18 Wheeler: American Pro Trucker

"Mostly exhaust."

What happens if you take an arcade game, of normal arcade game length, and turn it into a console game without really adding anything at all?

You get a pretty bad console game.

Graphics: Great. More quality Naiomi stuff. Goes right up there with Crazy Taxi. The people are a little weak, but the trucks and scenery are top-notch.

Sound: Excellent. The hissing of breaks. The cheesy country radio stations. All there, all good. You'll feel like a trucker (all your dreams, huh?)

Play: Hmmm... this isn't so good. What better than a racing game that moves at a snail's pace, huh?

Biggest problem isn't the speed, though... when the truck gets going, it moves fast enough, I guess. The problem is that, even if you've beat a level, you're not sure why. You won't have any idea what you did differently that time to help you win. You don't feel like you were really going faster. At best, maybe you dodged cars a little better. Mostly, it just feels like the opposing trucker was less aggressive that time around. The joy of ''conquering'' the level is removed by this... there is no sense of accomplishment. Just a sense of ''ok, I guess I won that time.''

And to compound the problem, you only get to experience this mediocre feeling about four times. That's it. Game over. Roll the credits.

Now, to be fair, Crazy Taxi only had two levels. So why would I rate that a nine, and give this a three? Well I'll tell ya...

Extras: This is the sorriest excuse for ''extras'' I have ever seen. Terrible. Oooh... the parking challenge. This is cute and all, but hardly makes the game. Where are the crazy-box challenges? Where are the chances to perfect your trucking skills in new and exciting ways? Where's the opportunity to get that truck airborne, or to mow over as many chickens as possible, or to avoid alien abduction? All these things are missing, and it's too bad, because the basic premise is a good one. Crazy Taxi was fun because it exaggerated real life. This doesn't, really. It's just trucking. Not much happens to make you laugh.

Level Design: Another problem. Sure, Crazy Taxi had two levels, but they were deep and complex. They had shortctus and side routes and rooftops and, oh my, they were great. In 18 Wheeler, you have... well, the road. Sure, you can go off and hit some houses, or take the dirt path and avoid the tornado, but that's it. No exploration. There isn't time to explore, because if you're gonna beat that other truck, you better not dally. Even when you win, it will be by a hair, because the other truck can inexplicably go 90 mph when it needs to.

Finale: In the end, this is too bad. At a budget price, it'd be a classic. It is simple and attractive, and, don't get me wrong, occasionally quite fun. But for forty bucks, you could have Sonic 2 or Crazy Taxi 2, or any of the other brilliant games that have made the Dreamcst, perhaps, the most impressive game console in history.

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 06/26/01, Updated 06/26/01