The Sega Zone - Reviews (Sega Rally Championship 2)

Sega Rally Championship 2

Developer:	Sega
Publisher:	Sega
Players:	1-2 (1-4 online gaming)

TV System:	Japan / NTSC
Accessories:	DC Wheel
Style:	Racing

Over the last two weeks I've read many reviews on Sega Rally 2 for thenew Sega Dreamcast of which very few take an objective standpoint. Thepeople seem content to gripe about the small defects, rather thanexpounding upon the vast multitude of positive points that cry out to bemade. Let me first debunk the arguments made by others, "The frameratechanges sporadically which ruins the overall experience." This iscomplete drivel. Not only doesn't it change much, or very often, but ifit weren't for these so-called "experts", I wouldn't even bothermentioning it. Some go so far as to say that it adversely affectsgameplay. This is ludicrous. There is no slowdown, and the framesdropped are so few and far between that unless you suffer from ADD; youwon't even notice it. "But, gee Ant, there's all this pop-up and fogging...and... and..." Christ, bloody whiners. Yes, there is pop-up. Yes, they DOuse fog. No, the popup isn't on the road. It's the high backgroundobjects for the most part and also they pop in very far off in the distance.The fog is used primarily for atmospherical effect and not to hide anypopup(there is as much popup in the night-time snow stage as there is inthe day time desert stage which uses no fog). These complaints, even ifthey were grounded, pale so severely in comparison with the high pointsthat you'd think they're from Alaska. The graphics are quite simplyamazing. They impress me even more than Sonic Adventures! (If that's evenpossible) The subtle nuances in the textures and the lighting areperhaps the best part. Seeing the same course at noon, dusk, and atnight is an incredible experience. Couple that with the weatherpatterns(clear, rain, snow, heavier rain), which change the way thesurfaces on the track control, and the wide variety of cars(20 in all),and you have a never ending variety in your racing. This is without evenconsidering the multiplayer aspect. Bring in a second player, or goonline to join in on a 4-way race to the finish, and it becomes the bestmultiplayer game on any console to date. The music is classic SegaBV-tunes. They vaguely remind me of Sonic-R, and as cheesy as thosewere, I liked them for their humor. Generally all you can hear, though,is your engine, which sounds exactly like the real thing thanks toSega's effort in sampling directly from the source. There are a total of16 courses, plus, the different configurations of those courses. Besidesthe Arcade mode, in which you race 4 courses, there is the 10-Year Rallymode. In this mode you race 4 courses in each of 10 "years". If you getfirst in a certain year, the next year opens up, and you also get a newcar to race with(8 initially available). At the end of the 10th yearyou get to play the Super Secret Stage, which has even more impressivelighting than the other courses. The control in Rally2 is the best I'veyet seen in a racing game, and once you get used to powersliding aroundcorners, it feels strange to play a game that doesn't incorporate them.Overall, I can't imagine another game of the same genre surpassingRally2, until Rally3 that is.

Using the common XXX/100 scoring scale,

Graphics:99
Sound:94
Control:100
Replay:100
Overall:99

I gave Sonic a 96 and VF3 a 97. Oh, and Zelda got a 85 due to the crappy ending. Ciao.

Review By: Anythony (antsin3d@mpinet.net)

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