Test Drive 5
Ah, few things in life can compare to the joy of an excellent racing game.
The reason? Well, most of us are pathetic losers, and will never earn enough money
to buy and drive the exotic cars we all dream about. I mean, look at it. Do any of you picture yourselves
buying a Ferrari, a Porche, or a Viper? The answer should be no. So, we all head for the second best thing, racing games.
Here we can enjoy our flights of fancy, and drive around cars that Bill Gates would have trouble affording. With
that intro, it is my distinct pleasure to introduce a new PSX racing game that can go head to head with Gran Tourismo and
Need for Speed 3. Make no mistake, TD5 is no GT sim wise, and it doesn't try to be. Rather, it is more of an arcade racer,
and quite a good one too. In this game, you can pit exotic racers against old fashion muscle cars, and enjoy the ensuing mayhem! YAY!
GRAPHICS
Once again, obvious comparisons will be drawn to the curretn king of PSX racers, GT. But, the
comparisons will be semi invalid due to a seemingly small, be really important difference. The two games differ mainly on the tracks
used. In GT, we were mostly stuck to rather short laps, doing them over, and over, and over, ad nauseum. In TD5, the tracks differ from one city
to another, demonstrating a pleasing variety in both length and difficulty. Also, one thing that you will see in TD5 that was sadly lacking in GT are the
jumps. Some of the airborne maneuvers are INSANE! Trust me, get in a 69 Charger, go to the Edinburgh track, and hold down the accelerator. Near the end of
the track is a series of three jumps that make Lombard Street look like a rolling field! The actual graphics for the cars are right up there with GT, including little
touches like brake lights, chrome mapping, and true reflections. Plus, the skid marks from a good peel out are all too evident. On the down side, the
other pedestrian traffic is a little blocky, and occasionally, you can drive right through some of the cars. There is also a little pop up and draw in, but nothing
that detracts from the over all beauty of the game. Good stuff here.
SOUND
Now here I was alittle dissapointed, especially after GT. The engine squeals and crashes seem a might bit tinny to me,
and normally I don't care about sound. Not a problem, but I really wanted more. The music on the other hand is quite good , especially when one considers that its the latest
grunge heavy metal techo crap. Its a mixture of fantasy and crap that I have dubbed, fantacrap! Ahem...on to other things.
CONTROL
Ah, the joys of dual shock. Quite simply you will need a Dual Shock controller to play this. I mean, you can go digital, but it really ruins the experience. But with analog, the
control is superb. Every little move you make is accurately depicted, with a good tight precision. PLus the rumbling effect is used well. When you first start your engine, the meaty roar will
make the controller shake, and if you hit another car at high speeds, just try and hang on. This game is what the Dual Shock was made for.
GAMEPLAY
Amazingly, this game has a lot of depth. There are the obligatory single and full circuit modes, but there are many others
including a cup chase, circuit lap races, time trials and drag races. There are at least a dozen tracks, all unique. Then there are other
hidden tracks that can be unlocked and enjoyed. And the cream on top is the Cop chase mode, where you have to bag all of the speed freaks on your own in a set
amount of time. That never gets old. All in all. a very enjoyable title. It can't beat GT, but it comes damn close. Just make sure that you have the right controller.
Graphics 9
Sound 8
Control 10
Gameplay 9
Overall 9
Madgrad
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