Hands on with Indianapolis 500 Legends on DS

Hip hop soundtracks and gyrating women take five. A far cry from souped-up drifters and attitude-heavy street racing games, Indianapolis 500 Legends – a DS racer from Destineer – harks back to a time when speed was more exciting than aerodynamics and corporate logos.

We've had the opportunity to take this surprising racer for a spin and stepped out of the cockpit rather pleased with its fine-tuned gameplay.

More than just a game, Indianapolis 500 Legends also contains documentary elements, reflecting on the golden years of the world-renowned event, which every year since 1911 sees open wheel cars race 500 miles (or 200 laps) around the banked, rectangular 'oval' circuit.

In the game, you can play as any of 30 historic vehicles between the years 1961-1971. Since the game adheres strictly to its ten-year timeline, vehicles and racers become available according to the year they were raced in real-life. And if you're in doubt, Indianapolis 500 Legends chronicles every historic moment in a photographic museum that you can peruse at will.

Indeed, such is the authenticity, it's possible to take on the full-length Indianapolis 500 experience. If that sounds daunting, fear not; bite-sized objectives in Mission mode and multiplayer races provide more accessible alternatives.

The single-player Mission option breaks down notable moments in the event's history into individual objectives. For instance, completing one mission involved dodging a series of wrecks. Peering through the smoke was enough of a challenge, let alone trying to steer past the crumpled form of an unfortunate competitor. As you complete objectives, you move forward through the timeline, opening up new challenges, vehicles, and racers.

But while the historic setting may interest some, what has us intrigued are the racing mechanics. Steering can be done using either the stylus or D-pad. The latter is easier to use, but we found the stylus allows for far more precision and control. And unlike other racing games – such as Ridge Racer – that have provided a touchscreen option for steering, this works fairly well. It certainly took some getting used to, though. Our first few races had us veering all over the track.

Once we had the steering sorted, exploring some of the more advanced racing techniques was a cinch. Indianapolis 500 Legends features drafting, which allows you to closely follow behind a competitor to gain extra speed – careful manoeuvring can result in a being able to slingshot you past the competition. With a total of 15 racers on the track at a given time, it's in your best interest to draft as much as possible. Other options see you wielding your stylus to change the tyres on your car and deal with refuelling as the time for pit-stops comes around.

Support for up to four players via local Wi-Fi ought to add extra value to Indianapolis 500 Legends, too. Mission and pit stop challenges are also promised, although we're not clear on what those events entail on the multiplayer side.

Sadly though, given the US-focused nature of the event, no European release is currently planned. We're hoping this might change but despite the game's unique setting and solid racing mechanics, we're not holding our breath. All we can suggest is to check out our How To import games if it doesn't make the cut.

Indianapolis 500 Legends is due for release in the US during November.