Most racing game fans nowadays enjoy arcade based racers like MotorStorm, Need for Speed and maybe the driving sims Forza or Gran Turismo. There are not too many motorcycle based simulation racing games on the market today and there is a reason. The genre is very niche because bike racing is not on many gamers radars – but, based on SBK X, maybe it should be. Milestone has developed a mass of racing games including the MotoGP, Superstars V8 Racing and Superbike series. The Italian development house cranks out decent racing games every year and 2010 is no different.
For those of you who have not heard about the SBK series, it is a highly competitive, circuit based, motorcycle championship that spreads over the entire world. Most of you probably know the MotoGP series; SBK is a bit different and unique. All events during the SBK World Championship include two races making this an incredibly competitive title to win.
As noted previously, Milestone has a great deal of experience when it comes to delivering a classic simulation experience. The team was able to incorporate the official SBK license which includes three different classes, Superstock, WSS and finally SBK. Players can choose from 90 real riders and their bikes on the official circuits which include Monza, Valencia, Magny-Cours and the Nürburgring. Make no mistakes, this is the real deal. There are several different modes to pick from in SBK X. While we have our standard races and race weekends, there are also full championship seasons, multiplayer, career and story modes. Players can create their own riders and unlock new attire for each of them as they progress and win races. There are some nice touches in the rider creation including the ‘riding style’ option – fans of the genre will appreciate this.
The two meatiest modes, and the ones you’ll want to play, are of course career and story mode. During those modes players will start out from the Superstock and progress to the SBK class. In order to get there, players will need to place well during races and championships which will lead to the eventual promotion to the SBK class – this is where the fun is!
Now that you know a bit about the progression and features of SBK X – how is the racing? Fantastic! The gameplay experience is where SBK X shines. The game can be played from an Arcade mode level up to a full on Simulation experience – this is for experienced racers only though, as newcomers might want to start with the arcade mode since the sim settings are not forgiving at all. If you’ve played bike racers before give the low sim setting a shot and see how it feels before progressing to the highest degree. While all this might sound incredibly boring to some, the fun level is incredibly high when you are racing around Valancia at the edge of grip and control with full sim settings switched on.
There are bike settings galore in SBK X – I have seldom seen more customizable options in a game, from chain tightness over gear ratios to spring stiffness. Each of these settings actually make a noticeable impression as you go around the track – getting the setup right will be an important part of being successful. Once on the track the bikes feel very responsive and behave as a motorcycle would. Going into a corner after breaking from a high speed straightaway will have the rear of the bike slinging back and forth a bit before smoothing out during the turn and require careful acceleration in order to avoid a neck breaking ‘high-sider’. I was pleasantly surprised at how well and different each of the bike classes handled.
The tracks are also very impactful on the racing action. High traffic areas will provide more rubber build-up and traction while rainy patches will offer only spotty grip.
SBK X would be an even better game if the AI was smarter, too many times was I able to ‘game’ the AI into thinking I would turn or blocking a path which caused other riders to slow down more than what is realistic. The computer driven opponents also were not as completive as I’d like and once I mastered a track, no one could really touch me even on a mediocre bike. While there is a 16 player multiplayer mode I was not able to test this part due to a lacking online community at the time of the review.
SBK X is an incredibly hardcore racing simulation at its core that may rival Gran Turismo 5 in terms of realism. The game is really exciting when driven at the edge. Motorcycle racing fans, who know who Max Biaggi is or how many races Carlos Checa won last year, will really enjoy this game but even with the arcade settings, newcomers won’t feel the same excitement. SBK X may be the best bike sim you’ve played to date and if it finds an audience in the US, it just may be appreciated as such.
Score: 7.5
SBK X was developed by Milestone and published by Deep Silver for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC on December 7th, 2010. A copy of the PS3 version was provided to us by Deep Silver for reviewing purposes.
Editors Note: The game also includes the Legends Pack DLC which allows to race legends such as Biaggi, Fogerty, Lanzi and Yanagawa.
