XGRA: Extreme-G Racing Association
GameRatio Review
PS2

Not as Extreme as 3, but still a good game.

Extreme G Racing Association is the fourth in the series of futuristic motor sports. These games feature enhanced motorcycles capable of breaking the sound barrier and faster. Riders take off like bullets out of a gun when the light hits green, and zoom around the tracks. The first two incarnations of the  series were exclusive to the N64. The third made its way to every console. Now in Extreme G Racing Association (XGRA), the rules have changed, and players face new challenges.

The most notable difference between Extreme G Racing and other racers is that XGR is not an analog racing game. Players instead have a go or no interface. This means that it’s either a full throttle ride or you coast. In some turns, strategic coasting is required to keep a racing line. Even the usage of airbrakes allows for additional control in the turns. Unlike Extreme G-3 Racing, you no longer have the ability to turbo boost. The boost depleted your shields in previous games, but allowed you to break the sound barrier (which added some cool effects). Instead, the boost has been replaced with markers on the track that boost your speed. Though, you can no longer break the sound barrier, at least not without using successive boost markers, the game is still a wild ride.  Unfortunately, racing purists may not like any of this because the game is more fictitious racing rather than trying to simulate a real racing experience. What is lost in reality is definitely made up in fun factor.

The best part of the XGR series is when you hear the computer announce that your “Weapons are online.” Not only are you racing against other riders, but you’re also racing to make it across the finish line alive. Weapons include bombs, cannons, and electrical. Depending on the team you choose, you will be given weapons. Each weapon has a drawback as well as a strength. The Vulcan Cannons are high impact/tracer weaponry. This allows you to keep firing until you get your bearings and are tagging an enemy. With other weapons like Ion Electrical guns, you inflict less damage, but the weapon stays trained to the opponent and can arc (in higher levels) from one opponent to another.  Secondary weapons include the return of favorites such as the vampire and mines. When used strategically, cycling between secondary arms can improve your chances of making your contract.

What does every racing game need? A story. Most don’t, so this gets overlooked. With XGRA, the story isn’t that great. In 2080 Mode (career/story mode), you’re a  racer who enters the competition to earn money and/or fame for their own reasons. Each racer must start by competing to get a sponsor. The sponsoring party determines your bike as well as weapons. The better you race, the more sponsors will be willing to sign you. Now, this may sound droll, but this actually chooses the level of difficulty for the game.  Obviously, Acclaim isn’t going to set players up to failure, so this works out nicely.  After you complete tryouts and get hired, you have certain contracted obligations. The majority of them require hits on certain riders. During the race, you must eliminate a certain team’s rider. This feels somewhat like having a “Rival”, but it only lasts for one race. Overall, story mode isn’t anything special.

What has always kept me coming back to XGR is the environments. The tracks not only curve and turn worse than a rollercoaster, but they also branch out, allowing for multiple paths to the finish line. Choosing the right branch can shorten the road to victory. Plus, in some areas, there are open space portions of the track. To make this more believable, all sound is lost (except the background music) during these areas. It’s not until after you return to an oxygenated environment that you’ll hear sound again. (this makes sense if you know your science) As far as the cities, there has been some major work done to make every building and grandstand look believable. Using low resolution and the reliance on the player’s inability to take their eyes off the track, XGRA manages to use lower quality rendering for the further scenery. This is more apparent if you let the announcer give his pre-race speech. Another plus is the speed itself. Visually, you seem to loose control when you hit the boost markers. This was definitely a nice touch by Acclaim.

The track is nicely rendered, but unfortunately, you will spend all your time looking at it. In portions of the game, when you go upside down or the track curves too often, you miss changes to view some wonderfully rendered scenery. Though the scenery has the usual aliasing problems native to the PS2, you have to give credit to Acclaim for the added realism it gives this game.  My only disappointment is that the bikes themselves were missed with texture. The tired look nice when stopped, but the bikes remind me of building blocks or elementary shapes put together to resemble a futuristic machine. This may work for some, but they could have at least added moving airbrakes like in the last game. Plus, in XG3:R, when changing weapons, the game gave a visible animation. XGRA does no such thing.

Ever been sick on a Saturday afternoon and flip on the TV? Remember those terrible movies from the early 1990’s that featured songs from bands who basically went from their real job to gigs that got them booed off the stage? I think they did the “Dance” music for this game. There are two music types, (don’t forget about the Mix, yeah, Baby!) Dance and Rock. The Rock is nice because it sounds like indistinct heavy metal. But the Dance selection just makes my feel like I’m laying on the couch watching those terrible movies again, just waiting to hurl again. At least the audio effects are at par with other futuristic racers. Not much to see here in the audio department. Voice acting for the races is well scripted. And the synthesized voice for the computer giving status updates about your bike is nice, but nothing special.

To say that this was a “Great Game” is not true. It is an average game. This game was last sighted on the discount rack for $10. Since rentals are $7, it was worth a shot, but it depends on your taste as to if it’s worth your money. I personally enjoy the XGR series, but I can see how most people may not care for this game. If you have never tried the XGR series, at least give them a shot. For those of you who have played previous XGR games, decide for yourself if you want to take a chance on XGRA.