With The Crew 2 (PC, PS4, Xbox One), Ivory Tower aims to improve everything with better driving physics, more long-term motivation, and better graphics compared to its predecessor. Our author Robert has battled through various disciplines and returns from his test of The Crew 2 with mixed feelings.
What The Crew 2 wants to be: Ivory Tower is once again trying to win the hearts of racing game fans. With improved graphics, better vehicle controls, and significantly more variety, the developers want to leave the predecessor behind. But have they succeeded? We take a detailed look at the story of The Crew 2, the racing modes, and online features.
The Crew 2 Offers
Arcade racer with many vehicles: The Crew 2 is an arcade racing game where you compete against computer-controlled opponents in various disciplines and vehicles. The selection of vehicles is vast, ranging from regular street racers to motocross bikes, powerboats, and airplanes.
Driving and flying takes place on a massive map. The map is modeled after the United States of America. According to the manufacturer, crossing this map from the West to the East Coast takes about 40 to 60 minutes.
Online, you can race with your friends in a crew or compare your stats in smaller disciplines like speed traps, slalom races, etc. Even after the game’s release, the developer intends to continuously deliver fresh content to keep players engaged for a long time.
Who is The Crew 2 suitable for? Those who enjoy arcade racing games like Need for Speed or Forza Horizon may also find enjoyment in The Crew 2.
Who is The Crew 2 less suitable for? Fans of racing simulations like Gran Turismo will likely not be happy with The Crew 2, as various vehicle parameters cannot be changed. The driving behavior also strays far from a simulation.
How Good is The Crew 2
The racing modes leave little to be desired: Whether by water, land, or air – countless vehicles are waiting to be tried out. The respective tasks are varied and sometimes challenging. I particularly struggle with the airplanes, but I hope that practice will make perfect.
If you really want to participate in all races at normal and hard difficulty, you will be busy for a while. The side missions are also not neglected. Speed traps, slalom races, or fleeing from an expanding red circle – here you will find different challenges for all vehicle types.
The Race – Forever in the Slipstream
With rubber bands across the USA: A notably observed aspect during the test of The Crew 2 is the so-called rubber band AI. Opposing vehicles cannot be shaken off. The field is distinctly held together artificially.
This type of rubber banding seemed significantly weaker in the closed beta, in my opinion. To test how strong the mechanism actually is, I conducted an experiment:
Our experiment reveals weaknesses: A street race involves a longer drive on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. I intentionally fell back a whole minute and then continued at a normal pace. No four minutes later, I was back in first place.
A pronounced rubber band mechanic can also provide a realistic chance of victory even in severe driving errors – however, those who would have left the opponents behind anyway will find the mechanic annoying. Clean and fast driving in The Crew 2 is only rewarded when your vehicle is significantly stronger than the race’s specifications.
The Graphics of The Crew 2 – A Feast for the Eyes (As Long as It’s Bright)
Compared to its predecessor, Ivory Tower has significantly upped the graphics in The Crew 2. Particularly the lighting effects look fantastic. Whether directly on the vehicles or the ambient lights – the light animations appear credible.
Water animations are convincing: Those who take their boat away from the coast will notice changes in the wave patterns. The water of the surroundings also changes accordingly. For example, the ground in the swamps of Maine takes on a different color than at the coast.
Darkness in The Crew 2 means: It’s pitch black! That’s not an exaggeration. At times, The Crew 2 becomes unplayable at night. Off the roads, the lighting can be virtually non-existent. The light beam from your headlights, however, is far from enough, especially at high speeds.
With a medium brightness setting, nothing is visible at night. At times, I have no choice but to wait for dawn.
Ivory Tower absolutely needs to correct this. The coloring and lighting intensity may be realistic – but realism does not necessarily equal fun.
The Story of The Crew 2 – Unfortunately Not Everything Can Be Skipped
Unnecessary story in The Crew 2: My grandmother used to say: “If you have nothing reasonable to say, you might as well say nothing.” It’s a pity the developers don’t know this saying; otherwise, they could have spared themselves the story altogether.
Even after around half of the game, I cannot summarize what Ivory Tower actually wants to tell us. Vaguely, it’s about a conflict between the traditionalists of racing, who prefer to continue illegal racing, and the reformers, who would rather race in an organized manner with sponsors by their side.
The forced attempt to be cool: While everything sounds somewhat interesting, unfortunately, the developers fail to convey it even remotely properly. The dialogues were clearly written for the youngest audience. There’s talk of “pimping rides” and “full of action.” It’s almost mandatory to include “bro” at the end of the sentence.
Like a mantra, the various characters emphasize that one should have “a lot of fun.” If you want to see how much fun our alter ego has in the car, just take a peek inside the cockpit before the race starts.
Of course, a racing game does not rely on a good story; it never has. However, if I had to choose between a silly story like that in The Crew 2 or complete absence of a story like in Gran Turismo, I would probably always opt for the game from Polyphony Digital.
The Online Features of The Crew 2 – Patience is a Virtue
Much co-op in The Crew 2: In the various disciplines, you can compete with your crew, which consists of up to four players. You race together against computer-controlled vehicles. Even if a certain competition can develop in these races – who the really best driver is will only be determined in the pure PvP races.
No PvP until December 2018: You’ll have to wait until Winter 2018 for this feature. Why such a fundamental feature is not available at launch in an online racing game is beyond me. It certainly raises the question of whether such a feature introduced so late after release will attract many racers.
Various leaderboards from mini-disciplines like speed traps and slalom races cannot compensate for the lack of PvP. This leads us to the next and for many players crucial point: long-term motivation.
The Scope of The Crew 2
How much time you need for The Crew 2: While it is not representative, voices are already growing in the community that have completed the game. The consensus is: 10-15 hours are required to complete all story events. The events are divided into the following categories:
- Story events for 14 disciplines – For these, you must have the vehicles available. In some cases, you will need to repeat events to save up for a new vehicle.
- Smaller challenges “Tests” – Here you need to achieve certain speeds in speed traps or reach a certain score in slalom races.
- Free Drive – Here you can explore the map at will. Scattered across the map are so-called live rewards that bring you new parts for your vehicle. When you approach such a reward, it is indicated by an acoustic signal and a pulsating mini-map.
The roadmap for The Crew 2 post-launch: According to Ivory Tower’s roadmap, two vehicles will be added to the fleet monthly – however, players will only experience real content again in September. Then the hovercraft and the overhaul of the loot system will come, which will introduce a new rarity level for performance parts among other things.
Once you have completed the story events and the smaller challenges (in-game: tests), you can explore the vast map and take photos. However, larger long-distance events as in the predecessor are not present in The Crew 2; only one race will keep you busy for over half an hour.
Whether exploring the map and using the photo mode provides enough long-term motivation is something everyone has to decide for themselves. Personally, I find it too little over time.
