First Impressions: Go Speed Racer, Go Speed Ra…oh shit, never mind.
If you’ve been paying attention to the gaming trends lately, you’ll notice the large amount of “cel-shaded” games being made. This concept was made popular of course by Sega and Smilebit’s Jet Set Radio series of games, and has no spread so far that even The Legend of Zelda (or as the kidz say, Celda) is being programmed in this fashion. Almost everyone is getting into the craze that many wish would go away.
Despite that, Capcom is making an attempt at a unique cel-shaded game, using the stylized graphics cel-shading can make, and mixing it with a genre that they have never attempted – racing games. What results is Auto Modellista, a very promising PS2 title that uses the cool visual effects with the common racing simulation theme, tacks on online play, and intends to challenge Gran Turismo as the top racer on PlayStation 2. Time will tell how it turns out gameplay-wise, but the pedigree and initial impressions point to yet another must-own game this year. All we need is for this game to come to the US, and since Capcom is very good at getting their games on our shores, it’s all but expected to happen; especially considering the hype being tossed about.
Auto Modellista is being produced by Yoshihiro Sudo, who obviously isn’t one of the better-known Capcom producers, like survival horror master Shinji Mikami, or even Mega Man & Onimusha creator/producer Kenji Infanue are. However his portfolio is strong – he’s produced games like Capcom vs. SNK 2, a recent PS2 fighter from the company. However, this possibly could be the game to get his name on the map; at least that’s what you’d think he intends.
It has been questioned whether or not the PlayStation 2 can handle a cel-shaded game (Smilebit claims that JGR can’t be done on PS2 due to memory restraints), Auto Modellista proves it can be done, and done well. A look at the first trailer of the game tells of a fluidly animated world, with no stuttering in the engine at all. The fancy, somewhat cheesy racing effects like smoking tires look cool, and the overall design of the Auto Modellista world is flat-out amazing.
Despite the cartoony cel-shaded graphics, Auto Modellista’s concern is creating a racing simulator in the vein of the seminal Gran Turismo series. Featuring real cars, and realistic physics, its goal is to challenge your ability to race a car well at high speeds, learning how each one handles.
Besides that, very little is known about this title. The featured cars have been GT favorites like the Nissan Skyline and Mazda RX-7, but the full amount of cars to be included is unknown. For the time being Auto Modellista is shrouded in secrecy, as the release is still some time away.
What is known is the Japanese version of AM will feature network play, online. You’ll be able to head online, once you get the proper tools, and join up in races against players around the world. It’s unknown if this mode will make it into the US version, and considering the US release isn’t 100% positive yet, we probably won’t know for quite some time. But I’d expect Capcom to include this mode, to one-up the eventual online Gran Turismo racer.
