MotorStorm: Apocalypse

Motorstorm Apocalypse is almost an entirely new game compared to the previous installments. Richer, more innovative, it will warm arcade-style racing games amateurs with spectacular trials, and immediate fun. Full of content and replay value, with cool local and online multiplayer, it's by far the best of the series.

MotorStorm: Apocalypse is essentially a 20+ hour experience of non-stop WOW moments. If Michael Bay were making video games then this is the game he would be making, so if you love that epic style of cinematic destruction and global disaster combined with intense competitive racer AI and purely instinctive and reflexive gameplay then take one final spin through San Francisco before the city and your race tracks sink into the ocean.

Motorstorm Apocalypse delivers an exhilarating experience that you will want to visit again and again.

Stimulating, frustrating and visually spectacular, MotorStorm: Apocalypse takes arcade racing to a whole new thrilling level.

It offers more posibilities than ever before, a deep online mode designed to last for months, and enough fun to become the perfect buy for racing fans. More complete and fun than previous Motorstorm games, and powered by an unprecedented cinematic spectacle.

MotorStorm is bigger and better. We now have customized vehicles, a more robust online, with perks and betting, and a career mode with a story that gives context to what is happening at the festival.

A ridiculously fun racing experience that changes at every turn.

A massive technical achievement of real spectacle with heart-pounding fun at the core, but we can't help feeling that racing has taken a back seat.

Despite some frustrating gameplay quirks, Motorstorm Apocalypse is a must-buy for series fanatics, and a must-play for newcomers because of its fast action, sharp controls, and incredible sound design.

Apocalypse has high expectations of the player, but the reward for hard work, diligence and patience is one of the most exciting racing games available. Even with the lingering issues, this is Motorstorm at its most extravagant, at its most intense, and at its absolute best.

Destructive environments and excellent track design make MotorStorm: Apocalypse one of the most exciting racing experiences on the PlayStation 3.

Undoubtedly Apocalypse is much better than the second Motorstorm. Very recommendable for the fans of the wildest speed games.

Race trough an apocalyptic setting where every building is collapsing and the ground is tearing apart because of earthquakes. By far the most intense MotorStorm game in the franchise with a great singleplayer and very cool new multiplayer elements.

The best and most spectacular Motorstorm so far, but it still has some minor annoyances.

MotorStorm: Apocalypse raises the frenzy of past shows to unprecedented heights. Phenomenal graphics, frantic action and high doses of adrenaline together form the best installment of the series.

With forty tracks, thirteen vehicle types to master, and a fun (if somewhat basic) online mode, this is one you won't be able to put down.

The new racing game is fast and fun. The 3D mode looks pretty cool and includes a lot of 3D effects. The multiplayer is good while the single player campaign is only a tutorial.

But, with four player split screen and 3D support, those with a big enough telly are in for some incredibly intense, high revving racing. Sure it's chaotic and epic and it starts out too easy and hits a point where it becomes too frustrating. But, and this is most important thing, MotorStorm: Apocalypse is exciting and thrilling and awesomely fun from the moment you start playing.

A boatload of fast-paced fun, infused with an energy that almost seems insurmountable. This energy alone is worthy of your attention.

Apocalypse is solid, funny and extremely various. A little bit chaotic, maybe; but as the track design is so brilliant, we can forgive the flaws of the engine.

Not quite the juggernaut it was at launch, but still a very playable racer. [May 2011, p.88]

In the end, Motorstorm: Apocalypse is an enjoyable game to play, however it's very hard to beat the original premise of the first game and continue being unique.

A fun ride while it lasts and an interesting take on the standard arcade racer formula. The story-based campaign mode can feel limiting and immature at times but, once you get out on the track, the sheer amount of action taking place at any given moment generally makes up for up.

Like Test Drive Unlimited 2 before it the cutscenes in Apocalypse are universally terrible. The obviously deliberate digital comic approach feels cheap too, making the sequences feel like placeholders for real animation that never eventuated. It's all a bit childish, really, and features the worst approximation of a foreign accent since Christopher Lambert tried to sound like a Scotsman in Highlander. You'll know it when you hear it. We do question why Evolution bothered devoting manpower to the story mode and we'd be happy not to see it again. Fortunately, players will spend far more time playing Apocalypse than they will do with awful cutscenes. The racing is still furious and fun – and that's always the main thing. [May 2011 p.74]

The third big Motorstorm and third major success. Placing game story into a collapsing town has showed as a great idea – it is no need to remind that multiplayer is fantastic. [Issue#203]

Now that it is here, I would be remiss not to mention my disappointment with some of its features. Still, the more I dug into the game, the more I found myself appreciating the direction the developers took.

It's the ultimate conclusion to an already beloved IP that's one of the most technically impressive titles in an already prestigious group.

In a year that's already had a few really solid racers and is expecting a couple more, Apocalypse stands out as a game that should be played by racing fans.

Racing through the rubble is unpredictable and thrilling, but some of the rougher edges have also been amplified. Its ambition can push the game beyond the limits of frustration, though it also gives rise to some spectacular moments that help make this an experience that, while flawed, is brilliantly unique.

An aggressive racer with a bit of a weak single player campaign but a really entertaining multiplayer.

Fans of traditional arcade racers will find more value in Apocalypse's replay-rewarding multiplayer, but it's the campaign that'll have them instinctively gripping their Hyundai's steering wheel a little tighter every time they cross a rickety bridge. [May 2011, p.74]

For underneath the rage of Mother Nature at the heart of Apocalypse lies a racing game whose visceral impact is almost unlike anything in the modern genre, an anarchic experience built on both arcade simplicity and technical complexity.

MotorStorm: Apocalypse has to deal with some contingency situations (the earthquake in Japan and the consequent delayed release) that inevitably created problems, especially in terms of online content. The single player campaign, however, is long enough thanks to the three different "chapters", thirteen vehicle classes and more than thirty races placed in nine different locations. The on-screen disaster is convincing both in terms of visuals (except for the color palette, too bright) and gameplay, with scenarios that change dynamically between a lap and the other.

In the era of big set-piece arcade racing, Evolution has created a strong competitor for pole position.

The third Motorstorm may have stripped away some of the class of its predecessors and replaced it with noise and bluster, but it has done so with a technical bravado that is, at times, astonishing.

A mad, break-neck ride and locations changing in front of our eyes on such a scale is something that the competitors haven't had a chance to show. Evolution Studios have yet again proved to be a true master of off-road racers.

A good arcade racing game. The main campaign has some design flaws, but multiplayer is where Evolution Studios' game really shines.

For a game that spends most of its time grinding you down, smashing you into pieces and throwing you off high-rise buildings, MotorStorm Apocalypse is as much fun to be around as a rock star uncle. [Apr 2011, p.102]

MotorStorm: Apocalypse is a fine racing game. The singleplayer doesn't live up to its expectations, but the multiplayer makes it all better. It's one big spectacle, and you don't get bored from a good thing like that.

Another thrilling (but not flawless) ride for the Motorstorm series. The new, apocalyptic scenario delivers excellent track designs and incredible visuals, but the entire single-player experience feels a little bit unbalanced. On the other hand, sound and multiplayer options are top-notch.

Motorstorm has a special relationship with chaos, and if you can keep your head when all about you are throwing their controllers, you're just as likely to lose. Less battle than survival racing, it's happy to let fairness be a stain on the tarmac. [Apr 2011, p.95]

It's more intense, and way more linear, with less strategy involved. If you love Hollywood-style racing action, and consider spending some time with the great online mode, this might be your deal. On the other hand, if you're just interested in the single player campaign, it might not be worth all the while.

It's not perfect, but it represents pure arcade racing with a central device that never feels tired – the earthquake scenario managing to stretch itself over forty different events and still feel fresh at the very end, when the game turns everything up to eleven.

A relentless assault on the senses, with grandiose set pieces that would make Michael Bay gush with delight. The racing itself doesn't offer a tremendous amount of depth, but the destruction unfolding around each event offers an edge-of-your-seat experience that more than makes up for it.

It works because it's not subtle...But beneath all this clamour you can detect the stable, confident hum of a decent racing series finding its feet – in its improved boost mechanic, substantial feature set and streamlined campaign.

Because of its name it's fitting that MotorStorm: Apocalypse is somewhat of a rebirth for the series, and the racing feels fresher than ever. It may have lost a bit of its identity whilst borrowing so much from SplitSecond, but the apocalyptic city setting is so strong that it doesn't matter. The best MotorStorm game yet.

However, even with all those aspects and the insane environments, I found it too hard to overcome the crashing. I've played games in other genres that "yank" players out of the experience, but it's not happened often in the racing arena. With MotorStorm: Apocalypse, it does, and specifically because of the crashes

Apocalypse's racing feels like it's received less attention than creating spectacle, but the focus on track deformation is exhilarating and fun nevertheless. [Issue#203, p.84]

Despite the strong online component, MotorStorm: Apocalypse still doesn't do enough to stand out.

While still a bit rough around the edges, MotorStorm: Apocalypse is a unique racing experience that's exciting to look at as well as play, even if that experience is partially neutered online.

A game that plays and looks great, it ticks all the boxes that a MotorStorm game should, but unfortunately the storyline featured in the Festival mode is really weak. However, the most important area of the game – racing - is wild, chaotic and most importantly fun to play.

As laughable as the context for the story might seem, the apocalyptic vision of a destroyed city by the bay feels very real, and surprisingly, as a space for races, works very well.

Out of the three titles I found MotorStorm Apocalypse to be the weakest of them all. I'd admit, it is brave for its developers to take this new approach to the franchise but as a result I feel the game as a whole has been harmed, but not in an apocalyptic way, as there is still some good to come out of this game.

A giant leap in the right direction for the series and for off-road racers.

Motorstorm: Apocalypse is a highly enjoyable arcade racer let down by poor presentation and a manifest lack of focus on the part of Evolution Studios, who are in danger of losing track of what made the series so appealing in the first place.

Although it suffers from some fundamental design flaws -like the poor A.I. and some unfair crashes due to the destruction of the environment- MotorStorm offers a solid, fun and beautiful arcade racing experience, equal to its predecessors.

Impressive destruction, but surprisingly unfulfilling as a proper 'racing' game. [May 2011, p.92]

This is a loud, often spectacular dash through countless set-pieces and ragdoll pedestrians. However, 'trying not to crash' isn't as fun as racing or combat, but that's what you'll be doing for 95% of the time. It's just not as fun as it should be.

I can't help but feel underwhelmed.

Quotation forthcoming.

The over-the-top racing game, MotorStorm: Apocalypse, convinces with its spectacular concept. The game definitely shines as a multiplayer game, whether it's splitscreen or online. It's too bad though, that it doesn't play as well as its predecessor and the artificial intelligence of your opponents and arbitrary crashes will get your blood pressure to rise significantly from time to time.

Easily the best of the series so far, but the actual driving is still nowhere near as much fun as the tracks and the stunning 3D visuals.

Motorstorm has its moments where it is impactful and fun... and because of this, it is still worth checking out. However, long time fans of the series so step with caution, this isn't your old Motorstorm.

It's a cleverly ruinous game frequently ruined by its own cleverness.

The levels are a spectacle, and give Apocalypse the adrenaline shot it needs to stay afloat, but it fails to rise above other, more innovative titles by relying too heavily on its boost mechanic and doing little else.

MotorStorm Apocalypse really nails the whole apocalypse thing, no question. It's the actual racing that's taken the back seat. There are moments when the planets align and the experience becomes pure arcade racing magic -- but they're only moments. The rest of the time you're just an angsty, glorified crash test dummy.

All these criticisms may make it sound like Apocalypse is a substandard game, but it isn't. It's just that the stuff that's different from previous MotorStorm games is mostly bungled or simply boring, but the stuff that's the same is still enjoyable. Apocalypse is just a vanilla, if basically solid, racing game that tries to throw a few curveballs at you, but ends up hitting the backstop instead of the strike zone.

Perhaps the most telling criticism of all is that Apocalypse manages to render the sight of an entire city's ongoing death as interminably dull. [Issue#107, p.95]

It's not the best racing game around – it's not particularly unique or innovative, the "plot", as it is, in story mode isn't engaging or well told, the soundtrack is undistinguished, but its flaws are forgiven thanks to its great looks and fantastic playability.

Racing through the end of the world is a great idea, but Motorstorm: Apocalypse is held back by an unsatisfying driving experience, extremely low difficulty curve and a lack of variety. It ends up as a rather average arcade racer that runs out of gas too quickly.

This game is based on a great idea but it suffers from poor execution. Gameplay counts and this one misses the mark big time in that respect, which is the reason for why I scored this game as I did. A real shame considering the pedigree of Sony exclusives. This one could have been so good.

The final kiss of death for Apocalypse is that the elaborate tracks are often so busy coming to pieces that it's impossible to spot crash-inducing debris and obstacles in your path.