3/5 ★ – beearmy's review of Split/Second.

I’m no racing game expert, or fan really, but I remember enjoying this back in the day. It’s been a while, however, since I’ve played a game with such high potential but misses the mark in so many ways. To start, the concept of map destruction is pretty original in regards to a racing game, and I struggle to think of another that even comes close to Split/Second. By activating the traps, and, if you build up enough of the meter, completely changing the layout of the track, each race is guaranteed to provide a new experience. Which the game definitely needs, as it has maybe like 5 or 6 maps total? I’m not sure what the standard is for a racing game but this seems ridiculously low. You end up reusing tracks by like the 3rd or 4th “episode”. While it does have some interesting game modes, like the elimination race where whoever is last is destroyed, it struggles to provide any kind of variety that incentivises the player to carry on past about an hour of gameplay. Another obstacle which is evident pretty quickly is the difficulty. This has an insane amount of rubberbanding. The game demands a perfect understanding and execution of each map to even have a chance of coming first, or just rely on luck to wipe out your opponents and steal a high enough place right near the end. Any enjoyment you had at the start will have vanished by the time you’re replaying a race for the sixth time on a map you’ve already seen three times already. Like I said, there is a lot of potential hidden within, and I’d love to see what a sequel, or even a remaster that rebalances the AI, would look like, but this is sadly never going to happen.