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Tomorrow's Hottest Racers
by Jeremy Horwitz for Gamers Today
Three-dimensional driving simulations first came into their own with the introduction of 32-bit game consoles such as the PlayStation, Saturn and 3DO Interactive Multiplayer. Titles such as Virtua Racing, Ridge Racer and Daytona USA defined a new generation of arcade-style driving games that blended 3-D polygon models with a previously unseen level of simulated speed and intensity; doses of realism, either in recognizable car models or grittier subject matter, were introduced in original console titles such as Need For Speed, Driver and Destruction Derby. Today, many different types of driving games cater to a diverse set of gamers' interests: a number of games let you race real car brands with real handling dynamics, others throw away the realism for pure racing speed and thrills, and some toss in extra action that somehow complements the driving. Five current and upcoming titles already stand out from the rest, and we discuss them here.
Crazy Taxi: Identical to yet surpassing the popular Sega arcade game, Crazy Taxi for the Dreamcast is a race against time to collect fares from taxi passengers in two huge cities adapted loosely from Los Angeles and San Francisco. Most impressively, the cities are totally open for free-roaming 3-D exploration, literally packed with other cars, hidden secret routes and beautiful scenery. Your cash tips and play time increase if you drive fast, avoid accidents, and pull off stunts to impress your passengers. Stunt driving can be practiced in a series of impressive practice courses not found in the arcade game, and one of the two cities is exclusive to this just-released Dreamcast version. A modestly annoying alternative rock soundtrack is the only point detracting from an otherwise spectacular experience.
Driver 2: One of the breakaway titles of 1999 was GT Interactive's PC and PlayStation game Driver, a thrilling hybrid of racing and 1970's-influenced cops-and-robbers getaway action. Planned for release in 2000 is Driver 2, which will have more vehicles moving around in each of the four new and much larger cities (Chicago, Las Vegas, Rio and Havana), dedicated racing segments with city-based obstacles, and one major new feature - the ability to jump out of your car and commandeer other vehicles on the road, such as trucks and buses. An enhanced version of the first game's 3-D engine means that the graphics won't receive a dramatic overhaul, and the same physics engine will power the animations and handling of in-game vehicles, but there weren't enough complaints about the first Driver to worry us about the second. PC and PlayStation versions of the sequel are definitely planned; a PlayStation 2 version is quite likely.
Gran Turismo 2000: Leading the pack in simulating "real" driving, Sony's Gran Turismo series has been held back by only one thing - the limitations of the PlayStation's processing power. Previous Turismo incarnations included more than 500 authentic Japanese, American and European cars, 20 different tracks, and all sorts of practice stages set up as licensing tests to test the player's skill at handling different vehicles - each of these features contributed to making the Turismo series the most realistic ever developed. On the down side, the action was somewhat sluggishly paced and the graphics were occasionally chunky; Gran Turismo 2000 for the PlayStation 2 solves these problems - it has a smoother frame rate, faster car movement, far more detailed cars and softer edges, textures and backgrounds. Moreover, GT2000 has all sorts of special effects that the original PlayStation versions couldn't handle - motion blur, road haze, and more detailed real-time lighting and reflection effects. What to look out for? Possible development delays could push its release past its current Fall 2000 target date.
Ridge Racer V: If Gran Turismo 2000 is the PlayStation 2's 'realistic' driving simulation, the sixth title in Namco's vaunted racing series is the machine's leading "arcade" driving experience. (The previous four PlayStation Ridge Racer games, including RR1, RR Revolution, Rage Racer and RR Type 4, were smash hits.) Ridge Racer V zooms past even Namco's high-powered arcade-exclusive title Rave Racer, utilizing virtually perfect looking 3-D sports car models and a professionally composed techno soundtrack. The result of Namco's hurried development work is the cleanest, sharpest looking version of Ridge Racer yet, but somewhat of a retread of earlier titles in the series. Though Namco promises some brand new track designs, the rush to deliver RRV in time for the launch of the PlayStation 2 has detracted from the company's time to develop complex scenery, which presently looks much the same as that found in earlier and much less powerful Ridge Racer games. Even if only a subtle departure from its predecessors, there's little question that RRV will still be THE racer to purchase alongside a new PS2 console.
Sega GT: Sega was rocking the world with realistic driving simulators before Sony even knew how to program games, and Sega knew that something was wrong when the realistic Gran Turismo series became more popular than Sega's biggest hits. In response, Sega covertly developed Sega GT: Homologation Special - a realistic Dreamcast formula racing game with 100 real cars taken from leading Japanese auto manufacturers. Though Gran Turismo 2000 is likely to offer far more cars and a dramatically higher level of realism, Sega's track record of successful arcade-style racer development will likely make Sega GT a more intense experience with just enough real cars and features to satisfy most gamers. At the very least, it will hold racing fans' attention until Sega can produce a Dreamcast translation of the arcade racing title Daytona USA 2.
