Issue 7, May 2001
Editor’s letter
“As our canary yellow cover proudly wails like a
banshee, things are a bit more bright and breezy round these parts this month.
Why? Because of that cover game – the mighty Crazy Taxi. Not only is
this issue laden with the world exclusive review, but Acclaim’s game signifies
a few things. See, things are changing on PS2.
The Playstation 2 is – depending on which side up you
put the thing – a tall black monolith. It stands proud and erect next to your
telly and it looks right suave like. It has sophisticated games and
sophisticated titles to match – music generators, racing simulators,
otaku-pleasing mech games, harrowing sci-fi adventures. These are serious games
for serious gamers who might not be the black polo-neck-wearing pseuds that we
were once accused of being in a review of our magazine (Editor replies by
holding up handbag Vic and Bob style), but who do indeed give their games the
degree of respect they so rightly deserve.
And like us, they also like neon-splattered, dumb-assed,
retina-scorching fun as much as they dig realistic rally sims. Yes, we all like
trowelling the torque bars (or something) on one of Gran Turismo’s Dodge
Vipers, be we also like broadsliding a knackered Cadillac through a shop window
and stuffing the contents down our voluminous trousers. While the PSOne has had
the years under its belt to provide its audience with the breadth of games to
allow this kind of schizophrenic game-buying, the PS2 has until recently had
possibly more than its fair share of cyberpunk simulations overloaded with real-world
statistics.
No more. Yes, serious gamers will still have their
sophisticated games and sophisticated themes (and thank the Lord for that), but
we’ll increasingly have the choice to temper these temperate times with the PS2
equivalent of a fart gag. See Crazy Taxi, CART Fury, MDK 2: Armageddon, Giants:
Citizen Kabuto (take a look at the trailer on our DVD)… These games might
not affect your waking and sleeping hours a la Resident Evil, Gran Turismo 3
and the like, but they will have you laughing like a drain, which everyone
needs to do. PS2 will soon have the choice that PSOne gamers have had at their
fingertips for years and if Crazy Taxi is the first true example of
that, then bring it on.
Serious and funny. Light and shade. Murder and
mirth. Sim and simple. Looks like this Playstation 2 has got some real depth
after all.
Now, pull my finger…”
Mike Goldsmith, Senior Editor
Features
OPS2 Interview: Simon Jeffery
Morales Boost: MTV Music Generator 2
Holidays from Hell: Giants robots in New York, zombie mutants in Antarctica,
gun-toting Triad chefs in Beijing… These are the holiday locations to stay away
from because of game-related chaos.
War Games: As the title suggests, this feature covers various World War
2 games, with Commandos 2 leading the charge.
Zombie Nation: Resident Evil: Code Veronica X, featuring Dante
from the Devil May Cry series. The Devil May Cry demo bundled
with the game, to be exact.
A Day at the Races: Le Mans 24 Hours
Yokel Hero: Herdy Gerdy
Monthly Articles
The Beautiful Game – Stealing bits from other games and mashing them
together to make the ultimate super-game. This month, RPGs.
30 Days in Tokyo – We’ve had robot dogs and robot jellyfish, and this
month we’ve got robot cats. It’s called BN-1 and has 250 patterns of
expression.
The Grid – A head-to-head comparison of multiple upcoming games of a
similar genre or theme. This month, games based on cartoons.
5X5 – Asking 5 questions to 5 industry figures. This month’s theme: sex
in videogames.
Designer Genes – Readers write in with their game ideas and pitches.
This month, Gunners. Explore the universe in the distant future while
doin battle with the Bartak, a race of highly advanced space insects who are
masters of natural weaponry.
Game Over – Star Wars: Starfighter. The four heroes go their separate
ways, with Nym getting the focus because he’s the artist’s favourite character.
Previews
Fur Fighters – “A varied and challenging action / adventure with bags
of style and humour. Fur will definitely be back in fashion this summer.”
MTV Music Generator 2 – “Hear’Say better start to get worried. This
could make stars out of a few other nobodies...”
Dark Cloud – “Already doing the numbers in Japan, this RPG needs a
damned good tweaking before it’ll suit the less adventurous Western palate.”
Gauntlet: Dark Legacy – “Can Gauntlet: Dark Legacy be ‘it’ or
will the series die of starvation after shooting the food?
Rugby – “Braving foot and mouth, Rugby is puffing and panting to
the line. Will it touch down or not though?”
Red Faction – “Red Faction could put some of the Playstation 2’s
better first-person shooters to shame. Already impressive, the future beckon...”
NBA Street – “It’s still limbering up at court-side but NBA Street is
well on track to hit a tasty three-pointer from downtown.”
The Jungle Book: Groove Party – “It’s for kids, it’s for kidults, it’s
guaranteed to get you frugging – but for how long does the appeal of dancing
monkeys hold up?”
Wacky Races – The DC version was greatly loved, this enhanced PS2
version could be the cartoon equivalent of Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec? Well,
maybe.
ATV Offroad Fury – “Impressive physics, huge landscapes, buckets of fun
to play… Can the US-flavoured thrills of ATV offroad make a dent in the UK
charts?”
Reviews
Crazy Taxi – “Arcade action doesn’t come purer but the game is
inevitably looking old, especially with no new features. But if you want speed?
Buy this now!” 8/10
Formula One 2001 – “The best F1 game out there and inevitably, perfect
for fans – and fans only. Plenty of depth, but, for less committed boy racers,
it’ll feel too ‘simmy’.” 8/10
Operation Winback – “Severely lacking in variety but it’s an enjoyable
enough stealth shooter to pass the time until Metal Gear Solid 2 arrives.”
6/10
MDK 2: Armageddon – “A unique, challenging adventure with ideas
bursting out of its Coil Suit. Destined to become a true cult classic.” 8/10
Kengo: Master of Bushido – “Training mode is padding to make up for the
limited nature of the fast-paced bouts. Nevertheless, Kengo’s energetic
action is clever enough to warrant continued play.” 6/10
Ring of Red – “A great, highly original and engaging title. A must for
those in search of something different.” 8/10
Warriors of Might and Magic – “You bought a PS2 so you’d never again
have to play a game this bad. Make sure you don’t.” 3/10
All-Star Baseball 2002 – “Easy to dive into, but with plenty of hidden
depth. A sensibly designed, all-round game of baseball. Of course, it helps if
baseball is, like, your thing….” 7/10
Kuri Kuri Mix – “A bizarre blend of two player co-operation and
bloody-minded greed. Kuri Kuri is a worthwhile add to any collection.” 7/10
Army Men: Sarge’s Heroes 2 – “If 3DO focused on quality over quantity, bagging
a significant victory should have been easy. This poorly realised shooter will
recruit few gamers.” 3/10
PSOne Reviews
Time Crisis: Project Titan – “With a light gun it’s certainly fun, but
it’s too short, repetitive and lacks all-important two-player fun.” 6/10
Rugrats in Paris – “The graphics are neat enough and some of the
sub-games are worth the entrance fee alone. But with cumbersome controls and
irritating samples this will ultimately make you ratty.” 6/10
The Lion King: Simba’s Mighty Adventure – “Nothing new or original
here, just the same old platform-by-numbers formula that has bored us senseless
for years. The controls are dire and even the shift to 3D does nothing for the
cause.” 3/10
The Simpsons Wrestling – “A sad cash-in on The Simpsons’ good
name and the current wave of wrestlemania that fails to deliver. It’s bad to
watch, unresponsive to control and a complete waste of time and energy.” 4/10
Hardcore
A Quake III walkthrough, and cheats and hints for Star Wars:
Starfighter and NBA Hoopz.
Disc Content
Playable Demos
Star Wars: Starfighter
Sky Odyssey
Warriors of Might and Magic
Footage
Star Wars: Super Bombad Racing
Formula One 2001
MDK 2: Armageddon
Gun Griffon Blaze
Zone of the Enders
Bloody Roar 3
Red Faction
Giants: Citizen Kabuto
Shadow Man: 2econd Coming
SSX
Voyage of Emotion: Adrenaline – Some of the games included this time
are SSX, Ridge Racer V, Wipeout Fusion and Dropship: United Peace
Force, among others. Watch it here.
Trivia
·
Kuri Kuri Mix was developed by From Software.
Yes, that From Software, of Dark Souls fame, made a cartoony puzzle game
starring two primary coloured rabbits. Chestnut and Cream could take Ornstein
and Smough any day.
·
The results for the Oni model competition from
Issue 5 are announced this month, and the winner was Garz with 36% of the vote.
Salliya was a close second with 33%, Sophie scored 17%, and Zoe scored 14%.
·
This month’s unreleased game that sounds so bad
it’s good: A Darkened Sky. A game themed around Skittles sweets, in
which your task is to find five pieces of a magic talisman to defeat the forces
of evil. 1. How do Skittles tie into this? 2. It’s a missed opportunity that
the magic amulet doesn’t have seven pieces instead to make a taste the rainbow
reference.
·
You’ll notice that, as of this month, the Ladder
of Lust is no more. It’s for the best, as the “this is stupid, why are we doing
it?” joke was getting old by now, and would have worn out its welcome entirely had
the article stuck around for much longer.
·
The enthusiasm for a Battle of the Planets game
in this issue is genuinely adorable. I bet the writers were crushed when no publisher
picked it up, possibly due to the licence being too niche.
Quote of the Month: “People are capable of finding pretty much anything
sexy.” Dan Mayers of Eidos invokes Rule 34 for his contribution to this month’s
5X5.
Cover price: £4.99
Page Count: 146
