Sega Rally Revo
Posted November 17, 2007
Racing games have always been popular with console gamers. Who wouldn’t love the chance to race in some of the worlds most exotic cars and in location that you might never visit. Some of the more popular series to hit the market include both realist type games, such as the Forza series, and arcade racers, such as the Burnout series. In addition, there has been popular off-road racing series released by Sega. These games give racers challenging conditions, such as icy or muddy tracks. And while the Sega Rally series have always been more arcade racer oriented, they have in the past offered challenging races that relied on skill as much as they did luck.
Making their release on multiple systems, Sega Rally Revo brings the art of off-road racing and getting dirty to gamers. Here you can take your vehicle off the pavement and traverse ice covered roads, snowy peaks and mud laden tracks. Each environment will offer some different challenge you must overcome to finish first and take all the glory.
Gameplay:
For the most part, the transition to the small screen and controls on the PSP works. The game looks sharp on the bright screen offers much to the gamer. Not only do the vehicles have a realistic look to them, but as you drive through the dirt and mud your car will build up a layer of mud. In addition, the race tracks will retain the tire tracks made by the vehicles in previous laps. While it would have been nice to have those tracks effect your driving, they are nothing more then visual eye candy.
Another disappointing aspect of the game is that no matter how poorly you drive, you will easily complete each race and often times come in the top three spots. The race tracks are surrounded by invisible barriers that do nothing more then nudge you back on course when you run into them. One would think that they would at least affect your speed or direction of travel, but sadly no. In addition, the computer controlled vehicles do little more then move out of your way when you attempt to pass them. In other racing games, the computer drivers are actually aggressive and seek to cut you off and prevent you from passing them. In Rally Revo, they are more apt to slow down and move out of your way as if they are being driven by considerate people.
The game also suffers from the slow loading screens when setting up the race. I'm not sure if this is a result of the game or the system limitations itself. However it was a tad annoying when wanting to jump right into a race to watch a loading screen for a minute.
The game has three racing modes to it. Quick race allows you to jump right into a race by picking a track, your vehicle, tire type and transmission. Championship mode lets you unlock races and vehicles for other race circuits as you progress. Time Attack mode lets you try and best your fastest lap time.
In addition to the three modes discussed above, the ability to play with others expands the draw of the title. The game features ad-hoc mode for local multiplayer and Infrastructure mode that lets you connect through your wi-fi connection to players around the world. Sadly, in the number of times I tried to find a match, there were no other players in the game.
The actual gameplay was straightforward enough. Use the d-pad or analog stick to control your vehicle. The x button controls your speed while the o button is the handbrake and the square button is your actual brake. And while this sounds easy enough, you will notice that it will take you a little bit of time to get used to the control of the vehicle on the loose terrain. I found myself sliding all over the track and into walls or other cars while trying to maintain my racing line and corner around the turns. Most times you will employ only the handbrake through the sharper turns. For the majority of turns, you need only slow down to make your way through them.
After looking at the game on the other platforms, it appears that the actual gameplay on the PSP is a bit more simplistic and not as challenging. This is probably a curse and a blessing. For as much driving you have to do through the various races, the buttons and thumbstick layout on the PSP are uncomfortable after extended periods. I found myself completing races in blocks then taking a break to maintain the games appeal and not get burnt out. Still, the game does have appeal to fans of the off-road racing genre.
Graphics:
Visually, the game does look pretty good on the small screen of the PSP. Vehicles look fairly realistic and the track details are done well. As you drive your vehicle through the terrain, you will build up layers or dirt and mud that cover it. During each lap, you will see tracks made by previous vehicles. And while it adds a nice touch to the game, it does not seem that they do anything to effect your driving. Another thing that detracts from the game is the fact that no matter how much you bounce off the tracks obstacles, your vehicle will look and drive just like it did at the start of the race. While that isn’t necessarily a negative against the graphics, it would have been nice to see deformation in the look of the vehicle.
Audio:
Perhaps it is just my being used to other racing games or my expectations, but there was not a whole lot of excitement to be found in Sega Rally Revo for your ears. Sure, you can listen to the sound your vehicle makes as you drive around the track. Or perhaps you may hear the sound of cars colliding when you hit a barrier or another vehicle. And while those are fairly realistic, there is just a sense of something missing.
Replay Factor:
There is much in the way of replay factor, if you do not get burned out by the gameplay too quickly. The pick up and play nature of the Quick Race lets you jump right into a number of races will do much to ensure repeat play. In addition the Championship mode will allow you to unlock more car classes as you progress. The Time Attack mode will be fun for those that continually like to improve their race times.
Perhaps where the most reply could have factored in is the multiplayer portion of the game. However, you will have an extremely hard time finding any races. The number of times that I attempted to do so, I found no other player racing. So, while the online portion is a nice thought, it fails because there are no players to play with.
Conclusion:
As fun as the game sounds in concept, it fails to offer a truly satisfying experience to the gamer. While the game offers much in the way of variety choosing races and vehicles, it cannot make up for the lackluster offering. There is really little in the way of challenge as the computer controlled vehicles almost seem to move out of your way as you pass the. In addition, there is really no consequences for constantly crashing into obstacles as your vehicle will stay intact and drive the same as it did at the start of the race. The only realistic touch in the game is the fact that your vehicle becomes covered in dirt as you race along the tracks. Had the game offered more in the way of a challenge this game could have been a bit more fun. As it was, it seemed that without much effort, you could roll right through each of the races and win them easily. All in all, the game does not come close to being the worst racer out there, but it certainly is not one of the better ones.
Making their release on multiple systems, Sega Rally Revo brings the art of off-road racing and getting dirty to gamers. Here you can take your vehicle off the pavement and traverse ice covered roads, snowy peaks and mud laden tracks. Each environment will offer some different challenge you must overcome to finish first and take all the glory.
Gameplay:
For the most part, the transition to the small screen and controls on the PSP works. The game looks sharp on the bright screen offers much to the gamer. Not only do the vehicles have a realistic look to them, but as you drive through the dirt and mud your car will build up a layer of mud. In addition, the race tracks will retain the tire tracks made by the vehicles in previous laps. While it would have been nice to have those tracks effect your driving, they are nothing more then visual eye candy.
Another disappointing aspect of the game is that no matter how poorly you drive, you will easily complete each race and often times come in the top three spots. The race tracks are surrounded by invisible barriers that do nothing more then nudge you back on course when you run into them. One would think that they would at least affect your speed or direction of travel, but sadly no. In addition, the computer controlled vehicles do little more then move out of your way when you attempt to pass them. In other racing games, the computer drivers are actually aggressive and seek to cut you off and prevent you from passing them. In Rally Revo, they are more apt to slow down and move out of your way as if they are being driven by considerate people.
The game also suffers from the slow loading screens when setting up the race. I'm not sure if this is a result of the game or the system limitations itself. However it was a tad annoying when wanting to jump right into a race to watch a loading screen for a minute.
The game has three racing modes to it. Quick race allows you to jump right into a race by picking a track, your vehicle, tire type and transmission. Championship mode lets you unlock races and vehicles for other race circuits as you progress. Time Attack mode lets you try and best your fastest lap time.
In addition to the three modes discussed above, the ability to play with others expands the draw of the title. The game features ad-hoc mode for local multiplayer and Infrastructure mode that lets you connect through your wi-fi connection to players around the world. Sadly, in the number of times I tried to find a match, there were no other players in the game.
The actual gameplay was straightforward enough. Use the d-pad or analog stick to control your vehicle. The x button controls your speed while the o button is the handbrake and the square button is your actual brake. And while this sounds easy enough, you will notice that it will take you a little bit of time to get used to the control of the vehicle on the loose terrain. I found myself sliding all over the track and into walls or other cars while trying to maintain my racing line and corner around the turns. Most times you will employ only the handbrake through the sharper turns. For the majority of turns, you need only slow down to make your way through them.
After looking at the game on the other platforms, it appears that the actual gameplay on the PSP is a bit more simplistic and not as challenging. This is probably a curse and a blessing. For as much driving you have to do through the various races, the buttons and thumbstick layout on the PSP are uncomfortable after extended periods. I found myself completing races in blocks then taking a break to maintain the games appeal and not get burnt out. Still, the game does have appeal to fans of the off-road racing genre.
Graphics:
Visually, the game does look pretty good on the small screen of the PSP. Vehicles look fairly realistic and the track details are done well. As you drive your vehicle through the terrain, you will build up layers or dirt and mud that cover it. During each lap, you will see tracks made by previous vehicles. And while it adds a nice touch to the game, it does not seem that they do anything to effect your driving. Another thing that detracts from the game is the fact that no matter how much you bounce off the tracks obstacles, your vehicle will look and drive just like it did at the start of the race. While that isn’t necessarily a negative against the graphics, it would have been nice to see deformation in the look of the vehicle.
Audio:
Perhaps it is just my being used to other racing games or my expectations, but there was not a whole lot of excitement to be found in Sega Rally Revo for your ears. Sure, you can listen to the sound your vehicle makes as you drive around the track. Or perhaps you may hear the sound of cars colliding when you hit a barrier or another vehicle. And while those are fairly realistic, there is just a sense of something missing.
Replay Factor:
There is much in the way of replay factor, if you do not get burned out by the gameplay too quickly. The pick up and play nature of the Quick Race lets you jump right into a number of races will do much to ensure repeat play. In addition the Championship mode will allow you to unlock more car classes as you progress. The Time Attack mode will be fun for those that continually like to improve their race times.
Perhaps where the most reply could have factored in is the multiplayer portion of the game. However, you will have an extremely hard time finding any races. The number of times that I attempted to do so, I found no other player racing. So, while the online portion is a nice thought, it fails because there are no players to play with.
Conclusion:
As fun as the game sounds in concept, it fails to offer a truly satisfying experience to the gamer. While the game offers much in the way of variety choosing races and vehicles, it cannot make up for the lackluster offering. There is really little in the way of challenge as the computer controlled vehicles almost seem to move out of your way as you pass the. In addition, there is really no consequences for constantly crashing into obstacles as your vehicle will stay intact and drive the same as it did at the start of the race. The only realistic touch in the game is the fact that your vehicle becomes covered in dirt as you race along the tracks. Had the game offered more in the way of a challenge this game could have been a bit more fun. As it was, it seemed that without much effort, you could roll right through each of the races and win them easily. All in all, the game does not come close to being the worst racer out there, but it certainly is not one of the better ones.