Summary
Motorcycles are often described as two wheels that move the soul, and video games capture this feeling through the ability to ride them. Ridingmotorcyclesin video games gives players a sense of freedom as they make their way through beautiful landscapes, especially when navigating a fully explorable open-world map.
In many video games that allow for vehicular traversal, cars are often the star, while motorcycles are a nice addition for those who prefer smaller and more maneuverable vehicles. Meanwhile, other games make it a large focus of their games, from racing games to action-packed crime thrillers.
Freedom has always been a large part of theSaints Rowseries, allowing players to follow the story or go off and be as chaotic as they wish. The 2022 reboot continues to embrace this style, with the player able to go off and explore the fictional city of Santo Ileso, which is heavily inspired by Las Vegas.
Saints Rowgames are always going to be compared to games likeGrand Theft Auto, with the ability to hijack any car or bike seen on the streets and go on any mission or activity. Motorcycle gameplay controls were improved from their predecessors, with tight controls that can allow for racing, getaways, and more.
The final entry in the series,Midnight Club: Los Angelescontinued to expand on the formula established in previous games to create a fun,open-world racing experience. Anyone who has played games such asNeed For Speedwill get the gist of whatMidnight Club: Los Angeleshas to offer, including a simple story in which the player rises to become the top racer in Los Angeles.
In addition to the numerous fast cars available inMidnight Club: Los Angeles, players can also ride motorcycles as they explore the surprisingly detailed open world of Los Angeles. Since Rockstar developed the game, it can be seen as a precursor to Los Santos inGrand Theft Auto V, which came outjust five years later.
Ubisoft’s Ivory Tower has developedThe Crew: Motorfest, which shifts the focus to a car festival located on the island of Oahu in Hawaii.The smaller yet fully explorable island, compared to the previous scaled-down version of the United States, has allowed Ivory Tower to concentrate on enhancing the game’s controls and stunning visuals.
The Crew: Motorfestarguably has the best handling in the trilogy thus far, with a proper selection of cars, old and new, trucks, powerboats, buggies, planes, and motorcycles to unlock and upgrade. With a wide variety of playlists to enjoy with other players, Ubisoft continues to improve as the series goes on.
Sleeping Dogswas unfairly disregarded by gamers as aGrand Theft Autoclone when it came out. While there are similarities, Sleeping Dogs provided gameplay elements that were ahead of their time, such as the over-the-shoulder third-person action that GTA would eventually take on.Martial arts are a major part of the combat, which very few games managed to pull off at the time.
Hong Kong is an exciting world to explore inSleeping Dogs.The game features impressive NPC animations, highly detailed environments, and a captivating main story about an undercover cop. Additionally, the motorcycle controls are smoother than those found in most games from that era.
Given the dystopian near-future London thatWatch Dogs: Legiontakes place in, with the totalitarian security forces of Albion locking the streets down, especially with checkpoints, it’s arguably better to use motorcycles to get around. They are fast, agile, and have some of the best handling in the game when trying to evade Albion and other evil factions.
Thanks tothe unique NPC mechanicof being able to recruit anybody off the streets of London, some agents of DeadSec come with motorcycles that can be summoned. The recruitment mechanic became the main gimmick ofWatch Dogs: Legion, allowing no two playthroughs to be alike aside from the major plot points.
Grand Theft Autopractically revolutionized open-world vehicle traversal, but motorcycles were never a strong suit untilGrand Theft Auto 5. The tighter controls compared to its predecessors allowed them to shine more, especially in certain story missions like heists, where getting away on motorcycles is required.
In general,Grand Theft Auto 5improved on nearly every kind of vehicle gameplay on land, air, and sea. This, along with a cinematic storylineand unforgettable characters, is one of many enhancements from previous games that contributed to makingGrand Theft Auto 5one of the best-selling games of all time.
Even at its buggy and notorious launch in 2020,Cyberpunk 2077featured reliable vehicle controls for cars and motorcycles. Motorcycles played a big part in the game’s marketing, including models designed for Keanu Reeves’ company Arch, and roaming Night City on them remains an exhilarating experience, especially in the much-improved version of the game.
The vehicles are just one component ofCyberpunk 2077, with the bulk of the game being one of the most ambitious RPGs of the modern age, mixing robotics, hacking, guns, and so much more. Despite its rough launch,CD Projekt Red turned the game aroundand gave fans the game they were originally promised and more.
In most games, motorcycles are a welcome bonus, butDays Gonerevolves almost entirely around Deacon St. John and his motorcycle. After the apocalypse, Deacon,played tremendously by Sam Witwer, is now a biker wandering the rural areas of Oregon, helping other survivors by doing jobs on the open road as zombie-like infected known as Freakers roam.
The motorcycle that Deacon rides inDays Goneis not just for transportation. It is how the player saves, and it is essential to survival, especially when swarms of Freakers attack. The player even has to repair the bike with scraps and refill the fuel tank when needed. It also provides realistic gameplay, with the bike accurately moving how it would through the various hazards and environments, from the roads to muddy hills.
