TrackMania 2: Canyon Review

Single player

Those looking for a quality single player experience will be completely disappointed. It took me only three hours to overcome all the tracks with a gold medal on all but the most difficult difficulty (where I could only score silver). Although I have experience with racing games, I am by no means a TrackMania veteran. Top players could probably go through single player in as little as two hours with ease.

While other racing games recycle tracks in various events, TrackMania 2 insists on using unique tracks every time. You might think this would improve variety, but TrackMania 2: Canyon takes place in an environment. For locations outside the canyon, you must purchase all TrackMania 2 episodes.

Visual

Given that TrackMania 2: Canyon is nearly eight years old, it’s pretty impressive how well it holds up in 2019. Some models like specific cars and environments look dated, but the overall aesthetic is still attractive. The lighting engine notably outclasses all riders during its release period and even some today. TrackMania 2 looks better than V-Rally 4, but gets trampled by The Crew 2 and nearly all modern racing simulators.

At maximum settings I experienced zero performance issues. The most anticipated options from a new PC game are all there. The only odd omission is a general lack of choice as to how good or bad you can make your game. The visual options come down to resolution, texture quality, reflection quality, and how much anti-aliasing you want. However, I didn’t find this to be an issue as I was able to run it at flawless 60 FPS on my much less powerful gaming laptop. Due to its age, most modern PCs can simply power and provide a playable experience.

Final verdict

Arcade racing games are an endangered race. It’s a sad reality, with EA leaving Burnout behind, Need for Speed ​​getting worse every year, and Midnight Club seemingly in an eternal sleep. We rely on independent developers and smaller studios to keep the genre alive, and I’m happy to say that’s exactly what titles like TrackMania do.

While not perfect, TrackMania 2: Canyon is a beautiful racing game that manages to bring competitive mechanics to an arcade environment. There is a satisfaction in improving overtime that you get or just don’t get. Those who can work round after round without getting bored will enjoy this game. However, if you want a varied and well-designed single-player experience, I recommend looking elsewhere.