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I decided I was going to trade in my copy of Lost Planet (premium edition) while it was still worth a good amount of credit. I wasn't sure what I going to pick up but I've had my eyes on quite a few used Xbox 1 titles. But browsing around I see a used copy of Motorstorm (which had just been released 3 days before).
I've bwwn going back and forth about buying the game, the demo felt like it was running in slow-motion but everything I've read said those problems were fixed. After the whole Bullet Witch fiasco I was a little gun shy about taking a chance, but with the trade-in credit I was able to buy Motorstorm for an even $20. So did I waste my money?
 The game truly does look incredible, with the exception of some of the shadows cast by the cars. Other than that, everything from the skyline to the mud trails look almost too real. It doesn't really add anything to the gameplay, but it does a good job of making you feel like you're involved in a race in an actual locale and not just some made up place.
The racing is fast and break-neck, and it never really lets up. Somehow, no matter how many times you or your opponents crash, almost without fail the finish will come down to the wire. There's a weird catch-up system that never really puts anyone out of contention. If you're looking for realistic, download the Gran Turismo demo, cause this ain't the game you're looking for. Speaking of non-realistic.... how is it the cars never pull away from each other in the game? Once I crash a few times in a big rig it should be nearly impossible to catch up to a bike, but somehow race after race that's what happens. It's a little cheap when you're ahead and way to easy to catch up when you're behind.
That being said, most of the time the game is a blast to play. Digging through the mud or skipping along the rocks, the game does an amazing job of really giving you the feeling of riding the different terrains. There are times when you crash way to much, or crash because of something that isn't your fault, but usually the game just stays flat out fun.
With motorcycles, ATVs, rally cars, racing trucks and more there's a good variety of vehicles, and they all need to take different paths through the course to optimize what they're good at. The path you take in a bike or ATV is totally different than the path in a mud plugger or big rig. It certainly gives the tracks some variety, but in the end it's not enough to satisfy.
They did an incredible job of re-creating and enhancing Momument Valley. Of course that leads to one of the big problems with the game, the track selection. Having only 8 tracks is a bummer, but having 8 tracks that are all essentially the same type of course (off-road desert at high-noon) it starts to get old fast. With all these vehicles I was itching to get into a race in the woods or a swamp or anything, or at least a race in the desert at night or during a freak rain storm... Something to change it up. Monument Valley is a great racing location, but I need some variety here... It's not enough to carry the game on it's own.
The gameplay modes don't stretch out the replay factor either. You have "Play"(career) and "Online"... that's it. The career mode is similar to Burnout, except they tell you what kind of vehicle to use here. That way you have to use them all. But you can't just do a one race exhibition with the course and vehicles of your choice, you have to find a race in the career mode that suits you. If I'm able to pick exactly what I want in an online race why can't I do the same in single player?
Had I paid the full price of $60 I probably would've been a little harder on the game, but for $20 I can easily say I got my money's worth. It's a little thin, but the online is alot of fun and it's a great showpiece for what the PS3 can do. If you're a PS3 owner you'll probably want it, if only because there's really no other games out for the system worth playing. Good arcade-style off road racer.
6 out of 10... above average but nothing Earth shattering.
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