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VIB-RIBBON
Music is an underdeveloped genre on the PlayStation. Though several
stunning games have been sent forth into the public domain, it's hardly
of such magnitude as racing or fighting games. In a way it's a good
thing, as not to kill this innovative, enjoyable take on gaming. Every
now and then a great music game comes along. (In the past you've read
in this section about Fluid, Baby Universe, Music, Bust-A-Groove
and Parappa The Rapper). Vib-Ribbon is a black and white
line drawn game which boils down to you controlling a wacky little character
walking on a line, having to overcome musically generated obstacles
that are basically alterations in the line you're strolling along. Sounds
a bit too straight forward, until you get into it. It can be as addictive
as any big gun, big engine, high-octane cracker. With four basic shapes
in your way, and thus only four buttons being used, it seems easy enough,
yet it gets hectic once these shapes get combined and music speeds up.
The shapes consist of an oblong square, a pit, a wave and a loop. Hit
the buttons at the right time and you're fine. Stuff up too often and
you start regressing, your little line man getting all wobbly and eventually
shrinking to a little sperm-like worm. Besides the amazing, strange
and unconventional music on the disc, the best part is that you can
insert your own choice of music! So anything from tranquil classical
music, plastic pop, trip-hop, jazz, brutal grindcore, you name it. The
possibilities and party opportunities are endless. Like most of these
music games it's so much more fun to do it in a group. The score is
hardly anything to worry about. Just get in there and have a great time
with the music, interacting in a whole new way.
5 / A
- PB
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V-RALLY
2
It is always a welcome breath of gasoline tinged air when you're not
limited to mere racing tracks. The exciting rally world is at your fingertips
with a great selection of cars and countries in which to put your foot
to the floor. The cars at your disposal fall in three categories: World
Rally Cars, 2L Kit-Cars and 1.6L Kit-Cars. The car makes include Peugeot,
Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Subaru, Skoda, Ford, Seat Cordoba, Citroen,
Vauxhall, Renault and Nissan - not half bad! The game modes include
Time Trial, where you can activate a ghost image in which you can race
against your own best time, or those of your pals. A straight arcade
mode lets you rip for a quick fix, picking anything from 1 lap to infinity.
The V-Rally Trophy takes you over eight countries against four competitors.
Then, the Championship is another big enchalada. The fat batch of countries
you can race in include: Australia, Monte Carlo, Finland, Portugal,
Argentina, England, New Zealand, Corsica, Indonesia, Italy, Sweden and
Spain. Phew! And you don't need to unlock any of them. The weather and
road conditions, as well time of day, include every imaginable scenario.
Rain, snow, gravel, tar, night, sunset, the works. You can also set
the specifications of your car without having to win a bunch of laps
or make cash for the purpose. You can pick tires for any kind of surface,
select your gearbox ratio concerning speed and acceleration, perfect
the chassis by adjusting the suspension, the height of the car and the
over/under steering to your liking. The strength of the brakes and its
repartitioning is also adjustable. The sensitivity of the steering can
be set to suit you best. All these elements and modifications have a
bearing on your car's handling and it could take a few tries to get
it just perfect for your driving requirements. But remember - your choices
will have a direct result when taking the road surface and weather into
account. So be wise and don't over compensate in one area and put yourself
at a disadvantage in another. Your co-pilot, giving navigation details,
can also be chosen by sex. Nice. Besides their audio directions, you
get visual road sign type indications of the road ahead. Unlike the
mighty GT,
here you can flip your car over and no matter how hard you try, you
can't hit the spectators by the roadside (for that, check Carmageddon).
In replay you actually see the driver and co-pilot in stead of tinted
windows and another nice touch is the addition of your chosen name on
your number plate. One- or multiplayer excitement that'll last into
the small hours.
5 / A
- PB
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