Developed by Raceward Studios and published by NACON, RiMS Racing is a new motorbike racing simulator that is more than just a simple racing game. With many AAA car racing games launching in the previous years, motorbike racing fans have been waiting for a decent motorbike racing simulator as well and now Raceward Studios is here with their title RiMS Racing which is essentially a realistic motorcycle simulator that allows you to maintain, race and upgrade motorbikes. This is our review of RiMS Racing in which we enjoy the thrill of speed on two wheels and also make sure that our bike remains in its top condition.
Right from your very first lap in RiMS Racing, you know that this game is not your average bike racing game. Starting with a tutorial lap of the Circuit Zolder in Belgium, you are introduced to the basics of the game and finally taken into the main Career mode of the game where you will be spending most of your time. The Career is the main single-player mode of RiMS Racing and this is where you learn everything about your bike and how you can become the RiMS Racing Pro Champion by taking part in various championships and events. The Career offers you a large range of 70 events during a season.
These events range from normal Sponsored Races to 1v1 face-offs to Academy Events where the game pits you against some challenges. The main Career Mode screen has two levels where on the ground floor, you have your Motorbike Stand, Calendar, and Research. In the Calendar, you choose the next event and can even decide to take a day off by choosing Rest Days. If you are in the mood for some action, you can simply choose the next event in line and get back on track. In the Research section, you can purchase various skills that unlock more information about your MSC, Weather and Asphalt Conditions, and the Opponents.
In the Motorbike Stand, you will get to explore your bike as well as maintain it. This section plays a vital role in the game and while you are not on the track, you will spend most of the time here at the Motorbike Stand looking after your bike. The second floor of the Career mode has your Driver Customization screen where you can customize the gear of your rider. You can change different items such as your suit, helmet, jacket, trousers, boots, and gloves. At the start, you only have a limited number of items however you can purchase new gear from shops. You must look after your gear as well because the longer you use the items, the more their condition will deteriorate.
For purchasing different things in the game, you have two different types of in-game currencies. One is Credits while the second one is Team Points. You earn both from winning races and completing challenges. You will need credits to purchase new gear and upgrades for your bike. Maintenance of your bike also requires Credits while Team Points are used for purchasing new skills in various Skill Trees in the game. You have to unlock the Skill Centers using Credits but once purchased, all additional skills in the trees require Team Points. New areas in your HQ are also unlocked using these Team Points.
Before starting your Career, the game takes you to a decent yet basic character customization screen. While the visual customization is not that detailed, for a biker, the options are more than enough. You have a male or a female option and nationality for your basic needs. After that, you have different motorbike options such as choosing your biking technique, braking type and braking fingers. Your biking technique can be Body Out, Shoulder Out, Balanced or Old School depending on your personal preference. Other than this, you can choose whether your rider has his leg out during braking or not, and finally, you can even choose the number of fingers your biker uses in the game to use the braking pedal. You can completely customize how your rider drives the motorbike in the game according to your personal preference.
Coming to the gameplay of RiMS Racing, it is not really a hardcore simulator as you will find plenty of arcade elements here and there however with all assists turned off, the game certainly is not forgiving at all. The bike controls are pretty tight however some of the mechanics feel a little dated such as how the game treats terrain. This is most common for off-track areas as soon as you even touch the ground, you fall instead even if you are not going very fast. This is even weird in areas where there is no dirt, and you still fall as soon as you leave the track.
The other problem is that sometimes invisible things on the road cause the rider to fall down especially while turning. You are taking a perfect turn but suddenly the biker just falls down on the ground instead of maintaining the turn as though you have you’ve hit something in your way. This is completely random as well and does not happen at the same location in the same race. The gameplay feels pretty good overall however these small things sometimes annoy you. Like I said earlier, the gameplay is great however it is still far from being perfect and you do notice some arcade mechanics here and there in the mix.
The learning curve is not too steep, and the initial tutorial does a great job of explaining everything to you. I have not played a bike racing game for a long time, and it did not take me a long time to get comfortable behind the wheel of my first bike BMW M 1000 RR. Each bike in the game has its own unique feel, control, and sound. The performance is different for stock models as well and as you continue to build and upgrade your bike, you notice a performance difference in their relevant sections. At launch, you have 8 superbikes from some of the most exotic brands including BMW, Yamaha, Suzuki, MV Augusta, and Aprilia.
When it comes to bike maintenance, the game has a unique mechanic called Motorcycle Status Check or MSC. Upon entering the MSC during a race, you can check the status of all of the bike components currently installed on it. If a part such as tires is worn out, you can change them in pit stops where you will have to complete a small mini-game as well to help out your crew during the process. During the pit stop, you can only change a handful of components and if you want to make more changes, you will need to go to the Motorbike Stand and purchase new parts.
The shop offers you performance parts as well as stock parts for your bike. If you just want to maintain your bike in its stock condition, you can purchase the stock parts and replace them. However, if you want to upgrade the performance of your bike, you can go for higher-spec performance parts and install them on your bike as well. One thing I did notice while installing parts is that for taking out parts, you get the full mini-game and while putting the stuff back, you only get the mini-game for the current part, and then you have to go back to other parts separately to put them back.
For example, if I want to change my front disc pads, I will disassemble the complete front tire and then remove the brakes and then access the front discs to change them. Once I have replaced the new discs, it will not guide me throughout the whole process of putting the wheel back as well rather the mini-game will just end with me putting back the brakes on the bike, and then I have to go to the Wheels section and then put the wheel back on the tire which is a little annoying. Apart from this little hiccup, I thoroughly enjoyed this section of upgrading and maintaining the bike. This is done brilliantly by the developers.
Coming to the visual and sound design of the game, RiMS Racing looks great however it will not win any awards for its looks. The game features decent visuals and the bikes look great. The animations are fine however sometimes look a little awkward, but they are not that bad to ruin your gameplay experience. The tracks design is good with the option of many official closed circuits to open roads, and they look beautiful. Special weather effects are good as well and the rain can really affect the driving in the game. The game does not disappoint when it comes to sound design as well since The Bloody Beatroots made a custom soundtrack for the game and it accompanies you throughout the game keeping you in the mood.
RiMS Racing also features a Multiplayer aspect where you can challenge friends or other people locally or online. You have the option of Offline Duel to challenge local friends or family members using the same PC or console. Online Challenges are official events that act as challenges, and you can try to complete them while trying to beat the highscores from bikers from all over the world. Online Custom Events allow you to create your own custom events or join custom events created by other players from around the world.
Final Verdict:
RiMS Racing takes on a concept that very few developers tackle these days. We have seen tons of racing games catering to cars of every level however I cannot remember when the last time a decent bike racing simulation was made. RiMS Racing fills a vital gap in the racing genre, and it does that in a spectacular way as well. It has racing, it has modifications, and it has some of the best bikes that are currently available in the market. Offering both road and circuit racing, RiMS Racing is the ultimate bike enthusiast racing game. Despite somewhat lacking in terms of gameplay, it is still a solid entry in the field by Raceward Studio as the thrill of speed, animations, and how you upgrade your bike are top-notch. RiMS Racing makes a great base for a franchise, and I would love to see the developer expand on it and make it even better in better. If you love motorbikes and were waiting for a decent motorbike simulator racing title, RiMS Racing is a must-have title for you.
Final Score: 8.0/10
