Innovation in the racing genre is tough to achieve, when the parameters of realism restrict frivolity, but Grid Autosport finds an adequate way to branch out from past offerings. With more varied playing styles, piled on a ton of beautiful content, Codemasters’ franchise sets a high bar for its peers. Some flaws may be more detrimental to the biggest of purists, but the ambition here is clear and justified.

Smell the rubber.

Grid Autosport packs its power where it counts. Menus are kept minimalistic, as a voice periodically guides players onward to the next race. Cars and their liveries, however, display smoothly curving bodies that sparkle in reflective lighting. Tracks and crowds in particular take a backseat, looking a bit less sharp upclose, but the game’s speed and blurring effects nearly blends it back into realism. Only sharp bends and zoomed in replays lift that veil of lower resolution.

Accompanying car audio deserves special commendation, as tones are a vital part of racing properly. A lot of engines do have a shrill sound, but the ever so subtle difference in pitch and rattles is a telegraph in finding out whether the driving line will bend or break. Did the engine just sputter or growl? That split second change indicates either a tight turn or a pebble leading to a wipeout. Rarely has audio been such a marker in a racing game, to such an extent that any outside distraction is more of a nuisance than the motoric noise. It may even outdo arrow pointers showing incoming opponents in the lightweight interface.

Sounds can tell you exactly if this corner is going to be your downfall or not.

Aside from custom cups, Grid Autosport has a career mode with a level progression system to unlock content in one of five sections. Each season, it’s possible to choose one driving style from Touring Car, Endurance, Open Wheel, Tuning and Street. Before the start of the season, it’s necessary to commit to one team contract, which comes with an objective and an auxiliary goal. These missions differ in experience yield, depending on the difficulty settings. According to the chosen season playlist, there are a certain amount of races to complete, usually laced with special one-off events. Unfortunately, some goals are tied to a teammate that can be controlled with commands, but don't help the result, but that's easily forgotten when seeing personal accolades.

Touring Car is the most robust discipline, where contenders frequently bash into each other’s sides at high speeds, trying to elbow their way to the top on gritty tracks. It’s a much easier style to learn than Endurance, the least enjoyable of all categories. Here, vehicles simply have to outlast a clock, which is harder than it sounds. As tires fade and indiscretions lead to dents or damage that impact performance greatly, trying to stretch out a good position is hell and failure can lead to frustrating retries.

These things go fast.

As far as cautiousness goes, Open Wheel is a much better teaching tool than Endurance. These contraptions are built for speed like bullets. Through proper use of opponent slipstreams, it’s possible to shoot to the front, but velocity has to be carefully managed, as the light vehicles carry off easily. Precision and solid timing are fundamental here.

Both Tuning and Street are varying degrees of the same setting, though one is played mostly on professional tracks, while the latter has a series of terrain surfaces to think about. Additionally, Tuning is the category of choice to tweak a setup before a race, which is possible in all disciplines. With high adaptability, changing a ride’s suspension, brake bias and so on comes in handy both for shaving off seconds in time trials, as it is in staying steady during drifting events. Especially in the tough drifts, being able to stay on the track sets more monster scores than having a loose cannon.

Drifts are hell to master, but they pay off like no other.

Every specialty has its own specific look and feel, which is translated on-screen by two factors: Controls and terrain. In the first, Grid Autosport shows how exactly realism can become diverse, while staying the same. Tiny alterations in cars make it so that one body can take more punches and stay more stable, while the other has a ton more speed or turns in a unique momentum. Moreover, there are tons of build options, from tiny boxes to slick, flat powerhouses. Swaying is such bliss too. A tap or a smooth push sends the car to a different spot; each has its own time to be pulled off.

Tracks bring their own controlling aspect through terrain, in no small part thanks to excellently segmented lap designs, even if some intersections may be confusing. Some asphalt may grip harder than street pavement, while cobblestones or paneling will severely alter corners. Each bump or incline requires negotiating a turn its own way or the car will go off or lose time. Both are undesirable results, as the artificial intelligence (AI) in Grid Autosport is fierce, even in the default setting.

There are a lot of possible views in the game.

Teams wrestle for their spots and they won’t hesitate to hook opponents on their sides. Those who don’t find the ideal racing line or learn when to break or let go of the throttle will not need to compete. It is possible to “flashback” upon error, but only in finite setting and with the pace of events, some corners may end up being tackled several times over. Grid Autosport is a tough and unforgiving game, but the level of precision in all its designs makes it just as rewarding to have fought off a position.

Careers culminate in Grid championships, where all disciplines are put together to open up the longest, most pristine tracks, previously cut up for shorter laps. These elongated seasons require even more dedication to gain the top spot. Still, finally being able to participate in these gorgeously sun-laden tracks, after leveling up for hours, is reward enough to tackle the trials with a smile. Its prestige almost makes it a badge of honor, simply to be included in the tournament. Still, winning isn’t bad either.

Be prepared to be extra concentrated at night, when things turn dark.

There is one flaw in particular that does stain the perfect run of Grid Autosport so far. Many tough races have a qualifier round prior to the real deal. These precursors always kick off with a rolling start, counting down as the car is already in motion. If the acceleration is held in before the counter is depleted, however, the vehicle will stay stuck in its automated mode, which makes the AI take control for the duration of the qualifier. While that’s good enough for a spot within the pack, it will be an even bigger threshold for those disciplines where a pole position can prevent a lot of issues. It’s not game-breaking, but it is a glaring oversight that’s easy to forget and oh so frustrating when it repeats itself, because these rounds can’t be restarted.

Additionally, its highlight upload through Youtube is spotty and too basic, but that’s a side note; it does get the job done eventually.

Fight tooth and nail for those spots, but watch out for damage!

Once at peace with the career, Grid Autosport can serve up an entirely new volley of content through its online element. Here, money won from races can be used to own a garage of different brands. Races with latency issues see their lagging members fade out, minimalizing ways to get suddenly shunted. Better yet, the money system heavily impedes aggressive driving, as high costs are detracted for repairs. Lobbies fill up nicely, but it is a shame that events aren’t appended with AI vehicles, so what’s there is what will be competing.

Moreover, to preserve a stable connection, the heavy-handed gravitas of singleplayer is softened up for a smoother experience, but it overdoes it on the speedier challenges. Some championships resemble air hockey more than a race, as cars float across surfaces that now require much less thought to overcome. In its defense, the online portion does branch out into dozens of hours of added value, but not all of it may be quite as thrilling as going at it alone.

Gorgeous in presentation, precise in technical design and packed with a diverse selection in cars and tracks; Grid Autosport has it all. Its realism racing with just enough flavor in unique disciplines to let both fans and onlookers salivate. It may contain a frustrating bug in its qualification rounds, but that’s not enough to outweigh the satisfaction received from winning from intelligent drivers on tough events. Online, while not as perfect, elongates what already offers more than its share in value, for those who really can’t get enough of this beaut.

Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed (@Daavpuke)