The Crew: Wild Run Preview

It’s fair to say that opinions on The Crew, Ubisoft’s most recent delve into the racing market, are pretty well split. Some didn’t enjoy the game’s online-focused world or arcadey handling model, while others found the huge open-world map of the US to be a breath of fresh air in a game that was happy to just let the player have fun. I count myself among the former, perhaps purely because it was the only game I’d ever played that didn’t ask me to race on the same track twice. I still don’t think that fact can be exaggerated. The brilliant mini version of the US certainly helped, and gameplay that perfectly suited the overall style of the game. What’s more, the online nonsense never really bothered me as a solo player because it was easy enough to ignore.

So it’s fair to say that I was happy to see Ubisoft continue to support The Crew post-launch, as Ivory Tower is soon set to release Wild Run - the game’s first major expansion. Rather than tacking on a new area to explore (um, Alaska? Hawaii?), the additions are focused on injecting new content into the already impressive game world. First up is a graphical overhaul that looks to remove the rather washed effect that the release game featured. Much more colourful scenery and stimulating lighting effects will accompany Wild Run, as well as an improved draw distance. Saying that, the buildings in the distance of the demo I played were still rather ugly. Oh, and if you’re wondering if it seems a little silly to sell graphical improvements within DLC then you’re not the only one.

Dynamic weather is the next addition that could happily sit under the ‘probably should have been in the release game’ category. Saying that, the combination of the improved visuals and pretty rain effects is a sight to be seen. The demo I played wasn’t on an especially flashy display (although it was running on PC), yet it looked somewhat unrecognisable from the game that released back in December. The fact that the changing weather actually affects the way your car handles is a sweet part of the deal, turning a feature that could have been a little flippant into an interesting layer of the game at large.

Most of the other additions to the game are the things you’ve probably already gathered from flashy trailers and the like. Motorbikes are a welcome addition, although they handle like they’re permanently on ice; certainly vehicles for the more experienced players - who, I assume, will be the majority of people that buy this DLC. Undoubtedly more interesting are the monster trucks and associated events. Strangely, the trucks also handle a little like they’re on ice, lacking the weight I expected them to bring to the fore. I suppose it’s certainly more fun to fling a weirdly light monster truck around obstacle courses. The new game mode sees players completing stunts and running through scattered point-markers. It’s functional, but there’s bound to be more fun had in just cruising around the world map in a huge monster truck.

Drag and drift racing are the next two key additions, although anyone who’s played a racing gaming within the past ten years will find these modes instantly familiar. Drift mode is exactly the same as every other mode in every other game despite apparently being the most requested feature from the community, but the drag mode rekindles more pleasant memories of the old quarter mile modes from past Need for Speed games. Players have to heat their tyres before setting off, then nail the forced manual gear changes in an effort to gain the quickest speed down a simple straight line. I played this mode on the Bonneville salt flats that were tragically ignored in the release game, so that was a fun experience.

It’s difficult to see how well these events will fit into the game; my slight concern is that people who have already played most of the events from the base game will be stuck playing drift, drag and monster truck events over and over until they’re all complete. To me, that doesn’t sound especially fun. Those who purchase the Wild Run addition of the full game, which is being released alongside the standard DLC, certainly get the best deal as they can enjoy all of this content together. Wait though! What’s that... there is actually another part of the DLC... one that Ubisoft has been weirdly quiet about? It has some catchy name that I’ve forgotten, but the idea is excellent - players who buy Wild Run will be able to create their own tracks for crew members to play! You just select waypoints on the map and away you go. If you ask me, this could be the best part of the whole DLC; even more tracks!

The Crew: Wild Run looks to be a fairly generous DLC pack. I’ve got my reservations concerning some of the new game modes and other additions, but it looks as though there’ll be plenty for veteran players to get stuck into. Plus, it could be a great reason to get the crew back together for a few more races. Colour me interested, but it remains to be seen if this rather random selection of additions will gel well enough to create an expansion that will actually get players back into The Crew come the 17th of November.