Midway Arcade Treasures 3
Score: 88% ESRB: Everyone Publisher: Midway Developer: Digital Eclipse Media: DVD/1 Players: 1 - 4 Genre: Racing/ Arcade
Graphics & Sound: The games included in Midway Arcade Treasures 3 are exact emulations of their arcade counterparts. Every game, whether 2D or 3D, looks exactly like it did in the arcade, for better or worse. While the look is nostalgic and exact, nothing has been done to make these games run more smoothly than they did when they inhabited the machines in the arcades. This means that whatever slowdown or glitches were present then are still present on the PS2. While this isn’t that big of a deal, and doesn’t affect gameplay too terribly much, it would have been nice to have had these games cleaned up a bit. The sound follows close suit; everything is in the same condition as it once was many years ago. There are fewer flaws with the sound and, while there is nothing wrong with the original tracks, it would have been nice had they been cleaned up a bit. The only addition to these features is the inclusion of an art gallery that while comprehensive, won’t appeal to too many people.
Gameplay: Midway Arcade Treasures 3 is a compilation of Midway’s 8 greatest arcade racing games. All of the classics are accounted for here including Stun Runner, Race Drivin’, Off Road, the Thunder games, and two of the Rush titles. These are all classics in their own right, and just a handful of the old ones are worth the purchase of this game alone. Some of these games are extremely old in terms of arcade titles. For those whose memories fail them, Race Drivin’ and Stun Runner are a couple of the first 3D games ever seen in an arcade. One is a hardcore driving sim that few people were able to master. The other is a futuristic race that takes place primarily inside of a tube and allows you to equip your racing vehicle with armor and guns. The Thunder games, including Hydro Thunder and Off Road Thunder, are somewhat newer, and have more of an emphasis on crazy jumps and destroying your opponents’ vehicles. The Rush games, including Rush: The Rock and Rush: 2049, have less emphasis on destruction but no less emphasis on speed. Thankfully you have the ability to dump unlimited virtual quarters into these games, allowing you to buy back all the money you may have once spent on these titles. The Off Road games benefit particularly well from this feature, because if you remember, after each race you can spend your winnings on new equipment for your cars. Up to 4 people can play the games that originally supported it, most notably Off Road and Bad Lands. These games are a blast when you and your friends send the Micro-Machine like vehicles around the obscenely bumpy tracks. What is lacking is any type of internet support, so you’ll have to content yourself to playing against those who you can invite over to your house.
Difficulty: Between the 8 different games in Midway Arcade Treasures 3, the difficulty varies drastically. The older the game, the more difficult it is, as arcade games were much less forgiving back in the day. That isn’t to say that the newer ones won’t give you any challenge. Though there are no real difficulty settings, most of the newer games allow you to choose between differently ranked vehicles that are easier or harder to use.
Game Mechanics: As the games in Midway Arcade Treasures 3 are exact emulations of their arcade counterparts, the controls are also still configured the same way. Some of these games were played with a steering wheel, and while the analog controls are adequate enough to control the vehicles, some inconsistencies arise. These are mainly in menu interfaces where you have to select things radially instead of in a list. What will ultimately decide whether you like these games is whether or not they caught your fancy in the arcade. Most were rival titles of other racing games of the time, and so they found niche markets that could be pulled away from the competitors. However, the older games should not be missed by anybody with an interest in arcade racing titles, and the light price tag of $19.99 should be a good reason to invest in this package deal.
-Snow Chainz, GameVortex Communications AKA Andrew Horwitz
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