When you’ve got a stranglehold on one particular niche, it doesn’t make much sense to give it up. Gameloft has no intentions of doing so with its latest entry to the Asphalt series, entitled Asphalt 9: Legends. The franchise that started all the way back on the Nintendo DS in the bygone era of 2004 before moving to mobile has survived as long as it has by emphasizing high-energy, arcade-style racing over anything close to a driving simulation, but doing it in real world cars.
Asphalt 9 adheres to that winning formula with dozens of cars already available in soft launch in markets including the Philippines and Australia. The build Gameloft was showing off at E3 had several vehicles from each class in the game unlocked, removing the need to work for them that is generally a big part of free-to-play racing games. That said, it was cool to see all the customization options for them, including paint colors you’d be able to buy in real life ( you know, if you could actually afford to just roll up to the dealership and plunk down the dough for a Bugatti Chiron) and the ability to concoct just about any other color you could imagine. As a direct sequel to Asphalt 8, Legends features the same kind of action movie-esque driving that defined its predecessor. That means tons of boost, ramps and jumps of various varieties, and dedicated virtual buttons to make you do 360 spins, the better to knock opposing cars out of your way. While stunts are optional, the fact that ...