Split/Second

 I’m never one to get too excited for a racing game. To me, all of them are the same. You start with a below average car, win some races, and make the car better. For a racer to grab my attention, it has to have some unique gimmick that others just don’t have. Split/Second is that type of racer.   
 Split/Second offers racers the chance to bring the environment into play. After filling your power play meter by performing drifts around corners, or drafts from following your opponents closely, you are able to attack the other racers much akin to Mario Kart. A mark appears over a car(s) in close proximity, and you hit the A button, causing buildings and other structures around the track to collapse, crushing the cars that were too slow to get out of the way.      
 
Burnout Paradise fans will feel right at home. The game feels a lot like EA’s racer, especially with the crash sequences. Much like Paradise, Split/Second goes into slow motion when cars collide with objects. This time, however, we get to see buildings and bridges collapse, and airplanes explode. It never gets old.   
 Split/Second has a decent single-player career mode. After each race, you gain experience points based on the position you finished in. Every certain amount of points earned, a new car is unlocked. The problem I have here is that you can’t choose what car you purchase like other racing games. You are just given the next car in the line, no questions asked. I’d like some variety and options. Also, there are no real cars in the game, which feels a little outdated.  
 
  Where Split/Second falls short on offering a variety of cars to choose from as unlockables, it makes up for in game modes. Aside from just straight races, there are options like detonator, which is like a time-trials mode where hazards are triggered whenever you come close to something; survival, which just you against yourself trying to stay alive and rack up points avoiding a helicopter’s missiles rain down on you.
My personal favorite, elimination. In elimination, you have to avoid being in last place. There are different time periods, and the player who finds their self in last once the clock hits zero, is eliminated from the race. The first period is a minute, then each there after decreases gradually. The last card standing is declared the winner. It is a nice little substitute from the basic race until the finish line.  
 

The action is what separates Split/Second from other races I have played. No other racer gives me the feeling that I’m actually going at speeds hitting up to 200 m.p.h. the way Split/Second does. Weaving in and out through the other cars while avoiding a bridge collapse or a crane swinging from side-to-side like a metronome really brought me to the edge of my seat, and my jaw to slowly open up in amazement.

The game is presented like a television series, with your racer competing against the other top racers in the world. There isn’t a lot really put into the concept, aside from just before each new area is unlocked.

  Finally, the game looks fantastic. Each location looks better than the previous. The explosions and crashes will leave you constantly saying ‘holy shit.’ The frame rate never slows down, allowing the game to run smoothly.
If you’re not a big racing fan like me, and need something more than just standard racing, Split/Second is the game for you. It offers great variety in game modes, all of which are available online via Xbox Live or PSN. With Modnation Racers and Blur set to debut next week, it is definitely a great time to be a racing fan.    
 
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