THE NEED FOR SPEED INDEED
A Review of Road and Track's The Need for Speed
by Michael J. Bertrand
There are many kinds of hobbyists out there, and many video games to suit them. There's the war history buffs, who spend hours satisfying Nobunaga's Ambition or building and defending their Civilizations. Then there's the martial arts fans, who love to engage in Mortal Combat, and have been a Street Fighter for years. And you've got the fantasy fans, whose shelves are lined with the gold boxes of the SSI AD&D games and bought Myst the day it came out.
This game (Road and Track's The Need For Speed) is one for the car fans.
Notice I did not say for "car game fans". As a car game, it is only fair at best. But as a game for fans of hot, fast vehicular transportation, it's an excellent buy.
The pros : I was extremely impressed with the information provided with each car. You can look under the hood, check out the performance stats, even delve into the history of the car. Each area is presented as text on the screen, as well as read by a guy who sounds just nerdy enough to make you believe he really does work for a car magazine. The only improvement I can think of for this aspect of the title is to have it read by Tim Allen instead, so he can make those amusing grunt noises afterwards that got him a sitcom. "UH uh uh oooooh.... "
Also included with each car is a piece of promotional film. You know, the kind of quick- cut, artfully-directed, MTV-style slices of auto erotica which make you feel like if you'd only buy this car, you'd not only be sexier, more interesting, and stop balding, but you'd possibly be in line for the throne of Valhalla someday. This does not really teach you anything about the car (essentially you're watching an ad for the car, and it's an ad you paid for) but it does contribute a fair bit to the feel and excitement of the title.
And this mood is translated into the game itself. Each car comes with its own genuine simulated dashboard, just like the real car's, and handles and performs like the real thing. They've even faithfully reproduced the sounds of the engine and the gears shifting for each vehicle. The overall feel of the game gives one an excellent impression of being behind the wheel of a high- class, high-powered vehicle. And they include a number of very interesting tracks so that you can try these machines out in every way imaginable, whether it's over a mountain road full of turns, or through a wooded area, or even through a stretch of busy city traffic.
This leads me to my main critique of the title, and it's not a
particularly severe one. It's the
one I mentioned before : this is a great game for car fans, but only so-so
for car GAME fans.
Everything is geared towards car enthusiasts, and the actual gameplay I feel
was often considered
to be secondary to the principle aim of letting you drive a million dollars
worth of car for the price
of this CD. Seeing as this game was produced with Road and Track, and that
there are certainly
no shortage of car enthusiasts out there, this is not a major flaw. But if
you're thinking of buying
this title but you've no particular interest in driving these cars, and
you're just looking for a high-
quality car driving game, you've been warned.
My second problem with this title is that, when I played it on my 486-66, the graphics looked a little sparse, and sometimes a little choppy. A 486-66 is the minimum requirement for the game, and it "recommends" that you have a Pentium 90. The Need for Speed Indeed.
Otherwise, on the technical side, the game works well. Its interface is smooth and fairly intuitive. The sounds are good, and the music is quite good, lots of high-energy heavy metal. The graphics (even on my machine) are quite realistic... perhaps a little TOO realistic. I realize that when you go through a tunnel when really driving, sometimes you get the sensation that you're going through the tunnel backwards. But was this little bit of realism really necessary?
Finally, the game is hindered by the fact that the high scores are based solely on time and are NOT broken down by car. This means that on most of the tracks, if you wish to make the Top Ten you'd be crazy not to take the car with the highest top speed, the Diablo. It would have been more effective to break down high scores by both car and track, as opposed to just track.
It all boils down to this : this is a great title for the readers of the magazine, and for car lovers in general. If your fantasy is to drive a Diablo, then this is the title for you. But if you truly want a game for speed, you'd probably be better off with NASCAR.
Gamer's Zone Scorecard
| Product: |
Road and Track's The Need for Speed |
| Company: |
n/a |
| Cost: |
$69.95 |
System Requirements:
486-66 or better, 8 megs of RAM
Breakdown:
Ease Of Use 3
Entertainment Value 3
Graphics 4
Sound 4
Overall Score:
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