MX vs. ATV: Untamed - PSN Demo Review

If you have a PlayStation 3, chances are you own Motorstorm or, like me, have played the demo.

While I don't like the game play of Motorstorm, it has a quaint charm and stunning graphics for a game that came along with the UK launch. The track actually got more pitted as you raced, causing more obstacles every lap. It was a good early PS3 title. It was released in Japan on December 16th, 2006.

Roll on a year later and THQ bring us MX vs. ATV: Untamed. This game oozes attitude.

First off, I'm not sure if it's due to it's multiplatform nature, but this game looks decent, but it's not a patch on Motorstorm. Things missing here are track deformations and just a dirty, motocross filth. It's all quite sterile.

It's also not very fun, the demo gives the options of an MX or aN ATV. That's a bike and a bike with 4 wheels to us non-x-treme people. There also appeared to be Monster Trucks, but they didn't seem to be available for play. If you go even slightly off course, you get a big arrow telling you to get back on track. I mean, literally, if you go just past the course markers, you're advised to return, before the game makes you go back after 3 seconds. The problem here is that the controls aren't responsive enough to allow you to navigate the course and stay within the markers.

The main problem is the MX and the ATV handle exactly the same and it's just as easy to be dismounted from one or the other. They might as well have saved the effort and called the game "Bikes and Monster Trucks: Sterilised". The bikes also have some serious noise issues and sound, well, ridiculous.

There was also some massive frame rate issues on the last course I tried "Waypoint feat. Monster Trucks that you can't use". When I say "frame rate issues", what I mean is that the game froze for about 2 seconds, then went a bit and then stopped again due to the number of vehicles on the starting line.

That said, it does have some good points, for instance it doesn't have any music on the XMB when the demo is highlighted and if you see someone buying the game, you know they're a dumbass and you can ignore them from that point on.

Seriously, overall, this isn't a bad game, but it's generic. Really, really generic and it has too many problems and it's not as good as Motorstorm, and I don't even like Motorstorm.