30 Apr 08
The controls for TrackMania are as simple as the concept. Driving requires nothing more complicated than the arrow keys, which is refreshingly simple... old-school, even. While using the keyboard is perfectly serviceable, the smart player will invest in a joypad with analogue control, if only to reduce the likelihood of RSI.
Every convenience is offered to make adapting to the game's time trial mentality as smooth as possible. A simple keypress restarts your attempt instantly, which doesn't sound important until you've played one track over and over to shave a few milliseconds off your time, knowing just one mistake means starting over. You get regular split times to track your progress and handy checkpoints at which you can restart, should you crash late on in the race.
The variety offered by TrackMania Nations Forever comes from the endless tracks available, and the endless ways these tracks can be put together using the easy-to-use track editor. Flat Formula One-style tracks are possible, but mostly they look like Heath Robinson lost a fight with Picasso, with loads of ramps, loop-de-loops and dirty great pillars located conveniently in the middle of the track. It's what would happen if you gave your child several thousand quid's worth of Hot Wheels for Christmas and locked him in a room until he used it all up.
Nations Forever makes everything easy. All the barriers for a lousy online multiplayer experience have been overcome: it's simple to set up, you don't need a hugely expensive PC to run it, there's an endless number of tracks available, and it's never intimidating to play - you can choose to play with friends, or use the simple browser to find a server that's just right for your skill level. A note of caution; many of the bespoke tracks you find online are too bonkers and a bit rubbish. They're long, frustrating and practically impossible to play for more than ten seconds without somehow falling into a lake. Luckily there are plenty of servers offering multiplayer races on the original tracks.
