Alright I've had this game for a few days now and fully tuned a S13. Here's my review.
First off let me begin by sayin that this is an ARCADE game. There is zero realism to this and if you're looking for a togue racing simulator, this is not the game for you.
Difficulty: Moderate - Hard
Learning time: 1 hour
Gameplay:
ID:ES is a port of Initial D: Arcade Stage 4, so anybody who has played the arcade game knows exactly what to expect. There are 3 game modes (2 if you have the Asian version like me) - Legend of The Streets, Time Attack and Online.
LoTS is basically the story mode, where you race racers from the anime series. You start off by choosing a car and you earn points every time you complete a race with someone. You use these points to tune various areas of your car (Forced induction, engine, suspension and brakes, structure, ECU). In order to fully tune (FT) a car, you have to basically race and beat every character in LoTS twice. LoTS is structured very well, with Lake Akina, a simple track with smooth flowing corners as the first track, then Myogi, a basic Togue with 1 or 2 sharp corners and very few elevation changes. The game then takes you to Akagi, Akina, Irohazaka, Tsukuba and Happogahara. Most of the tracks are really fun to drive and you'll most likely spend most of your time at Akagi, Akina, Irohzaka and Tsukuba.
Physics:
Car physics are far from realistic. You can take sharp hairpin corners at over 90km/h, however this is what cntributes to the fun of the game. Different cars handle differently however, it is nothing like GT5P where every car has a distinct feel - this is just an arcade game.
Players who have never played IDAS4 will take roughly an hour to get used to the physics of the game as they are completely different from the PS2 version of the game and cars are now more "drifty"
Brakes now play more of a role in the game, as on most tracks, bakes are used in order to achieve a good time and keep the car's rear end from sliding out ecessively.
Steering sresponse is relatively sharp, and the game supports Logitech's DFP, DFPGT and G25 900 degrees steering is supported, however, more than 270 is never used. G25 clutch is not supported.
Graphics:
This game doesn't have any groundbreaking graphics technology. The graphics are basically the same from IDAS4 but with more detailed lighting. However, track environments are very lush and you do get the sense of driving on a togue from most tracks.
Car modelling is average and "jaggies" can be seen on some occassions.
Sound:
On the PS2 Initial D game, the sounds were horrendous. Cars had an annoying whine and every single car sounded the same. Sega has significantly improved the sounds in the game and cars now have a nice growl to the sound they make. Different cars sound different and on cars with turbochargers, the blow-off valve sound is very distinctive. For example, my S13 sounds very different from my GTR R34, with the R34 having a throatier, more hungry sound and a very loud blow off valve.
Music is great if you love the Initial D music, however, with a limited soundtrack of about 30 songs, it can get repetitive.
Overall:
If you are an Initial D fan and love the incredible things the drivers can pull of in the anime this is a game for you. It does ID justice and is incredibly fun if you can get over the fact the game is an arcade game and not a sim. Online is reportedly very good and works worldwide.
If you are looking for a serious simultor, then I suggest you look elsewhere as ID has never aimed to be a simulator.
My rating: 4/5
freakin love that series.
