Speed Devils

Race for your life (and money) against a gang of thieves and low-lives through some of the nastiest real world environments the Devil can throw at you. Sound like a challenge? It is, and a whole lot of fun, in Ubi Soft's Speed Devils for Dreamcast.

Race for your life (and money) against a gang of thieves and low-lives through some of the nastiest real world environments the Devil can throw at you. Sound like a challenge? It is, and a whole lot of fun, in Ubi Soft's Speed Devils for Dreamcast.

The Devil Went Down To Dreamcast
Visually stunning arcade racing is now available for your home console with eleven devilishly tricky tracks and seventeen cunning racers that battle for salvation from the Devil. In Championship Mode you face off against the criminal underground, racing and wagering to customize your wheels and advance through the five circuits. You advance by accumulating points, which you receive for placing well in the race, but also for having the highest top speed, running the fastest lap, and by "busting the radar" - which means going over a certain speed when getting gunned. Each successful circuit you run opens up new tracks and cars in Arcade Mode, but be careful -- each racer is constantly at your heels, trying to take your money.

With several areas to master, and side wagers on every race, the replay value is very high, but it's the incredible tracks that make Speed Devils a winner. The spooky Nevada desert gives way to the lights of Las Vegas, the snow covered mountains and hills of Aspen and Canada counter the hot sun of Hollywood, and the swampy muck of the Louisiana Bayou dirties you up for the asphalt jungle of New York City. Each board has it's own character and is wildly interactive; there are shortcuts and a myriad of natural and technical disasters that happen throughout to keep you on your toes.

Running With The Devil
The Dreamcast's powerful graphics really shine on these race courses. Gorgeous lighting and weather effects (depending on time of day and season) along with the sheer size and bustle of the tracks makes it sometimes hard to concentrate on the road - especially since each board is so detailed and full of both local color and inside jokes. The game even randomizes certain elements of the track, so you are never quite sure of where you're going until after the first lap. The car graphics are equally stunning with a variety of unusual cars and paint jobs to choose from. The cars receive realistic, albeit very exaggerated, damage throughout the race. If you lose a headlight at night, you're stuck looking at a dark track. Get rear-ended a few times, and you'll lose a brake light. It's up to you and your earnings in Championship Mode to keep your car in tip-top shape.

Sound and control are not up to par with the graphics, however. The soundtrack is very run-of-the-mill -- you can ignore the bland music, but the sound effects are less than convincing. But it's in control where the biggest problems lie. First there's no reverse, so once you get stuck, you have to pound your way out, which soon becomes very aggravating. The cars themselves handle like big boats. You can't really power-slide (by hitting the emergency brake/Y button) through a curve with the set of cars you have to choose from in the beginning. You have to unlock a fast sports car to do it, and even then it is less than adequate.

The Devil Made Me Do It
With its powerhouse combination of superb graphics, intense racing fun and replayablity, it would be a sin not to get Speed Devils for your Dreamcast. It's a shame that it couldn't be as consistently saint-like throughout.

Comments [0]

post a comment

Post a Comment