Test Asphalt 9: Legends, nitro boosted cars

Not being a big player of racing games on mobile, this test of Asphalt 9: Legends was for me the opportunity to make an opinion on this anthology license on smartphones offered by Gameloft. Asphalt 9 exudes the forbidden of car explosions in the middle of a race and beautiful finishes. It's the cool effect provided by cars that have a lot under the bonnet.

A gameplay loop that works with sublimated cars

To begin this test of Asphalt 9: Legends, let's take a look at the different gameplay elements. When you open the application for the first time, you will obviously start a career mode, which hides behind each race a main objective (being in the top 3) and one or more secondary objectives. You start with a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and take it to the garage to improve its performance in several categories.

Improvement of racing cars

You can increase its top speed, acceleration power, handling and nitro. This costs you credits (gold currency at the top right of the screen) which you get simply by participating in or winning races.

However, this is only valid for a while, as the game's gacha system requires you to collect car fragments in order to add a star to them. If you can't raise the star level of a car, you won't be able to upgrade it past a certain point. We'll come back to my review of Asphalt 9 and its business model later in the article.

These upgrades determine the power score of your car, which ideally should not be too far below the minimum recommended to participate in a race.

Races and game modes

As you race in career mode, you will also get special rewards in the form of extra currency or car schematics. This is how you unlock your next car, a BMZ Z4 LCI E89.

After that, you'll probably want to do more than just race in career mode, so let's see what game modes Asphalt 9 offers in this test. If you don't want to compete with other players right away, you can take advantage of the daily single player events to collect rewards bonuses to add to your career.

However, the best thing to do is to start racing with other players. To find friends and earn loot as a team, you can either join a club or create one, similar to a guild. Most of the gameplay in the additional modes will be PvP. The two main racing modes in this test Asphalt 9: Legends are Ghost Slipstream mode and Ultima RS mode.

Whatever your preferred mode, you will enjoy very fast matchmaking, which is due to a good competition structure but also to the length of the races (generally too short) which implies a frequent change of opponents.

In Ghost Slipstream mode, your only objective will be to use your opponents' suction. You don't have to race ahead to win, you can just steal speed from your opponents by following them closely. On the ground, your opponents' tracks are marked by a blue neon stream, the Slipstream. This stream directly fills your nitro gauge, allowing you to be at full throttle for most of the race if you play it right. I found the Slipstream mode a little too remote controlled but fun and quite exhilarating. Forget it if you play with the Touchdrive ON, you just won't play!

The Ultima RS mode in this test Asphalt 9 is clearly my favourite. It doesn't focus on players who have put money into the game and offers everyone the chance to prove their skills on the track. All players have the same Ultima RS to drive to win the race and the best driver will be the first to arrive. The problem is that you only get a limited number of races and then it takes 5 hours to fill up.

Test Asphalt 9 from Touchdrive with a focus on accessibility

Asphalt 9 automatically activates the Touchdrive function during your first races. You can deactivate it later, but this will allow you to get to grips with your vehicle and get used to the racing feel before playing normally.

My opinion on the Asphalt 9: Legends Touchdrive

With Touchdrive ON in this test Asphalt 9: Legends, you will only be able to activate drift and nitro. This way, trajectories are controlled by the AI constantly and you don't have to worry about missing a turn or going off the road.

It's a bit like learning to walk before running. For some it seems essential and for others it's an unnecessary step. In Touchdrive OFF, you can control your vehicle by tilting the smartphone left or right to make it turn, like a Mario Kart steering wheel. It was with Touchdrive OFF that the game really started for me and that I was able to form an opinion on the racing sensation of Asphalt 9.

Simply perfect graphics and soundtrack

It's everything you'd expect from a quality mobile game. Those who complain about the lack of anti-aliasing probably have no idea of the resources this technology pumps into the machine that runs it, which would greatly detract from the performance and feel of the game. But this is not a problem that only Asphalt 9 faces, most games do.

The graphics are resplendent and colourful, enhanced by well-chosen lighting effects, ultra dynamic neon FX and detailed textures. The interface, although not always convenient to navigate, fits very well with the rest of the game. By the way, I have to admit in this review that I think this is the first time I've ever sung over music in a game menu (come on, except in Just Dance), because hearing a track from The Score while choosing my car was really cool.

Test Asphalt 9's business model, a bit too busy for casuals

Casual players who will appreciate starting with Touchdrive ON to get used to the speed before using their smartphone as a steering wheel will certainly be disappointed by an overly punishing business model.

I understand the financial interest for the publisher and the development studio to block game modes after a certain period of time, but when you see the detail passionately put into these modes, it still seems baffling to hide them behind time limits and then paywalls. The car schemes also don't make it easy for players to collect the good ones than to find Pokémon shiny .

To conclude this test of Asphalt 9, my opinion on the game is quite positive. Having not played the previous titles of the licence, I can hardly compare it to its predecessors, even if some people consider it technically a bit below Asphalt 8 on mobile. The fact is that Asphalt 9 is a game that mixes beautiful curves, pleasant driving, a feeling of speed and splendidly finished environments on a small format, and does so in a respectable way. We regret that the business model is not very permissive and does not allow us to enjoy the game as much as we would like, but this free game will delight fans of mobile racing games with all their power and acrobatics.

This test is made with the support of the AppGallery and the Huawei Game Center to be installed on your mobile phone so that you never miss out on free coupons on your favourite games or cashback offers for the big spenders!

Positive points

• Touchdrive mode can be disabled for starters
• Fun Ultima RS mode
• Top-notch graphics
• High-quality menu music

Negative points

• Menus can be complicated
• Slightly cumbersome business model