TrackMania United poses as a well-rounded racing game minus a few glaring obstacles: control complexity, graphics, and variation. This game was clearly meant as a multiplayer platform as it offers little to no options for the independent internet incapable individual. Piled on top of this we have a graphics engine with one setting resulting in pixilated action with no hope or option for change.
TrackMania United is blessed and cursed for its simplicity. We have the ‘Solo' single player option that offers four levels of difficulty: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Extreme. Unfortunately, this is one game where raising the difficulty level doesn't offer much replay value to the game. In Solo mode, the player can choose from Race, Puzzle, or Platform, all which offer paltry offerings when it comes to levels. Some of the levels are nothing more than a straight-away that you're expected to beat the other cars in. It's maddening that such a simple game can be made these days. For the Puzzle selection we have 4 track choices wherein the player is expected to find the magical combination of moves that will allow them to escape from their automobile prison. It only gets worse though, as the Platform selection offers a mere 2 choices and asks that you avoid the pitfalls and stay on the track until the finish line. While the first few runs may give you frustration, the true angst in these comes from the lack of notation or signaling as to where you should go or what is and is not a drivable surface. This is where that graphic detail part becomes a factor.
Now that we've panned the Single Player mode, it's time we got to what the game was really meant for. TrackMania United does exactly as its title would suggest, it brings together racing game enthusiasts from across the world to duke it out in the fast lane as they compete for best times. Herein we have the player unleashed upon an online supply of player created tracks that definitely make the supplied few look pathetic. Multi-player is where this game truly takes off. You can do the typical online gaming fare, join races created by others or start your own. With Hotseat, you can link up with foreign competitors (or create a few computer buddies if you're internet impaired). The LAN option offers the obvious connection with closer acquaintances who also have found a love in the TMU world.
Honestly, all the quirks (horrible parts) of the Solo mode are almost compensated for with the MP options that TMU offers its players. On top of that, what's cooler than racing against a dude in Portugal? ...Or Monaco (I guess that's a more respected racing venue)? There's nothing cooler than getting sworn at in languages you only think you understand because it sounds like the bad words you learned in Spanish that one year in high school. Ah yes, this is what the internet was created for. International discussion wherein the L33ts of the racing world pwn the n00bs. Ah yes. So yes, during my tryout session I was pwned numerous times.
For this I attribute it to three things: I was in fact a noob. That's number one. 2) The controls are so simple I was actually confused. Not that I'm a simpleton, just that I was looking for buttons that let me drift, use turbo, or whatnot. But no. No Nitrous for us. This is straight up "every turn, every press upon the accelerator, and every man's willingness to risk his gamingly metaphorical neck in the name of speed" comes into play. No pun. And while I'm glad the game is so simple, I also am annoyed with how this game seems like a regression into the dark ages of handheld Tiger company racing games. This game would have functioned on a Gameboy; it's that simple. So yay for them for making a user-friendly interface, but boo for slacking and not creating a more vibrant and possibility-ripe gaming venue.
In the Editor option the player may find one of the nicest perks TMU has to offer. Editor allows you to view old races. Relive those days of glory or horrible noob-dom with the handy little ‘Replay' button. Personally I'm a big fan of games that allow you to review past accomplishments and failures. So +1 for you, TMU. That's one point in a system totally un-based in numbers stemming from my otherwise subjective mindset. Along with the replay we have the always popular (and the only reason this game has any replay value at all -- and possibly one of the only reasons this game will work as an online game) level creator and level editor function. Build your own levels. Force the driver to make perilous jumps. Heck, create jumps that are impossible and listen to comments like ‘Are you sure this is possible?' or ‘I've been trying forever to make the jump, but I can't. What's the secret?' Ah, the joys of level editor. I enjoyed this function to a point as it's hard to know what you're doing most of the time and creating a track that functions as well as you'd like is even harder. Finally, within the Editor area, we have the car decal option. A racing favorite and must, TMU allows users to customize their vehicles with paint, pinstripes, and stickers. This function is relatively easy to use allowing you to vary the opacity of a decal, the exact shade of paint, or whatever. It's a well-designed... design system.
Finally and unfortunately, we have the graphics. It's like they didn't even try. But I'm hoping this is to make the game as accessible as possible; consequentially the graphics were sacrificed so even the poorest computers could sport the game. But even then, this offense in optical effronteries is unforgivable. Why not simply include the classic and time-tested option of a resolution adjuster? For this I'm upset. My computer could easily have handled a better graphics setting but instead I had to sit by and watch as my cars spoiler and wheels became straight two-dimensional planes when the computer looked at it just right. Boo.
TMU as a world-uniting racing forum is a beautiful concept and one I completely endorse. But as a product in today's gaming market, I feel it to be a huge disappointment and a matter of lazy programming. I'm glad the users took the time to shore up the game's otherwise poorly crafted sectors.
"TrackMania United" is on sale June 11, 2007 and is rated E. Racing. Developed by Focus. Published by Nadeo.
