Review for Pro Cycling Manager Season 2019: Le Tour De France. Game for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 04/07/2019
As every year, the Tour De France video game returns on the shelves. The title, developed by Cyanide and distributed by Bigben Interactive, arrives as usual in double edition: a more simulation for consoles (PlayStation 4 and Xbox One) and a more management one for PC. If the title of the last edition was the best released on the market, Le Tour De France 2019 reaches a new level of refinement, adding a few small gems, which we are going to tell you, and leaving the now consolidated gameplay unchanged.
As mentioned, the gameplay is based on the foundations of the other editions, so we will not dwell too much on what we have already had the opportunity to say in other reviews: with the dorsal buttons you can accelerate, brake, hit the kidneys close to the finish line or get into an aerodynamic position in the descents and combining these keys with the directional darts it will also be possible to cheer once you reach the finish line. With the other keys, however, it is possible to recall the team instructions to indicate to the companions whether to attack, but rather to disturb an escape or consume energy drinks, moreover with the keys you can consume your energy drinks, attack or follow a companion as much as rather an opponent, very useful for putting yourself in a good position before a sprint.
At the same time we will have the role of sporting director, captain or wingman, depending on the cyclist we decide to impersonate. With the team instructions, in fact, it is possible to switch between one teammate and another. Often we will find ourselves throwing a teammate on the run and wanting to use him to earn precious points for the climbers classification, but rather return to our captain to control the opponents, the general classification and play the decisive kilometers of a special stage. Everything is accompanied by a simple, clean and linear HUB.
The big news, definitely appreciable, lies in the updating of the map of a stage: once a Montanga Grand Prix has been reached, in fact, the map zooms in on the section indicating, with different colors, the slopes. This is a very useful, new feature that allows you to plan the moment of an attack, based on the characteristics of the cyclist. A climber will be more inclined to attack on a stretch with a linear slope and a sprinter on the stretch with the highest percentages.
The AI is the same as last year: captains are smart and wait for the right moment to attack uphill, sprinter teams know when it's time to lead the race, free hitters will follow their inclinations towards their own rankings competence. Nothing new, except the new downhill trajectories, now made more realistic. As you may have understood, the gameplay does not differ much from the other editions, however it is redefined by some small gems.
The methods are always the same, from the classic Tour De France, to My Tour, up to the Pro Team / Pro Leader which is certainly the most interesting, so we invite you to read the review of the last edition that we linked to at the beginning of the content. Only a new sprint mode is added, in which you will have to try out some challenges with different conditions: from managing the advantage of a breakaway, to winning a sprint, but rather a sprint or an uphill stage. There is also nothing new in terms of team licenses: Team Ineos does not have a full license, just as the licenses of some cyclists are absent.
The editor of Le Tour de France 2019, however, allows us to modify the names of the teams and cyclists at will, thus giving us the possibility to adjust the licenses. Furthermore, it is possible to modify the characteristics of each single member of a team as well as to assign the jerseys of national, European or world champion, in order to have the title always updated. However, the World Championship, the Critérium Du Dauphiné, the Paris-Roubaix are confirmed and, by popular demand, from this year the Vlaanderen Classic also makes its entry.
The graphics are basically always the same, the cyclists are almost all the same, the stages are instead made with absolute precision by the development team. The commentary accompanying the actions is absolutely pleasant.
With Le Tour De France 2019, Cyanide keeps the structure of the previous editions almost completely unchanged, adding here and there some little gems. It could hardly get any better, as it has everything you could ask for in a cycling video game, from fun to realism. Perhaps something more could be done on the licensing of the teams, however it must certainly be appreciated that edition after edition, new stage or classic races are always added. The graphics could be improved and updated which are always the same at each edition, however this is a secondary aspect that does not affect the splendid work that this wonderful simulation brings to our consoles every year.
► Pro Cycling Manager Season 2019: Le Tour De France is a Management-Simulation-Sport game developed by Cyanide and published by Bigben Interactive for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, the video game was released on 04/07/2019
