MotoGP

THQ Wireless' MotoGP games have traditionally been the best two-wheeled fun you can have on a phone, alongside the bikey bits of Gameloft's recent Asphalt Urban GT games. We're still blissfully unaware of developments on the real-world MotoGP circuit, but on mobile we've loved it through three iterations.

MotoGP 2007 is the fourth, and certainly the best looking of the bunch. On decent handsets, it's gone fully 3D, with solid-looking bikes and attractive scenery. Equally important, developer Rockpool has kept the frame-rate up, ensuring that this scenery flashes past fast enough to give a good sensation of speed.

The controls are satisfyingly one-thumb, with an auto-accelerate taking care of speeding up, leaving you to concentrate on turning. However, this is where MotoGP 2007's main flaw becomes apparent: it's simply too hard.

Our first few races were hugely frustrating, as we slalomed across the track with no hope of catching any rivals. As a result, we can't help wondering if novice gamers would try this a couple of times, and then never come back.

Which would be a shame because the good news is that persistence pays off, and eventually you'll be battling it out with your fellow 11 riders for top spot. By then, MotoGP 2007 will have revealed itself as a rewarding racer with varied tracks and a neat skill-development system.

If the sensitive steering had been slightly tweaked, this would be a stone-cold classic. As it is, it's still the best motorbiking racer available for mobile.

Download: Rapidshare Link

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Crash 'N' Burn

Macrospace has done it again. They've raised the bar for what mobile games can and should be.

The general idea of Crash'n'Burn is to win the race - at any cost. Gameplay is simple enough. Win races to earn money and to gain points. Money allows you to buy weapons and items that can give you an edge in races. From missiles that stun your opponents and leave them stalling for a few seconds to nitro where when used, leave your opponents eating your dust to dropping oil canisters on the track to create oil slicks on the road. Points enable you to unlock the next track which is otherwise unplayable.

he only downside to this game is that you cant upgrade your car. You have to beat levels to gain new cars, of which there are only 2 additional cars. If there was a way to upgrade parts like engines and tires, this game would be excellent! Also, the game AI can be a little erratic at times. Cars tend to "shake" at times like they are having a fit. Also sometimes a car will also go in the reverse direction for a few seconds before correcting itself and returning back to the right direction. Other than that ... I would recommend this game to anyone. 24 levels means you'll be busy all day long and with online based scoring, you'll be trying your utmost to be #1 on Macrospace's charts!


Download: Rapidshare Link

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