I've been a big fan of the TM series for almost 10 years now. The last couple of environments have lacked the distinctiveness of the previous seven though, gameplay wise and visually, limiting its appeal. This one basically feels like a mixture of Rally and Coast/Canyon, with the handling on dirt feeling too sensitive to me, making it less enjoyable than past environments. While there is still a great track editor and an endless supply of tracks to download and test yourself against what other fans have created, the amount of people playing this online is far less than it has been with previous versions of TM. Lastly, in the solo mode, the goal is to practise on a track, once you acquire a good time-a gold medal-you can then race for an 'official time' to be sent to the master server to be compared to other racers from around the world. Once you complete the race or screw up a turn and give up, you then have to wait five minutes to go for an official time again. This is something that was also in TrackMania Canyon, and what happens is that I minimise the game, do something else for 5 minutes and then try again. I can understand the reasons as to why this was implemented, but at the same time it is an annoyance.
Gameplay 4/5
Graphics 4.5/5
Sound 3.5/5
Difficulty 4/5
Originality 2/5
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