It’s time to rev up the engines and win with the latest entry into the popular racing Sim series The Crew. This time around The Crew Motorfest sets the action and scenic Hawaii and the tropical locales make for some very intense racing action that fans will no doubt enjoy. The game boasts over 600 vehicles all of which can be customized as players progress in skill and experience which will be needed as the eye-popping courses present some of the most intense racing action of the series.
For those looking for challenges beyond what the impressive A.I. racers provide; there is a grand race where 28 racers key against one another for the ultimate bragging rights.
I particularly enjoyed the Demolition Royale mode where 32 players work in teams to track down and smash opposing cars out of the competition. The concept design for a ring takes on a whole new meaning when you have a large open-world environment in which to compete.
While the game has an extremely impressive array of cars, it should also be noted that vehicles ranging from boats to motorcycles are also in the mix as are cars designed for drift, racing, and demolition. Seeing so many brand-name vehicles available certainly gave me hesitation as to which one would be best suited for the tasks ahead but I found success early on with a BMW.
The game did have a solid learning curve for me as the balance between breaking and throttling down in turns was a challenge at first, but the sheer variety of vehicles and customizations make this an ideal option for those looking to break away from track rate-based racing.
The graphics are impressive and playing on a PS5 really showed off the retracing effects and sheer speed of the game. It was difficult at times not to focus on the detailed landscaping and environments around me and to focus on winning. There are plenty of challenges and races for players to conduct if they are not ready to take on live opponents but they are always there should the need or desire arise.
While it does not bog down into the extreme levels of crafting and micromanagement that some racing Sims do; the game knows who its core audience is and presents a solid new entry in the series which should keep fans happy as will the likely abundance of upgrades coming in the future.
4 stars out of 5
