Developer(s) Namco Platform(s) PlayStation 2 | Publisher(s) Namco Genre(s) Racing | |
Release JP: February 27, 2003
NA: March 17, 2003
EU: May 2, 2003 Mode(s) Single player, Multiplayer | ||
MotoGP 3 (ofter stylized as MotoGP3) is a Grand Prix motorcycle racing video game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2. Released in 2003, it's the third game in the Namco series, which coincided with the THQ series for a number of years.
Contents
Gameplay
The gameplay is very similar to past games by Namco, like MotoGP (PS2) and MotoGP 2. MotoGP 3 is based off the 2002 Grand Prix motorcycle racing season, but with the introduction of four stroke bikes, the gameplay has some slight differences. The new 990cc 4-stroke bikes are faster, but tend to be a bit of a handful while the 500cc 2-strokes are less faster but slightly better to handle.
Features
MotoGP 3 has far more tracks than the previous game, with 15 real world courses which include Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit, Paul Ricard, Motegi and Mugello. There are also a combination of fantasy layouts which can be as simplistic as a straight line or as complex as having a cross road in it. When starting the game up for the first time, as per usual with Namco MotoGP games, players will be allowed to create a custom rider. After that, they will be brought to the menu screen where they can access a number of options. The first is arcade, where the players can choose the bike they wish to ride as, number of laps, weather, difficulty and settings to do a race. Season mode puts them into a season with any team (depending on difficulty) and the player races on a combination of circuits to try and win the championship. Time Trial is like Arcade, except rather than racing against a number of opponents for a number of laps, they're racing against the clock to try to get the best time for as long as desired. Challenge mode is, as the title suggests, a series of challenges that players can play. They range from beating another rider, riding between cones, setting a specific lap time in Time Trial or winning a race at a specific track. Completing challenges will unlock riders, movies and pictures. Multiplayer allows players to race against their friends, which can be up to four of them, at the same time. Legends mode is, like Time Trial, similar to Arcade mode, except rather than facing riders from 2002, they face riders from past seasons, including the likes of Kevin Schwantz, Wayne Gardner and Mick Doohan to name a few. Then there's Options to make the game to the players liking and a Load/Save section.
Reception
The game received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.