Today we’re heading back to France for a look at Cyanide Studio’s latest Le Tour De France video game in the Le Tour De France 2013 100th Edition which marks the event’s 100 anniversary celebrations this year.
We reviewed the 2012 game in September last year and so 8 months later seems like a short gap between the two games. However, Cyanide has stated that the 100th Edition sports a new game engine, updated roster and more refined gameplay.
Much is the same as the previous game in that whilst the simple act of riding a bike is a given, there’s a lot of depth in regards to managing the team, and whilst there’s a handy text based tips in the form of a cycling coach, the game doesn’t ease players in with a proper tutorial favouring as you play tips rather than allowing players to tackle the game with some sort of understanding before hand. This approach ultimately becomes the game’s biggest downfall as players simply can skip all the team work and just focus on being the winning rider.
Playing the game consists of the various flat, mountainous and varied terrain the 21 stage event offers, and with it the choice of riding though the entire event from start to finish, or sampling fewer sections. The main event of the game has players choosing a team from the most up to date riders of the current year, but sadly does not have the rights to use their real names. So you get riders like Chris Vroome instead of Chris Froome. There is an option to edit the player names for those wanting the full on experience or can be bothered as it’s a slow process.
The Tour De France stages offer a varied amount of tactical play as the riders each have their own set of strengths. for example Chris Vroome is great at climbing stages and will have an advantage on these stages. Understanding this whilst not overly crucial can give players an edge especially as you’re not tied to just one rider per race and can mix things up a little. That said, it is entirely possible to stick with just the one rider and go for the coveted yellow jerseys and any other colours that tickle your fancy.
The actual riding the cycles seems unchanged, although there’s a handy meter that helps when taking corners as seen in most racing games now. What’s probably the biggest gripe here is still having to hold down a button for extended periods to simply ride in a straight line, and hammer a button to sprint. It all rather archaic and dull for the type of game this is. Thankfully being able to speed up the race via simulation is good, but disheartening when you’ve positioned your rider up front, for him to fall back 30 or more places rather than staying at the pace you set.
Serious players will no doubt find much joy in playing the team game and using all the features on offer such as relays and setting up team mates to help the main rider. The interface whilst not the most user friendly is accessible and keeps players in the game.
It hard to say how much improvement the graphics have seen over the previous game aside from the flashy main menu, but they do look quite similar and this game still suffers from dips in frame rates when there are lots of cyclists on screen. There’s little background detail, and plenty of reused assets but does provide a look at some famous landmarks and structures en route. This is not really a game about graphics and whilst for the most part they are quite dull and full of pop in, the game does provide an authentic experience of traveling long distances.
Audio follows the same pattern as the graphics, with radio chatter from the team and the odd ambient effects as players ride through the mountains and such like. There’s a wind effect which is used to simulate resistance and this is an integral part of the tactical game as riders sit behind other competitors or team mates to regain stamina.
Tour De France 2013 offers a long campaign with various ranked goals to strive for which can be accomplished via the full 21 stage event or the smaller offerings. There is a versus mode for those wanting to race other humans locally, and online leaderboards for those looking to see how their earnings compare with others.
If you’re a fan of the sport and want to take the excitement of this year’s event home with you, then this is the only game to get, and the only one available on consoles at least aside from last year’s game. There’s only slight improvement here over the 2012 release with seemingly smoother gameplay, but generally it’s the same experience all over again.
For anyone else, this is not a recommended game as it fails to provide much in the way of support to new and interested players and throws them in at deep end in a simplified rush to the finish line when there’s a bit more depth to the game than that. Poor graphics, lifeless audio and no real reason to play makes this a game to pass by which is a shame as Cyanide could focus on the more exciting aspects of the event and streamline the game to suit.
Score 4/10 – Review by Robert Cram
