Racing games come in almost any form you can think of from the very broad games like Forza to the very specific ones like Dakar 18, but none of them are quite like Tour de France 2019. by developer Cyanide and publisher BigBen. It plays like the classic racing games that made us stay up until 2 a.m. with the lights down and the sound off as we tried one last time to win that final race than its modern-day counterparts.
Tour de France 2019 had some big shoes to fill with its namesake being the most important cycling event of the year with 106 years of illustrious and star-studded history behind it. The real race takes place over 23 days with 21 day long stages where even the best cyclists in the world are pushed to their limits trying to take home the biggest prize in their sport.
This game did a wonderful job of capturing the spirit of cycling and the grueling nature of the sport. With a very responsive stamina bar and realistic cycling mechanics, it’s a very unique game to play. The animation for when a player bottoms out is also an interesting feature of the game that really helps with the authenticity and the overall difficulty of the game.
The challenge levels are the best part of the game. These are shortened races where you compete against yourself (and eventually in online leaderboards) to win by the largest distance. There are 3 levels before you move on to competing online to ensure that you are ready for that level of competition. For me that took a while, but I was very thankful for the wait by the time I got to online play. My personal favorite here were the downhill challenges. This is where you ride down mountain passes as fast as you can. There was also a sprint feature which is more of a traditional cycling race, but it deals in short distances. This game mode also allows you to compete locally in the versus mode for both types of races.
Tour de France 2019 also features a pro team mode where you recruit riders and manage a team with the ultimate goal of becoming #1 in the pro cycle ranking. In this mode, you must also set the fitness peaks of your riders since the game accounts for fatigue throughout the season. Another mode this game has that’s very interesting was pro leader. This is where you can create a cyclist and build his skills throughout his career.
My biggest complaint about Tour de France 2019 is that it really drags during the race game mode, which happens to be the main competitive mode in the game. I understand that cycling is a grueling endurance game meant for those who have world class endurance, but that doesn’t necessarily translate well to the game. They could definitely reduce the number of stages in the races or just expedite certain parts of the race and retain a lot of the spirit of cycling while making the game much more enjoyable to play in this game mode.
Overall, Tour de France 2019 was a fun experience and a refreshing play through in the racing game genre where many entries begin to feel very similar. It seems to have all the makings of a great sports game that could ignite interest, but it hasn’t quite put it all together yet. If you’re actively looking for something very unique or you’re a big fan of cycling then this game is worth adding to your collection, but I just don’t see the average gamer picking this up.
6.5/10
Check Out the Tour de France 2019 Trailer:
Tour de France 2019 and Pro Cycling Manager 2019 are now available for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC via Steam.
Xbox One Review
My first console was the original Playstation and I would play Twisted Metal every now and then but games didn't hook me until I played the original Halo at my friend's house. As soon as I picked up that controller, I knew I needed an Xbox and I had to have that game. Since those early Halo days, I've branched out and played any game I could find with a great story and memorable characters but Master Chief is still my favorite. @thenotoriousTGT on Twitter
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