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GRAND PRIX CHALLENGE (PS2)
Atari's F1 title finishes on the podium
By TOM FAHEY
 The
only type of game that I can think of, which are produced more than "Formula
One" games are Rally simulators.
One after another,
like waves in the ocean.
Although I guess
you could say that if you sit out on your board long enough, the perfect
wave that stands out above all others eventually comes.
In the case of rally
games, it's Colin McRae 3. For racing in general, Gran Tourismo 3 A-spec.
Formula One…? Well lest just say the jury is still out on that one...
But Grand Prix Challenge
is certainly in contention.
Atari's latest in
F1 simulators has arrived and, truthfully, I grudgingly inserted it into
the humble black machine expecting nothing more but a semi arcade-style
trashy racing game with little AI and poor graphics.
Forgive me Atari;
my initial judgment was way off track. Kicking off with a simple "quick
race" eager to see what the game had to offer, I discovered two things.
First of all the magnificent effect of several dozen F1 rev-heads with
itchy feet flooring it at the sight of green, choking the crowd with burning
rubber.
 Second? Never, under
no circumstances ever should you set the handling options to novice. I
should really take more notice of game options… Kind of like installing
software - "Yes I agree… No, I wouldn't even think about making
illegal copies of this piece of software… No, I would never sell
my CD key…"
Well anyways, I
quit the race after the second turn, promptly changing the handling to
'advanced' (hence a simulator) and the computer AI on the optimal setting,
in the hope I would stumble across a simulator as opposed to an arcade
game.
I did.
The first thing
to note would have to be the AI. It is, to say at the least, very impressive.
When driving around the various courses, you can notice that the other
cars really do compete against each other.
Maybe it's just
me, but in almost every other simulator I can think of, the competitors
just don't compete realistically. They race around the track in the most
appropriate fashion, but never really challenge each other. Well in Grand
Prix Challenge they do. ^_^
And it's really
funny when you use them for cornering - sometimes they'll actually slow
down and you miss them!
 The graphics as briefly
mentioned are very pleasing to the eye. Particularly at the start of each
race when everyone simultaneously takes off. Rubber burns, smoke drifts,
people cough. It's all very pleasing.
The lighting effects
are fantastic. The cars are nice and shiny, reflecting all kinds of images
and with the various camera views, you can also capture a really good
perspective of a F1 racer.
One of the views
is right behind the wheel, and you can see the steering wheel, your hands,
some of the bodywork, and the front wheels. Very nice.
The other thing
most people would be impressed with is the range of companies and real
life racers in the game. From Michael Schumacher with Ferrari, to the
others (Montoya, Webber, Raikonnen, Trulli, Verstappen - Ed.) who's names
escape me! It's all there.
Last words? Well…
it always, always comes down to this with car sims. Here is the
63 million dollar question… "Is it as good as GT3 A-spec?"
And here is the constantly repeated answer… "Of course not you
f***ing idiot!!! Don't be so stupid…" or words to that effect.
But at the same token, both games are in different sub-genres, and on
its own merits, GP Challenge is a very good game.
In short, GT3 is
the bomb, G. Don't mess with it. But, as far as F1 sims go, Grand Prix
Challenge is the next best thing - there are no F1 games better than this.
F1 fans will love it, but for everyone else it's still more than worthy
of a look.
ORIGINALITY 60%
SOUND/GRAPHICS 90%
PLAYABILITY 75%
ENJOYMENT 80%
OVERALL 75%
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