Great racing, lots of waiting
Real Racing 3 is a perfect example of a game developed with iOS as the primary platform combined with the worst in micro transaction mechanics.
Features
Gameplay in Real Racing 3 is very polished. It's a racing game with real life licensed tracks and cars that you purchase and upgrade to improve performance.
Each of the races are connected to other Real Racing 3 players and connecting to Facebook can import your friends who are playing the game. There are many different race types like head-to-head, cup, or elimination on the different tracks.
Controls are varied with a lot of options. By default you just tilt the device and the game will control accelerating and braking. You can also choose a very hands-on control scheme where you control everything or a touch-based steering system.
Usability
The game is easy to drop in to. From the start of Real Racing 3, you are in charge of purchasing a car and competing in the different racing modes. You earn points and money used to upgrade the car or service it to return it to optimal performance. It is designed with multiplayer in mind, even when your friends are not playing.
Quality
Visually, Real Racing 3 is a beautiful game. On older supported hardware, the game still looks excellent. On the newest iOS devices, all the graphical effects and shine come alive. It is very fun to look at.
Where the game fails is the push towards micro transactions. While you will not hit the pay wall too soon, it becomes apparent that you have the choice to grind or purchase money and points to upgrade your car. Upgrades and repairs cost money while maintenance costs in-game points to bypass the timer countdown or you have to wait a specific amount of time. This does let you have shorter play sessions, but upgrades are offered before a race.
Like most micro transaction games, the balance toward free and paid is uneasy. You can play for a good amount of time before paying is necessary, but once you are immersed in the game and need an upgrade fast, you will probably pay for it.
Conclusion
Real Racing 3 is a great racing game with polished graphics, controls, and a lot of races to get through. The micro transaction mechanic is very forced and unbalances the game because it is easy to wait a couple minutes for an upgrade, but the longer you play, the longer you wait.
Installation
Real Racing 3 is a 716MB install, but EA says you need to have at least 2GB free on the device.
Changes
In the latest version of the game you can race three generations of Ferrari vehicles, following the Italian company from its origins to today's engineering marvels with the 1950 375 F1, 1995 412 T2 and 2014 F14-T. You can then complete three special events for a chance to own each of these iconic cars.
Other additions include the Monza racetrack – which is one of the first purpose-built racetracks in the world – and three new Ferrari series, with more than140 new events in total.
