Avatar Racedrome is a rather unique Indie title. Why? It has Xbox live support, a feature I had no idea was even capable with indie titles. Otherwise this is your average racer that while fun doesn't really jump out at you.
The online can support up to 8 players and the real sad part is how that goes about. It essentially becomes an online competitive time trial mode as players cannot touch each others racers. You simply drive through your opponent.
The offline does a lot more with its championship mode, which can be up to a rather scary 30 laps per race if your brave enough. In this mode you actually can touch the opponent when racing but there isn't much of a knock back feature to be found. It ends up looking like your car decides to pleasure the one in front of you.
The graphics are really good the first time you race in Racedrome. The issue is all 16 tracks looks exactly the same. Racing the same looking track endlessly feels maddening and even a change of the sky graphics would have broken up the repetition I didn't mind the car in this game, it looks more like an early 1900's car than a race car though. Since there is only a single car to race with the option to choose many different colors was a smart decision.
Driving feels sluggish when trying to make turns. Drifting can sort of be performed but it creates more of a drunk driving effect than a sharp turn. When your driving straight you really don't notice it but it's the super sharp turns that feel like inevitable wall hits.
Avatar Racedrome is a noteworthy game and for 80 Microsoft Points it's worth picking up. You will may have played better racers but its a cheap alternative to a retail racer that is enjoyable. The online although a tad disappointing still has value in the degree of fun.
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