MX vs ATV Legends Review (PS5)

The world of motocross is rapidly gaining more traction, not only in the States but elsewhere too, so it’s no surprise that videogames supposed to put you in the shoes of a professional off-roader are becoming very popular these days.

This is what makes MX vs ATV Legends such an intriguing release.

First and foremost, if you’re an off-road enthusiast, you almost certainly can’t deny the premise sounds fantastic. It’s a mix of bikes, ATVs, and UTVs that you can ride in an open environment, all while you advance in your career towards becoming an off-roading legend.

But MX vs ATV Legends is actually a much more complex game that ends up becoming a marvelous concept not entirely focused on the actual off-roading experience.

First and foremost, while the core fun is mastering the bike or the ATV on muddy roads, the game has been designed in such a way that you will be entertained both on and off the track.

Thanks to a new open environment, you can simply ride to find new challenges, get in touch with your team, unlock new vehicles, and so on. But while the dev team promises a truly open environment, it’s not necessarily as open as you’d expect it to be.

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For example, whenever you enter the water with your bike or ATV, you are actually out of bounds, so you’re eventually put back on the ground a few seconds later. This is a missed opportunity to enhance the off-roading adventure, pretty much because an ATV should be able to master a decent amount of water, obviously without getting submerged.

And speaking of the off-the-track experience, the career mode comes with an impressive number of goodies, starting with the sponsorship deals and ending with the events you must compete in. The customization side has also been enhanced substantially, so you can personalize both the rider and the parts and gears you receive from a wide array of manufacturers.

MX vs ATV Legends promises a breath-taking physics system

In many ways, it truly delivers on its promise, but this doesn’t mean there’s no room for improvements. The vehicles do seem heavy at certain moments, therefore providing a very realistic experience that’s further increased by the feedback provided by the DualSense controller on the PlayStation 5.

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But when it comes to crashes and collisions, this is where the game needs additional polishing. The realistic coolness is almost completely gone this time, and there are moments when you crash into a fence, with the bike just bouncing back in a very arcade-ish way.

The same when you crash into one of your competitors, as your rider is flying across the screen and then lands on the ground in a very unrealistic way.

And speaking of competitors, the AI isn’t necessarily the smartest, as it sometimes bumps into you and doesn’t try to get back on the track unless you press the reset button. This leads us to another annoyance.

Using the reset feature to get back on the track whenever you lose control of your vehicle is painful, slow, and once again painful. The whole thing takes up to several seconds, so depending on the difficulty level, it could lead to almost a certain failed race.

However, the races are as challenging as they get. If you believe you can win races, well, just think again, as mastering the control of your vehicles isn’t necessarily as easy as it sounds. Leaning and using the button combos is more important than you’d be tempted to believe at first, so I recommend everyone to play the tutorial and therefore understand what and why you should do certain things on the track.

In some ways, this further evolves the concept the game is based on, as it feels like a highly complex title that always comes up with something new to discover.

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The Good

The Bad

Conclusion