Project Cars Review (PC)

Racing games have been notoriously fickle to nail down by game developers and publishers, with many established franchises bringing all sorts of iterations that appeal to different niches in the racing genre (see Forza Motorsport, Need for Speed, and so on).

In recent times, things have gotten even wilder with the arrival of The Crew or other all-new releases, and now, after quite a bit of waiting, Slightly Mad Studios has finally brought forth its Project Cars title.

Originally envisioned as a crowdfunded project through the WMD platform, the game has gone through quite a few erratic periods, but it ultimately won over many fans due to Slightly Mad's passion for realistic racing simulation.

Does the final version of Project Cars have what it takes to succeed in the racing genre or should the whole project be dismantled? Let's find out.

Story

Project Cars has a single-player campaign that puts players in the shoes of a new up and coming racing driver that signs onto a team in his chosen discipline. You can pick from quite a few motorsports and then progress through the ranks, while getting invitations to enjoy other genres. You're not forced into anything you don't like and the whole experience is pretty immersive.

You even get messages from fans, as well as feedback from social media. While it's not a story per se, the campaign does offer quite a bit of motivation to keep going and reach new heights through its historic goals, which task fans with completing certain challenges, like starting from the bottom and reaching tier 1, or defending their championships.

Besides the actual campaign, players can engage in quick races or practice laps alone.

Race Le Mans Prototypes in Project Cars

Gameplay

Of course, the most important aspect of Project Cars is its gameplay. Those looking for an arcade racing experience are better off somewhere else as Slightly Mad has brought forth an impressive racing simulator that caters to the hardcore.

You can tweak a huge amount of things about your car, go on practice and qualifying laps, and then jump into an actual race. You can also customize many other things about your pit strategy, the feedback from your technical crew, and so on.

This doesn't mean that newcomers aren't welcome in Project Cars, as the title offers quite a lot of different driving aids to help ease them into the experience. Unfortunately, many are a bit heavy-handed about their intervention and often it feels like the game is completely taking control away from you in order to "help."

Vehicles handle quite well and feel very different from one another. You might feel like a driving ace in a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG supercar, but getting behind the wheel of a single-seater open-wheel car or a Le Mans Prototype challenges you in many new ways.

Camera options are quite bountiful but they mostly focus on the inside of the car. You can get the regular behind-the-wheel view, but also a center one that feels a bit awkward, not to mention a behind-the shoulder/backseat one. In contrast, the behind-the-car camera has just one angle, which makes it a bit tricky for those that don't feel comfortable inside the cockpit.

While you'll mostly be driving around on different professional racing circuits, from the Nurburgring, to Road America, Spa Francorchamps, and so on, you'll also be invited onto public roads, such as on the Cote d'Azur in France or the California Coast. Here, Slightly Mad shows that it can provide some great vistas. Unfortunately, it also shows that the game can't handle all that well collisions with obstacles, such as the sidewalks in Cote d'Azur, or the gravel near the road in California.

What's more, while you can race any car on any track, Slightly Mad should certainly offer suggestions, as taking blazing-fast Le Mans Prototypes to California during a thunderstorm is a recipe for disaster, leading to crashes, spins, and general frustration.

Damage models are pretty good, and as expected, you can enable the damage to actually affect your car or just be there for cosmetic purposes. The weather simulation is also in-depth, offering quite a lot of different effects, not to mention options regarding the time of day and its progression.

The artificial intelligence of other drivers can also be customized with multiple levels, to offer just the right amount of competition. Rubber banding isn't present all that much, but at least in the case of open-wheel races, rivals are a bit too eager to initiate contact, leading to some intense crashes or even going airborne for a few moments.

Race in the rain in Project Cars

Multiplayer

Project Cars supports a wealth of multiplayer race options, as players can create their own Race Weekends using a wealth of options. Up to 16 players can enjoy racing online and you can create special lobbies for friends and strangers.

In case you don't like direct online competition, you can also engage in asynchronous time trial challenges against other people's ghosts.

Community events are also promised by Slightly Mad, which bring different themed challenges for all players to enjoy.

Visuals and Sound

Project Cars looks absolutely gorgeous at most quality levels and offers options for many different visual effects on the PC. The weather system looks great as well, and more importantly, not even the most intense rain or fog has any impact on the title's performance. There's also a special Photo mode that allows you to capture any moment and customize it in different ways. The only downside relates to the quality of the interior in some cars, as some aren't that great looking, even for racing machines.

The soundtrack is quite good, sporting even artists like Deadmau5, but what's really impressive is just how different and impressive the cars sound in the game. You'll find big differences between regular cars, racing machines, or open-wheel ones, and most are very pleasant on the ears.

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The Good

The Bad

Conclusion