Street Racing Syndicate (SRS) was an oft-delayed videogame. Of course in this industry it's tough to take a game that's a few years old and release it as new. Let's go over the back story of this game : many years ago, a company called 3DO started work on a Need For Speed like game that would impress because you'd get girlfriends instead of trophies!
3DO went bankrupt and during an asset sale last year, Namco was the 'lucky' winner of the Street Racing Syndicate license. I will say Namco has put some extra work in this game, but unfortunately the game just feels like an average racer.
The graphics in the game remind me of an old Ubisoft PC game called POD: Speedzone. There's a lot of shine and a lot of lights. However, there is absolutely no feeling that you're going as fast as the speedometer says you're going, which is very frustrating.
As with all games these days, you start by building a profile. There are a couple of modes you can choose from: Street Mode, which is where you build your career by winning and losing money and girlfriends. There's arcade mode where, guess what – you race like you're playing an arcade game.
There is also split screen 2 player, LAN play and online play.
Must of the time you'll be playing in Street Mode. This is a free roaming area – meaning you can find the races you want to race. During these races you'll earn respect points and cash. You can use the cash to customize your ride, and boy, can you ever customize it.
When you first start off, you can select from a pretty good selection of cars. I chose the Jetta GLS 1.8T, because it's what I've driven in real life. The first race I played I easily won the $750, but the problem was it was probably one of the most boring races I've ever played. It sure didn't feel like I was going fast at all, and let me tell you I can honestly say that it sure as heck didn't feel like I was driving a Jetta GLS 1.8T. Let's just say when compared to Burnout 3, there is absolutely no sense of speed whatsoever.
Getting back to the cars, have you seen the movie Fast and the Furious? Remember the car type that everyone had? Honda Civics, right? Well guess what car ISN"T included in the game? Yup, Honda – it's kinda like playing a Major League Baseball game without the actual players. Not good.
The graphics themselves aren't bad and of course the ladies are always nice eye candy for the people who can't go online to see the same. I've never personally been downtown in LA to remember if this is similar, nor have I been in Miami or Philly, but the game often suffers from invisible wall syndrome, so even if the game says you can 'free roam' you can't in race – so forget the shortcuts. Damage isn't really modeled at all. Sure you'll get the broken windshield, but again I look to Burnout 3 for some real carnage and you don't see that here. There are plenty of cars (over 50 licensed) to choose from and the VW Jetta looks pretty much like the car in my garage, so I can't complain there – except for the Honda issue.
The sound is downright annoying. The same music from Limp Bizkit wannabe's (and I'm not fan of the Bizkit anyway) will drive you completely nuts. It overshadows the decent job done with the sound effects.
Again, as far as gameplay goes, it's just not happening in races. There is no sense of speed whatsoever – especially when compared to Burnout 3. The steering is very sluggish at best, I feel like I'm racing a box and not a car. There's also the obligatory police chase, but it's really just not fun at all. In the old NFS, for example, you really felt like you had to outrun the police. Here it just seems to be 'one more exercise' that really isn't fun at all.
The garage however, is a very different story – you'll think you have a Crutchfield catalog in front of you with all of the different things you can modify – from engines to stickers and more. It is very cool.
What's even cooler? How about risking your car – and all the hours you've put into it – online against another racer? Just like the Fast & The Furious movie – the online pink slip mode means you lose your car if you lose. This is pretty cool but it sucks when you lose. Online play was a blast, except of course when I lost my car. Luckily I didn't put much into it. So long Jetta, at least I'll have the real one in my garage.
Overall, even with the night and day races, the multiple cars, the multiple garage options, and the hot babes that you "win" the game doesn't seem to ever rise above average in a genre that's already filled up with plenty of games to choose from. It's decent enough to warrant a rental, but I don't see myself going back to play this game over and over again as I have been doing with Burnout 3.
-Dan Clarke
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