Ridge Racer Driftopia - Free to Play - Open BETA now

[Fursphere]

http://www.ridgeracerdriftopia.com/en/

I know opinions have been mixed around here about this (mostly negative) - but hey, its FREE.  Can't hurt to give it a try.

[Fursphere]

Got my beta key, went to play and "can't connect to server". 

I guess I should have expected as much.

[Brian74]

Am I blind?  I cant find the beta on steam to download. 

[Fursphere]

I had to signup on the webpage I linked above, then they emailed me a Steam key (took a few hours I guess to get the key?)

[Brian74]

Ok, I figured it out.

[Brian74]

I cant connect either.

[Fursphere]

I got connected to the server this morning.  Here are my initial thoughts...

"Communicating with Server" is ALL THE FREAKING TIME in the menus.  Its a bit slow to get around. 

"Drifting" isn't intuitive.  It almost feels random (or I just really suck).  "Hold B button to drift!" (how long?  when do I start holding it?  when do I stop?  do I need to adjust the throttle?  ...  game mechanics aren't transparent)

Its a console game - Gamepad appears to be the only option.  (looks like the same configuration as Unbounded - so I can probably make the wheel work with a little work - x360ce stuff)

"First car is free" - every car after that you earn / buy (not fully explained in the beta).   When you wreck one of the cars (other than the very first) you have to repair it.  Repair kits cost REAL WORLD MONEY.  Beta list price is $1.74 per 50 kits (they're free in beta, but the price is still listed), and the secondary car I crashed was 10 kits to repair.  If you don't repair it right then and there after you wreck, YOU LOSE IT.  (gone, permanently.. probably have to re-earn it?). 

It seems the amount of repair kits to repair any given car can vary from car to car.   

There is also per-race boosters you can apply to your car pre-race.  I didn't see anywhere to buy these, so I don't know what they're all about yet.

And..   damage to your car doesn't make sense.  Two times I hit the wall and "broke" my car.  Another time one of the computers pushed me into the wall and broke my car.  So... the computer can "cost you money"  (I see this being a sore point)

The gameplay itself seemed similar to Unbounded.  (I haven't played that one much honestly)

So..  while this game is "free" - It looks like its going to be micro transaction hell, and a "free to play, pay to win" title. 

Need For Speed World is probably a better choice at a "free" racer.