"Look, ma, I'm delivering contraband!"

Wow, my first ten! I never thought I'd actually get out such a high rating to such an underrated and seemingly boring game. I played the PS2 version, and that's where the infamous idea that ''All Systems Carrying This Game Will Die!!!'' Then I saw it came out on GCN, and needless to say, I was reluctant. Should I spend $6 at my local Hollywood Video (they should pay me to advertise, heh heh) on a game I know to be intensely pointless (so said a friend who owns it on a PS2 of all things). Since Hollywood Video is infamous for its poor selection of GCN games, I picked it out (hey, it was either that or Mickey Mouse's Magical Mirror which I instantly and decisively said no to). What a catch! I can barely spot anything wrong, and what's there doesn't affect the score.

Gameplay 10/10
I'm getting to really enjoy this genre. Since it isn't actually labeled a genre, I'm going to give it a name myself: ''Bad Guy Games''. It's that really neat genre where you are a bad guy that gets to do bad guy things. Cool sounding, huh? Other such games include GTA 3 and Driver 2 (well *SPOILER* you weren't really, but it kinda seemed like it for a while). Anyway, what makes this genre so intriguing is that you can have a general disregard for the public (tourists), buildings (villages in Vietnam), and cop cars (cop cars, duh). The gameplay is fun and while it's nothing all together new, it still holds my attention. The whole point of the game is to smuggle contraband (large brown packages, briefcases, bombs, and some medkit looking thing) from Point A to Point B. Apparently the police are not happy with the transport of bombs to villages, so they quite often chase you. What's really great is that sometimes you have to destroy other cars or meet other objectives. There are some 30+ missions (that I've seen) so you won't get bored too fast.

Storyline: 4/10
While it is realistic, it proves once again that a game in which you cannot get out of your car will not have a good storyine. The whole point is to smuggle stuff. The gameplay makes up for that, though

Graphics: 10/10
This is where the game wins me over. The graphics are crisp, clean, and highly detailed. It's an intense pixel fest for your screen. You will definitely love the detailing of the distant mountains (which, by the way, you can reach).

Controls: 10/10
The controls are fine. No game can exactly revolutionize how you play games by adjusting their controls from acceleration is ''A'' to acceleration is ''R''. Still, cars handle like you'd expect them to, in snow, mud, and dirt.

Sound: 10/10
Actually, there isn't much going on here. I mean, you have the average accelerating car noise, and the explosions, but still, something's lacking. The voices make up for that. Your commander (that's what I call him. The game never names him. I mean, I assume he's your commander and not some whino on the side of the road with a radio transmitter in one hand and a bag of Lays in the other) is quite humorous. He's touchy though.

Replay: 6/10
I can't honestly say there is a tremendous amount to do in this game. But still, it's fun while it lasts. Replay doesn't affect the score much, because the game lasts a while.

Overall: 10/10
I really can't say anything bad about this game. It's a great thing to play, and EXTREMELY underrated. Go out and rent it (buying is just TOO expensive).

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 09/12/02, Updated 09/12/02