IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix

 PlayStation 2
Metascore
55

Mixed or average reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 14
  3. Negative: 3 out of 14
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  1. DarkStation
    50
    Tons of potentials here, but spoiled by overly simplistic controls and horribly sluggish frame rates.
  2. Digital Entertainment News
    65
    If you're looking for a racing game where robots punch each other you might be hard pressed to do better. There are better looking and more detailed mech sims, but the fast pace and fun might win you over.
  3. eToychest
    50
    IGPX never ascends above the label of a quick and dirty fan-service. It has its place, certainly, but that place probably isn’t anywhere near your PS2.
  5. GameDaily
    50
    An odd combination of racing and combat that really doesn't satisfy fans of either genre.
  6. GameSpot
    59
    If you can make it past IGPX's terrible presentation and steep learning curve, you just might find an inexplicably satisfying mech-combat racing game.
  7. GamesRadar+
    60
    There are gobs of customization options for each of your squad (and lord knows you'll need 'em), but there's not much variety to the goings on, and the whole Grand Prix affair won't take you much more than 8 hours or so. Multiplayer offers some extended usage, but not enough to keep it a long-term rotation.
  8. GameZone
    60
    Though I like the concept and general idea, for a racing game, IGPX doesn’t move very fast.
  9. IGN
    57
    The racing portion of the game takes a backseat to combat, which is problem in and of itself, but both aspects lack refinement.
  10. Official U.S. Playstation Magazine
    60
    While IGPX isn't quite as shallow as previous anime offerings from Namco Bandai, only hardcore fans of the series will find themselves playing much past a few hours. [Oct. 2006, p.83]
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  11. Play Magazine
    65
    At the end of the Saturday morning, I think IGPX will please its younger fans, although it makes some mistakes along the way that may keep discerning gamers at bay. [Oct. 2006, p.59]
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  12. PSM Magazine
    50
    It's not easy to make a good combat racer, even with all the mechs in the world, as this game so sorely points out. [Nov. 2006, p.80]
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User Score
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No user score yet- Awaiting 2 more ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 2
  3. Negative: 1 out of 2
  1. AJCk19
    Jul 31, 2021
    7
    PROS:
    Great adaptation, fun and original, gives you a difficultly setting, couch multiplayer is a option.
    MEH: Core aspects of the game    PROS:
    Great adaptation, fun and original, gives you a difficultly setting, couch multiplayer is a option.

    MEH:
    Core aspects of the game need to be fleshed out more.

    CONS:
    Short, not much replay value, no split screen.

    WORTH:
    Almost everyone should at least rent this game. If you are going to play with a friend time to time then go buy it used. If your a fan of the series try desperately to find a new copy. If you are serious about racers, stay clear from this one.

    TLDR:
    IGPX is mainly a mech battle game with racing being secondary. It does have some aspects of customization and squad based tactics. Keep in mind this video game is based off a anime and is 15 hours long max. It does have a multiplayer, but it falls short for not having a split screen. Decent game that will appeal more to the fans of the series and a little less to others due to more established franchises.

    MAIN REVIEW:
    This game is one of those examples that video games based off anime can be decent games if done right like DBZ Tenkaichi 2 and 3. Even though this one could have been much better. It is based off the 26 anime episode called "IGPX: Immortal Grand Prix" aired on cartoon network and stays true to the series. Being one of Toonami's first and so far only original series. IGPX for the PS2 tries to combine fighting, mech customization, racing, and squad based tactics all in one. Making it feel very original, unique, and fun. The problem is that it does it mediocre instead of in great fashion. Especially when you look at games like Street Fighter, Armored Core, Burnout, and Full Spectrum Warrior. Which I know is kind of unfair to compare it to those type of titles. So I don't knock the game too hard for it.

    For those who care (this is spoiler free). The story is about Team Satomi who are trying to become champions of IG-1. IG-1 is like a round-robin race and battle between several teams consisting of 3 pilots in mechs. These mechs have a race mode and battle mode. They can go 350 mph and race on huge 60 mile track courses. The player will be piloting Takeshi, Liz, and Amy in the year 2049. They are all very young and need to learn some teamwork. Especially in the face of the other teams who are very experienced, skilled, well thought out strategies, and have a bigger budget.

    The racing aspect of the game is more about avoiding and stalling until you get to that final stretch of the 3rd lap to do a super boost. In which at that point you go into speed mode. How fast you go in speed mode depends on how much damage you took throughout the race and how far up the scale you choose "race" as your racing style. Lap 1 consists of you setting your race style geared towards racing or battle for your forward (racer mech), midfielder (balanced mech), and defender (battle/tank mech). You can utilize a regular boost throughout, but it isn't that effective especially when all mechs have the ability to catch up with a skating motion.

    The battling aspect consists of melee attack, boost attack, block with timed counterattack function, recovering, rotating attack, various grabs, and special attacks, but everything varies depending on what parts are equipped. You can switch between the 3 pilots like a Warriors Orochi game and perform combo attacks. Depending how far up the scale you choose "battle" as your racing style then your combo meter fills up quicker. You can also issue out 4 commands: crossfire, man to man, defend, rally. Which offer a little bit of squad based tactics for this IP similar to something you would see in Full Spectrum Warrior without the added depth.

    You have around 100 parts to play around with. When you customize your mech you can change its right arm, left arm, legs, and extra. This will effect your offense, defense, agility, and stability stats. All mechs have a set amount of hp that can be depleted to zero by battling or if they fall or are forced off the course. If this happens then that mech is out of the race and gets zero points for their team. In order to win the race the team needs to have more points than their competitor. The number of points for a mech placing are 15 points for 1st place, 7 points for 2nd place, 5 points for 3rd place, 3 points for 4th place, 2 points for 5th place, and 1 point for 6th place.

    The game will take you about 6 to 15 hours max to beat on normal mode with about 70 types of race courses. There are 4 league games each consisting of 6 races. You can challenge individual teams, train, have simulations, and do special events within each league. If you get bored with that you can challenge your friends in multiplayer (no split screen) or play everything over again. Other than that this game doesn't have much replay value.    … Full Review »
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