Special thanks to Gameworks in Schaumburg for giving us the opportunity to play and review newly released arcade games. Gameworks is one of the test sites for new games, and at the time of this writing, they were the only arcade in the United States with Grid.

The pendulum of gaming is swinging. For years, and perhaps I’m dating myself when I say this, the arcade was the place to go to play graphically intensive, original, and exciting games. However, as the pendulum moved forward, the home console revolution eliminated the firm grip the arcades had on the gaming market and sought to bring the arcade experience to the comfort of our homes; however, has the home gaming console replicated and replaced the arcade experience? The answer is no.  

Enter Grid. A Codemasters racing game that made its first appearance in, you guessed it, the home market on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3, and the PC.  Codemasters is  known for their enthusiastic rally racing games and myriad other popular racing titles. One of the key purposes in the console version of Grid is to provide players with a technical racing experience coupled with realistic race physics and damage physics but still be fun to play like a typical console arcade racer like Burnout Revenge. It’s fun, it’s fast, and most importantly: It’s racing.  The damage aspect was one of the key draws in this title.  The concept is that the more you damage your car, the poorer it will perform. Grid on the home consoles pulls this off masterfully. The initial kinds of damage inflicted on your vehicle of choice would manifest itself in the form of a hanging bumper or scratched doors; however, the more damage your car takes, the more serious the damage. Having your car smashed down to its frame with the doors hanging off will seriously affect the way the car handles as well as dramatically decrease the weight of the car sending you careening into other racers and obstacles.

Now, what does Grid have to do with the arcade? Simple. The pendulum of gaming is now swinging slowly back to the arcades. Certain popular titles that existed solely on consoles are making their way into arcades dressed in new digs and ready to rock. Grid is the most recent manifestation of this shift back to the arcade experience. Grid is a perfect iteration found on the home console, but ramps up the graphics, sound, and overall competitive nature implicit in racing.

What does the arcade experience offer that the home console doesn’t? Simple: the arcade experience. Grid is a series of four cabinets (up to six) linked together for a really enjoyable and competitive racing experience. For those of you that want to crash into your pal and mock them in their misery as you slam into them at 70 mph while you are patiently trying to downshift and drift into a turn makes for a lot of laughs. The game is also graphically stunning featuring semi-photorealistic automobiles (Vipers, Supras, Mustangs, in early/easy stages and a line of F1 cars for the more difficult stages- overall not much depth) and actual racing locations set in San Francisco, Shibuya, and Milan.

The arcade experience also excels in the sound department. The contoured bucket seats with speakers in the backrest and the seat itself provides the player with an all-encompassing aural environment that really immerses the player in the racing experience. Although, after a few rounds of play, the high degree of swamp-ass was a little unnerving.

The game utilizes a “forgiveness” feature that allows players to hit a green “panic” button on the left hand side of the steering wheel when they run full bore into a wall and are out of position. Instead of wasting the time to put the car in reverse and straighten out yourself, you are allowed to hit the button and it resets your car on the track in the correct position. The home versions of this game offer a mode similar to the “panic” button, but far more appealing to watch as it actually allow the player to flash back and re-play an event in order to do it correctly with little to no penalty. The arcade version is a little less technical and a lot less forgiving.

Echoing the sentiments on Metacritic about this game on the console, the arcade version of Grid only seeks to emphasize the goal to put the FUN back in racing, where better to do this than the  arcade?