Initial D Special Stage Review

B

BobaCrazy584

28
I've played Initial D Special Stage when it first came out in china around the same time it was released in japan at a friends house. It was a pirated version but i doubt there are any differences. I'll also review Kaido Battle shortly. Heres the conclusion.

Graphics: 4/10, The graphics look like they came out straight from initial D first stage the tv series, only they look crappier. Some what similar to Arcade Stage. Definitely not what i would call GT3 qualtiy. Lets just say it looks like crud even when u compare it to GT2.

Gameplay: 6/10, The game is just plain not fun. There, i said it. its not real at all and the drifting looks like crap as well. Its quite hard to get u're car to drift well enough not to crash with the Dual Shock 2 controller and battles are not balanced at all. My AE86 was couldn't accel for balls when i raced Keisuke. i was left in the dust every round!!!

Sound: 7/10, i haven't actually played through the whole game but i've seen plenty of tracks from the tv series' soundtrack. A variety from the D selections and several from 2nd stage selection. i would have liked to see some from the 3rd stage soundtrack. The sound from the cars aren't much to listen to either

Courses: 9/10, The courses are awesome to look at but boring to play due to the games physics. The tracks from Arcade Stage are back but now 2 new tracks have been added, (I think they weren't in Arcade Stage) Akagi and Mt Nikko Irohazuka.

Overall (Not an Average) 6/10, The game is boring and utter crap but the courses and music are fairly good. This game could really use a sequel.
 
but again this your opnion,so if the graphics are like the one arcade stage well i think they are pretty good and dont forget its an anime,its not meant to look like GT3 or real life
 
akagi and irohazuka are in Initial D: Arcade Stage Version 2
that game looks a bit nicer from the first one and has more cars
 
The graphics aren't that bad. They're much better than GT2. Also when you mentioned "The game is boring and utter crap" and "My AE86 was couldn't accel for balls when i raced Keisuke." but what 86 would outaccel an FD3S in real life? Also if you don't crash it's possible to win. The game is at heart an arcade game, the physics are not meant to be real and although the anime is about drifting both arcade stage and special stage don't really feature any drifting unless you choose to race in the wet. When you get good at the game you'll enjoy the courses more and the races although it still can't match GT3. Also you say that the sound from the cars aren't much to listen to but I'm guessing the pirate version you played is a downsampled audio CDR although I could br wrong, the sounds were never that great in the actual arcade machine either.
 
I'm not sure if you've seem the Anime, but Keisuke and the other Red Suns (who are now Project D) are filthy rich and can afford all different types of tires etc. But I didn't think the Keisuke race was that hard, the one on Iro was easy but the Akagi one took a few tries. But anyway well done on the write-up :) I think 6/10 is an appropriate score.
 
I've seen the Initial D series and have them on dvd :), from wut i heard Ryosuke was a Surgeon who made tons of money. Thats the reason why he only had a year left for battles. After watching the battle between Keisuke and Takumi i still though it was BS, 150HP VS 350HP is kinda unfair and he still won...
 
ok i've totally messed up on how many courses there in Special Stage. Apparently there is at least 10 i think.
Myogi
Usui
Akagi
Akina
Happo Gahara
Mt Nikko Irohazuka
Real Myogi
Real Usui
Real Akina (I think)
And more!!!
 
In the Time Trials there are some new tracks (maybe four from what I remember) but I can't be bothered to try them. Actually I can't even be bothered to play the game anymore. It has next to no replay value.
 
True, it gets really boring. In Special Stage there are actually mini games where u use the 86 to deliver Tofu. Its actually pretty fun, something u might want to try out.
 
this game is actually really nicely made in my opinion.
i cannot say that the graphics are as nice as gt3 because obviously they're not. but they ARE better than gt2. the idea of the game is a lot better than any other games, since it's a fresher idea rather than just suping and going through.. this game is talkin about control, reaction, technique, knowing the course, etc... you cannot say this game sucks, for example the first post, because it could possibly only be because you can't control the car... i've raced through the game and i've beaten the mini games all the way up to the 2nd selection, which allows me to use the FD to race. and yes that means i've gotten the ae101 also, and it's one drifting machine. if you can control the car and not hit, then you will have a better chacne of winning or coming close, but if you hit every corner, then you lose for sure.

also regarding to your "unfair battle"... well running on mountains is not JUST talking about speed.. actually having a ton of speed makes it worse for it or harder to control. having slower speed allows you to enter a speed with a higher speed and pull out with the same speed... but having lots of power, will make you slow down as a turn comes, which then pulls you down to relatively the same speed as the ae86 and/or ae101. in addition, running downhill lessens the speed difference between each car.. which was explained in stage 1 of the series. i've watched the whole thing over 5 times, so i've learned it from that.

the game overall to me is fresh and good. i actually give it a 9/10 for the overall rating. the game would be a 10/10 if the graphics were a little better in terms of gran turismo style. but after all, it is made by sega.. so can't expect too much :P

*i strongly recommend getting this game and drift the thing like crazy, cuz it's catchy and heartpounding to race in...

NOTE: in an honest opinion, this game is a LIKE or a DISLIKE to different people... it depends on the person, to me, it's great. while to some others, it might be horrible... keep that in mind... don't judge for other people :lol:
 
I just got my Special Stage, and so far i have had only fun. By the way, Tak wins because he has superior corning skills, not a huge engine. Read the Manga.
 
Originally posted by Motorer1
I just got my Special Stage, and so far i have had only fun. By the way, Tak wins because he has superior corning skills, not a huge engine. Read the Manga.
Click to expand...
yep, that's right.
It's Takumi isntead of Tak though.. they changed it when they brought it over to English translations.
 
Originally posted by mindless_dude
but again this your opnion,so if the graphics are like the one arcade stage well i think they are pretty good and dont forget its an anime,its not meant to look like GT3 or real life
Click to expand...

agree with ur point....undoubted, it is very good from thire fansssssssss
 
i find the game actually very nice and balanced (except the last race against Bunta, WOW :eek: :eek: is he fast!)

simply put: that you get left behind in the dust is that ur not driving well. So skills are all this game is talking about. I beat the whole game (except bunta) with the AE86. Its not that hard.

The graphics really suit this game. Not too bad and 50-70 % of the game you are driving in the dark... so not really much to see then then the road itself.

Also the adrenaline of the game is very good. When you get ahead of a car and he is right behind you with those light in ur mirrors.. and you are almost at finish. Makes you nervous. ;)

If you watched the anime or read the manga and like it, then you will definatly love this game.
If you like GT3 and that realistic stuff, avoid this game.
 
oops.. sorry if i spoiled it for ya. Anyways I just beat him. Advantage of 20.1 m at the finish.. pfew!!!
I love that FC3S! Also i find the replay value is good! It's a racing game so what more would you want then ... racing? Improving, improving and improving ur time. My fastest time right now is 3.05 on Downhill Akina and sure could use some improvement there
 
hmm, i think i beat that with my 86 :lol:
Akina is like the only course that i can run FAST.
s'ok, i already guessed that would happen anyway, and i expected him to be incredibly fast, is he?
 
i played initial on arcade its the best game that has ever been produced.is the game on ps2 hard to get around i mean like how it is japanese? going through the menu screen , choosing and understanding the basics?
 
nope, really easy to handle.
if you can't read japanese, just simply try out each thing at first and you'll get it. But if you know how, then no problem :P
 
is there a steering wheel that is designed especially for intial d on ps2 where it is pretty much the same as the arcade steering wheel?
 
well on the box, they advertised the GT FORCE one.. so i think that may be the closest one... but personally, i'm using the madcatz and Ti ones. they both have a shifter like the arcade versions, so i think that may increase the "closeness" Refer to the previous page to see pictures of them.
 
Originally posted by Zero00
oops.. sorry if i spoiled it for ya. Anyways I just beat him. Advantage of 20.1 m at the finish.. pfew!!!
I love that FC3S! Also i find the replay value is good! It's a racing game so what more would you want then ... racing? Improving, improving and improving ur time. My fastest time right now is 3.05 on Downhill Akina and sure could use some improvement there
Click to expand...

Heh, I had that old dude in the Impreza by about 80m at the end of the course. I think I had a 3.02 with my riced (well not so riced anymore) Trueno.
 
i heard that the steering wheels have gliches with them somtimes?

r there any steering wheel which is the same size as the arcade?

does a steering wheel help at home so u can b better at the arcade?
 

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