1983: Drifting Along

Wedding in a couple of days (well, technically tomorrow at the time of writing), but there’s not a lot to say about it right now other than “it’s happening on Saturday”. So in an effort to write about something else — and spare you Heavensward gushing for another day or two, at least until I finish the main storyline — I thought I’d talk a little more about Drift Girls, a mobile game I discovered a short while back and have been playing at least a little bit every day ever since.

Drift Girls, lest you forget — or are unfamiliar — is an iOS and Android game by Korean developer NHN BlackPick, localised and brought to the West by a company called Toast. It’s a curious little game in many ways — in some respects, it’s similar to the “gacha” collectible card games that are a particular popular product of the Asian mobile development market, but in others it’s entirely its own beast. Either way, it’s a genuinely great, enjoyable game that I’ve been having a whole lot of fun with.

It’s kind of a driving game, and it’s kind of a dating sim. Both of those elements are intertwined, however; the girls you woo in the dating sim part of the game become passengers while you race, and different girls provide different bonuses to your car’s performance. There are also other benefits to dating, too; reach the maximum affection with a girl and you have the opportunity to whisk her away for an “overnight date” with everything that implies, which makes you “feel better” and improve your vehicle’s performance by a significant amount for the following day.

One of the interesting things about the game, though, is the fact that each and every one of the girls in the cast feels like they’ve had some effort put into their writing — not just in an attempt to show that they have a personality, but to make them feel like they’re all part of the game world. As you get to know each of the girls, it becomes apparent that some of them know one another, and you’ll often get to know several sides of what initially appeared to be a fairly simple story. Later in the game, too, as the overarching main scenario storyline starts to pick up speed with international smuggling, the Mafia and all manner of other silliness, you get the opportunity for another perspective on events by building up a relationship with the lead detective and prosecutor on the case.

The fact that there’s an ongoing narrative and each of the girls clearly has their own little mini-story to work through makes the dating aspect of the game far more than a simple grind to get the girl who provides the biggest bonuses as quickly as possible. Aside from that, too, a system for “exceeding the girl’s limits” by completing challenges allows you to boost their stats considerably as well as uncover a bit more of their personality and story.

But what of the driving bit? Well, it’s very simple, and I’m actually pretty glad of that. Full-on driving games on touchscreens suck beyond belief, so I’m extremely grateful to NHN BlackPick for taking a greatly simplified approach: all you have to do is rev your engine to get a good start, then time your drifts left or right as you enter a corner, then occasionally set off an nitro boost to go a bit faster. In many ways, it has more in common with a rhythm game than a driving game, but it manages to be genuinely exciting, with some lovely graphics, cinematic camera angles and cheesy but entirely appropriate throbbing dance music in the background.

The metagame is fun, too. While there is a “gacha” mechanic for drawing new cars and parts to attach to them, where I’ve found the most fun is in taking the car I started with — a “one-star” Mini-equivalent — and gradually building it up to remain competitive as the opponents in the game get stronger and stronger. So far I’ve successfully upgraded it to “four-star” standard, which is enough for story missions now, but I’m starting to run into a few situations where it’s not quite enough to beat tough opponents.

I compared this type of mobile game to a more traditional MMO a while back, and having spent probably more time with Drift Girls than any other mobile game of its type — along with my hefty experience with Final Fantasy XIV — I stand by that statement. The gradual creep of power; the joy of getting to a point where you can afford a new piece of equipment or get lucky with an item drop; the feeling of progression; the necessity to keep on the “gear treadmill” to continue to progress — all of these things are typical MMO characteristics that are very much present in Drift Girls, and they make for a compelling, addictive experience that has stuck around in my consciousness a lot longer than I thought it would after the initial “haha, wtf is this” appeal wore off.

Turns out it’s actually a really good game. So I think I might just sneak in a quick race or two before I go to sleep tonight…