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DEVELOPER
Psygnosis
PUBLISHER
Midway
AVAILABLE
Now
MEDIUM
Cartridge
PLAYERS
4
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his year there are three futuristic racing games on the Nintendo 64 all battling for your gaming dollar. F-Zero X made it to the starting lines first, but many gamers wondered if the best was yet to come. Now that Wipeout 64 has been released a comparison between it and F-Zero X is inevitable. Expect a similar comparison once Extreme-G 2 finally comes out. Many people doubted that a good conversion of the popular PlayStation hit Wipeout could be done on the N64. Even I was skeptical when I first heard about the game. Much to my surprise Psygnosis has done wonders with the limitations of the Nintendo 64's storage medium to create a game that not only lives up to its predecessors, but also excels in many ways. For those of you unfamiliar with the Wipeout games, there's not really much to know. It's a futuristic racing game featuring state of the art hovercrafts all vying for the coveted first place position. In addition to the treacherous track designs, there are weapon power-ups that can be found on the track to help propel you toward the winner's circle. When the game first hit the PlayStation many people referred to it as F-Zero with weapons, and in many respects that's an accurate portrayal. Once players had a chance to experience Wipeout it became evident that the game was in fact very different from Nintendo's racer. It looked grittier, the controls were more advanced, and the overall presentation seemed much more futuristic. Luckily most of the good features of the PlayStation classic have been transferred over to Wipeout 64 without a hitch.  There are a few improvements made in the control department since Wipeout XL. Anyone who's played past Wipeout games will know how difficult it was to learn how to pilot the various hovercrafts. Most of the control problems have been fixed thanks to the N64's excellent analog stick. There's no more need to tap the control pad to make accurate turns since you now have total control over how sharp you turn. The airbrakes are now easier to use as well since the Z and the R button is used. The overall flow of the game is much better because of these control enhancements. In addition it now seems easier to hit enemies with weapons and to maintain a decent speed on the tracks. If you accidentally bump the side of the track your vehicle won't come to a screeching halt. Instead you'll simply lose some momentum and keep on chugging along. You can choose to view the game from inside the cockpit or outside the hovercraft. I prefer the inside view since it provides a better angle of the racing and creates the illusion that you're moving faster. Turning is especially fabulous in this view since the entire screen tilts in the direction that you're turning. If you get motion sickness you may want to stick with the outside the craft view. Even with these enhancements the controls still feel a bit loose and learning how to turn without hitting the sides of the track can still be a chore.  The addition of weapons is what truly separates Wipeout 64 from the rest of the racers out there. Enemies can eventually be blown up if hit enough times with a weapon, but the same can happen to you as well. On each track is an energy refill area (similar to F-Zero X) that you can fly through to replenish your ship's energy. Fans of the series will immediately recognize most of the weaponry, but there are a few extras thrown in for good measure. The Homing Missiles provide the best offense since they target the enemy, thus creating a guaranteed hit. The Quake Disruptor and the Thunder Bombs will hit anyone on the screen whereas the mines will dampen the spirits of anyone following behind you. In addition to weapons you can collect items that can help your defense. The Shield will momentarily protect you from any attack. The Turbo Boost gives your hovercraft a short burst of speed. The Autopilot power-up is one of the most useful items in the game since it allows your vehicle to maintain the highest speed possible no matter what the track may throw at you. In addition there are some super weapons that can be collected and they vary depending on which hovercraft you're piloting. For example, the Shield Raider drains an enemy's energy making it vulnerable to attack whereas the Power Snare creates a huge energy wall that will damage any vehicle that drives through it. There are more weapons available for you to find and use against your opponents.  Upon playing the game it becomes apparent that Wipeout 64 edges out F-Zero X in the graphics department. The detail present on each track is astounding. I was surprised by the amount of textures used on the track surface and in the backgrounds. All of the vehicles are texture mapped and look great. The variety in the tracks was apparent and many of them feature huge jumps and lots of winding passages. The framerate does keep up nicely, but it's obviously not as smooth as F-Zero X. Also, the sense of speed doesn't come close to matching Nintendo's racer. Explosions and other special effects created by the various weapons all look fantastic. Even though the graphics are very detailed and the game looks great, there is a lot of noticeable pop-up on most of the tracks. Luckily this doesn't cause any problems and if you're truly focused on playing it won't bother you in the least. It's about as annoying as the fog is in F-Zero X. Noticeably missing are the different routes one can take on certain tracks, which was a feature of some of the courses in previous installments of this game. Unfortunately the cool blue trails that were emanating from each hovercraft in Wipeout XL are no longer as prominent either. Perhaps the biggest surprise in the game is the music. The previous games were well known for their excellent techno soundtracks and most people didn't think that the N64 could come close to creating similar tunes. I'm not sure how Psygnosis did it, but somehow they managed to pack in some really good music into this cartridge. While there's not any voice to accentuate the music, it all sounds fantastic and is definitely a big plus. All of the sound effects and most of the voice from the previous games have made it into Wipeout 64 as well. For the first time in the Wipeout series you can now play with four players simultaneously. This greatly enhances the replay value and can be a lot of fun. There's never a dull moment with everyone constantly acquiring weapons and blasting each other. Unfortunately getting hit by a weapon brings your vehicle to a stop, which ruins the effect of racing at high speeds. I have to admit that I thought the multiplayer mode would be more fun than F-Zero X's, but with only 7 tracks and less than 10 vehicles to choose from my friends were soon wanting me to put F-Zero X back in. Wipeout 64 is a great racing game that proves that the N64 has what it takes to allow for a better than perfect port of a PlayStation game. The graphics are above average and the music is truly amazing, especially if you liked the music in the previous games. When it comes down to the question of which futuristic racing game is better, I'd pick F-Zero X since it has more tracks, more vehicles, faster gameplay, and tighter controls. Wipeout 64 simply doesn't offer enough diversity nor does it hold the addictive qualities needed in a game like this. Wipeout 64 isn't a bad game by any means. It just doesn't have the same level of adrenaline pumping action and playability that Miyamoto's racer has. If you can only afford one futuristic racing game I'd go with F-Zero X, you won't regret it.
-- Craig Majaski
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