It's an iffy situation penalizing a game for being authentic, but the bottom line is that realism doesn't always translate well in videogames. Of course, purchasing new cars and modifying them helps alleviate a part of the problem. Plus, the cars feel stiff, cutting down on the all-important fun-factor even more. It may be more accurate, but when you're sacrificing the kind of excitement present in less-realistic titles like Burn Out 3, you'll swear realism sucks.

Once accustomed, throttling through bends and narrow streets just doesn't feel exhilarating. While the game feels quite speedy during initial races, the effect can only be chalked up to a players lack of experience negotiating slick roads and sharp turns.

Even at its fastest, when you're tearing through Miami at 200+ mph, SRS fails to conjure the sense of speed required in a street-racing title. Now that's a feature missing from most games anyway, but to have it included in a mediocre game…for shame! SRS boasts increased realism through enhanced car mechanics and customization, but the cost of such practicality is too high. You can even collect hot women and trade them like baseball cards for Pete's sake. The fact is made even more frustrating because SRS boasts some truly nifty features like an open-ended city and the chance to challenge random drivers. It's fun spending hours fine-tuning your car (and most race-freaks probably will,) but most of the enjoyment never takes to the streets it stays in the garage. Instead of choosing the arcade route taken by the Need for Speed Underground series, Namco decided to pursue a racing experience grounded in reality.ĭid it work? Did Namco deliver a title brimming with the nuts-and-bolts of real street racing while retaining the flashy sense of escapism that made the phenomenon what it is today? Unfortunately, SRS succeeds in all the wrong places. With SRS, Namco set out to incorporate the nuances of real street racing. Alas, the high-stakes lifestyle of the Fast and the Furious crowd isn't for everyone, and so Namco decided to release Street Racing Syndicate. These midnight races presented a world of opportunity for fledgling racers: respect, riches and the flighty affections of high-maintenance women. For awhile, the only way import racing fans could get their fix was at unofficial 'tracks' dotting the urban landscape. The popularity of nitrous-fueled street racing has exploded in recent years.

Street race syndicate pc