Best Alternative Racer

[Neohound]

Everyone will have played or heard of the standard DC racers such as:

F355
Le Mans 24hr
Demolition Racer
Daytona
Vanishing Point
Sega Rally
Flag to Flag
F1 World Grand Prix
Duccatti
Suzuki Alstares
Tokyo Highway Challenge
Buggy Heat
4 Wheel Thunder
Speed Devils
Roadsters
EOS

Some of those are all time classics ,whereas others should have been consigned to the scrapheap long before release (I'm mainly looking at you Spirit Of Speed).

But there are a ton of alternative racers on DC that deserve at least a look and, in some cases, are extremely good games in their own right. So choose your three favourite ones and if you haven't tried any of the listed games then check them out as many can be had for a bargain price.

I have only included ground-based racers so unfortunately Episode 1 racer, Zusar Vasar and watery racers such as Aqua GT etc are barred from the comp.

[dark]

Pod 2 is a pretty barebones game, especially now that the online play has been shut off for 10 years - but I still like it. Kind of like Alien Front Online, it's not something I'd choose to play for hours at a time, but it showcases a certain era that I'm nostalgic for, and its got some interesting ideas. I actually like the soundtrack, the stage graphics can be cool, and there is even a car called "the crab" which literally looks like a sports car crossed with a crab... only on DC folks


It's weird, but I guess I also like it because you can tell it had real potential to be something slightly better. If it had a one player mode other than quickrace, a few more tracks, or even any sort of continuation of the story, it could have easily felt like a much more complete game. In fact, considering that the game was originally intended for DC, PC and PS2 - and that early on, IGN was reporting previews that contained more features than the game eventually shipped with, I feel slightly thankful that the game ever even got released as clearly Ubisoft ran into issues that forced them to stop working on it and only release a (partially complete) DC version banking on online play as the selling point.

Some quotes from IGN concerning the then-in development PC version:

POD II will benefit from some major changes in the area of track design that directly correspond to this idea. The game will play host to ten new futuristic tracks, each of which will feature interactive objects and "mutating" elements that promise to keep racers on their toes in every single lap.

And, in what should help separate it from the glutton of futuristic racers that have flooded the market, POD 2 sets itself apart by having cars that will mutate in realtime. This happens without warning and offers new strengths and weaknesses to the vehicle that must be counterbalanced and mastered in order to win.

^The final game of course had a grand total of about 6 tracks, and non-mutating cars.

I'm actually thinking of picking up a PAL copy just because the cover art looks cool.

[radtastic89]

I remember playing Wakey Racer when it first came out. My buddy had a Dreamcast and that's when I fell in love with the Dreamcast.

[Neohound]

Yeah, I always thought Pod2 felt like an unfinished game. Too bad it didn't get those mutating cars - that sounds wicked. Tbh I much preferred Magforce to Pod - it's a much better game overall although neither reach the heights set by the best in the Wipeout series.

radtstic, Whacky Racers is a very nice game and I think a lot of people were (and still are) blown away by the graphics. It looks just like the cartoon ! On a big screen, in VGA, it looks gorgeous even by todays standards, and it's actually a decent game. Have you seen Loony Tunes ? That's another delicious looking game which is full of famous cartoon characters.

Sno-Cross Championship is an underrated game in my opinion. It looks nice although I think it's a Windows CE game?. The courses are varied, if not a bit generic, plus the snow mobiles and drivers are done well. The best thing about the game is the handling; it really does feel realistic ,but never too awkward to spoil the fun. A solid title which is worth checking out and playing.

A lot of these B-list games can't compete with the best DC racers - but that's no reason to ignore them.

[dark]

I was surprised by how good the graphics in Loony Tunes look. I just checked out youtube videos for the first time this year and it reminds me of a colorful high poly gamecube game. I've heard good things about Wacky Races and even about that Donald Duck platform game... but I'm put off from buying any of the games because of the franchise affiliation.

As for why the franchise matters, in my mind if I have a game from a long running franchise like disney, I'm going to compare it to all other games from the same franchise - so a dreamcast donald duck game would be compared to any other donald duck or disney game coming out. Whereas if I have something more unique like Evil Twin, I appreciate it more as the unique creative effort of the programmers and designers, and I can appreciate it more as representing an era or style of gaming rather than something the publishing house slapped together to cash in on the franchise. That and the fact that if I've outgrown watching disney movies or loony tunes cartoons, I'm not going to be drawn to enjoying the video games which have the same characters and gags

[Neohound]

I wouldn't take any notice of your worries regarding franchises. Loony Tunes, Whacky Races and Donald Duck Quack Attack are all very good games in their own right and say just as much about the Dreamcast's capabilities as they do about their origins. Infogrammes was on a creative high during the Dc's life and I don't think their games have 'dated' at all. I still play them all today and would never get rid of them.

Also, I'll never outgrow cartoons !! Why would you do that anyway ? You aren't planning on eventually giving up on videogames too are you ?

The only things I grew out of, since I was a wee nipper, is the clothes I wore and the propensity to suck my thumb. I'll still be loving the DC and videogames in general the day that I die

[BrianC]

Hydro Thunder! Such a great game and certainly and alternative racer Also, I think I'm the only person that dislikes Re-Volt

[CD AGES]

Yes! I LUV the over the top antics that is Hydro!!!

[mazonemayu]

No R4 in the poll??

[Neohound]

Regarding Hydro Thunder, I did say no water-based racers allowed But hell yeah, it's a great game.

Mayu, good shout, but unfortunately the limit for a poll is ten choices so I had to omit one or two. Also I've never played R4 so it would have been remiss of me to include it. It's on my list of games to get though - It reminds me a bit of Micro Machines, which was a favourite of mine in days gone by.

Mmmm.........I'm not doing too well am I Maybe my days as a DC-Talk pollster are numbered