At the PAX Indie Megabooth, people were surprised to see that a racing game was getting so much attention from Attendees and the Press. Distance, a racing game for gamers was what had everybody in a trance.
Distance is an indie game (and spiritual successor to Nitronic Rush) that provides a return to fast paced, other-worldly racing action like F-Zero did back in the N64/GameCube days. Although this isn’t just simple racing, of course not. The game also features unique new entries into the racing genre including portals and the ability to jump up platforms or over obstacles. Not to mention cars can gain the ability to fly. Yes, your car literally sprouts wings and you fly… I know. However, this isn’t the only thing the game plans to change in the racing genre, it’s also level based instead of track based. Meaning at this time, there doesn’t seem to be laps or even finish lines in the campaign mode of the game.
This game is just feature packed with tracks that shift, obstacles being thrown at you to prevent you from finishing the race, lasers that can cut your car to pieces, and even black holes that suck you up and spit you out. Born from a DigiPen student project, Distance (funded by a successful kickstarter campaign) has been receiving some good attention from gamers and critics alike. People are embracing this breath of fresh air into the racing genre with open arms. Seems like many players around the world have been missing that F-Zero style racing, myself included. Developer Refract Studios had a driving simulator setup for the PAX Indie Megabooth and it even included a joystick to control the flying when your car sprouted wings.
The indie developer crew has worked itself into overdrive going above and beyond what is normally released these days. Distance is going to feature over 5 different multiplayer modes, split screen (which is sadly dying out nowadays), and even a level editor! For starting out as a college project, that is pretty darn good. Gamers have been impressed by the fluent motion of the game alone so this extra content is certainly overachieving, but it is definitely welcome. The Beta was released recently to Kickstarter backers and reception has so far been great.
While technically a racing game, fans agree that it deserves much more credit than that. It’s tron-like style alone certainly doesn’t resemble other racing games like Forza or Gran Tourismo in any way. It’s clearly different and that’s what has sparked gamer’s interest. While the story is kept under wraps by the developers, they have apparently hinted at a plot where the game is trying everything it can to not let you win. Seems interesting, seems fresh, seems fun, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the full version!
At this time, Distance is planned for a PC release only.