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"HEADS UP!"
I've thoroughly enjoyed reviewing the many ports Electronic Arts did of their 3DO projects; unless I'm very mistaken most of EA's games released during the first year of the PSX/Saturn 32-bit cycle were 3DO ports. Common sense says that since very few Americans bought into Trip Hawkins' vision of gaming, these titles would enjoy new life and strong sales on better-selling systems. I don't know about you, but this theory is flawed by the fact that it is early adopters that keep a new product in business (you know, the 80 percent sales done by 20 percent of the consumer base?), and many of those who got a 3DO moved to Saturn and found the exact same game with minor upgrades. "Road Rash", sadly, fits the bill to perfection and doesn't deserve to be sought by those who have held onto your 3DO and a copy of the game. Saturn newbies, though, should read on and see if this title is worth the $20 bucks many stores are asking for. I'd say go for it!
This title was the first A-caliber game to reach 3DO back in August of 1994, and the end of the drought that plagued the machine since its introduction; slowly we started to get the likes of "FIFA Soccer '95", "Super Street Fighter II Turbo", "The Need For Speed", etc. An enhanced version of the best-selling Genesis game with no gameplay changes and multimedia improvements galore, "Road Rash" was to 3DO what "Virtua Fighter 2" was to Saturn and "Super Mario 64" was to the N64: da bomb! Eight different bikers, five different West Coast tracks (which can range from 5 to 15 miles depending on the challenge level you choose), and the ability to customize and upgrade your bike with all the cash you earn by finishing first. That of course assumes that you can survive your fellow biker's pushing and shoving, the motorcycle cop on your tail every other mile, and the traffic coming your way. Can you find the "Way"... the "Way of the Wa..."; done that already? Sorry!
GRAPHICS / VISUALS: B
Unlike "Shockwave Assault", "Road Rash" has a 3D engine that exploited the Opera system and got a sense of speed that, at the time, was unequaled in any other console system. The Saturn port duplicates that feel exactly like it did on 3DO, and that's a good thing considering "Space Hulk" looked worse on the newer machines. A few more frames were added to the animation of the bikers, and the scrolling of the background sky and picture are smoother; other than that, they're the same! The menu screens are filled with surreal punk art that depicts the Generation X attitude the game's going for, and in my case it puts me in the mood to kick serious asphalt! Axle and Pearl McHurdy must be destroyed, I'm telling you! Sadly, no new digitized art was added to the Saturn version.
The FMV cinematics made the cut with slight improvements in the compression; they are used to set up the game and to reward your victories and mock your failures. It's well edited (I should know, since that's what I do for a living) and can still get me chuckling: the trashy dame that sticks her high heel on your...ehh..."package", the cop that handcuffs you to the back of the car and drives away, the driver that leaves you for dead after a crash, etc. They're all a riot, and an adequate use of the Saturn's ability. I wonder, though, if it is all this FMV that makes the loading from the CD such a pain.
Since the original 3DO game wasn't polygon-based (the Opera system was, after all, a glorified sprite-moving machine), the sprites that compromise the layout of the five tracks may seem like old news in the era of "Ridge Racer" and "Manx TT". Trees, buildings, vehicles and other road-side attractions fly by at incredible speeds, but pixilate like a "Doom" reject when viewed up-close. The same goes for the pedestrians that'll get run over by you and your fellow bikers: at high speeds they resemble what they're supposed to be, but up-close that old lady is kinda-square if you ask me (Jo, jo, jo! I'm so funny!).
MUSIC / SOUND EFFECTS: B+
Game designers have to be careful, when they incorporate music into their games, not to appeal to too narrow an audience. After all, musical tastes are just as picky as movie, TV and gaming tastes. "Road Rash" has gone for the Gen.X slacker market, and with EA's partnership with A&M Records we get music from the likes of Therapy, Paw and Soundgarden. Would have been great to hear those tunes during the race, though, instead of the unoriginal but acceptable generic rock used during the race; the good tunes are relegated to the menu screens. The FMV and the gameplay effects are great: chains being struck against your bike, the siren of the cops as they approach your vehicle (and they vanish as you push the cop against an incoming truck...Hee Haw!), the punches and their kicks as they squeak through oil pools littering the roads, etc. As usual with all 32-bit titles released by Electronic Arts the Dolby Surround technology allows for a complete involvement in the race; the siren will increase or decrease depending on how far have you outrunned the law!
GAMEPLAY / FUN FACTOR: B+
Could easily be an A, but this game hasn't really evolved since the first Genesis title. Race, move left or right, punch and/or kick left and right, dodge traffic and WATCH OUT FOR THAT...TREEE! ("Thank you, Thank you very much! I'll be at the Hilton in Atlantic City on the 24th"). Still fun and still worth wasting a few hours in order to knock that cop off his bike; you couldn't get away with that in real life, which is why I love videogames. It is hard to get in the top three circle during a race if you engage in fighting, but as a straight racer the game's visuals just aren't compelling enough. Fighting is "Road Rash"'s middle-name, but you better be good at it because if you hit a wall or fall into a lake you may have to start all over empty-handed. I'd suggest you start racing as much as possible at the beginning of the game in order to build enough cash to upgrade or buy a new bike. That way you can kick ass and not worry about falling too far behind. You may run over as many pedestrians and old ladies crossing the streets on walkers as you please (sick!), with no worries until a cop lays a hand on you and to the patrol car's trunk you go!
Five courses are still better that two, even if the two are polygon-filled and have mirror variations ("Manx TT" anyone?). The courses have different terrains, have detours and are based (loosely!) on West Coast locations the California developers interact with. "The City" has scenes that are reminiscent of Highway 1 and Potrero Hill, real-life locations of San Francisco. "The Sierras" and "Napa Valley" are reminiscent of the coastal roads seen in Oregon and Washington State. Level-design can elevate a game like "San Francisco Rush" and "Powerslave" to a higher plane, and "Road Rash" has five courses that are extremely well-designed. The repeating scenery, though, can grow tiresome and boring (HINT: try to stop next to a cow and move slowly toward it; they'll act like an elephant seeing a mouse in a Warner Brothers cartoon).
OVERALL: B-
Needless to say, 3DO owners have been happy with their game for over three years now and don't need to trade it or unload it anytime soon (you couldn't get more that a couple of bucks anyway), since the Saturn version released in 1996 sports few noticeable improvements. Those new to "Road Rash"-ing can't do better than this title, since the only other alternatives in the genre are Sega-developed racers that emphasize speed over fighting: "Hang-On GP" (good graphics but awful controls sink this puppy fast!), and the recently-released "Manx TT". Although dated, a gamer who wants to kick butt and not get a split head in the process can do no better than "Road Rash" on Saturn (and PSX too!). The killer-app for the 32-bit console of yesterday is worth checking in the competing platform that will soon join it in gaming heaven. Who ever said life was fair? (Rush Limbaugh probably, but what does he know anyway?).
