Roadsters
Score: 78% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: Interplay Developer: Titus Media: CD/1 Players: 1 - 2 Genre: Racing
Graphics & Sound: Roadsters for the PlayStation looks quite lackluster. I found this very disappointing, as I had enjoyed it on the Nintendo 64 and couldn't wait to see what this game could look like on the PlayStation. Unfortunately, what was released may have been for the PlayStation, but it was not optimized for PlayStation. The graphics look like a direct port from the N64. While this might sound like a good idea, the PlayStation and the N64 are built differently and need to be programmed as such. The menu screens on the PlayStation version have 'system generated' music, instead of CD-based music. The N64 obviously would not have had CD-based music, since it doesn't play CD’s, but it would have been an obvious point to look for improvement on the PlayStation version. In addition, some of the cool 'motion' features of the tracks have been removed, assumedly due to the differences in the 3D capabilities of the machines. The end result? The PlayStation version not only lacks improvements over the N64 version, but actually has some elements removed. In addition, the graphics have a problem with 'draw in.' This is a carry over from the N64 version, but it is worse on the PlayStation version. (In the multi-player mode, certain parts of the track have such slow draw in that I kept expecting to hear Bob Ross' voice saying something about 'happy little trees'...) The sounds are not horrible, but were (again) better on the N64 version. In Roadsters for the N64, you could REALLY hear the difference when you drove into or out of a tunnel. In the PSX version, the difference is very subtle.
Gameplay: The one big problem I had with the N64 version of Roadsters was the Nintendo controller. Their 'innovative' three-handed (?!) controller design often gets in the way of enjoying a game. You therefore can imagine the excitement I felt at the possibility of playing this game on the PlayStation, with the (much better) PlayStation control setup. Well, whereas 'control' was the one main problem with the N64 version of Roadsters, it is the one saving grace of the PlayStation version. Unfortunately (but not surprisingly), control alone is not enough to 'carry' a game. If you can get past graphics that are extremely sub-par, there are several small problems with the gameplay. One annoying problem is the inability to exit out of the Roadster Trophy once it's begun. You can pause the game and select 'Quit,' but that will only quit the current race, not the whole tourney. Also, the game has the tendency to bump your opponent forward and you backwards in almost all collisions. This can look quite unnatural, unfair, and downright strange when you start to 'edge out' an opponent, only to see them quickly slide along the side of your car and out in front of you. (Kinda like squeezing a really wet bar of soap...)
Difficulty: The opponents in Roadsters are difficult to beat. Typically, this is due to the game favoring them in collisions and times that you just can't seem to gain speed. With the graphics lacking as they do, possibly the most 'difficult' part is trying to really get 'into' the game. If you've played racing games before, you can play Roadsters (although you probably won't want to).
Game Mechanics: Mechanically, Roadsters for the PlayStation is a serious disappointment. Based on other racing games available for the PlayStation (the Gran Turismo series, the Ridge Racer series, the Need For Speed series...), it is obvious that the PlayStation is capable of better looking, more entertaining, racing games than Roadsters. Possibly the saddest part is that Roadsters had a lot of potential. The ideas behind the game were pretty solid, and the graphics in the N64 version were not half bad. Actually, the N64 version really made the N64 sing, showing off how good system generated music could be and dazzling the gamer with eye candy - even in the menu screens. The PlayStation version shows how bad system generated music can be (and why systems should have the ability to play CD quality music...) and rewards the gamer with eye candy that isn't, and reduced polygon models that look sicker the closer you look at them. Add this to the fact that any non-vehicular movement has been removed from the game, and I can only assume that the programmers had a problem trying to get the PlayStation to run as many polygons as they used in the N64 version... and that they probably relied heavily on the built-in 3D functions of the N64 to achieve their effects on the N64. The last word? If you have a N64, rent Roadsters... you might want to pick it up. If you're considering picking it up for the PlayStation, you'd probably be better off with another racing game.
-Geck0, GameVortex Communications AKA Robert Perkins
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