Tour de France is one of the most prestigious and historic events of this world which has been taking place since 1903. While most of the cyclists around the world dream of participating in this iconic event, not everyone has the means or the energy to complete the entire race. This is where NACON and Cyanide come in with their Tour de France franchise. The latest edition of their Tour de France game, Tour de France 2020, based on the real event, is now available to the world and it brings some brilliant and much-needed additions to the game. This is our review of the PS4 version of Tour de France 2020 in which we grab our bike and explore the all-new Liège-Bastogne-Liège.
Right after starting the game, you might not notice the changes right away since the UI is pretty much the same and most of the modes have remained unchanged from the last installment in the franchise. However, one addition you will notice right away is the brand new Time-Trial mode which adds another challenging mode to the game. Like Tour de France was any easier, the new Tome-Trial mode even pushes you further to get the best possible time on the stages. You use time-trial bikes during this mode and must manage your effort effectively to trigger the time-trial position of TT. You can have rivals in this mode as well and your ultimate goal will be to defeat them.
Probably my favorite addition in this year’s Tour de France is the brand new first-person camera. It not only gives you a more sense of speed and immersion but I also noticed some of the additional details as I was racing in the first-person view. For example, I know that bike tires have their brand logos on them in white but I never noticed them before as the third-person camera is pretty far away. While playing in the first-person view, these brand names printed on tires and them revolving as the tire rotated was the very first thing that I noticed. The first-person camera also offers a clearer and closer view of the road ahead as you are right on top of the handlebar. This is similar to any other racing sim where driving from the dash would make your game instantly better. Same is the case here. You will be more aware of the road and would also notice more and more details about the world ahead of you.
One of the brand new classic additions to Tour de France 2020 is the Liège-Bastogne-Liège which is a classic cycling race in Belgium. Fans of the sport would know that this historic race dates back to 1892 when it was first held and now you can experience this race on your screens as well thanks to Tour de France 2020. Not only is this one-day cycling course historic but it is also your toughest challenge in the game. While the original Tour de France race may have more stages or it might be over multiple days, the course of Liège-Bastogne-Liège is extremely difficult and technical and you have to complete the event in one day that makes it tougher for your rider. This is a brilliant addition to the ever-expanding roster of classic cycle races in Tour de France 2020 and if you cannot take part in the original event, you can experience it safely from your home.
There is also a more effective method to manage your effort now. Effort plays a vital role in your success and this time around, you have some additional tricks up your sleeve to manage it even more effectively. You now have a new mechanic called ‘sustained effort’ which allows you to press and hold down X key which allows you to pressure your opponents and push them to their breaking point. It is also vital if you want to lay down the tempo at the head of the group. Summits now come with additional Bonus Points. Certain summits will allow you to nail these Bonus Points which will help you get some precious time bonuses during the events. Team accomplishments are also available in the game which are determined by Jerseys in races and the game shows you after every stage whether you managed to earn any of them or not.
Apart from the new additions, you will find all of your favorite modes and races right where they belong in the game. If you want to take a break from the normal races, you have the Challenge mode where you can take part in solo or versus Downhill and Sprint challenges. You can play these challenges alone or bring some friends with you for some competitive on-screen action. The Pro Team Mode and Pro Leader Mode are also part of the game where the former allows you to manage and win with your own cycling team while the latter allows you to create a cyclist and ride him to victory in the event as part of a team. There are not many changes here and you will find similar UI and mechanics involved in both of these modes. Visually, I did not notice any major improvements as well so you can expect pretty much the same visual fidelity as that of Tour de France 2019.
The main mode however still remains the Race mode where you will find the main Tour de France event. The 21 stages of Tour de France 2020 look and play pretty much the same with the new mechanics in place. I will highly recommend that you at least once, play the whole race in the first-person view. You will have excellent control, you will make the turns better, your stages will be more immersive and you will get to experience the game in a brilliant new way. I normally play arcade games in third-person view but for simulations, I’ve always gone for the in-dash view. Here you can have that same experience with the first-person view. If none of the curated events match your liking, you can also head over to Custom Tour and design one for yourself as well.
Final Verdict:
The Tour de France franchise caters to a very particular gaming niche however true fans of the franchise look for every small detail every time a new tittle arrives in the franchise. These additions or changes are not massive in numbers but every little tweak and addition is a big one when compared to the overall game. If you fall within this specific niche, Tour de France 2020 brings enough new features to the table that should convince you to upgrade to the 2020 version from the 2019 version. While the game looks pretty much the same, I can safely say that the game has gone through some much-needed changes under the hood. If you are a fan of the Tour de France franchise, the 2020 version is a significant upgrade for the franchise and I will highly recommend that you go for it.
Final Score: 8.5/10
