MotorStorm: Apocalypse
Encyclopedia
MotorStorm: Apocalypse is a 2011 racing 3D
video game by Evolution Studios
and published by Sony Computer Entertainment
for the PlayStation 3
. It is the fourth game in the series and the third for the PlayStation 3. It was announced shortly before the beginning of the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
on the PlayStation Blog by Evolution Studios on 10 June 2010.
MotorStorm: Apocalypse was released in Europe on 16 March 2011 but the UK release on 18 March was delayed by Sony Computer Entertainment UK following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
in Japan. The Australian launch went ahead as planned on 17 March, but Sony announced further shipments of the game to that country would be halted in the wake of the disaster. The planned North American release date of 12 April 2011 was delayed by Sony who later confirmed new releases dates of 31 March 2011 in the UK and 3 May 2011 in North America.
The game's release in Japan was canceled in June 2011. No reasons were given at the time.
urban area
called The City, based on the West Coast of the United States
(in particular California
's Bay Area
). The game consists of more than 40 tracks that can be altered from active catastrophic earthquakes and helicopters crashing through buildings.
s, superbikes
, hot hatch
es, muscle car
s and choppers
. Apocalypse is the first game in the MotorStorm series to focus on an urban setting as opposed to natural environments. The city that the Festival takes place in is enduring the throes of a massive natural disaster, causing the man-made structures in the city to visibly deteriorate. As players race through the tracks, the tracks can change in real-time; bridges can buckle and twist, buildings collapse and rifts open up beneath the vehicles as they drive. Players can also customize their vehicles with vinyls, vehicle parts, and modify the vehicle's handling, boosting and offensive abilities through perks. They are able to create and design their own game rules for online tournaments. A new gameplay element is the addition of "air cooling" one's boost. Similar to driving through cool water in Pacific Rift would speed up the rate of boost cooling, releasing the accelerator over a large jump will also cause the boost temperature gauge to drop quicker.
A new challenge in Apocalypse is the introduction of people who try to interfere in the event. The City houses two factions, known as the Crazies and Dusklite, who vie for survival. These groups try to impede the progress of the racers. They loot broken buildings, break into fights on the streets, steal cars and try to slam racers off the road, and attack racers with firearms. A private military company
attempts to enforce order and their involvement creates additional hazards for racers to overcome such as an attack helicopter firing missiles onto the track.
On 16 May the first DLC includes the "Revelation" pack, containing four vehicles that can be either bought entirely or individually.
On 30 May the second DLC includes the "Remix" pack, consisting three vehicles from the original MotorStorm
game such as, the Mojave Slugger, the Patriot Surger and the Voodoo Iguana.
On 6 June the third DLC includes the "Prestige" Pack, consisting a rally car and two supercars that can be bought entirely or individually.
on 16 March 2011 but following a magnitude 6.3 earthquake in the country in February, the game release was delayed indefinitely. Similarly, the game's release in Japan was also delayed indefinitely after an earthquake and tsunami
struck the country on 10 March, 2011 - the game's originally scheduled release date. It was later confirmed its cancellation by Sony Computer Entertainment Japan three months later, with no reason given at the time. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe also delayed the game's release in the UK, stating in relation the disaster in Japan, "We are very conscious of the parallels between these events and the underlying theme in MotorStorm and are doing everything we can to be as sensitive as possible to the situation."
In Australia, the game was launched as scheduled on 17 March , but Sony confirmed the company would halt any further shipments and pull all advertising campaigns for the game.
The game was scheduled to be released in North American on 12 April 2011 but was changed to 3 May 2011.
packs available as pre-order incentives, each available from a specific retailler. Each pack includes a PlayStation Network avatar, an XMB
theme and unique vehicle designs and stickers which the player can use to customise other vehicles.
On May 30, 2011, the MotorStorm: Apocalypse Tyler dynamic theme is available through purchase or as a free download for PlayStation Plus subscribers.
for its well-designed visuals and arcade-styled handling to vehicles, the game received a 7 by GamesRadar
for its short and bland storyline, as well as a less appealing offine gameplay. GamePro
criticized the game for its "underwhelming graphics" and for the game being similar to the game, Split/Second. However, GameSpot
rated the game an 8.5 for its variety of multiplayer options, well-designed tracks and destructible environments. 1UP
also gave it a "B" rating. GameZone
gave the game a 6.5/10, stating "For anyone looking for a fresh new racing game on the PS3, things could get a lot worse than Motorstorm: Apocalypse, but they could also be a little better."
Stereoscopy
Stereoscopy refers to a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by presenting two offset images separately to the left and right eye of the viewer. Both of these 2-D offset images are then combined in the brain to give the perception of 3-D depth...
video game by Evolution Studios
Evolution Studios
Evolution Studios Ltd. is a British video game developer. The company was founded in 1999 by Martin Kenwright and Ian Hetherington , following the purchase of DID's publisher Ocean Software by Infogrames...
and published by Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment
Sony Computer Entertainment, Inc. is a major video game company specializing in a variety of areas in the video game industry, and is a wholly owned subsidiary and part of the Consumer Products & Services Group of Sony...
for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. It is the fourth game in the series and the third for the PlayStation 3. It was announced shortly before the beginning of the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2010, commonly known as E3 2010, was the 16th Electronic Entertainment Expo held. The event took place on June 14–17 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. E3 is an annual trade show for the computer and video games industry presented by the Entertainment Software...
on the PlayStation Blog by Evolution Studios on 10 June 2010.
MotorStorm: Apocalypse was released in Europe on 16 March 2011 but the UK release on 18 March was delayed by Sony Computer Entertainment UK following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku, also known as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, or the Great East Japan Earthquake, was a magnitude 9.0 undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST on Friday, 11 March 2011, with the epicenter approximately east...
in Japan. The Australian launch went ahead as planned on 17 March, but Sony announced further shipments of the game to that country would be halted in the wake of the disaster. The planned North American release date of 12 April 2011 was delayed by Sony who later confirmed new releases dates of 31 March 2011 in the UK and 3 May 2011 in North America.
The game's release in Japan was canceled in June 2011. No reasons were given at the time.
Story
Apocalypse is more story-driven than previous instalments. The events of Apocalypse's MotorStorm Festival are told from the perspective of three participants, labelled Mash "The Rookie", Tyler "The Pro", and Big Dog "The Veteran" by Evolution Studios, with each participant also representing a difficulty level of gameplay. These three participants will each see different parts of the catastrophe unfold over the course of the two day festival.Setting
The game takes place in an apocalypticApocalypse
An Apocalypse is a disclosure of something hidden from the majority of mankind in an era dominated by falsehood and misconception, i.e. the veil to be lifted. The Apocalypse of John is the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament...
urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
called The City, based on the West Coast of the United States
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
(in particular California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
's Bay Area
San Francisco Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a populated region that surrounds the San Francisco and San Pablo estuaries in Northern California. The region encompasses metropolitan areas of San Francisco, Oakland, and San Jose, along with smaller urban and rural areas...
). The game consists of more than 40 tracks that can be altered from active catastrophic earthquakes and helicopters crashing through buildings.
Gameplay
New vehicles in the game include supercarSupercar
Supercar is a term used most often to describe an expensive high end car. It has been defined specifically as "a very expensive, fast or powerful car"...
s, superbikes
Superbike racing
Superbike racing is a category of motorcycle racing that employs modified production motorcycles. Superbike World Championship is the international superbike championship, and national superbike championships are held in many countries as well, including the United Kingdom, the United States,...
, hot hatch
Hot hatch
Hot hatch was originally an informal automotive industry term, shortened from hot hatchback, initially coined by the British motoring press in 1984, for a high-performance derivative of a car body style consisting of a three- or five-door hatchback automobile.Vehicles of this class are based on...
es, muscle car
Muscle car
Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." Usually, a large V8 engine is fitted in a...
s and choppers
Chopper (motorcycle)
A chopper is a type of motorcycle that was either modified from an original motorcycle design or built from scratch to have a hand-crafted appearance. The main features of a chopper that make it stand out are its longer frame design accompanied by a stretch front end...
. Apocalypse is the first game in the MotorStorm series to focus on an urban setting as opposed to natural environments. The city that the Festival takes place in is enduring the throes of a massive natural disaster, causing the man-made structures in the city to visibly deteriorate. As players race through the tracks, the tracks can change in real-time; bridges can buckle and twist, buildings collapse and rifts open up beneath the vehicles as they drive. Players can also customize their vehicles with vinyls, vehicle parts, and modify the vehicle's handling, boosting and offensive abilities through perks. They are able to create and design their own game rules for online tournaments. A new gameplay element is the addition of "air cooling" one's boost. Similar to driving through cool water in Pacific Rift would speed up the rate of boost cooling, releasing the accelerator over a large jump will also cause the boost temperature gauge to drop quicker.
A new challenge in Apocalypse is the introduction of people who try to interfere in the event. The City houses two factions, known as the Crazies and Dusklite, who vie for survival. These groups try to impede the progress of the racers. They loot broken buildings, break into fights on the streets, steal cars and try to slam racers off the road, and attack racers with firearms. A private military company
Private military company
A private military company or provides military and security services. These combatants are commonly known as mercenaries, though modern-day PMCs refer to their staff as security contractors, private military contractors or private security contractors, and refer to themselves as private military...
attempts to enforce order and their involvement creates additional hazards for racers to overcome such as an attack helicopter firing missiles onto the track.
Vehicles
Five new vehicle classes; the supercar, superbike, muscle car, chopper and the hot hatch, are new additions, with the original MotorStorm vehicles, ranging from the MX Motocross bike to the Monster Truck, being included.On 16 May the first DLC includes the "Revelation" pack, containing four vehicles that can be either bought entirely or individually.
On 30 May the second DLC includes the "Remix" pack, consisting three vehicles from the original MotorStorm
MotorStorm
MotorStorm is a 2006 racing video game developed by Evolution Studios and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the Sony PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system. First announced at E3 2005, the game was released in Japan on 14 December 2006 and the rest of the world in March 2007....
game such as, the Mojave Slugger, the Patriot Surger and the Voodoo Iguana.
On 6 June the third DLC includes the "Prestige" Pack, consisting a rally car and two supercars that can be bought entirely or individually.
Release
On 13 January 2011 the PlayStation Blog confirmed that the game would be released in Europe on 16 March 2011 and in North America on 12 April 2011. The game was initially scheduled to be released in New ZealandNew Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
on 16 March 2011 but following a magnitude 6.3 earthquake in the country in February, the game release was delayed indefinitely. Similarly, the game's release in Japan was also delayed indefinitely after an earthquake and tsunami
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku, also known as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, or the Great East Japan Earthquake, was a magnitude 9.0 undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST on Friday, 11 March 2011, with the epicenter approximately east...
struck the country on 10 March, 2011 - the game's originally scheduled release date. It was later confirmed its cancellation by Sony Computer Entertainment Japan three months later, with no reason given at the time. Sony Computer Entertainment Europe also delayed the game's release in the UK, stating in relation the disaster in Japan, "We are very conscious of the parallels between these events and the underlying theme in MotorStorm and are doing everything we can to be as sensitive as possible to the situation."
In Australia, the game was launched as scheduled on 17 March , but Sony confirmed the company would halt any further shipments and pull all advertising campaigns for the game.
The game was scheduled to be released in North American on 12 April 2011 but was changed to 3 May 2011.
Pre-order bonuses
In the North America three DLCDownloadable content
Downloadable content is official additional content for a video game distributed through the Internet. Downloadable content can be of several types, ranging from a single in-game outfit to an entirely new, extensive storyline, similarly to an expansion pack. As such, DLC may add new game modes,...
packs available as pre-order incentives, each available from a specific retailler. Each pack includes a PlayStation Network avatar, an XMB
XrossMediaBar
The XrossMediaBar is a graphical user interface developed by Sony Computer Entertainment. The interface features icons that are spread horizontally across the screen. Navigation moves the icons, instead of a cursor. These icons are used as categories to organize the options available to the user...
theme and unique vehicle designs and stickers which the player can use to customise other vehicles.
Updates
The first update has been given to the game. The main feature of the update is that if one is to drive through a low tunnel in a large vehicle such as a monster truck the camera automatically switches to first person. it will stay like this until one leaves the tunnel.On May 30, 2011, the MotorStorm: Apocalypse Tyler dynamic theme is available through purchase or as a free download for PlayStation Plus subscribers.
Reception
MotorStorm: Apocalypse received good to mixed reviews. While the game has received an 8.0 score by IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
for its well-designed visuals and arcade-styled handling to vehicles, the game received a 7 by GamesRadar
GamesRadar
GamesRadar is a multi-format video game website featuring regular news, previews, reviews, videos, and guides. It is owned and operated simultaneously in the UK and US by worldwide publisher Future Publishing...
for its short and bland storyline, as well as a less appealing offine gameplay. GamePro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
criticized the game for its "underwhelming graphics" and for the game being similar to the game, Split/Second. However, GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
rated the game an 8.5 for its variety of multiplayer options, well-designed tracks and destructible environments. 1UP
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
also gave it a "B" rating. GameZone
GameZone
GameZone is an American multiplatform video game website. GameZone's daily coverage includes reviews, previews, news, hints & cheats, and editorials. Additionally, GameZone offers downloads, a child-targeted website and in association with GameStop, hosts GZGameShop, an online retailer...
gave the game a 6.5/10, stating "For anyone looking for a fresh new racing game on the PS3, things could get a lot worse than Motorstorm: Apocalypse, but they could also be a little better."