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In the interest of seeing whether the latest offerings of games can actually transmit anything of MotoGP and Motocross excitement OTOR took a look at three of the most obvious candidates: ‘MotoGP 10/11’ the fourth title from Capcom (available on Xbox 360 but reviewed here on the PS3), ‘MX vs ATV Alive’ the last product in the series that boasted a James Stewart endorsement but couldn’t prevent developers Digital Studios Arizona going under and the upcoming FIM Motocross World Championship licenced ‘Mud’ from Blackbean Games, the force behind the WRC and SBK releases.

With ‘MotoGP 10/11’ we have to concede that a pinnacle has been reached. This title is to bike racing what the Electronics Arts ‘Fifa’ series is to football. It strives to offer moments of ‘realism’. The speed is impressive and the screen ‘vibration’ effect when tucked into the bubble of the bike down a straight is strangely immersive, and effective.

“A sense of speed was definitely important for us, but so were lots of other little details – like how the back tyre behaves when you brake, or the subtle way the bike’s responsiveness changes in light rain,” comments Capcom Producer Derek Neal. “Achieving this was one of our two primary goals in developing this game.  The other goal?  We wanted to make sure the game remained accessible and inviting, so we can help spread MotoGP to as many new people as possible.”

We endeavoured to get some input from THQ on their flagship off-road racing title through five editions (since 2005 and THQ have MX links since 2002) but the sinking of Digital Studios Phoenix earlier this year left the MX vs ATV franchise wallowing in a deep rut….

The Grand Prix series has not had a video game since the half-baked ‘MX Rider’ in 2001. Milestone have been charged with bringing the FIM World Championship to a new generation in the living room and ‘Mud’, due in 2012, is the conduit. A playable version has yet to see the light of day but these first visuals are encouraging. Motocross by nature is a more dynamic beast than road racing with not only changeable track environments to consider but also the physics of the motorcycle itself.

As arguably the most bustling form of bike racing there has to be a very careful consideration for motocross. A blend between simulation and ‘arcade’ where the concept of finishing first – sometimes at all costs – is not lost. As Milestone Game Director Michele Caletti admits: “As soon as we approached the MX world, going to several races and talking a lot with many riders, we understood that the sport has always been translated into videogames quite in a misleading way. While playing MX games the general idea of the sport is something quite twitchy, too hard to control. The focus seems to be on staying on track (or failing to do so, most of the time) more than fighting shoulder to shoulder for the first place.”