Gale Racer

Gale Racer is a port of the arcade game Rad Mobile. I'm not sure how close it is to the original as I never got to try it but I'm willing to bet this is a horrible port. Is the game fun though? Well, in some ways it's mildly entertaining, even with all of the technical flaws. As you may know, the point of the game is to race across the US against a horde of opponents, anything goes. Sounds like a nice premise. Let's have a look at the game shall we?

You may be wondering "How in the world can Saturn handle a "track" as large as the whole US?", the answer is, it can't. So it is split up into sections. Those who have played Cruisin' USA will be familiar with the setup. Each state is it's own little course, you just head straight down the path to the end, there are no "laps". Not only are your rivals on the road but you have to contend with Traffic as well, not to mention there is a clock ticking away. A good way to explain it would be to call it a mix between Outrun and Cruisin' USA in crappy "Wanna Be" 3D. The graphics are quite bad, this can be partially excused as this is an early release. Although, they don't really detract from the game, I wouldn't come here expecting great graphics. The pop up is horrible. You can only see a car length ahead of you at any given time. The "courses" range from cool to "blah". The horrible pop up can detract from you getting "into" the game, but it doesn't really affect game play. One small plus is all of the little graphical touches the developers threw in. Such as a Sonic hanging from the rearview mirror that swings as you drive or the ability to use your wipers and lights. Also, at times your rivals feel the need to throw soda cans at your car! Little things, I know, but they help to add to the setting.The control is pretty responsive.It handles much more like the older 2D racers(Chase HQ, Rad Racer) than the 3D racers. This can help or hurt the game depending on your preference of handling.

Replay value....hmmm....well, it is an arcade port. I beat the game in 16 minutes on my first try. I'm sure I could do it a lot quicker with more practice. So in other words, the game is rather short. I mean, you can keep going back through it to break your records if that's your thing but there isn't much apart from that. This is a game that I consider the perfect rental, only two problems, one: it is import only and two:No one rents Saturn games anymore! I honestly can't recommend it. I had some fun with it after I gave it a chance, but I just don't see myself going back to it. That's not to say its a bad game or anything, just not something I consider a "keeper".......

©2001 Ed Finnegan

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