Indy Racing 2000

Now here's a great idea... let's all drive around in circles for hours on end and call it a sport! It's quite amazing how popular this 'sport' has become and it's not as if we can even dismiss it as an American fad because quite a few famous British drivers have dabbled in it. Whatever your opinion on it though, Indy racing is here to stay and like every other sport these days it's got itself a virtual incarnation for your home playing pleasure. The first thing you notice about Indy Racing 2000 when you flick the 'on' switch is just how unbelievably fast it is! This is the fastest racing simulation game on the N64 – absolutely no contest. The game is a 15ml injection of pure adrenaline straight into your heart! What is even more surprising is that the game manages to stay as smooth as a freshly sanded piece of wood. You would expect the frame-rate to go pear-shaped at such speeds on any other racing game – but not here, oh no!

Burning Rubber

Oddly though the speed of this game can hamper your enjoyment of the races, especially when you first begin to play it. The problem lies with the controls which are a little temperamental to say the least. Tap the stick to the side and your car turns 45 degrees and slips into a powerslide! This often results in you going head-first into a barrier and buckling your front wheels – thankfully though the damage can be switched off. It's not that the controls are bad it's just that a sensitivity adjustment control would have been greatly appreciated in the options menu.

Admittedly once you get used to the controls you can take the corners fairly smoothly. But you do have to remain ever conscious of your finger on the stick which kind of distances you from the race a little. It's not as if there are any tight corners in this game which require overly sensitive steering! In fact this is one of the main problems of Indy Racing – it can all get just a tad monotonous! After all there's only so much fun that can be had driving around in a circle for hours on end. If you want you can even race a full hundred-odd lap Indy race. Although we do suggest seeking professional psychiatric help before trying this one!

Screaming Engines

Thankfully the game is saved from eternal damnation by the Gold Cup mode which more than helps to break up the rigmarole of the whole thing. In this section of the game you have to work your way up the ranks from driving go-kart-style mini cars all the way through to the Indy-car racers themselves. This is a lot more fun than the championship game because it includes courses which actually have twists and turns in them. It's quite a shock seeing different corners after playing the main game! This is the more arcadey side of the game and is ultimately a lot more fun to play. It's when playing the Gold Cup mode though that you realise what is missing from this game – a track map!

The silly thing is you don't really need a track map on the screen in the main championship game but it would've been nice to have one in the other modes. It's not as if the corners are so complicated they tax every brain cell but in the fast action of the race it would be nice to have a guide as to which way to go next. As it is, the most important on-screen aid is the draft meter, which may sound silly but is actually extremely helpful. Anyone who knows racing terminology will have heard of something called 'slipstreaming' and that's exactly what this meter helps you do. Get directly behind another car and your speed shoots up faster than an Apollo rocket!

Smoking Tyres

Graphically you can't help but feel that a little more could've been done with this game. The draw distance is superb and the graphics are crisp enough... it just feels like something is missing. This could be because all of the main tracks are based on their official counterparts and there just simply isn't anything interesting there! Though on the Gold Cup tracks you do at least get token waterfalls, rock arches and stretches of beach to liven up the surroundings.

On the other hand there's no excuse for the cars which appear fairly bland and more often than not just merge into the scenery. A little more attention to detail was definitely needed here, shiny metallic surfaces aren't exactly impossible on the N64. This situation isn't helped any by the fact the cars just seem to be glued to the track! You could be approaching the crest of a hill at anything up to 200mph and your car still remains firmly fixed on the ground! It's just like playing a video game version of your favourite Scalextric set!

Twisted Metal

Laughably, although the cars don't seem to be very detailed the rest of the game is literally stocked full of small realistic touches. As well as the official tracks you've got the official drivers, cars and the ability to tune up your car pretty much how you want from scratch. It doesn't end here either because in the race you have fully animated pitstops, the ability to look to the left and right as well as behind and a running commentary to boot. Alas, the commentary and the radio crew chatter is, like so many other games, extremely annoying!

Considering you have both a commentator and pit crew it's amazing how the human voices manage to be so repetitive. What's worse is that they are so inconsistent and blatantly random that it's almost comedy! You often receive praise when you're doing badly and get 'dissed' when you're miles ahead of the pack in first place. Most comical of all however is when the commentator shouts 'what a move' when you're travelling along a straight section of track with no other cars in sight! This is partly because of how speedy the game is and how fast the races can turn around in such a short space of track – of course, it's also partly just bad programming!

The Chequered Flag

Indy Racing 2000 is a highly enjoyable game but where it shines in some places it does very badly in others. If you're after a high-speed adrenaline rush then you need look no further. On the other hand, if you're the kind of person who loves challenging tracks then this game is unlikely to appeal. It's just a shame that it hasn't been planned for release over here yet. Someone out there obviously thinks that us Brits don't like driving around in circles... have they never been on the M25?

Infogrames' Indy Racing 2000 has a decidedly arcade feel, lots of speed, spinouts and aggressive driving. It's also the only game to feature the actual race at Indy. That's a big deal for IRL fans, believe us. Also for the purists are 20 real drivers (Goodyear, Boat, Cheever, etc.) and their respective teams. Other notables in this June release game: a draft meter, secret cars and tracks, two-player and Rumble-PAK support.