Developer: Asobo Studio
Platform: PC
Multiplayer: Freeride and Races
Single player: Freeride, Races and Challenges
There are very few games I actually buy... and fewer still I still play a week after buying. That said, FUEL is not just another game. The easiest way to explain what it is, is by using another game, so bear with me.
Ever play GTA? San Andreas, Vice City, 4. Whatever version. Did you ever find yourself grabbing a dirt bike, or a truck and just racing around with no care for direction? That's the basic idea behind FUEL. It's a massive (and I MEAN massive. HUGE massive. Oric Massive.) game, filled with trees, burnt shacks, rusty fences and the wrecks of Mr Smith's collection of generic Fords. Cracked roads and dusty dirt paths are the order of the day. Rain pelts down in the darkness of the night, and the desert strips stretch on for miles and miles under a beautiful sunset. No complaints so far.
And it doesn't get worse when you look at the vehicles either. Everything from Dirt Buggies to Hovercrafts are available, and used in races in any one of the massive zones that make up post-apoc America (and the fact that it's AMERICA in ruins in FUEL also makes me happy). New vehicles can be bought with FUEL gained from races, and painted to look pretty, with two layers. a paint job (base colour) and a Livery (what normal people call a decal). New liveries are found in freeride, by going towards the shaft (calm down lads) of blue light that indicates when you're near one.
It does feel like they're using a tiny bit of reverse psychology, with all the dismissive descriptions of the zones (which is pretty much the only verbal interaction in the game. No cut scenes or stupid story tacked on, lads) going on and on about global warming. But Meh, you get these sorts of things.
Now normally in these sorts of games, you expect multilayer to be instant. Bumper to bumper for a few minutes, or a couple of laps, and then never talk again. In FUEL, however, it's a little different. As previously mentioned, there's freeride. That is, a massive open world where you can go anywhere (besides underwater, obviously) and do anything. Now consider what it'd be like if this mode had an on-line ability. To switch on-line, and drive alone, exploring the roads, perhaps attempting to find some unlockables, and run across a yellow arrow on your minimap. This would be another player, doing exactly the same thing as you. Oh, and voice is automatic, so chatting is easy as hell. (no text chat, but it'd be hard to type and avoid trees at the same time.)
On a side note, the music sucks, though I'm fairly sure this is just my natural taste talking, since it all seems to be indie or metal. Thankfully, you can just disable it and move on. (Spotify works well in the background) The sound of the various vehicles are also pretty good.
When you can play a game for hours (maybe days. Not yet confirmed) and not use the same road more than a dozen times, it's a good thing. GTA stunt fans, rejoice. Your game is here.
Grab the demo from steam and enjoy FUEL for what it is. A free-roaming off-road racer with a sense of humour, and an OCDesque obsession with large environments.
Good points – Massive Game Worlds, Flawless multiplayer, Unique Races.
Bad points – Bad Music, Controls are a little slippery.
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