Indianapolis 500 Legends

Well, not that this should be totally surprising, I mean, it is an Indianapolis 500 game and there is only one Indianapolis 500. But, since this game is really about the legends of the Indy 500 and the biggest influential heyday (1961-1971), then there should be some interesting things to be found in this title, right? Well, wrong. Ok, just kidding, I don't want you thinking you are getting into something that is as expansive a racing title as there is, because that is not the case.

 
"Even at it's most popular time, Formula One racing still couldn't attract the fans."

What is the case, is that you will race in authentically designed Formula One racing cars against some very famous racing legends. Mario Andretti and A.J. Foyt are among the most famous of the racers you will face, but it is more than that. The game has you monitoring your vehicle's problems as they come up and provide some mildly amusing mini-games when changing tires, gassing up or whatever. Hitting the locking hub with a hammer and spinning the tires off the wheel is fun the first couple of times, but doing it over and over and over again does become a bit long in the tooth.

Since there isn't anything particularly fascinating about the shape of the Indy 500, you will begin to tire of the track, the upside is that the game does clip along at a decent FPS (30 I believe) and does not suffer from slowdown or stuttering graphics. In fact, for a DS racing title, the game is actually pretty decent; the details of the cars as they change from year to year, the tires and the various state of disrepair, even the brightness of the colors. There were some pretty odd color schemes in the 60s and it translates well. Yes, this is a game that has some surprising good looks.

 
"An open cockpit car, how safe."

The sound isn't quite as dialed in, but does a decent job of pumping out the sound of 600hp race cars. There is a decent retro tune that clips along with the action as well and made me think of some of those cheesy 60's racing films. I know, I'm a geek.

The controls of the game are surprisingly tight and feel good. You notice that the cart gets a little squirelly if you don't swap out the tires regularly. Thankfully, you can adjust the amount of laps you want to race and don't have to go through the entire 500 laps, which, quite frankly, would take a really long time. The difficulty of the game is somewhat sketchy though. One minute I'm in the thick of the race, but the lead dog just seems to elude me. You really need to run a perfect race in order to get that first place finish. I couldn't really tell if there is an auto catch-up feature that many race games have, if there is, it appeared to me to be slight. 

I liked the fact that the game is more stylus heavy than many games on the DS. Yes, I complained that the stylus action can be repetitive, but it is a decent use of the stylus, none the less. The action to maintain the vehicle is a pretty clever idea and while racing games can only motivate a player so much, this one gets some kudos for trying to invigorate a dying breed of racer. Stock cars seem to be the hot ticket anymore and NASCAR is certainly experiencing a rise in popularity where CART racing is now taken a back seat. This is an interesting way to see and partake in some very famous years and races during the Indy height in popularity.

 
 "Is that the batmobile?"

Unfortunately, this is another DS game that does not feature download play. You can play in multiplayer mode if someone else has a copy of the game; I was not able to test this function. But it appeared to me that it may be a decent multiplayer.

Gameplay: 7.0
Pretty tight controls and at least some relevant use of the Stylus. The game is not real innovative and becomes repetitive and boring.

Graphics: 7.4
No slowdown and a steady FPS. There are different cars to find and drive and they all don't look the same.

Sound: 6.0
The engines sound good, the music is all right, there could be more but it isn't horrible.

Difficulty: Medium
You actually will probably tire of the repetitive gameplay long before you are truly challenged.

Concept: 6.4
The idea behind a game like this may only appeal to those who really enjoy racing titles and even more so, those who prefer formula one style racing.

Overall: 6.3
There is some things to do and even missions to complete, but it never really gets a hold of you the way other titles do. In fact, I almost consider this a casual game to be played, then put away for four months and then played again.