Title: CART Fury Championship RacingPublisher: MidwayPlatform: PlayStation 2
While I'm not the biggest fan of circle tracks and cars that only turn left, there comes a time when a video game defies preconceptions and makes for some really cool entertainment. "CART Fury" has a number of modes, such as championship, where you go through an entire season as any one of several CART drivers, pitting yourself up against a field of 26 cars or so. It also features a training mode and several mini-games.
To be quite honest, the level of detail in this game is rather amazing and it features a really tight and fluid frame rate. Being an arcade racer, I didn't expect this to be an astounding display of real-world physics, but I was pleasantly surprised by how well the cars handled (when compared with the sloppy handling of most arcade racers) combined with how you could almost sense the point where your car started losing its tenuous grip on the road.
Gameplay is very straightforward and doesn't require a lot of time to get used to the controls. If you play a lot of racing games, then you could probably pick this one right up. I was also impressed with how detailed the environments and the tracks were. Midway did a great job with "CART Fury," because I honestly can't think of anything to complain about.
Title: Tokyo Extreme Racer ZeroPublisher: Crave EntertainmentPlatform: PlayStation 2
About two months ago, I heard about this title and thought that it might be an interesting one to review. A few things really piqued my interest in this game, such as the fact that you could customize your car extensively and the fact that it seemed almost like a car-RPG.
Well, I wasn't disappointed. "Tokyo Extreme Racer" has a number of things that were most impressive. Though not to the depth of Gran Turismo's customization possibilities, this game offers more in a variety of other ways. First of all, you can customize the paint job on your car, as well as add stickers to it and change the sound of your horn. But that's not the end; you can add body pieces, upgrade the engine, suspension, clutch, differential, etc. Finally, what was pretty damn cool was the fact that you could customize your license plate! Not only that, but you'll be able to see the external changes on your car in actual game play.
The physics are nice and it feels like a good trade-off between arcade-racer and hardcore sim. "Tokyo Extreme Racer" is like a car-RPG, in that you drive around trying to engage your rivals in a street race by high-beaming them. Once the race starts, you get a reward at the end based on a number of factors, such as how long you lasted, how far you drove and whether or not you won. The more you win, the more you learn about the other drivers and the other cars in the game. There are other modes in the game as well as some extras, such as the trailer for "The Fast and the Furious" and a documentary about Tokyo's illegal street racing scene.
This is a game that belongs in your collection and has a lot of replay potential. The sheer depth of the game, mixed with the amount of thought that obviously went into development, makes for a wonderful ride that has just enough of an edge to keep it from getting boring.
Title: RC Revenge ProPublisher: AcclaimPlatform: PlayStation 2
Here's a game that is best when brought out at a party to play with a group of people. It's a challenging, yet not too difficult, racer that's very similar to "Crash Team Racing," "Mario Kart" and every other group arcade racer of its kind. Personally, I enjoyed playing this, but I will also say that it's not for everyone. It's a game that's best suited for people who aren't into racing games or just want to play "Mario Kart" and don't have an N64, but are fortunate enough to have a PS2.
Either way, I had fun with this game and enjoyed a variety of its aspects, such as having to unlock tracks and cars, as well as racing through challenging environments. "RC Revenge Pro" does well with a decent selection of challenging tracks, not to mention decent A.I. in the challenging cars.
Overall, this is a great game to break out and play against other people. It's no fun playing against the computer with games like this, because you really can't take the cars all that seriously, especially when you're shooting bubbles or firing off bottle rockets at your opponents.