Pros: Graphics, Gameplay, Multiplayer
Cons: Gameplay and Controls Often Frustrating
The bottom line: A Great and Challenging Game, which can also be Frustrating.
I went to EBX looking for a quick fix. I was looking for a game that I didn’t really have to think or require a lot of time. I wan interested in some mindless entertainment, since I have been real busy these days. So I asked my friends who work there what games they recommended for some short, quick fun. My friend directed me to Re-Volt, which was only $15 new, so I picked it up.

Some of you old school gamers may remember RC Pro-Am for the Nintendo. Well, revolt is much like a modern day 3d version of the original game. There are more cars to choose from, more interesting track designs, and of course, ridiculously better graphics and sound. However, the controls are very similar to RC Pro-Am, they are difficult.


Graphics

The graphics for Re-Volt are nothing less than outstanding. One of the tracks that stood out the most is the museum course. It felt like a sheer display of showing off, as they constantly through beautiful, sharply defined graphics, coated in transparencies, reflective surfaces, high detailed texturing, and colored lighting at you. It was a marvel to watch as I flew around the course, and it was distracting as well. It was one of the best graphical displays that I have witnessed by the Dreamcast.


Sound

The sound effects were pretty good. They weren’t amazing like the graphics, or as intricate as the sounds on Gran Tourismo were. However they weren’t corny, low quality, cheap sounds like you often here in games of this nature. However, I thought the entire game was done well, and the developers obviously spent a lot of time on it.

The music on the other hand my friends and I found to be quite annoying. The game plays a few corny, pop/techno tracks. They get old real fast, like the first time that you hear them.


Control

The controls are irritating. However, they are pretty darn realistic. If you have ever raced your RC cars around, you can tell that they are difficult to control and handle. Rc cars don’t have tight intricate handling. Add the high speeds that you race in the game with that, and you get tough handling. As frustrating as it was at times, I thought they did a great job of creating a realistic driving engine while maintaining its playability. Is playability a word? It must be, MS Word didn’t freak out when I typed it.

The controls also differ depending on the model of car you are driving. This was a nice touch, especially since I felt that they did a realistic job of simulating how each car would handle. I’ll get more to that later though.


Gameplay

While often frustrating, Re-Volt is also A LOT OF FUN. I’ve tried several different cars. I started with the monster truck, however I felt with its weight that it dragged too much on turns. It is also a much bigger target for your opponents. Next I switched to the Sprinter XL, a small fast, quick, lightweight car. I flew though the first course, however it failed me later on. It was just too lightweight, and every little thing on the course tossed it around. Finally, I settled on Dr. Grudge. It’s a short, quick, buggy. The car is 4wd, so it handles very well all around, especially in harsher conditions like ice. The design of the cars actually effect gameplay too. The larger wheels extend out from the body of the car on all sides. This means that when I hit a curb, or a wall, I either crawl up or bounce off it. This gives you a great advantage, as opposed to other cars, which have bodies that extend past the wheels. When they hit a curb or wall, they stop, bounce back, or go flying off to the side. Curbs will often flip them over.

The game has several modes in single and multiplayer. In single player you have: Single Race, Time Trials, Championship, Stunt Arena, and Practice Mode. In multiplayer you have the choice of racing modes, or battle tag.

The Practice Mode is just like it sounds. It lets you choose any of the courses that you have unlocked and practice racing them. According to the manual, there are stars to be found in the practice mode that unlock stuff in the game. Other than these stars, the practice mode is a waste in my opinion. You are much better off practicing in the Time Trial mode.

The Time Trial mode is great. I originally played it to practice the distracting museum level that I discussed earlier. While racing, you see a big red countdown on top of the screen. This represents approximately the best time that you can get for the track. For the museum it was 47 seconds. In about 4 locations throughout the track, you also get little blue progress indicators that pop up. It lets you know if you are ahead or behind the pace that you need. I found both of these things to be even more distracting. However, while racing around with them, it helped me concentrate on my driving and the environment that much more. This really pays off when you are racing against other cars because there are that many more distractions on the course. Even though I wasn’t intending too, I eventually got caught up in beating that counter to the finish line. It happened when I noticed that I started getting close to the time. I was a second and a half off. So I started trying to beat it. I haven’t gotten into a game like I did at that point in a long time. I was totally drawn into it, every corner, my total focus on my driving. In the back of my mind I could hear myself remarking on the extremely impressive visuals, which looked that much more fantastic as I hurled through the course at mach1 speeds. I kept getting closer and closer, and when I messed up, I would calm down, and feel myself ease up. I’d take a deep replenishing breath, and take my time on the course, till I got the final bend. Then I took one last breath, picked my line, and floored it to get max speed going back into the lap again when the counter resets. I’d go several laps again till I messed up. During that time it was just me, the course, and that counter mocking me. Finally after about 45 minutes I started to lose interest. I never beat the counter. My best time was .037 seconds off. I came close many other times too. It was very intense, especially coming around the last few corners with several seconds to go. You take them extra tight, risking everything as you do it, to scrimp out that last half a second you need. I may have lost interest for now, but I’ll be back racing that clock again tomorrow.

In Championship Mode you try to finish in the top 3 spots as you race 7 computer opponents. As if the tracks weren’t tricky enough before, you now have other cars messing up and getting in your way, as well as launching weapons at you!!! This is a lot of fun, however, it is also VERY FRUSTRATING. Luck factor is a huge determining factor in this mode. You may be able to beat the time trial with your eyes closed, but that won’t help you when the monster truck is flipped over in front of you, or a giant ball, or someone is shooting rockets at you!! The ultimate weapon however is the oil slick, just like RC Pro-Am. One well-placed oil slick can make or break a race. The bottom line is that if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, then you are SCREWED. Like I said, it can be fun, but it can be very frustrating. You get 3 continues to finish in the top 3 spots throughout each racing circuit. There is a bronze, silver, and gold circuit that I know of, and probably special circuits that you can unlock.

The Singe Race Mode functions just like the Championship Mode, except there is only a single race.

The Stunt Arena seemed like it would be a lot of fun. I think I said “WooHoo” allowed the first time I went through the loop and grabbed my first star. I then got bored of it about a few minutes after, and switched modes.

One of the best parts of Re-Volt is the Multiplayer Mode. Racing friends is ok, but we had a lot of fun with 4-player battle tag. How does it work? Well you all four start out looking for the star hidden on the map. Whoever finds it becomes it. They have two minutes to avoid contact with another car till they win. If they touch or get close enough to another car, that person becomes it. The “it” car gives off a green glow to help you spot it. The last player to be it is the TRUE LOSER. Man it sucks to be him, I’m glad it was never I. It can get boring for the people who finish first. It helps if you have a computer or another console so that they have something else to do while the remaining people play tag. Overall, though, we all had a lot of blast screaming “NOOO NOO!!, and ARGH DAMNIT!, and YOU BASTARD!” at each other while we mercilessly hunted down our opponents and then drove like madmen trying to avoid the other players. LOTS OF FUN =)

The weapons in revolt have a lot to do with the game. In Battle Tag, Practice Mode, the Stunt Mode, and the Time Trials there are no weapons. However, whenever racing there are. The battery makes you go faster. The ball drops off behind you and blocks people. It rolls too, so keep that in mind when trying to use it. The battery is almost a weapon against you. It enhances your top speed and acceleration. This can make it impossible to control you car at some points. The only place that worked for me was right before you go up the escalators in the museum map. The oil slick is devastating, as it makes it impossible for other cars to handle once they hit it. It affects only the wheels that touch it, which shows the developers attention to detail. You can get either one or three rockets, which can home in on other cars. Water balloons come in threes, and they don’t home. Another weapon is the fake item icon, which is really a landmine. Don’t use it as a bit of tomfoolery, but rather treat it like a landmine and drop it at a choke point in the map. It will slow everyone down behind you that way. The lighting attack charges up on your car and zaps any car near you, draining their batter completely. This is one of the more devastating weapons. The star does the same thing, but to all cars instantly. The weapons make Re-Volt a lot more fun, and a lot more frustrating too.

Overall

Re-Volt for the Dreamcast is an outstanding game with a lot of attention to detail. It’s only drawback is the frustration factor which can be high. The cars are difficult to control, which is fair since they SHOULD be. However, with all the weapons in the game, it requires a lot of luck to actually accomplish anything in the game. And luck runs out quick when you only have 3 continue before you have to start a championship over again.