Review: Ford Racing 3 vs. Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives

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FACE OFF REVIEW... for Ford fans only!

Ford Racing 3 vs. Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives

Okay, so you are a big Ford fan, and you want to buy a new Ford game... Which to buy? Ford Racing 3 was released on 3/22/05 by 2k Games, while Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives was released on 4/20/05 also by 2k Games. However, both had different developers: FR3 was made by Empire Interactive, while FMTLL was made by Eutechnyx. Why would you buy a Ford game with only Mustangs while Ford Racing 3 has all types of Fords? Which is better for my $15?

First, a car list:

*****
FORD RACING 3 CAR LIST
55 Ford Cars

1923 Model T Sedan, 1931 Model A Roadster, 1946 Convertible; 1948 F1 Pickup, Ford 49, 1949 Coupe, 1955 Thunderbird, 1956 F-100, 1964 Galaxie 500, 1965 F-100, 1966 Fairlane GT, 1966 Thunderbird, 1968 Mustang, 1968 Mustang GT, 1968 Mustang Mach 1, 1972 Ranchero GT, 1973 Mustang Mach 1, 1973 XBO Falcon GT, 1967 Gran Torino, 1992 Mustang Mach III Concept, 1994 Powerstroke Concept, 1995 GT90 Concept, 1996 Indigo Concept, 1998 F-150 4x4, 1999 Focus Rally Car, 1999 Mustang FR200, 2001 Fortynine Concept, 2002 Crown Victoria, 2002 Explorer Sport Trac XLT, 2002 Flareside F-350 XLT Sport, 2002 SVT Sport, 2002 SVT Lightning, 2002 Taurus Stock Car, 2002 Thunderbird Convertible, 2003 Falcon XR8, 2003 FR100 Concept, 2003 Limited Edition Thunderbird, 2004 F-150 FX4, 2004 Ford GT, 2004 SVT Lightning, 2004 Mustang GT-R, 2005 Air Force Reserve Ford Focus, 2005 Mustang GT.
*****

*****
FORD MUSTANG: THE LEGEND LIVES CAR LIST

40 Mustangs from 1964-2005
*****

Off the bat, Ford Racing 3 has a much more diverse lineup. Then again, it also isn't as Mustang-centric, despite having some of the best Mustangs in it.

FEATURES
---
Ford Racing 3
Players: 1-2 (splitscreen multiplayer)
Xbox Live Multiplayer: Yes - Up to 6 Players
Custom Soundtracks: Yes

Ford Mustang
Players: 1-2 (splitscreen multiplayer)
Xbox Live Multiplayer: No
Custom Soundtracks: No

Clearly, Ford Racing 3 has the edge in the features department,
****

GRAPHICS
--
Ford Racing 3: 7.0
Ford Mustang: 7.5

While neither game is a prize-winner, Ford Mustang has more realistic graphics with better graphical effects. The tracks also are better detailed in Ford Mustang. Finally, the first person camera is significantly better in Ford Mustang. However, while Ford Racing 3 runs at 60fps+ no problem, Ford Mustang often has noticable slowdown. Still, Ford Mustang looks better and more realistic than Ford Racing 3.

****
SOUND
--
Ford Racing 3: 7.5
Ford Mustang: 7.0

Both do a fairly decent job of providing engine noises, however the nod goes to Ford Racing 3 for its Custom Soundtracks option.

****
GAMEPLAY
--
Ford Racing 3: 6.5
Ford Mustang: 7.5

The actual racing in these two games is quite different. Ford Mustang takes a more traditional racing game approach, while a big portion of Ford Racing 3 are "challenges" like drafting or following the racing line. Perhaps the biggest difference is that Ford Mustang feels much less floaty than Ford Racing 3. Unfortunately, the lack of XBOX Live support makes Ford Mustang a more difficult sell, despite having splitscreen multiplayer. Still, Ford Mustang feels like a more solid racing game overall.

****
OVERALL

For a Ford fan, I'd say buy both. Ford Mustang simply does not have enough car variety for a Ford fan, so I would say to go for both games to get a bigger variety of cars. For a person who just wants a fun racing game, I'd say go with Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives. The racing is more lively, and much of the fun that can be had from Ford Racing 3 in unlocking all of the different Ford cars will be somewhat lost on you.

In summary, Ford Mustang: The Legend Lives is a better racing game than Ford Racing 3 but lacks the wide variety of cars, XBOX Live Multiplayer, and Custom Soundtrack support of Ford Racing 3. Pick your Ford game accordingly :)
 
Thanks for the comparison.
I'm definitely going to be picking up Ford Mustang when I get the chance.

I already own Ford Racing 3 (as well as 2) and I thought both games were a blast especially for the price. I only paid $9.99 for Ford Racing 3 and the only disappointment is that barely anyone plays online. :(
 
OP, thanks for the reviews. Racing is one of my favorite genres and the budget titles are getting better than they used to be. I picked up Ford Racing 3 when CC had it on sale for $10 a while back, and it's a big improvement over Ford Racing 2 - the controls are better and there's more to do. Unfortunately though, the PS2 version of Ford Racing 3 doesn't have online play.

I wound up paying the full $14.99 for Ford Mustang, which I haven't played yet - I should really start that tonight or tormorrow.

And it looks like these might not be the only Ford games to come out this year - EB has a Ford Vs. Chevy game listed for PS2 with a release date of 10/11/2005.

http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/product/256161.asp
 
[quote name='DigitalSpace']OP, thanks for the reviews. Racing is one of my favorite genres and the budget titles are getting better than they used to be. I picked up Ford Racing 3 when CC had it on sale for $10 a while back, and it's a big improvement over Ford Racing 2 - the controls are better and there's more to do. Unfortunately though, the PS2 version of Ford Racing 3 doesn't have online play.

I wound up paying the full $14.99 for Ford Mustang, which I haven't played yet - I should really start that tonight or tormorrow.

And it looks like these might not be the only Ford games to come out this year - EB has a Ford Vs. Chevy game listed for PS2 with a release date of 10/11/2005.

http://www.ebgames.com/ebx/product/256161.asp[/QUOTE]

Looks like its coming to XBOX too, here is some info on it:
http://www.gamevortex.com/e3_2005/story.php/Microsoft/Xbox/559

Coming from the developers of Ford Mustang, which I see as a good thing as I think Mustang is superior to FR3 as a racing game. While FR3 was better than FR2, if you aren't a Ford fan its still a pretty poor racer. On the other hand, Mustang is pretty good.
 
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