GRID Legends
The GRID franchise has been floating around for a little while now, with various incarnations appearing across several console generations. The franchise kicked off in 2008 on Xbox 360, PS3, Nintendo DS and PC with the release of Race Driver: GRID. After a few sequels, GRID was rebooted in 2019, appearing on PC, PS4, Xbox One, and Stadia. In this new incarnation, developer Codemasters added the Nemesis system to GRID, instilling opponent drivers with advanced AI. This allowed up to 400 opponents to individually form opinions on the player and their driving style (which, if you are anything like me, resulted in a wild gang of race car drivers that all hated your guts). GRID's arcade racing has shown through in every installment, allowing the player to engage with more advanced mechanics if they wished, while giving newer players the opportunity to be competitive with various difficulty modes. If you've never played GRID and you have a copy in one of your accounts somewhere (I think I have three, somehow), it is well worth firing up and taking a look.
Which leads us to GRID: Legends, the latest installment in the GRID franchise. This time, GRID is putting faces with names - casting real-life actors to portray some of the franchise's most iconic characters in a full-motion video campaign. Filmed using the same tech as recent television programs like The Mandalorian to deliver lifelike settings and backgrounds, GRID: Legends' campaign brings the off-track action to life, allowing players to understand the relationships between the previously faceless racers that occupy the track. With EA taking over the publishing for this round, GRID Legends seems poised to move even further into the mainstream, with fun, accessible racing and a well-acted campaign.
Gaming Nexus was given early access to GRID Legends' campaign (and did I play through the whole thing in a burst of excessive enthusiasm? Maybe...). This video provides a look at the game's first five missions, along with a taste of how the game is structured. It is important to note that this version of GRID Legends is not final - the game is still in development for its eventual late-February release. In the video, you can see the settings I was using. I recorded this video on Ultra-High settings, with the framerate capped at 60 FPS. While this is not final release gameplay, you can clearly see that GRID Legends is well on its way to being a very fun game indeed.
After completing the preview in its entirety on "Medium" difficulty, I decided to check out how the game played when set to "Hard" difficulty. Turns out, the game is a lot harder, but also a lot more fun and engaging. The other drivers are far more aggressive, bumping me all over the road. In "Medium" difficulty, the game's Nemesis system didn't really seem to make much of an impact, as I spent most of my time way out in front of the other drivers. But on "Hard", the system came slamming into focus, as my many enemies constantly tried to take me down.
After completing the Moscow race (above), I took a run at an elimination race, and - though I don't want to talk about how many times I had to start over - I finally won.
Upon completion of the "Driven to Glory" storyline, players will be able to continue their careers, with over 250 Career events. The game includes 130 routes on new and returning locations, 100+ hand-picked cars, and a custom Race Creator mode that allows players to customize their own races. Even more exciting, GRID Legends will have full cross-play between Xbox, PlayStation, and PC, allowing players to race friends, regardless of which platform they play on.
I can't wait to get my hands on the final release version of GRID Legends. My Logitech G923 wheel has been collecting little dust lately, and GRID Legends seems like the perfect opportunity to set it up on my PS5 for some serious racing. I'm excited to see where GRID Legends goes once the campaign ends, not to mention jumping into the multiplayer with friends.
GRID Legends is scheduled to release on February 25, 2022 on PlayStation, Xbox and PC via Steam and Origin.
* The product in this article was sent to us by the developer/company.
About Author
Howdy. My name is Eric Hauter, and I am a dad with a ton of kids. During my non-existent spare time, I like to play a wide variety of games, including JRPGs, strategy and action games (with the occasional trip into the black hole of MMOs). I am intrigued by the prospect of cloud gaming, and am often found poking around the cloud various platforms looking for fun and interesting stories. I was an early adopter of PSVR (I had one delivered on release day), and I’ve enjoyed trying out the variety of games that have released since day one. I've since added an Oculus Quest 2 and PS VR2 to my headset collection. I’m intrigued by the possibilities presented by VR multi-player, and I try almost every multi-player game that gets released.
My first system was a Commodore 64, and I’ve owned countless systems since then. I was a manager at a toy store for the release of PS1, PS2, N64 and Dreamcast, so my nostalgia that era of gaming runs pretty deep. Currently, I play on Xbox Series X, Series S, PS5, PS VR2, Quest 3, Switch, Luna, GeForce Now, (RIP Stadia) and a super sweet gaming PC built by John Yan. While I lean towards Sony products, I don’t have any brand loyalty, and am perfectly willing to play game on other systems.
When I’m not playing games or wrangling my gaggle of children, I enjoy watching horror movies and doing all the other geeky activities one might expect. I also co-host the Chronologically Podcast, where we review every film from various filmmakers in order, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.
Follow me on Twitter @eric_hauter, and check out my YouTube channel here.
View Profile