There is no question whatsoever that the 00’s was a golden time period for the racing genre of gaming. The 2000’s decade saw the sharp rise in popularity racing titles like Sony’s Gran Turismo series along the games that Electronic Arts released in relation to Need for Speed. While the Grand Theft Auto series began take off in popularity from ‘01 onwards Rockstar Games had decided to make racing games to compete with the likes of Sony and Electronic Arts during the 00s. During the first year of the new millennium RockStar Games had released Midnight Club: Street Racing for the PlayStation 2. For the most part Midnight Club: Street Racing a regular 3D street racing title from the early 00’s. However, Midnight Club: Street Racing has an interesting plot that involved players taking the role of a cab driver; who eventually competes in street racing tournaments in order to become world champion. Throughout, Midnight Club: Street Racing players win new and more expensive vehicles after defeating opponents in a series of races. Along with the story mode Midnight Club: Street Racing also gave players 2-player gameplay options such as: Capture The Flag. The gameplay and graphics for Midnight Club: Street Racing was good for its time and rivaled the first two Gran Turismo games in quality.
As PS2 game Midnight Club: Street Racing most likely got overshadowed by countless other titles on Sony’s second generation console 20 years ago. Midnight Club: Street Racing did not really have the level of success as its predecessors from ‘03-‘08. However, the original Midnight Club game was definitely a classic which at some point should have been remastered for the PS3 or PS4 within the past 15 years. Despite, being a basic arcade like racing title Midnight Club: Street Racing deserved more recognition than it got. Also, PS2 version of Midnight Club: Street Racing was far better than the Game Boy Advance port published by Destination Software. Being able to racing in various real world destinations based on London & New York City was a positive. While the car designs in Midnight Club: Street Racing looks clunky by today’s standards the overall atmosphere and vibe of the game feels mostly same over 20 years later.
Gaming Hearts Collection 