Written By Shaun McCracken
The one genre of racing I've noticed that has seemed to appear the most on
the Gamecube is off-road racing. Freekstyle, MX Superfly, Smuggler's Run Warzones,
Big Air Freestyle, even the miserable Jeremy McGrath Supercross. Well, add this
to the list (as well as SX Superfly, Dakar 2, Pro Rally and Rally Championship).
It's not a bad thing, but it's the one type of racing that seems to be in abundance
on the system. ATV 2 brings a little something of it's own in the genre, which
is also something we've seen for the first time on the Gamecube: quad racing.
While ATV 2 is not necessarily a bad place to start, the end result plays out
in familiarity for more than one reason. One, the gameplay feels a lot like
MX Superfly (although not as dull). Second, the engine looks strikingly familiar.
More on that later.
The premise of this game is fairly simple, much like many other racing games.
You race to place first and unlock special riders and courses. You can also partake
in a stunt mode as well as a challenge mode. The game's main modes include the
Career and Arcade modes, which play differently depending on which one you choose.
Arcade pretty much takes you from course to course, and overall rank is not as
important as it should be. It does feel relaxed compared to the Career mode, and
it is an easier way to unlock the courses. But it won't win you new vehicles.
You'll need to be in the Career mode for that. Place first, earn a new ride.
Plus, you'll need to stay as high on the rankings as possible. After you're done,
you can access the Custom mode, where you can create custom championships. You
can also go into the stunt mode, where you can try to go for the best score within
the time period you select. The Challenge mode is a large trial course, with
obstacles, ramps and so forth. Kind of like Monkey Ball with ATVs. It sounds
pretty meaty, especially when you have 15 courses. But there's not enough of the
stunt courses or challenge stages, and the career mode is not nearly as varied
as it could be. It doesn't add up to a crappy game, it just ends up being a game
that gives you only a few bites of what can be a great thing, leaving you wanting
more.
The game plays pretty well. Seeing how the first ATV tanked on the PS1, you
can't help but be skeptical of how the sequel does. Especially by the same developer.
But ATV 2 feels like a whole new game. The controls are pretty tight, the course
layout is pretty well designed and it doesn't feel like a sluggish mess. I think
the only problem in the design is with the stunt system. Like other games I've
played, such as Freekstyle, you earn a boost by doing stunts. It worked out okay
for Freekstyle, since it had a responsive trick system. Here, your tricks may or
may not register. this could lead to lost boosts that you depend on. Also, it
seems like you earn more boost for doing bicycles and wheelies than you do with
half the air tricks available. If the stunt scores higher, why not get more boost?
I kind of wish that games like these would not depend on a boost system so much,
since the computer can tend to manipulate the system in it's favor.
Now, in the beginning of this revier, I stated that this game looked "strikingly
familiar". That's because this game looks a lot like Rally Fusion, which was also developed
by Climax. The release dates seem to be not that far apart, either. But unlike
Rally Fusion, the handling engine here seems more fair. As for graphics, it looks
smoother and a little sharper than RF. Perhaps it's because I've played the PS2
version of Rally Fusion, and it looked more jagged, or maybe it's because they
made a few improvements. The textures are a little more sharper, and the lighting
seems to be a little more improved. Also, the framerate never really bogs down,
and stays at a near-constant 60 FPS. The riders and bikes seem to be the only downfall
in an overall nice graphical package. The riders and bikes look pretty plain.
I know there's not a lot to an ATV, but I think a little more detail could have
been added, such as stickers or maybe a little more body.
The sound isn't bad, but not phenominal. You have seven rock tracks which
you may or may not like, and from groups you may have never heard of. Compared
to the soundtracks offered in other Acclaim extreme sports titles, this roster
seems fairly weak. The ATVs sound alright, but I think they sound a little more
like angry bees than ATVs. I've driven one quite a few times before, and they're
pretty loud. Also sputtery, too.
Overall, ATV 2 is a game that is really not that bad. It could improve on the
trick system, and offer more depth, which is really what the game needs to be a
great whole product instead of one that feels like something is missing. It's fairly
fun and easy to get into, which is something that they got right. Also, the racing
and the pace is not as boring as it was in MX Superfly. But the game just feels like
a taste of something that could have had a lot of potential. As it is, it's sufficent
enough for any Gamecube owner looking for an ATV racer that they would get a little
use out of. It's too bad it's the only ATV game on the system. But hey, at least
it doesn't suck.
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ATV Quad Power Racing 2
