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Cruis'n Velocity

Score: 45%
ESRB: Everyone
Publisher: Midway
Developer: Graphic States Games
Media: Cart/1
Players: 1 - 4
Genre: Racing

Graphics & Sound:

Ugh. Cruis'n Velocity's graphics could have been pulled off on the Game Boy Color, with a framerate just as 'fluid'. It's clear that Graphic State Games intended to create a more vivid arcade environment in which to race, but the end result looks more like an ugly slideshow as the track moves by in poorly-rendered chunks rather than a smoother, natural flow. So much for preserving the high-speed feel of its coin-op predecessors.

Oddly enough, the sound and music department solely make up this title's best features. Crystal-clear tunes pump through the tiny GBA speaker at a (thankfully) louder-than-normal level, while perfectly digitized samples from the arcade versions (see 'Checkpoint!' and 'Las Vegas is so exciting!') may convince you that you're playing a solid game -- yet, such is not the case.


Gameplay:

At such a painfully slow pace, all arcade feeling is lost in the translation. Your vehicle instantly stops whenever it touches another car or grazes a nearby wall; turn on Damage Mode, and the car explodes after barely bumping into a few objects. Car control has changed from previous versions as well -- each vehicle comes designated with different speed/grip/turbo stats, and now tapping the accelerator uses one of a limited few turbo boosts, instead of popping a quick wheelie and gaining momentum. This puts more incentive in driving carefully and encourages proper timing, but it just seems out of place after playing Cruis'n World and Cruis'n Exotica. At least there's reason to keep playing (even if you're already sick of the game). With plenty of new cars and tracks to unlock through the single-player Cup Mode, there's always something to do in your free time. Of course, Freestyle Mode is available for those times when you just wanna cut loose on a track without worrying about staying in the race for the gold, and Multiplayer Mode will allow up to four racers battle it out for the medal. Good luck finding three other friends who actually want to play it, though...

Difficulty:

With such lame control over the cars and a few unforgiving turns scattered throughout the tracks, Cruis'n Velocity will definitely give seasoned drivers a run for their money. The computer-controlled opponent cars never lag behind or wait for you to catch up -- and while it's usually easy to get from 3rd place to 2nd, it's incredibly tough to make the jump from 2nd to 1st. For reasons unexplained, the leader of the pack always ends up miles ahead of every other car on the track, so it'll take some serious maneuvers to take the checkered flag.

Game Mechanics:

Although there's a good deal of goodies to unlock, it's all hindered by Cruis'n Velocity's complete lack of a battery save feature. Anytime a new secret is uncovered, you're given a password to write down instead of saving the data to memory. This'll drive anyone nuts, especially when you know the system has the capability to easily save the same data a thousand times over!

The controls are simple enough (brake, accelerate, reverse, gear shifts and clutch for Manual drive), but since nothing feels quite fast enough to work properly, everything ends up a sloppy mess. The game only seems decent when driving at top speeds, so that the background isn't so choppy and the cars don't slide nearly as much. This isn't the worst racing game out there, but the GBA library has far better to offer. Do yourself a favor and pick up GT Advance Championship or Konami Krazy Racers before getting anywhere near this Midway bomb.


-Ben Monkey, GameVortex Communications
AKA Ben Lewis

Nintendo GameBoy Advance Arcade Advanced Nintendo GameBoy Advance Guilty Gear X: Advance Edition

 
Game Vortex :: PSIllustrated