RC Racing. Most kids love it. When you were in your younger years, what would be on your Christmas list each year (besides game consoles and a pet snake)? Those little RC cars were just a lot of fun. Too bad the same can't be said about Re Volt, the latest racer from Acclaim.

The main concept of ReVolt from square one was to create a racing game that realisticly emulated the feel of RC cars. To that extent in and of itself, Re-Volt does suceed. Unfortunatly, this game's biggest strength is one of it's biggest weaknesses; the controls in Re-Volt have a VERY steep learning curve. In races, expcet many instances of "make a small mistake when you're in first, finish 4th" to make the game frustrating.

The modes in ReVolt are pretty much what you'd expect: Single race, championship, stunt arena, and practice. Track designs are certainly inspired, as the selection varies from a local neighborhood to a science musem. The actual formation of the tracks, however, leaves quite a bit to be desired. At one point, I was racing one track, when I saw two paths. I took one, and was told about five seconds after I had took that route that I was going the wrong way. Frustrating scenarios such as this kill ReVolt.

The game's controls are equally inane. Cars seem to spin out at random (like real RC cars), and the overall controls have a steep learning curve. You'll also find yourself crashing into things a lot, as well as skidding on slippery portions of tracks as frequently as possible. Since the analog stick is often awkward, you might find yourself resorting to the D-Pad a lot. The pyhysics engine is pretty solid, though jumping on ramps can be a little odd. The game's stunt mode (in which you collect various "stars" by flipping into the air, diving in a half pipe, etc.) just isn't much fun. The four circut races use the same formula as a game like Mario Kart, with racers gaining points after winning. To make the races even more frustrating (as you may have guessed, that's the game's biggest flaw), the game doesn't mark weather or not you proceed by your average. Instead, you have to place a certain rank in each race (I.E., if you're playing on the hardest mode and place first in every race, but in second the last, you're screwed).

The graphics are nothing special (I saw better in San Fransico Rush two years ago). The game's environments are pretty good, and some of the screnery is sharp, but other parts of the game look wither burry and somewhat "jagged." Iguana's trademark "Foggy environments" are back and worse than ever, only now, there's also a bunch of text on the right side of the screen to block your view. Framerate is terrible compared to other racing games, as is draw in and slowdown. It is worth noting, however, that these problems didn't occur in the PC Demo, so that might be recommended. Soundwise, the game's bouncy music loops a lot, and the sound effects are pretty dull (the pickup weapons don't make any of the cool noises you'd expect). To the game's credit, however, here are several hidden tracks to unlock, and one of them is actually a blast (unlike the other 12, which are generally either dull or annoying).

Overall, ReVolt just isn't much fun. Unless you're a really big fan of RC Cars (and enjoy spinning out a lot), Re-Volt is too frustrating and bland to be recommended.

Overall: 6.3