Rapid Racer
Developer - Sony
Publisher - Sony
Players - 1-2
Extras - Memory card, Analog
The bit on the box
"From the team behind Porsche Challenge
and the award-winning Total NBA series comes an all-new unique experience.
Rapid Racer brings you the adrenaline-pumping thrill of powerboat racing.
True handling dynamics, terrifying waves, unprecedented speed and courses
so dangerous they can only be raced on PlayStation. A total white-knuckle
ride for up to five players - Rapid Racer!"
Graphics
Rapid Racer makes some of the best use of the playstation's
hi-res mode than any other title available. Although some detail is cut
down, this isn't really that noticable when you are flying along the waves
at an amazing 50 fps with arcade quality sharpness to the tracks and boats.
The weakest point to the graphics is the water effects, which don't look
that realistic and give more of a feel of sliding about on the top of ripply
ice cream. This ice cream does come in many flavours however, with various
coloured rivers to race on, including a lava track (!!). There is also
a random track editor, but I found this slightly disappointing as it doesn't
actually add scenery, but rather just gives you a different narrow/canyon
track.
Sound
If you have gone to the local arcade and played racing
games on coin-operated machines there, then you pretty much know what to
expect from Rapid Racer. The sound effects do their job and nothing
more, and give a decent feeling of a stuttering jet boat engine as you
lurch down a rapid river. The music is good, but not that noticable when
racing, which is ok as you need all the concentration you can get in this
game. Overall the sound appears to have been designed as almost an afterthought
to the sharp (maybe even revolutionary) use of the graphics in the hi-res
mode. In fact, the whole thing seems almost experimental.
Gameplay
Even if you are an expert at racing games it may take
some time to get used to the physics involved when racing a jet boat. Sometimes
the player may get frustrated because a boat will suddenly move in a certain
direction, beyond the player's control, which can cost valuable time, and
also become very disorientating as the view flips about madly. Although
this represents the anomaly that are the rapids, some may not see it this
way, as the control is even more unpredictable than Rally Cross.
It's overall feel reminds me of Wipeout 2097 except that it is harder
to recover from spins and crashes, and there are no weapons on offer, the
only power-ups being turbos and penalty markers (something I found the
be a great nuisance and a hinderance to racing, but there was no option
to switch them off). There are a few courses on offer (three to start with,
and some more that have to be unlocked), and a limited number of boats
(again, more can be unlocked through playing the game). Oh, and just let
me mention how much I hate racers in which you have to make a checkpoint
in a certain amount of time (especially if I wasn't coming last!!).
I feel a verdict coming on
There is enjoyment to be had with Rapid Racer,
and although it won't appeal to alot of racing fans, for those looking
for a jet boat racer on the playstation, this title really is the only
decent choice at this time. For you americans who may read this, the game
is called Turbo Prop Racing over there, though why the name change
I am not sure, and I have no idea if the graphics are as sharp (as it was
originally designed for PAL playstations). Personally I prefer road racers
over this type of thing, but admittedly it can be a fun change to pop this
one in on a rainy day and experience a completely different style of racing.
Review by D.R.T.Barrett
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