Dakar 18 is unlike any racing game I’ve ever played. From authentic roadmaps to making repairs during the race, Bigmoon Entertainment and Maximum Games make no compromises in the realism of the game and delivers an incredibly authentic racing experience.
The game is based on the famed Dakar rally in South America which brings together the best off-road racers from all over the world for a grueling endurance test to see who can cross the finish line. The race stretches over 9,000km of Peruvian desert and Bigmoon managed to squeeze every inch of it into this game.
The sheer scale of the maps and the ability to explore them is an odd detail to have in a racing game, but it was one of the highlights of DAKAR 18. The scale of the maps just blew me away from the moment I started the race and the races themselves have an open world feel that takes an adjustment period. However, they lose some detail in the map because of the scale. Many of the environments that you race in look very monochromatic and they often lack the fine detail that makes the difference between good enough graphics and great graphics. This monotone environment sometimes makes it difficult to navigate through obstacles because the sand that your tires sink in is almost indistinguishable from the sand that you can glide right over.
The other unique, but somewhat frustrating part of this game, is the navigation. In racing games like Forza or Need For Speed there is a clearly defined line to follow for navigation through the track, but DAKAR 18 relies on a roadbook and a navigator that gives you verbal directions. This is the steepest learning curve in the game and gives you some serious headaches when you start, but you eventually get a feel for how to navigate the tracks throughout the game. During the tutorial portion of the game, I got lost and had to restart several times before I really started to understand the navigation but I was able to perform relatively well in the races after that.
The place where DAKAR 18 really shines is the variety of different vehicles that you are able to race with. Bigmoon incorporated all of the classes from the real Dakar rally into the game and managed to make each one feel like a unique experience. The best place to start the game is with the cars since many of them are 4 wheel drive (which helps with learning the mechanics of DAKAR 18 and how to drive in different environments) and still features co-pilot feedback whereas the motorcycle and ATV classes don’t. After putting a few hours into the game, my favorite class was the motorcycle class because it offers a lot of freedom and the navigator feedback loses its usefulness the farther you progress in the game.
Many games have a beginner level difficulty, but these can usually be skipped by gamers since many of the controls for games of a similar genre overlap but that is definitely not the case for Dakar 18. Racing happens to be my favorite and most frequently played genre of videogame, but I absolutely had to start on the lowest difficulty. The number of different things you have to juggle like repairing the vehicle, avoiding trouble spots in the environment, navigating, and trying to actually win the race can make the game a bit overwhelming when you first start playing. Bigmoon tried to help this by adding a compass at the top of the screen in the rookie level of difficulty to that shows where the waypoints in the race are to supplement the roadmap and the feedback from the co-pilot in the applicable classes while you’re learning the game and it makes a big difference in how well you race at the beginning. However, this is taken away in the higher difficulties for a more authentic racing experience.
Overall, this is a very unique racing game that is unlike any other I’ve played. Bigmoon really outdid themselves with the authenticity and detail they were able to pack into a pretty fun game. The managed to get every part of the Dakar rally, good and bad, into a single video game and immersed their players in the world of off-road racing. However, the time commitment to master the game and the learning curve required might make this game too much for the casual gamer.
7/10
Check Out the DAKAR 18 Features Trailer:
DAKAR 18 is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Xbox One Review
My first console was the original Playstation and I would play Twisted Metal every now and then but games didn't hook me until I played the original Halo at my friend's house. As soon as I picked up that controller, I knew I needed an Xbox and I had to have that game. Since those early Halo days, I've branched out and played any game I could find with a great story and memorable characters but Master Chief is still my favorite. @thenotoriousTGT on Twitter
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