Asphalt 3D (3DS) Review

My first ever experience with the Asphalt series was actually with the ill-fated Nokia N-Gage, which wasn’t a great device and the terrible game itself didn’t actually help my opinion either. With so many racings games hitting the market and eventually failing, it’s interesting to see that Asphalt is still doing quite well, with multiple iterations coming out across multiple platforms throughout the generations. While many people did not mind and enjoyed the original Asphalt that appeared during the DS launch, it appears that this three dimensional iteration is nowhere near as good as previous titles and is in fact a little bit on the unremarkable side.

The game’s appearance is pretty slick looking, mimicking a kind of futuristic neon style of presentation that really draws the player into the “street scene” that the game seems to emphasise. Car models and environments, however, are rather rough in their appearance – there are licensed cars included in the packaged but I have a feeling the licensors will be very disappointed to see how things have turned out. The game’s draw distance is also pretty appalling, with many buildings and trees literally teleporting in during faster paced races which creates this annoying disconnect between the player and the speed of the game itself. Almost all of the details themselves are very weak too, with trees appearing blocky and flat, as well as leaves falling from these trees looking very pixelated. Finally, the biggest and most annoying component of the game’s presentation is the huge slowdown that occurs when the player gains large amounts of speed, which really pulls the player out of the game.

The actual 3D effect is not utilised as well as it could be, especially compared to other launch title racer Ridge Racer 3D. Menus prominently pop out of the screen, and this effect is sometimes a little bit too strong to be comfortable too. There were times when I felt the 3D effect actually added depth to the race during some of the speediest moments of the game, and the statistics and positions information that are layered over the top of the screen feel just right in terms of depth.

For all intents and purposes, Asphalt 3D is more of an arcade racer than a simulation, combining elements of Criterion’s Burnout series into the fold as well. There are multiple modes to work through, with Career mode being the main amount of content, letting players race through 14 worlds through multiple real world locations. There is also a trials mode that requires the player to complete objectives and courses under a certain amount of time – these modes are definitely insubstantial “filler” content that sometimes feels like more of a chore to complete instead of legitimately extending the experience. In terms of portability, Asphalt 3D doesn’t actually allow the player to jump in as fast as possible with some rather lengthy load times and the immense amount of upgrades available for cars. With each race, comes experience, and with experience players can upgrade their cars as much as they want as well as unlock new ones. These points are so easy to come by, however, that every car can be upgraded at almost any time and there’s really no challenge.

In terms of handling, Asphalt 3D controls pretty well, although the game can’t really make up it’s mind as to whether it’s a drift-oriented game or just a standard racer. Sometimes the actual controls feel really loose. There’s also a large amount of traffic heading in the opposite direction to your car, and avoiding these is often a great feat that you’ll have to perform many times. This is a nice twist to the action but sometimes I felt like these “traffic” cars had different properties or magical powers that allowed them to move in an unusual way. Asphalt 3D also implements a system similar to toe Burnout games, where police will chase after the player and players will have to divert them by causing them to crash or something similar. These moments are cool but the games’ physics engine always seems to crash whenever this happens, with the cars seeming to move erratically once they’re in the air.

Asphalt 3D does feature multiplayer but this is unfortunately limited to local play only. StreetPass is supported, where the players’ stats are exchanged, although this feature is nothing amazing. While there is a lot of content in terms of both cars and courses, Asphalt 3D’s overall design makes it feels bloated and uninteresting. There’s a heap to do but it’s very unlikely you’ll have the patience to actually do it, with some trials in particular feeling like chores instead of fun gameplay diversions.

Asphalt 3D’s soundtrack is a good mix of electronic and industrial sounding beats that really complement the game’s atmosphere and action, although sometimes it does come across as horrible generic. There is the occasional bout of voice acting and surprisingly this is pretty decent too, but overall the game’s soundtrack will not break any records or sound like nothing you’ve heard before.

Graphics 5.0

Everything in this game is somehow modelled to the minimal amount of detail required. Models and environments are severely lacklustre, and the 3D effect is underutilised although sometimes it works in establishing depth.

Gameplay 5.5

There is a bit of variety in the gameplay with both Career mode and the Trial mode, but some iffy handling issues really drag the game down. Random graphical issues during crash scenes is incredibly distracting, and strange behaving AI makes the game really hard to play properly.

Sound 6.5

Some nice electronic beats give a good sense of atmosphere to the action, but these pieces are nothing that will amaze you for long thereafter. Voice work is pretty scarce but when its done, its done well.

Tilt 5.0

This barely scrapes in at a pass, despite the sheer amount of content. Unfortunately, nothing feels substantial or solid enough to continue playing beyond the first three hours.

Value 6.0

Despite its shortcomings I had a bit of fun with Asphalt 3D, but its not anything that I would want to buy and add to my collection.

Overall

Asphalt 3D is a pretty substantial package with a nice style of presentation, although despite a nice style and so much content, everything seems to be incredibly drab looking and the content is not compelling enough to warrant extended play. Ridge Racer 3D is probably a better choice if you want a racer.