Hands-On with Test Drive Unlimited (PC, 360, PS2, XBOX, PSP.. I think)

When I heard the idea, it sounded awesome. Make a racing game that was Massively Multiplayer. They called it Test Drive Unlimited, and I finally got to play the 360 version. Sadly, I'm a little disappointed. First thing you notice is that the graphics aren't very next gen. The cars look great, but the environments don't. Sure, it's a MMO, but I think they could have made it look a little better. The good thing is there's still a little while to go for it to be done. Once you get past that, you notice a bunch of small things. The fact that you can open the doors on your car, roll down the windows, and own a house is pretty cool. You then pick a car, and you head out. The setting is Hawaii, and frankly, it gets a little bit boring. Everything looks remotely the same. I wish they'd have spread it out a little bit. Maybe one area in Alaska, one in Hawaii, one in France or someplace like that, and one in New York. Anyway. Even though the graphics aren't great, the damage is. It's really fun plowing into other cars and seeing them tear apart. Hmm.. what else? Well, the cars could control a bit better, but they're not horrible. Another thing that pisses me off is the police. Any time you hit a car, even if you graze them by accident, the police radio comes on. And BOY is it annoying as hell. They say the same things about 1,000 times an hour. When they finally decide to come get you, if you hit them and stop to get around a tree, you get caught. Even if their car is off the side of a cliff, a video plays of you getting captured and having to pay a fine. Sadly, there weren't many races available in the version I played. However, there were a few other players on, and I drove along with them, but it wouldn't let me challenge them. So, right now, it's not looking good. However, I have enough hope that the MOOR idea might be awesome, so I'll still give it another chance. I'd love to have a car club with motorcycles and all sorts of cars that cruise around together. So, keep your eyes out if you really like racers, but otherwise, I think you can pass TDU.
Ton, out.