Fuel

Forget the world where you live and envision entire cities destroyed and people forced to live in remote areas because of global warming, which led to disasters and square miles of desolate areas.

Gurus of cinema eighties could come to mind the films of the hit series "Mad Max" Mel Gibson and Miller. We say that the environmental implications is very similar, but this will instead be directed to the background of FUEL, a driving game, arcade-style "free roaming", developed by Asobi Studio and produced by Codemasters.

Already entered the Guinness Book of World Records thanks to the vastness of the map that came to have far fourteen thousand kilometers square, this Fuel has already made about him, we are now to see if it has not enough fuel to remain standing up too soon.

Free Roaming? No thanks
FUEL started playing we realize right now his double identity. You can choose to wander freely around the map, to discover spectacular landscapes and endless and proper vantage points, looking for a challenge, or select the races directly from the menu of the game.

Most likely the outlet of choice will be the first, because after a few hours of game becomes very frustrating and boring to run the length and breadth of the huge map available, without having any real reason to do so. Aside from some additional color, a new means or at most a challenge, there will be no real extras to the races. Explore a mode useful only to enjoy some nice views and fan the flames more poetic, but that does not make it attractive enough to bring the player to the waiver of the much-loved and most convenient menu. As they say in these cases: "not worth the candle."

The enormous map is divided into nineteen zones, all unlockable through an "FUEL" acquired through the victories and challenges. The races, which make up the Career mode, are addressed in three difficulty (beginner, experienced and veteran) and due to the most common tests of racing games such as circuits and the checkpoint.

Instead there will be challenges in the tests rather than out of the ordinary, such as the pursuit of a helicopter where you will, without the use of GPS to reach the helipad before the half wheel, or chase and ram other cars.

As you can see, is an approach that offered by FUEL completely different from what we are accustomed to seeing the usual driving games arcade. Is the host to an almost complete absence of a tender system standards, where the true path to beat the player to the sound of cannons, between plants, rocks and trails. It is not forgotten, however, is the popular GPS, which will be useful in many races, indicating the right way. Ironically in a game where they upset the rules, you still have that fear of leaving everything in the hands of the player, leaving the little help, just as a chance to move where there is greater need. However for those who love orienteering will be some races where it will be available the help of GPS, relying entirely on their sense of direction.

Arcade, too
With a guidance system Arcade, it was assumed that the game would not give strong emotions to the estimators of the simulations. The fact remains that we face in a disarmingly simple gameplay.

There is no way to embody or define your own style guide, just go straight past the opposition one by one, takes you through the power of inertia, first to the finish. The level of difficulty, however, is well balanced and will give you a hard time in expert mode, although on occasion it may be quite frustrating.

Very attractive car fleet, with a variety of means (well seventy five) who dividereannoin quad, buggy, moto cross, road cars, trucks, monster trucks, jeeps and others, all with the infamous unlockable points FUEL. But forget any of your toys custom option, the only customization will be purely aesthetic as colors and liveries, useless for performance. There will be much difference in driving between one type and the other half, the bikes seem to have protective aura around him, fall down or lose control will be almost impossible, you get the feeling of racing on tracks. However, do not miss the features of the racers, who albeit slightly, serve to distinguish each other in terms of parameters such as acceleration, speed, grip, adaptability to soil type, thus widening our choices beyond the mere aesthetic appreciation.

What is most lacking is that feeling of adrenaline that much involvement we would have liked to see. Well in the end you find yourself running up and down between landscapes superfine, mud and asphalt, all very nice, but without giving the feeling that other titles can give. Something is missing, it lacks a soul.

At this meeting, however, is an excellent sector multiplayer online up to sixteen players to race in all the challenges posed by the single player. Is hoped, therefore, will be opponents in the flesh to make us forget the linearity of the races in single and give us a little 'charge.

Motor reserve
Given the vastness of the playing you could certainly expect minimal details from the boys Asobi Studio. From this point of view, we are faced with a graphic that has ups and downs. Good texture used for high-definition models means, are flanked by low-quality textures for environments, accompanied by nothing short of reckless use of the effect pop up, though less obvious version of the console. Particle effects, atmospheric, light and day-night cycle still give a nice effect along with landscapes that accompany the races, making them very attractive. We were not convinced however that filter looks like a grainy film from cinema to represent the leaves that flutter as a result of the storm. The problem of frame rate of the console versions dancer, has been optimized, however, relying on a computer enough performance, which far exceeds the minimum requirements.

The fund has an audio sampling varies little, especially the roar of the engines are always the same and not real nice but the environmental effects, as well as some songs.
Ultimately this is a decent product, perhaps much less exciting than you might initially suppose, but still enjoyable for those who prefer arcade racing and have a PC sufficiently performant.

Summary
FUEL, arrived slightly late in its PC version, if we are justified by some performance improvements, has not revealed what had been long awaited. A title with an innovative concept and a mammoth area of play, but not entirely successful, due to a mediocre graphics and a guidance system arcade too repetitive, lacking the adrenaline that would make the title a must for the genre. Remains a fun arcade and playable, thanks to a good multiplayer.