Auto Modellista

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2003-04-02 12:54am

Has anyone been keeping up with this sleeper title? Not surprising. It's been getting props in the gaming mags. However, GMR (the EB/EGM magazine) slammed it, giving it a 5/10 rating. I will cover that later.

What is this 'Auto Modellista'? What a great question you ask. Allow me to spam, err, ahem, explain. First off, this is a title from Capcom, makers of some of the best god damned games you will find anywhere. The game is in the racing genre. To keep the reader's attention I shall compare it to Grant Turismo. That's right. I said it. Gran Turismo. The game uses GT cars from Japan, Europe, and they even managed to put American cars in. (which was devoid in the Japanese release, and even stated in many, many articles that would not be making a stateside appearnce either. Hmm, must be Wind Waker bashers.).

Let's get this part covered. The look of it is beyond words. While Gran Turismo looks stunningly realistic, which works of course, Auto Modellista is CEL SHADED. That's right assholes, it looks like Gran Turismo the cartoon. I shit you not. It's absolutely splendid too. It's unbelievable how great the models look. How well the graphics work. This is the funny part too. Capcom enters with a cartoon racer, and it kicks the crap out of what EA shits out on a monthly basis. Come to think of it, any title other than Gran Turismo. If your wondering why I keep toting GT, it's because I have always been an avid fan of the game. I was always looking for a racing game that was actually fun to race, much less that had all the gear head shit GT does. I thuroghly hate NFS. NFS III is bad ass against a friend, but by yourself it sucks. That's visuals alone. Even the newest one is crap. Utter CRAP. There's more than just how it looks, there's backfiring effects, smoke trails, speed lines whipping in the air. It's some shit guys.

Control This is where all racing games either pass or fail. No questions. I can still play GT, or GT 2, even Mario Andretti on the Genesis despite the graphics. GMR is right on one thing, it's a mix between arcade and sim. It's the mid pack runner between NFS Crap, and GT God Gaming. The only way I can really put it is, Gran Turismo with heavy ass sliding in just about every turn. Do the controls suck. No. Not by a long shot. Are they great, can't say that much. Still though, I'm getting sucked in.

Why did I buy this fucker? Simple, I saw the graphics, saw how beautiful they were, a long time ago. Then I did hear about the arcade/sim type controls and went for it. I was not dissappointed. What finally sunk me in though, is the online play. This is half the reason for the thread. I have NOT played online yet. For one simple fact. I have a router so all three comps can be online. Auto Modellista (which I didn't know until I opened the god damn package. Fuck you EB and your horrid return policy!) does NOT support Hubs or Routers. I just have to have some free time to do a wire switch and I'm good to go. No biggie. I can't wait either, because you can play up to 8 people online at one time.

One last thing. This game has all types of fuck around and waste away time extras. You don't really buy your cars. You choose what you want off the bat. Then you add extra parts that are already excessible. You do earn more as you race. Right now, the first car I'm using is of course a Viper GTS. I immediately suped it up, and added the spoiler and race stripes. The kicker is there are decals you can add. It has it's own paint shop so that you can actually create your own or edit existing ones. Sort of like Armored Core. Neat, eh? Another extra, is the garage. They have different garages you can have. Right now I have the choice of either a Log Cabin, Concrete, or the one I'm currently using, Pre-Fab. There you can had posters and toolboxes, plus you onlock more stuff.

Alright folks, as always, rent before you buy just in case, and if anyone goes online, post it here so maybe we can all get on and race. Just dont' expect much talk, I don't have a keyboard for this machine yet.

Post by **Beowulf** » 2003-04-02 12:56am

Sounds interesting...

Post by **Ghost Rider** » 2003-04-02 01:00am

Fun rental but I didn't like that off the bat I could use the Dodge Viper.

Seriously that sorta make me wonder...but it was a decent rental, and a wait over till GT4.

Seriously the slide bit made somethings eh...it plays oddly more like Ridge Racer to me, still fun though.

Cal Wright · Post by **Cal Wright** » 2003-04-02 01:31am

Sort of like Ridge Racer, but Ridge Racer was just utter crap to me. I loathe arcade racers. It always seemed like if I won, I was just fucking lucky. While this one has that arade feel, it seems like I have to try and race the car.

Hey, don't knock it because you can get a car that early. Remember, RR has made up shitty cars, NFS opens up with thier meager amount of cars. Even the coveted Gran Turismo allows you to hit the arcade mode and jump into the seat of the world's most thrilling cars. Namely the Viper and the Viper GTS Team Oreca (personal favourite. Cannot wait to go online and smoke you folks on Grand Valley. woo). I can see what your saying. You get 30 slots and can pick any car you want. You do have to unlock some. Still though, sort of eliminates that beat around the bush deal. Hmm, I can't say I like that better over Gran Turismo, especially since the first thing I would do is get the money to buy a Mustang and then to a Viper. Heh.