The third installment of the @realracing series offers an immense and intense mobile sim racing experience. Electronic Arts and FireMonkeys (formerly Firemint Games) collaborated to provide this game released in 2013. This game seeks to blow the minds of automobile and racing fans with a unique experience ready to give you quite the thrill ride. What do I think about "Real Racing 3?" Find out in this blog post!
This game is offered for Android, iOS, Blackberry, and Shield Portable.
NOTE 1: This review is based on my experiences playing this game on the Google Nexus Player. The experience may be different for other devices.
NOTE 2: Because Real Racing 3 is such a complex game to cover, I figured this game may need individual blog posts to discuss the finer elements of the game. So please note that there may be more than one post regarding "Real Racing 3." This game is updated quite often. What you will see is all of the material as of the initial date of this blog post (September 6, 2017).
LATEST UPDATE(S)/REVISION(S):
SEP 17 2017 - edited material regarding the classes of RR3About the Label: "Real Racing"
This is a series of blog posts related to the "Real Racing" series of mobile racing games.Real Racing 3 at a Glance
Get to know Real Racing 3:
^ from: play.mob.org (best I could find) - Real Racing 3 attempts to offer the greatest racing experience for mobile devices.
NOTE: Some elements of this blog post may be featured in future blog posts.
To understand Real Racing 3, retrospective is needed. Real Racing was made by an Australian developer named Firemint Games. For the longest, the Real Racing series began life as an iOS-exclusive game. It began featuring a handful of fictional cars on fictional race tracks. As many as six cars (including yours) can race a track at one time. There was later a Real Racing series game exclusively featuring the Volkswagen Golf GTi. This specific version of Real Racing would be the first Real Racing game to feature licensed vehicles.
Real Racing 2 was the debut of the Real Racing series for non-iOS devices. This meant the series would be on Android in addition to iOS. There was a Real Racing 2 and a Real Racing 2 HD version for those who wanted HD-quality graphics. There was a good amount of cars to choose from across a host of nationalities. While the cars were real, the game still had a handful of fictional race courses. When RR2 was around, I began to question some of the sound effects because some mimicked the "Need for Speed SHIFT" games, especially the horns to start the race. So brings us to Real Racing 3. As many as 16 cars (including yours) can battle on any of the 12 race tracks in this game.
Firemint Games and IronMonkey merged together 2012 to become FireMonkeys. Developed by FireMonkeys and distributed by Electronic Arts, "Real Racing 3" is the third installment of this mobile racing game series. It is surely the most beautiful as well as the fastest. This is the first of the Real Racing games to feature actually licensed racing series. Namely in this game- NASCAR. So this game provides a mobile taste of America's most popular motorsport. You also have the ability to customize your cars with paint jobs and various liveries. Multiplayer involvement is also possible with the ability to connect with your friends on Facebook and Google. Needless to say, this game has many features to keep you busy and immersed. With so much to do in this game, you may have a tough time putting this game down!
Important Notes...
This game is free-to-play, but there are in-app purchases that can be made. You will need to have extra space on your device to be able to download extra assets. Real Racing 3 comes in at about 0.98 GB. Extra assets include things like extra cars and extra tracks. Downloading all assets for this game requires your device to have about an extra 1.5 to 1.8 GB on your device. So you may want to avoid this game if you can't secure enough space to play the game. Consider investing in external external memory for your Android device or deleting unnecessary apps and media to help provide extra space for your device.The Real Racing series may be one of the most successful mobile racing game series ever. Almost as if it is its own Gran Turismo or Forza Motorsport. Real Racing 3 is NOT a casual racing game. If you want to access everything and unlock all the different races, you are going to be playing this game for months on end. This game is THAT complex. All you have to know is that you're going to be quite busy trying to become the finest racer in all of Real Racing 3. Can you be king (or queen) of the racing mountain in Real Racing 3?
Real Racing 3: Nuances
Now for the finer details of Real Racing 3.
The first thing to note about the Real Racing series is that this is a SIMULATION racing game. This is not a game of arcade thrills like a Need for Speed or any of the Asphalt games. The fact this is a mobile game means that you won't have as accurate and as precise of handling dynamics. Despite this, you still have a great deal of attention-to-detail in this experience.
Starting Out.
When you begin your Real Racing 3 Career, you are first given two cars- a Nissan S15 Silvia and a Ford Focus RS. Pick one or the other to begin your racing career. You will need to complete a simple tutorial series before embarking on a serious career.Crew Members.
Later on, you will be able to gain the services of Crew members. Your crew consists of a Manager, an Agent, and a Mechanic. You can hire these individuals to help offer extra perks for your victories. You need to spend some Gold to access their services before a race. Here is what each Crew Member provides:• Manager: multiplies R$ winnings.
• Agent: multiplies Fame.
• Auto Engineer: maintains car status.
In a way, think of these Crew Member services as making a bet. Using these services is almost like you are making a bet on an upcoming race. You can only access these Crew Members before the race begins. You may even elect to choose certain Crew Members as a race is about to begin. You can upgrade your Crew Members to earn greater bonuses and perks especially for the more intense series. Depending on your performance, certain Crew Members will allow their services for Free for one race. Use this as opportunities to boost your racing career all the further.
Locations.
Real Racing 3 features a handful of racing locales across four continents. Venues range from permanent courses to temporary courses. Items in parentheses make different time versions of each track apart from their daytime versions. Here is a look at each of the venues you will be racing on:• Autodromo Nazionale Monza (Morning)
the legendary, long-standing Italian Grand Prix road course that has been around since the 1920s.
• Brands Hatch
the very popular British motor racing facility that sees many kinds of motor racing.
• Circuit de Catalunya
Spain's premier motor racing facility since circa 1992.
• Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
This is Belgium's legendary grand prix circuit of over 4 miles in length.
• Circuit des 24 Heures (Morning, Evening, and Night)
This is the legendary French course that hosts the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
• Daytona International Speedway (Evening and Night)
Northwestern Florida's fine motor racing oval track famous for its 500-mile race on the oval and 24-hour race on its road course.
• Dubai Autodrome
This track in the United Arab Emirates is one of the most incredible race tracks in the Middle East.
• Formula E Hong Kong Circuit (Morning and Afternoon)
A small urban course in Hong Kong made specifically for the FIA Formula E championship.
• Hockenheimring (Night)
A German race track that retains its high-speed character, though formerly known for its high speed romp through the forest.
• Indianapolis Motor Speedway (Morning)
This legendary oval in the Indianapolis, IN, USA area offers incredible top speed on its oval and also an intense road course.
• Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca
Central California's challenging course famous for its Corkscrew- a downhill, blind chicane.
• Melbourne
A fictional street course around Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. This is also the only fictional course in Real Racing 3.
• Mount Panorama (Morning and Afternoon)
Australia's intensely challenging semi-permanent race course utilizing high walls, blind corners, and intense elevation changes.
• Nürburgring (Morning and Night)
Germany's legendary course famous for Grand Prix racing, but known even more for its massive 12+ mile Nordschleife.
• Porsche Test Track (Dawn)
Porsche's test track in Leipzig, Germany.
• Richmond International Raceway (Evening and Night)
This is a popular 7/8-mile oval track in southern Virginia raced by various series.
• Silverstone
The birthplace of Grand Prix motor racing, this decades-old British course sees many styles of racing from this former Air Force base.
• Suzuka Circuit
Japan's formidable and rewarding race track mostly famous for its Figure-8 layout.
Each of the locations featured include different configurations. Some 30 to 40 individual courses are featured across all of Real Racing 3.
Vehicles.
A world of manufacturers are available for you to race in Real Racing 3. Regions of cars include American cars, European cars, Asian cars, and Australian cars. Not every car is available right away. You will need to progress through the Career Mode to unlock many different cars in the game. Sometimes, deals will be offered to where cars could be bought for much less than their original price in the game. Be on the lookout for these deals and make sure you have enough currency to pick up any of these cars.There are three classes of car: Class P, Class S, and Class R. Under the Class name is the car's drivetrain. In addition to these classes are different performance variables. Each car is rated by their Performance Rating (PR). Each car features stats on top speed, acceleration, braking distance, handling, and its Performance Rating. When selecting cars, look for certain graphics for certain cars. For example, some cars you can buy can be cars you can use in certain Exclusive Series for cars. Some cars are even part of an LTD package. These LTD cars are limited-edition offers to you in Real Racing 3.
Here are the 33 manufacturers you can choose from among the 191 or so cars in Real Racing 3:
• Ariel
• Aston Martin
• Audi
• Bentley
• BMW
• Bugatti
• Caterham Chevrolet
• Dodge
• Ferrari
• Ford
• Formula-E
• Hennessey
• Holden
• Hyundai
• Jaguar
• Koenigsegg
• KTM
• Lamborghini
• Lexus
• Lotus
• Maserati
• Mazda
• McLaren
• Mercedes-Benz
• Nissan
• Pagani
• Porsche
• Renault
• Shelby
• Spada
• SRT
• Toyota
Some cars are available as part of Exclusive Series. More on Exclusive Series cars will be featured later in this section.
Upgrading.
Each car has its own array of elements that can be upgraded. Pick a car to be upgraded with any available upgrades.• Engine - enhance the horsepower and top speed of a car.
• Drivetrain - enhance the efficiency of speed and engine power.
• Body - enhance the aerodynamics as well as lighten a car.
• Suspension - enhance the handling dynamics of a car.
• Exhaust - enhance the car to make better use of its power and help it breathe easier.
• Brakes - enhance braking power.
• Tires and Wheels - enhance handling with traction improvements.
Each element of the tuning process requires R$. Some upgrades, however, can only be purchased using Gold. Each upgrade requires you to wait for the process to be complete. If you pay in Gold, you can expedite the upgrading process.
Career.
Career Mode feels more like individual stories rather than any usual collection of races. You pick one level of competition and then pick a certain class of events. Each event class features a number of races to take part in. There are individual goals in each class that lead to cars, R$, Gold, and other bonuses.• Amateur
• NASCAR (unlocks at Level 3)
• Pro/AM (unlocks at Level 8)
• Pro (unlocks at Level 15)
• Expert (unlocks at Level 22)
• Master (unlocks at Level 30)
• Elite (unlocks at Level 38)
• Legend (unlocks at Level 50)
• Exclusive (requires Exclusive cars)
The one thing about the Career is that each level doesn't feel like your average set of races.
Exclusive Series.
To compete in the Exclusive series, you must buy a car that can be run in an Exclusive series, and you must max out its upgrades. You then will be taken to a series of races for that automobile you maxed out. Victory in these Exclusive Series races will grant you a good sum of money once you clear all of the different races.Now let's look at racing. Go to the next section for that.
Real Racing 3: Racing
You do realize this is a racing game, right? What do racing games have? RACING! So here is a look at the different race types in Real Racing 3.
You obviously want to win all of the races. What is more important, though, is to simply earn a Trophy. Each Trophy can be earned if you place 3rd or better in each event. Victory is obviously what you want. If you have enough Gold, you can unlock certain later events without needing to progress through the game. Though you are going to need Gold especially for breezing through upgrades and other things, you are probably going to want to rather complete the game than spend your Gold on trying to access later events. Some races can have over 20 cars to a track at once. So you will be looking at some frenzied racing throughout your time playing "Real Racing 3."
Some races require your car be at a certain Performance Rating (PR) to compete. If your car does not meet the minimum PR requirement, you may either upgrade your car to meet the PR limit or purchase an entirely different car that meets the requirement.
Cup.
These are basic races with a pack of cars. Your job is to obviously finish as high up the running order as you can. These races can have any number of cars on track at once. Try to beat as many cars as you can to place well. Try to finish 3rd or better to earn Trophies.Autocross.
In an Autocross challenge, you are given one specific section of a course, and you must clear that section in the quickest amount of time. Think of these more like license tests in Gran Turismo. You can go off course and collide while still being able to complete the event. Be advised that you are only limiting your chances of landing the best times.Time Trial.
A time trial is where you try to lay down the quickest lap around a course. If you go off-course or have any collisions, your run will be foul. You can still complete the lap even after you have an invalidated lap time. However, the time will not be recorded. Make sure you complete a clean lap. Mostly your time will be matched up against any Google friends and/or Facebook friends. If you manage to beat any of your social network friends' times in a given Time Trial, you will earn an extra bonus for beating their lap times.One important thing to note is that these events require DRIVE. If your car is fully upgraded, you will not need to have DRIVE to race a Time Trial. You can use Gold to refill DRIVE if you run out of it. With extra experience, you can be able to purchase boosts in DRIVE allowing you more chances to take part in Time Trial events. The DRIVE will recharge over time. If you want the recharging to be expedited, you can do so by spending Gold.
Speed Snap.
The Speed Snap event is like Autocross. However in these events, you must cross the finish line at a certain speed. Good driving is obviously a consideration here to try to win. For the best results, it is recommended you get some Engine and Drivetrain upgrades to gain that extra advantage to try to clear each of the Speed Snap events.Head to Head.
Head to head is what it sounds like- you vs. another driver in a duel with any number of laps around a course. To win, simply cross the finish line before your opponent does. Win by any means necessary.Drag Race.
Drag racing requires you to go from one end of a track to another. All the while, you need to make sure you make timely shifts down the course. You will compete against a group of opponents, usually three opponents. You must defeat all of your opponents to advance and ultimately clear these events. You are responsible for accelerating off the line in time while making sure not to start early. If you leave the starting line early, you will be penalized for a false start. Just like in baseball, if you commit three False Starts, you will be disqualified and the event will be over. So try to concentrate on getting a proper launch off the line without committing a foul. Then, as you do your drag race, practice finding the proper shift points to get the most power and speed out of your vehicle. You will know the proper shift points once you start practicing knowing when to shift. A good rule of thumb is to shift somewhere close to before you reach the redline for that car.Hunter.
The Hunter events require you to chase down a car that has a significant head start. To win Hunter events, you must try to catch up with (and maybe even pass) the other car on the track. You will know you are getting closer to the leading car once you pass certain distance levels in time.Endurance.
An Endurance in Real Racing 3 is not a very long race. You are given a time limit for which to pass as many cars as possible while also covering the longest distance possible. To extend your time, you must pass vehicles on the track. If you go off-course, your distance will be frozen for the time you are off-course. So try to stay on the track as long as you can. Last as long as possible for the best results. How long can you last?Speed Record.
Speed Record challenges are one-lap runs around a race track. The key challenge is to record the highest possible speed at any time on the track during your lap. So your top speed at any point of your lap determines your top speed. If you post the highest top speed against your opposition at any point of your hot lap, you win.Elimination.
Elimination requires you to avoid being in last place. Every 20 seconds, a driver is eliminated until there are no more drivers left to be eliminated. The last driver to avoid being eliminated will win the event. Remember- you don't need to be in first place all race long, but you don't want to be last and especially when the elimination clock runs zero. These races usually have as many as eight cars to a track (including yours).These are among the many different kinds of racing available in "Real Racing 3." Happy racing! :)
Real Racing 3: Tips
Let's talk about the nuances of Real Racing 3 further. Please consider the following if you intend on getting this game.
Currency.
The game's main currency is R$, but there is also Gold. Some items, however, can only be purchased using Gold. "Real Racing 3" offers in-game purchases. If you have actual money to spend and in a financial pinch in RR3, you can purchase R$ credits or Gold credits with in-game purchases. You can even pick up certain packs consisting of extra R$ and Gold. Take advantage of these deals.If you want to make a lot of money early, try completing the goals for the NASCAR Academy and the NASCAR Talent Tour. You will earn R$500K upon completion.
The Waiting Game.
Upgrades and purchases require a good amount of time before they are delivered to you. If you want to expedite the process, you will need to spend Gold. Upgrades to cars do not technically require any significant amount of time.What Car(s) to Get?
If starting a new tier of competition, or entering a new class, you will be overwhelmed with what car you want to start out with. The best bit of advice I can give is for you to find one car that can run in multiple events. So a car that appears in more events will likely be the one you will probably want to use. If you can spend more money on better cars, then be sure to save up your money to ultimately pick up those bigger and better cars. Do your research and go with a car early on to suit your racing needs. Ultimately, you may have to drive all of the available cars for that series.Crew Considerations.
There is one VERY important thing to take note of when using Crew Members- you can only use Crew Members for one current race, and you MUST win that race to reap the benefits. If you lose the race or quit the race, you will not get a second chance to use those Crew Member services for that race. You will need to re-do the race and spend your Gold again on the next race you do.When you have the Agent's services, she will let you know of any opportunities you can take advantage of to boost your earnings and get ahead further into the game. Completed recommendations can be dismissed. Or you may dismiss some of the Agent's suggestions entirely.
Basic Racing Advice.
There are no penalties for cutting corners or committing avoidable contact during races. Conversely, you want to limit going off-course as it will just slow you down. So try to stay on the road as much as you can. Collisions and off-course encounters subtract from your Clean Race Bonus. To maximize your race winnings, keep mistakes to a minimum. The cars actually take damage. So when you look at your Clean Race Bonus, damaged parts add to how much your Clean Race Bonus you lose.Try using different car views to get different looks at the action.
Don't be overwhelmed by taking car damage. You can lightly collide with cars, and cars can collide into you, but avoid serious head-on collisions with cars and the track. Some events require you not to take and amount of car damage. It doesn't mean, however, that any collision of any kind will disqualify you.
The game will be tougher for you when all assists are disabled. For one series of Accomplishments, you will need to play this game without assists as well as win these races with these assists disabled. Do not get on the throttle early when Traction Control is disabled. The game is more fun, however, trying to keep the car from spinning. Just be careful not to spin coming out of corners.
When doing Endurance races, the car will still be rolling once time has expired. Try to stretch out as much extra distance as you can when time expires!
Maintenance, Upgrading, and Customization.
Before you can go with the fastest and most powerful cars, you must choose between a stock Nissan S15 Silvia Spec-R Aero and a Ford Focus RS. You then can take these cars through races. If you are not intending to race immediately, you can look to Service a car or Upgrade it. Cars can be serviced if they have sustained damage or have been raced for a long time. To minimize the chances of a car needing maintenance, try not to crash or go off-course. You may also elect to hire your Mechanic after winning a race you hired the Mechanic for. Maintenance for a car can take a long time once you pay for maintenance. You can speed up the Service by spending Gold during the Maintenance process. Fully upgraded cars can last for twice as long and do not require DRIVE for Time Trial events.You can upgrade any car in your possession that can be upgraded. Upgrades will help provide performance enhancements to give your car the advantage in racing events. You must pay certain amounts of money to complete each of the upgrades, and each upgrade will take some time to complete. There are usually two options based on upgrades. You may either pay in R$ for upgrades and wait for the upgrades to be complete, or you can do instant Research and Development by paying Gold. Any amount you pay in R$ can be sped up by paying Gold after a regular upgrade. Of course, you could save R$ by paying in Gold. Purchase and install all available upgrades to max out your car. One interesting thing to note... there are no maximum restrictions on how powerful your car can be. There are also no races requiring you to have a completely stock car. Some races have a minimum restriction on Performance Rating. However, there are no MAXIMUM restrictions. So feel free to max out your car's performance to stand the best chance of winning races. With a more powerful car, you could go back to races you did poorly in and try them again with your more powerful car.
You can keep your car in the form you bought it in, or you can customize a car to your liking. Take advantage of the Customization suite to give your cars visual makeovers. You can choose a variety of colors for your car. These include official colors and specialty colors. Add vinyls to your car for unique style. If there are any packs you are able to unlock, you can purchase vinyl packs for your car to increase your customization options. If you want a new set of wheels, you can choose between a number of different wheel options. Find a style that suits you and your car. The last option is to adjust the ride height of your car. Make the car low or high through setting the ride height options for it. Most, if not all Customization options require Gold to access. Cars that have been fully upgraded can be customized for free. Also, you can even use Customization options you may have not unlocked yet through your Career progress.
Finally, remember that cars that have all upgrades can be customized for free. I don't recommend fully upgrading every car unless you are going to use that car in a handful of races or if a car can be used in a number of races. At the very least, try to get each of the first-level upgrades for cars to give yourself an early advantage. If you're into setting cars up, this game does NOT offer any kind of feature to set cars up. You will be racing with a car's default setup that can't be changed no matter what upgrades you give it.
Max it Out!
If you fully upgrade any car in Real Racing 3, you are able to customize its looks for free, and it will last twice as long without needing maintenance. The best practice is to only consider maxing out cars that can be used across a number of events. Cars that can be used in Exclusive Series are among some of the ones you want to concentrate on maxing out.Should You VIP?
Giving a car the VIP treatment can allow you to instantly upgrade cars or purchase cars without needing to wait on upgrades and/or delivery. To get VIP access of vehicles, you need to purchase a VIP package through an in-app purchase. I actually advise against this personally. All VIP just does is just eliminate the need to wait for cars or parts to be delivered or installed. You are actually better off just waiting out updates unless you want to use a car right away for any given event(s).Now for my thoughts overall regarding "Real Racing 3." My review from my experience with this game can be read in the next section.
Real Racing 3: Final Thoughts
"Real Racing 3" has been critically acclaimed and for good reason. It is perhaps one of the greatest simulation racing games ever created. Don't let the fact this is a mobile-type game deter you from saying this is as good as console or computer racing games. If anything, "Real Racing 3" gives hope of quality racing games for mobile devices. The graphics are amazing. This is a game you will be playing for quite a long time to unlock everything. The game is actually as rewarding to play as anything of Gran Turismo or Forza Motorsport. It helps to have some methods of getting extra R$ and/or Gold through in-game purchases. So maybe if you play on Android, be sure to stock up on packs with Google Play credit or PayPal or something.
My only gripes are mostly technical-related. There are times on my Google Nexus Player where the game would hitch at times to even have hijacked controls to where I have to close the app. You can likely play this game on any mobile device, but as someone who is not the mobile gaming type, I recommend you play this game on an Android TV device (such as the aforementioned Google Nexus Player or even the Mi Box) and get yourself a Bluetooth-enabled gamepad to play. Besides technical issues, some of the driving dynamics, even for a mobile game, are slightly poor. You still feel every bit engaged from all the different styles of racing. It also helps to find some sort of way to sort out your memory issues if you don't have enough memory to support everything. You will need maybe two to four gigabytes of memory to support everything from cars to other assets for the game.
Some things you can probably nit-pick about this game would be if you want something like weather effects or maybe off-road racing. This game doesn't have these things, but this would mostly be nit-picking. You could probably complain there could probably a bit deeper a suite for customizing cars (such as other car color choices or custom car colors). Maybe the biggest thing not included is a suite for car setup. But again- these are just nit-picks.
Even for a mobile game, this is probably the most incredible simulation racing experience. Most of all- it's free to play! Get ready... you're going to play this game for a while once you get stuck in its atmosphere. Are there games better than Real Racing 3? Sure. But can you REALLY go wrong if you are any kind of racing game fan? Absolutely not.
Video Preview.
The game has had many updates since its 2013 debut, but here is the official trailer for Real Racing 3:Real Racing 3 for Google Play
For More Information...
Did my review convince you to get Real Racing 3? If so, get this game now for Android, iOS, Blackberry, or nVidia Shield by going to www.ea.com/games/real-racing/real-racing-3. Look for the links there to download this game for your device.I hope you enjoyed this blog post. Thank you so much for reading! Take care and be well.
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