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[calder]

Fuck, online is screwed for me. It takes forever to communicate to the server, then getting into a race is about 50/50, and of the 4 races I've done only 1 ended properly. The last one was awesome, I was fighting in 3rd spot until the second half of the last lap and managed to get in front of the bike who lead the whole way just a few turns from the end... then nothing. I finished the race in first, but it just kept looping my last lap while saying "race results in..." until I finally had to turn off the game.

But half the time I can't join a lobby, and when I try to cancel it says it lost the connection to the network server. No matter what I say after that I'm stuck in the "communicating to server" screen until I quit out of the game. So lame, the only race that actually finished for me online I finished in 6th, this fucking sucks.

I'm not sure if it's the game, PSN or my network. My wireless has been twitchy lately, and I get logged out of PSN at least once or twice a night now. Time to go get some long ethernet and knock a hole in the living room wall.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

Digging further and further into the SP. The track design and visuals keep amazing me. Cascade Falls has a bounty of different jumps and settings. The track design is already much better than the first game and I've probably only played around 7 of the tracks. Seeing this on your TV makes you a believer. There is no racer that looks or plays like this. I love the chaos as vehicles go flying or passing an intersection and seeing 2 cars side-swipe each other. So awesome.

 

[DCharlie]

picked this up almost at random - thought the demo was okay, but liked what i played at TGS.

Turned out pretty nice actually! graphically it's very nice indeed, some fantastic lighting on some of the levels so far (i'm only scratching the surface). The racing is solid, the load times are much improved, and the action feels a lot more flowing than MS1 - i don't feel rubberbanded so far, with races looking to be down to good lines and taking the right short cuts and not crashing rather than holding back to pip 1st place on the last curve (though it is early)

Good stuff, another good PS3 game.

Might even try out online later today, seemed to be having some trouble connecting last time i tried :/

 

[LiquidMetal14]

I'm up for online if you're on DC.

 

[DCharlie]

Cool - busy LBP'ing right now , but later today i should be on! Cheers.

 

[DenogginizerOS]

I played online this morning and it was flawless. Went out and bought it tonight. Those who know me know where to find me.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

Cool - busy LBP'ing right now , but later today i should be on! Cheers.

Which is your main gaming account, your JPN one? I'll add you.

 

[SaitoH]

Up to rank 7. Can't believe this game is pulling me away from LBP.

Some pics:

 

[DCharlie]

Which is your main gaming account, your JPN one? I'll add you.

yup yup - the "DCharlie" one is my main account.

 

[GodofWine]

I hate it when I race a perfect three laps only to be thrust into last place on the final turn.

So far....this is not the case...Im only about 1/3 thru single player but so far, if you run a dominate race, you win, if you suck you lose.

...did I mention yet this game is awesome??

A friend of mine stopped over today (Xbox owner) and he went to buy a PS3 , MS PR, and preordered R2 (he saw the beta at my house too)...

I love this game, if I wasn't drunk as hell from a wedding tonight...id be on now getting crushed by monster trucks :lol

 

[MadOdorMachine]

I've been playing single player for awhile now. They've fixed just about everything that was wrong with the first game. There are still some cheap crashes, and the graphics are better on some tracks than others, but those are small complaints compaired to all of the headway they've made. I hope there's some way to download the tracks/vehicles from the original because I really like the interface in this one better. I do miss the choke points, but I have to say the branching levels are a good substitute. It's very arcadey.

 

[WinFonda]

That was a huge mess

 

[Maggot9]

God I want this game. Tell me there are multiple times of day for each track, like the first game?

 

[Norml]

More pics, game rocks

Wow, that looks great

 

[Niks]

Hmm online is farked up?... or not many people are playing online??
Finding servers takes forever.

 

[Truespeed]

This looks to be one of the most under-rated games of the year so far. Judging from the reviews you wouldn't think it's as good as it is, but it is. The upcoming free DLC should really push this game into the stratosphere.

 

[sportzhead]

This looks to be one of the most under-rated games of the year so far. Judging from the reviews you wouldn't think it's as good as it is, but it is. The upcoming free DLC should really push this game into the stratosphere.

Wait, what?

 

[WinFonda]

Wow, that looks great

Yeah, it looks much better in motion too. This game begs to played with the close up perspective. It becomes a whole new experience. Doing so brings along both advantages and disadvantages in terms of gameplay, for instance when you're using the pulled back camera you can see some distance behind you and during the drops you have better awareness as you're coming down. With the close up perspective, every vehicle gains more presence on screen, and you can really feel the bigger vehicles and environmental hazards impose on you. The sense of speed is absolutely blistering.

I still wish there was a cockpit view, even if it only made the game harder to play. But even so, the hood camera provides an absolute thrill ride.

 

[btkadams]

Wait, what?

i remember them saying something about ms1 stuff coming for ms2 but im really not sure. i would like to know exactly what hes talking about as well.

 

[Dante]

Some more:

 

[Ploid 3.0]

Thank you. Looks so good. You got some nice angles and such.

 

[BadlyCookedTurkey]

Lovely shots!!

This thread is making me want this game. I'd probably have bought it if it were out here now.

 

[Cold-Steel]

I don't know if its the time of day I'm getting on or if there's just not many people on right now but I go through 6 searches and find nothing so I do a custom game search and find one match in progress.

The party system is totally awesome though.

Loving the game, graphics are SOO good (mostly the effects) and the sound is just fantastic. I love how aggressive the AI is in this one - you see a whole bunch of crashes almost every race and victory never seems like its easy (except the first couple of levels).

The handling is also MUCH better than the first game.

 

[BeeDog]

Oh shit, awesome pics. Can't wait for my copy to arrive.

Also, I'm really surprised at how detailed the character models are for a driving game.

 

[BeeDog]

Fuck, online is screwed for me. It takes forever to communicate to the server, then getting into a race is about 50/50, and of the 4 races I've done only 1 ended properly. The last one was awesome, I was fighting in 3rd spot until the second half of the last lap and managed to get in front of the bike who lead the whole way just a few turns from the end... then nothing. I finished the race in first, but it just kept looping my last lap while saying "race results in..." until I finally had to turn off the game.

But half the time I can't join a lobby, and when I try to cancel it says it lost the connection to the network server. No matter what I say after that I'm stuck in the "communicating to server" screen until I quit out of the game. So lame, the only race that actually finished for me online I finished in 6th, this fucking sucks.

I'm not sure if it's the game, PSN or my network. My wireless has been twitchy lately, and I get logged out of PSN at least once or twice a night now. Time to go get some long ethernet and knock a hole in the living room wall.

Check this topic:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=340914

Apparently turning off media sharing (if you have it active that is) might help.

 

[wouwie]

Played about 6 hours and my initial impressions still stand. Feeling very positive about this game. Mind you, it's not an easy game (didn't play motorstorm 1) and i'm already having trouble reaching the 4th segment.

Photo mode turns out te be more fun than i expected. I regulary find myself going into photomode in the middle of a race... The game looks stunning at times. The different time of day does seem to make or break the look of certain tracks though. It's a pity that there is no slideshow option in the gallery or at least a way to export all photos in one go.

Can't wait to play some more.

 

[GodofWine]

I don't know if its the time of day I'm getting on or if there's just not many people on right now but I go through 6 searches and find nothing so I do a custom game search and find one match in progress.

I haven't ever not found a ranked game, I usually play in the evening in the eastern US which is probably typically a high usage time though.

The search for a ranked game takes a little long (I actually cancelled it cause I didnt think it was working the first couple nights I played), but once you are in them, it seems a little quicker.

 

[ilikeme]

A reviewer in Swedish Aftonbladet (big newspaper in Sweden) gave the game 3/5. The reviewer didn't think it offered anything over games like Pure and Sega Rally. He also found the graphics to be unimpressive compared to other games in the genre.

He also talked about how the game is an improvement over the first one in nearly all areas.
But according to him it's not enough, the competition is too good this year.

eh.

Aftonbladet lol
And their game reviews wtf
Aftonbladet is the newspaper you read just so you know what awful looks like.

This thread made me a believer: split-screen, awesome graphics, custom soundtracks, functional online, and the great mechanics of MS1 refined. Yes please, now, on my belly!

 

[Oni Jazar]

I haven't put more then an hour into this game but anyone think the physics in the original version was better? This one seems to have less weight to the vehicles when driving around.

 

[antiloop]

Aftonbladet lol
And their game reviews wtf
Aftonbladet is the newspaper you read just so you know what awful looks like.

This thread made me a believer: split-screen, awesome graphics, custom soundtracks, functional online, and the great mechanics of MS1 refined. Yes please, now, on my belly!

True.

 

[Fersis]

How long is the load time when you select your vehicle ?
On Motorstorm 1 were horrible.

 

[Yoshichan]

I JUST GOT IT

 

[GodofWine]

How long is the load time when you select your vehicle ?
On Motorstorm 1 were horrible.

MUCH MUCH better, takes like a second.

 

[InterMoniker]

Woah online, plays the hosts custom soundtrack! Was just racing to Queen Bitch

what???

online plays the host's CUSTOM soundtrack?

Wow that's amazing can't wait to get this game!!!

-CONTROLS: the cars/bikes/etc are way more floaty than the last game i dont think i ever had to use the ebrake this much in the last game. the turning is atrocious in ALL THE VEHICLES

WHAT?! That's the greatest part about Pacific Rift.. the vehicles and the handling feel great!

Yeah I thought the first game's handling was too floaty at times but in PR I think they've added just the right amount of weight and realism. Buggies and Trophy Trucks in particular feel really balanced now. Agreed on the ATVs though, they're pretty rigid on quick corners and not very fun to drive.

Ya I agree with Flunkie and hukasmokincaterpillar the controls and handling are way better than the first game judging from the demo. The cars are less floaty now too compared to the first game I don't know what btkadams is talking about.

 

[Dante]

Wow that's amazing can't wait to get this game!!!

Sorry but that was my mistake, I didn't realize Queen Bitch was on the soundtrack

 

[Fersis]

MUCH MUCH better, takes like a second.

Thanks man, im getting this one then... (For my dad)

 

[dark10x]

Sorry but that was my mistake, I didn't realize Queen Bitch was on the soundtrack

That's what I thought. I didn't think it would be possible to have the host share their music due to both bandwidth and legal issues.

 

[Ruprit]

Thought I'd share some pics.





The fire themed stages are a real showcase.

 

[Slaylock]

Update on the PlayStation Blog - http://blog.us.playstation.com/2008/11/03/motorstorm-monday-pacific-rift-online-play-basics/

Matchmaking
We wanted to ensure that players could find another game quickly, but also that once they got into a game they didn’t have to rely on the host to get the race started. There are two options when matchmaking: Ranked or Casual. Ranked pitches you against players of a similar skill level whilst Casual will put you up against anyone and everyone. Matchmaking will, quite simply, group players together who are looking for a game, pick a Ticket for them (a race setup) and get them into a race as quickly as possible. And don’t worry, if you don’t like the Ticket that is randomly chosen for you - it’s possible to veto it (if you get a majority vote).

If you can’t find a matchmaking game (Ranked or Casual) when you search the reason simply is that no-one else is currently searching for another ranked game. The system relies upon there being other people looking to play, so as the servers get busier it’ll get easier to find games, so don’t be disheartened if you can’t find a game first time around, the more people looking for games, the more games there will be.

Custom
On top of the matchmaking it is still also possible to create a game of your own and let others join (privacy is optional). This session will stay up as long as there is a single person present and you can configure the race at any time in the lobby to create your own experience. Custom games do not contribute towards your ranking, but they still track your statistics.

Ranks
Competitive play is important online, as the best races are most often the closest. So by implementing a ranking system which grades players based upon how many players they have beat and been beaten by, it allows us in conjunction with the matchmaking to gather players of the same or similar ranking together to provide the fairest and most exciting possible racing experience. There is also a Ranked leaderboard which lists every player, showing who really is the best MotorStorm player in the world.

Groups
Playing online is always more fun with friends, and we wanted to make it as easy as possible to do so. We’ve done this through Groups; these are quite simply a way of keeping friends together. They are initiated by sending a friend an invite; when they accept they become part of your Group, and wherever you go they then go with you, until they decide to leave (or if you choose to kick them from your group). Groups can be up 12 players, but when playing Ranked it is only possible with groups of 4 or less (to avoid cheating).

General
On top of these 3 major improvements, we also made online play global, so that wherever you are in the world you can play against anyone else who happens to be online. There is now the ability to check and compare other player’s statistics, side by side, and not just online statistics, either: this includes all the offline ones, too. We’ve improved the voice chat - not just in terms of general quality, but also the number of players that can talk simultaneously: in the lobby up to 8 players can talk at once, and during an event it’s 4 - that’s twice as many as in the original MotorStorm!

 

[PnCIa]

Beautiful screens guys...love the lighting

 

[anonymousAversa]

Wow, that looks great

Yeah it does! I remember reading something about the tire tracks getting deeper with each lap and affecting the game play.

Can anyone comment on this?

 

[Flunkie]

Yeah it does! I remember reading something about the tire tracks getting deeper with each lap and affecting the game play.

Can anyone comment on this?

Well, you're right on the ball. You will sink into big monster truck tracks if you're riding around in a motorcycle, for example. It doesn't have that much on the handling, but it's still there.

 

[jett]

So there are no racing tournaments online? Such fail.

 

[Truespeed]

Wait, what?

"Once we're all rested its back to the development bunker to finish off the DLC we have lined up for you guys in the coming months," said director Nigel Kershaw to CVG. "You'll be glad to know, a lot of it is free," he added.

Free DLC is what keeps them coming back to the game.

 

[Erebus]

Anyone tried to play an online match while having a second controller connected to PS3? I want to know if the game supports split-screen online multiplayer like Warhawk.

 

[McLovin]

I love this game >.<!!

 

[Ploid 3.0]

So what would Motorstorm 3 be about? Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter? Oh wait, or watercraft?!

 

[Yoshichan]

So what would Motorstorm 3 be about? Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter? Oh wait, or watercraft?!

Exactly what I was thinking today. There's gonna be boats, hell yes!

 

[Dante]

So what would Motorstorm 3 be about? Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter? Oh wait, or watercraft?!

Snow would be cool, Maybe an urban wasteland.

 

[ntb825]

Heh, someone asked me to describe this game to them today. He had never heard of Motorstorm, so I had to dig for something...

The only word I could come up with was "awesome" :lol

I guess you had to be there. It was quite funny.