Champion Jockey G1 Jockey and Gallop Racer

If you’ve ever dreamed of putting on a pair of shiny black boots and getting your feet in the stirrups, Champion Jockey G1 Jockey and Gallop Racer is a racing simulator that will let you ride as an aspiring jockey on your way to the big time.

Surprisingly sensitive racing game

Each horse in the game has a unique personality, and this affects how they run. The number of different factors is enormous, and you’ll need to treat each horse individually in order to win. Horses prefer different types of track, different race lengths, and even different positions during the race. A front runner, for example, prefers to be ahead of all the other horses to win. If you try to sit in the middle of the pack, the horse won’t be happy, and you aren’t as likely to win. Other horses prefer to come up from behind, or stay in the pack until the last few minutes.

The game allows for both easy casual play, and more of a simulator feel. If you go for a simulator feel you’ll be handling things like which leg the horse leads with, and if you want more casual, its fairly push button. This makes the game accessible for all types of players.

Story mode

Besides racing there’s a story you can play where you are a new jockey trying to make it big. You start out with the slow horses no one else wants to ride, and work your way up from there. In order to move up, you need to earn riding points that allow you to move up to better and better horses.

Disappointing graphics

One of the biggest issues with the game is that the graphics haven’t changed despite several evolutions of this game. Champion Jockey G1 Jockey and Gallop Racer is a fusion of two older games, Tecmo’s Gallop Racer and Koei’s G1 Jockey. Both of these are older PS2 games, but the graphics for the horses hasn’t changed at all. If you’ve ever played skyrim and ridden the backs of one of their horses—you’ve seen better graphics then this. With so many advances in 3D technology, it’s disappointing that the sim racing world hasn’t seen the same revolution. Frustrating Navigation

Another flaw in the game is the poor navigation. Even if you want to make a relatively minor change in the game, your in for a long search through what feels like an enormous number of submenus to find what you want. This is frustrating and time consuming, especially if you just wanted to change the sound.

Pros:

• Both simulator and casual play options available
• Detailed horse personalities
• Different gameplay modes

Cons:

• Poor navigation
• Old school graphics