dialing in and improving is rewarding when it comes to violent through turns and properly navigating a serial of jumps. Opponent AI riders don't go far the way of this oft, as they generally don't get ambitious and cause wrecks.

The aforementioned dynamic weather condition deserves a nod as well, with varying weather making courses play differently. Compensating for these alterations can decide races outright, which is a overnice affect for a sport where weather plays a bigger factor than nearly.

Overall, Milestone doubled downwardly on the strengths of the first game.

Career Mode and More

Some of the bigger talking points surrounding Monster Free energy Supercross ii are the upgrades to the career mode.

Players can fire upwardly a career with a created commuter and striking the track in diverse classes while competing against real-life stars. It's a fun fashion with worthwhile achievements to pursue, which creates a fun gameplay loop—simply information technology isn't perfect.

Some of the mode'due south additions feel like pocket-size back-of-box selling points and nothing more. A player's Fame level volition influence which sponsors they can earn. Better sponsors ways more Sx credit gained per event and perhaps even Sx credit modifiers based on things similar place of stop and signing bonuses.

But the weekly schedule, which allows players to book events to heave Fame and prepare for the week's main event, are where things fall a bit flat. For example, a histrion can choose to do a promotional mean solar day for Sx credits or a media 24-hour interval for Fame. But the latter is simply a soundless prune of the player's created character chatting with a reporter. The former is a soundless prune of him or her leaning confronting a wheel, with both going by quickly. Gameplay is the primary selling point of this title, simply it would have been dainty to come across these ideas expanded upon.

Luckily for players, the customization attribute of Monster Energy Supercross 2 has worthwhile depth.

There are almost an overwhelming number of unlockable customizations for riders and bikes. These are sectioned off backside credit requirements and otherwise. Players start off at a prestige level of one, with some of the best items in the game locked behind 400-plus prestige levels. Similarly, some of the more unique items tin cost twenty,000 or more Sx credits. Simply credit proceeds and prestige level doesn't feel unbalanced in the general gameplay loop and the wealth of options, from helmets to something every bit minute equally a barrel patch means unique-feeling characters.

The compound also makes a render and is much more than various in its offerings this time around, not to mention it feels bigger. Granted, some parts are blocked off at the beginning of the game and locked backside gameplay feats, but information technology'south a pocket-sized gripe. Information technology still serves every bit an open world for the histrion to explore while working on riding across diverse surfaces. From the menu, players can alter the weather and fourth dimension of day, experiment with tuning and bikes.

The chemical compound could use some quality of life adjustments. It is adequately fluid, just the map doesn't show what direction a histrion is pointed, which can go far hard to navigate the sprawling playspace.

At the launch, Monster Energy Supercross two boasts 17 tracks and graphic upgrades, and attention to detail—not to mention the way they play—take started to give each track a unique feel.

The track editor also returns and is as snappy as ever. There are more than pieces to play with this time around, and it should once more exist fun to run into what the creative side of the community tin come up with for players. A helpful tutorial at the onset works wonders, though like the customization, it can be intimidating to see merely how many tools are left in the hands of players.

But the track editor also highlights 1 of the game'due south problems. Load times can be painfully long, whether information technology is hopping from the track editor to the track itself to endeavour information technology out.

Conclusion

Monster Energy Supercross 2, despite its growing pains in certain areas, is a fun ride for coincidental and hardcore fans thanks to the gameplay.

It seems Milestone wants to hit on all the big talking points most sports games have, from a career fashion to an open-globe offer where players can meliorate their skills. Information technology doesn't hit all these points impressively, but nearly sports games don't.

Where many struggle, though, Monster Energy Supercross 2 doesn't. Gameplay is nailed down incredibly well and is equally hard or simple equally an private wants information technology to be cheers to a suite of options and overall solid controls and experience.

For players who desire an upgraded game in this niche, Milestone has delivered once again while expanding in interesting means. The design for boosted growth seems obvious and obtainable in future years, but new players also have the perfect opportunity to bound in and hit the ground running.

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Source: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2819069-monster-energy-supercross-2-review-gameplay-videos-features-and-impressions

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