Wednesday 18-Feb-2004 4:34 PM Wheels are burnin' - scorching pics from Codemasters' PC and Xbox racing sequel TOCA Race Driver 2 is Codemasters' follow-up to the racing title that bucked the trend, playfully tweaked the nose of the genre by introducing a storyline into the proceedings. Not surprisingly, the sequel retains the integral plot device, albeit revamped, with the main plotline arc following the player's career from driving schmuck to grand prix genius.
Naturally, there's a heap of other modes crammed in too, just in case the story starts to become more of a snore-y.
When it comes to Race Driver 2's graphics and gloss, Codemasters has pulled out all the stops, and even though the title is currently classed work in progress it's still quite stunning to behold, as you can see from the screenshots.
We've briefly played the PC version of the game, and have also been impressed by Codies' Terminal Damage Engine that it's developed for the sequel.
Body damage in most cases looks pleasingly realistic (we expect this to fully polished in final code) with internal vehicle mechanics crunching, grinding and audibly whining when hurt.
Car handling and physics obviously lies at the heart of the experience, holding the key to success or failure for TOCA Race Driver 2. Happily, Codemasters looks to be on the right track here, with the selection of vehicles we've driven so far all boasting admirable, realistic "behaviour". But then, that's hardly surprising considering the company's previous accomplishments in the racing genre.
TOCA Race Driver 2 is due on PC and Xbox in April. Expect more on the title soon, but in the meantime check out the exclusive screens we've nabbed for you which come from the PC outing.
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