SBK 08 - Superbike World Championship ^{(Sony PSP)}

Genre: Racing Publisher: Black Bean Developer: Milestone Players: 1-2

By Scott N (2nd Sep 2008)

Fast motorcycles, and not a red cape in sight.

Have you got your rev-head groove on, game junkies? SBK08 is flying down your highways and onto your PSP’s and the question is - do you care? Should you care? Well, that’s why I'm here sports fans!

The SBK series is the only one out there, officially licensed by the Super Bike World Series. For those who are a little in the dark about Super Bikes, to make things simple they are similar to what Indy Car is to Formula One with themselves to 500CC. Basically a similar sort of thing with the same rules and aspiration/engine differences. SBK08 is the game release that covers all of the current World Super Bike series with a couple of added game modes to add variety.

Simultaneously released with versions on the 360 and other consoles, the game on PSP allows you to race as all of the current championship riders, on the same tracks all around the world in a range of conditions with an array of racing variables that should keep you busy for a while. The premise of the game is pretty standard for racing simulations. Win races, earn points, win season, get a trophy. Exciting stuff hey? Fortunately there are some added extras that give the game a little more depth. With each race win you can unlock cheats, photos, movies and new drivers giving an added carrot to chase.

The standard Championship is the premier game mode. With each round you participate in you must go through free practice, two rounds of qualifying, warm up, super pole and two races. Although each of the qualification sessions last for an hour you can speed time up once you are happy with your lap result, because it could be a little bit on the boring side otherwise. You can also tweak your bike handling depending on the track requirements. Personally I know damn all about bike handling, so this may be a little more useful for you grease monkeys out there.

The racing itself takes a couple of laps to get used to. A hot tip, just quickly - go into the options and go for controller type two if you are driving auto, it is a lot better than the standard presets. Once you are down with the braking distances, and are comfortable with the angles you can push your bike without it sliding out from underneath you, everything is pretty easy. I found that after a couple of practice laps I was clocking at least four or five seconds quicker than my computer generated opponents. A little too easy you say? Well yes, a little, but I like to win so I wasn’t complaining.

Championship aside there are a number of other modes to wind away those boring afternoons. Other than the quick race, time attack and race weekend modes the one that provided me with the most entertainment, and frustration, is the ‘Challenges’ mode, which is a little similar to the licensing mode from Gran Tourismo. Although the only reward for these skill courses and requirement based races is a couple of unlockables and new challenge levels, they are very addictive. I found myself doing reset after reset and then punching the air with great gusto when I finished. Just one wheel off of the track or out of the designated zone and its start over for you! You get to try your hand at average speed, skid control and general bike agility missions. Because I'm easily entertained, I thought the best part of the game is the ability to pop a wheelie wherever you like, what can I say? I have a short attention span and used to think it was the height of coolness when I owned a BMX.

Visually, SBK08 is a bit of a mixed bag. The cut scenes and FMV are very good and smooth, but the problems come in the gameplay modes (an area that needs perfection). There was a noticeable amount of chop and lag that although didn’t tend to disrupt gameplay, it did provide a reason for me to hurl my PSP across the room! Don’t fear it was into a cushy chair so no damage done. On reflection it wasn’t stupidly bad; I just have a short fuse for this type of thing and expect smooth animation. The bike rendering along with the back grounds could also be a little clearer.

The audio aspects of the game are very solid with not much to kick up a stink about. I thought the engine sounds weren’t 100% accurate, but they revved when they were meant to so what can you say? Backing tracks and ambient noise were again right on the mark without standing out. Overall the general sound was pretty good and suiting the game style and action.

I really didn’t have high hopes for SBK08 when I started reviewing it, and although it isn’t the best game ever created, it is a serviceable racing game and did not leave me with too much to complain about. As I said there were some animation issues and other minor problems, but for a game that will never go platinum it did the job. I found it surprisingly entertaining with some challenging gameplay that required a semi-high level of skill, which is lacking in many games today. I would think this would be specifically for Super Bike fans, which I am assuming there are quite a few of. No surprises I don’t really follow the series, in fact the only riders I knew were the Aussies. Would I go out and buy it? No, there are a lot of other really top notch racing sims out there that are a fair bit better than SBK08, but if you are given it as a present you may not go straight to your local pawn shop and trade it for some spokie-dokies!