Vigilante 8

by Air Hendrix
January 01, 2000 00:00 AM PST

Vigilante 8 could have been a hack-job port of the PlayStation code, but instead, the game's been retooled and tweaked for its new platform - and the effort shows, N64 car-combat fans, start your engines!

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Vigilante 8 brings car combat to the Nintendo 64 at last--and what an explosive 64-bit debut for the genre! This baby's had a tune-up since it hit the PlayStation roadways, making this year's model worth more than just a test drive.

Ridin' Shotgun
V8 takes place in an alternate 1975 where rival automotive gangs rule the Southwest in the midst of an oil shortage. Each gang member has a unique car, weapon, and quest, but they all share the same tools of the trade: rockets, mortars, mines, and lead-pumping machine guns!

The gameplay hasn't strayed from its PlayStation incarnation--there's plenty of chaotic blasting in airport graveyards, through casinos, and on the slopes of a ski resort. The bad guys' goals (destroy stuff!) are easier to achieve than the good guys' (defend stuff!), but you'll want to play through every character's quest to unlock the game's goodies. Up to four players can battle it out in cooperative quests, head-to-head battles, team games, and the three-on-one Smear mode. Through it all, the controls feel instantly comfortable and quite responsive.

What a Wonderful World
V8's interactive stages make the game much more enjoyable and its world more engrossing. While you whale away on punks and fools, you can catch a ride in a blimp, knock around boulders, dodge exploding manhole covers, trigger avalanches, and destroy buildings to reveal power-ups. The terrain's a veritable treasure trove, and it's worth exploring.

And what a nice-looking world you have to explore. The Nintendo 64's graphical power really comes into play here; the levels are filled with crisp objects and coated with smooth textures. Plus, Luxoflux (the developers) put the pedal to the metal to get a fine frame rate.

The PlayStation game's '70s soundtrack returns, this time adding some pompous art rock to its established mix of funk and disco. The characters' melodramatic taunts sound a bit silly, but at least they're clear.

High Caliber
Vigilante 8 could have been a hack-job port of the PlayStation code, but instead, the game's been retooled and tweaked for its new platform--and the effort shows. N64 car-combat fans, start your engines!