Xbox

MX 2002 featuring Ricky Carmichael

The crashes can be spectacular, and the racing action is intense. This is a very, very good motocross/freestyle program, featuring excellent graphical elements and sound. If this is the type of game you enjoy, you won’t find many better (at the moment) in the world of either console or PC games.

While the Xbox version of MX 2002 adds some new tracks, a new mini-game, and marginally better graphics, there is nothing here to make you buy this game again if you already own the PS2 version. THQ took the quick and easy path to get this game onto the Xbox without fully exploring the potential of the new hardware, and in doing so missed out on several opportunities to enhance the game with features that Xbox owners expect and will certainly miss.

MX 2002 features over 30 real motocross pros, so fans of the sport can pick there favorite and go at it in the Exhibition, Freestyle, or Multiplayer modes, all which are selectable from the title screen. And as you’d expect, a career mode is also available, but instead of choosing one of the big stars you create you own character by choosing from a variety of licensed gear, including your bike, helmet, goggles, outfit, and even boots. Throughout all these modes you’ll encounter over 22 different tracks that cover a broad range of events – motocross, supercross, amateur, and freestyle. Plus, 4 are exclusive to the Xbox version. With all of these riders, modes of play, and tracks, you should be playing this game for quite awhile.

Zwar wurde MX 2002 bis auf die dürftige Rumble-Funktion verlustfrei auf die Xbox portiert, aber außer einem noch flüssigere Scrolling und völlig balkenfreier Vollbilddarstellung hat man die Vorteile der neuen Hardware einfach ignoriert. Die detailarmen Kulissen und Texturen sind genau so wenig zeitgemäß wie die mageren Grafik- und Soundeffekte. Die fehleranfälligen Replays sind ebenfalls peinlich und bei der Präsentation hat man sich auch nicht gerade mit Ruhm bekleckert. Zum Glück richtet sich der Spielspaß aber vorwiegend nach dem Gameplay und da kann MX 2002 nach wie vor fett punkten. Steuerung und Fahrverhalten sind vorbildlich, Strecken und Herausforderungen abwechslungsreich und der Schwierigkeitsgrad sehr gut ausbalanciert. Neben dem motivierenden Karrieremodus fesseln einen vor allem die originellen und gerade zu zweit spaßigen Freestyle-Wettbewerbe und -Arenen lange Zeit ans Pad - auch wenn im Multiplayer-Bereich noch weitaus mehr drin gewesen wäre.

THQ’s MX 2002 featuring Ricky Carmichael for the Xbox has solid control and game play and delivers an enjoyable rental game. Rental game, of course meaning, rent this game. After a few hours, maybe a weekend at the most, the game begins to lose its shine and quickly becomes dull. Challenges and competitions are completed with maybe a very short video clip as a reward, leaving little to be desired. Graphics that leave little to be remembered and audio that seems to have been pulled from a myriad of other racing games do not help to improve the games replay ability. For many, this game will become a dusty addition to the stack of "been there, done that, now what" titles.

I can admire THQ making a straight port of MX 2002 from PS2 to Xbox with little or no improvements, relying on the strong play mechanics of the game to pull it through. As it is, MX 2002 Featuring Ricky Carmichael is the only motorcross video game on the Xbox for now and it's not bad at all. But I expect a lot more, visually and feature-wise, when a game gets ported to the Xbox whether it's taking advantage of the powerful graphic capabilities or utilizing other Xbox features not found in other consoles. It's still a good motocross game but let's hope the next motocross game from THQ will have a little more to give to Xbox owners than just a good - but unchanged - translation.

Fans of motocross will be more than pleased with what MX 2002 makes available--the control is tight, the graphics are more than adequate, and the Xbox version's additional features make it as good a choice of motocross racer as any currently available today. It's interesting to think of how good this game could have been if the developer had spent more time with the powerful new system in mind, and it's fairly evident that fans of the capable PS2 version have little to draw them toward purchasing the game for a second time. Despite this, MX 2002 is quite a racing title on its own merits and should be considered by fans of motocross and newcomers to the sport alike.

If it's solid Xbox dirt bike action you're looking for, MX 2002's the only choice. It might not be much more than an enhanced PS2 port, but then again, many of the best Xbox games currently available are slightly-better ports as well (Silent Hill 2 and Genma Onimusha, anyone?). Carmichael fans and tricked-out extreme sport nuts alike should find a fun little title here with above-average replay value all around.

La version PS2 avait écopé d'un sympathique 14 malgré ses quelques défauts. Sur Xbox, la réalisation moyenne s'ajoute à la liste mais je suis gentil aujourd'hui. Le gameplay accrocheur sauve le titre pour cette fois, ainsi que l'absence de concurrence sur la machine sans doute, mais gare... Un titre qui séduira amateurs et débutants, pour peu qu'ils ne soient gênés par un aspect technique indigne de leur console.