Tour de France 2022

Ah, Tour de France 2022. Sometimes, you do stop and wonder how big of a market this video game franchise must have to release a new game year after year continually. These games honestly don't change a lot bar a few gameplay and visual nuances. However, this game marks over 10-years of annual games, so apparently, there must be a fair few digital cycle fanatics!

Tour de France 2022, as you expect, is an upcoming cycle game that pits players into the thrills and spills of one of cycling's most famous events. So what can we expect from this year's edition? Well, there are some additions to the gameplay mix. But are they enough to make the game desirable to turn an untapped demographic into cycle game enthusiasts?

The New Normal

For anybody that's never played a Tour de France game, let's give a quick recap of the series. Yes, it's a cycling game, where you'll take on the role of a cyclist vying for victory for the sport's grand prize. However, it's not as straightforward as peddling to get to the finish line. There are a lot of management obstacles you'll need to overcome, such as health issues, stamina, preparation, and more.

Tour de France 2022 seems to follow suit in making the games more realistic every year. In this edition, players will face some of the world's more plaguing issues recently featured in the races. You'll have to deal with illness, medical management, and newly introduced mechanics like falls and more daunting race traits.

There's also the addition of a new, relatively cleaner interface, a new preparation system, and a new online mode with revamped leaderboards. These new features would probably be quite exciting to long-time fans of the franchise, which are the general quality of life improvements over the preceding 2021 edition. But will new players be intrigued?

It's a pretty straightforward answer; it's highly doubtful. Tour de France 2022 is looking much like the game. At this point, the franchise knows its audience and develops new features, and tweaks old ones to keep them happy. There's nothing extraordinary about the game in the long run. Still, it is probably one of the better-looking cycle games.

Just Keep Cycling

Tour de France 2022 inevitably looks to be just another release in its traditional lifecycle of annual games. There are improvements, added realism, and visual improvements, as expected. But nothing is going to break boundaries and seek other audiences. Still, it's not trying to do that, unlike Descenders which successfully brought cycle games to the masses.

Round-Up - Pros & Cons

Pros:

• Gorgeous visuals
• Enhanced cycle mechanics for a more realistic experience
• The online mode makes the game highly competitive

Cons:

• Almost the same game as previous titles
• Won't be very exciting for non-cyclers
• Minor improvements question whether the game is worth full price