I had been toying with the idea of purchasing an SBK Superbike game but the
many reviews I'd read had left me in doubt about the enjoyability of the SBK
games. Was I wrong! I'm really happy that I finally decided to grab this game
and to make it even better I got a great deal from MightyApe.
The game is very easy to get into on the standard settings, too easy in fact,
but this does make it a lot of fun to learn the tracks and bike control. It is
very straight forward to win a Championship on the easiest mode, with a wealth
of difficulty to look forward to as you get more confident. Power slides exiting
corners in the wet are extremely good fun, it wouldn't win a Championship in
real life but it's a game so having a good time is what counts!
I like the way the bikes look and sound which is the most important drawcard
for this type of game. The Aprilia and BMW are very nice and I'll always have a
soft spot for the green meany Kawasaki's. The best part of this type of game has
to be piloting one of these beasts around a track and fortunately the developers
have delivered the goods in this area!
The character models for the riders and various other people look a bit dumb,
especially some of the umbrella girls who seem to be lit wrongly around their
faces which can make them look a bit scary at times, but they are secondary to
the bikes which as mentioned are well done.
SBK '09 is a good game for those of us who'll never get to own and ride an
Aprilia or Ducati especially one of the hyped up fire-breathing factory racers.
It's very satisfying with the usual extra types of playing modes thrown in for
good measure. I look forward to playing it regularly, laying down some rubber
and leaning all over Haga-San.