"Smuggling is a bad career choice, children."

I’m at the age right now where I’m too young to drive, but old enough to have a girlfriend. I can’t take her out without a ride from my parents. That sucks horribly as well, and the closest I can get to the experience of driving a car is playing video games that use steering wheels like the ones at arcades, but home consoles racers are typically more fun to play because they won’t eat your tokens. One of the racers I played recently was a game entitled Smuggler’s Run: Warzones for my wonderful little Gamecube I own. It’s developed by Angel Studios and is published by Rockstar Games: makers of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto series. It’s also there first effort for the Nintendo Gamecube. Smuggler’s Run is essentially a racing action game mixed with some serious marijuana. It is a free-roaming game, meaning you can go anywhere in the level as long as you complete the objectives given to at the beginning. It is actually a fun experience with the game having its minor flaws here and there. The first flaw in the game is that the game is really unrealistic such as cars flying off of mountains and being able to live, though there is a health meter. Another example is cars being able to cross gigantic lakes without sinking much less being waterlogged. The second flaw I had with the game is the control. For a game using the same control scheme as a regular racing game it runs horribly. The car will typically spin out for no reason. It can be gotten used to though. Third, the music is absolutely atrocious. The music is bland and repetitive. It’s the only horrible aspect of the game that I found. Overall, the rest of the game is generally all right. The story actually has some fairly decent depth for a racing style game. The graphics are excellent capture many different aspects of the environments being raced in. The cars and even the cheesy in game B movies look all right. The sound effects are also fairly good capturing the typical car effects, environmental noises, etc. Gameplay is good despite the unrealistic effects and the hard control. It’s not all that difficult and the control can be gotten used to. Other than that, the game has its flaws and can be made up in the sequel if it comes And I forgot the mention there will be some illegal activity done in the game. No, not hookers like in GTA. You will be smuggling. The title probably gave that away though. @_@;;

Story- 8/10 - Smuggler’s Run follows a story line that is very original in what it contains. And you need to be some fool on crack not to figure out that in game you play a smuggler, but the thing not mentioned is that you are a smuggler in training. Though, that doesn’t hender the fun in the game. Your boss Frank Luger has brought you in because you were promising at what you do. A Vietnamese colonel hired you to smuggle weapons and other various supplies across the Russian border into Georgia through the Caucasus Mountains I believe. The story can be explained better by watching the strange military-themed B-Movies that are played every so often. The story is good, but it doesn’t really drag you into the game that is Smuggler’s Run. It’s also original though and fairly easily understood. It’s worthy of an eight. Good, but not all that great. It sure as hell doesn’t make me become a smuggler though. I don’t wanna go to Russia and do this. Bah, onto the next section of the only game series in the world where you can smuggle contraband the way you do in this game.

Graphics- 9/10- Graphically, Smuggler’s Run is no damn couch potato. It provides some excellent visual eye candy. Everything in the game is amazing detailed. You can see nearly every little feature that you would expect in reality in Vietnam, Russia, and even Eastern Europe. The environments for example have some excellent virtual features. There are trees that look like real trees, animals that look like real animals, three dimension people that are shaped right but have no distinct features, and realistic buildings that have windows and billboards on top of them. Land in the game also appears realistic and has features like water, hills, mountains, and roads all appearing like they would in the areas they are in. I don’t know for sure because I haven’t been to all of the places in the game. The cars in this look realistically presented and different from each other. All feature their own unique shapes and designs I can’t find really anything wrong with the graphics but they don’t feel prefect. Worthy of the legendary 9. I still don’t see why smuggling contraband across a border into illegal territory is considered fun in reality. Then again, the people who do it probably do it for the money they get.

Sound Effects- 6/10- Decent at the best.

Music- 3/10- Musically, Smuggler’s Run is vile. It features some decent themes but all get annoying and repetitive over time. The menu theme is exceptionally bad, with some technoish style theme that is horribly bland and no association with the game what so ever. The Russia theme is also bad, though not on the level of the menu music, it is still lacking luster. Its does get more chronic of time and hurts the ears. The Vietnam theme is the only one that I really liked to an extent. It does still get cyclical over time, but I still enjoy it. It deserves the 3 it gets. The only bad aspect of the game I found. This really detours from being a smuggler. If this is the kind of music that a smuggler enjoys I will never become one.

Sound Effects- 9/10- Sound effects provided by Smuggler’s Run: Warzones make an attempt to make up for the piece of crap that is the music in the game. Well, they do, but it still doesn’t make the sound really that great. Anyway, sound effects in the game are exceptionally good. The hum of the car while driving as in any other racing game in this age is fairly realistic. The sounds of hitting buildings and other things also sound pragmatic. Bah, I can live without good sound effects in a game. Smuggler’s Run just adds that on for me. Another 9 for the game. It’s not perfect but still comes good. I still won’t be smuggler unless my mama tells me otherwise.

Gameplay-8/10- Gameplay in Smugglers Run: Warzones is not a slouch in the gameplay department as well. It’s not at its prime though, but is still fairly enjoyable to an extent. There are several modes in the game that are presented for your gaming pleasure. It was mind boggling to see them at first in my opinion. You at first have your basic story mode in which you must complete missions by doing your certain objectives while driving a vehicle of your choice. There is an arrow at the top of the screen that tells you where to go. There is also a gauge in the bottom-right of the screen that also provides some more information including speed & damage. There is also a radar on the screen that can be used for reference. Bah, back to the modes. Another mode in the game is the checkpoint races where you are put in one of the environments in the game and must race through checkpoint markers in order to win. Another mode is the crooks & smugglers mode, which allows you to do various things involving collecting contraband & other stuff. Sub-modes of crooks & smugglers include bomb tag and domination. There is also a mode that lets you explore the levels with no set time limit. The multiplayer in game is decent, and the only issue I have with it is the small screens. There is only one set difficulty in the game and it gets harder as the game progresses along. The control is like I stated in the intro. It’s an ass at first but can be gotten used to. I also have an issue with the unrealistic experience that the game provides. See the intro for the information though. I have to give the gameplay an eight. It’s good, but not flawless. I may consider the career of a smuggler now; I probably won’t do it though.

Replay Value- 6/10- The game does have some other modes. Bah, the replay is really based on how much you enjoyed the game though.

Buy, Rent, or Screw All Together?- Rent- The game can be easily beaten in a weekend rental. I’m reviewing the game after a weeklong rental myself.

Pros
-Good Gameplay
-Good Story
-Excellent Sound Effects
-Graphically Sound
-Good Rental
Cons
-Control
-Realism
-Music

Overall- 7/10- I will be a smuggler when I grow up. You will see my wanted poster someday. End of sarcasm.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/21/03, Updated 07/26/03