Stuntman

"From the makers of Driver: So that's a good thing, right?"

The concept for the PlayStation2 game Stuntman is unique in the fact that it takes you behind the scenes as a stunt driver in several fictitious movies. Prior to each scene, you're briefed by the director as to what the overall goal of the stunt is. He'll also keep constant radio contact as you go through the scene. You race through a specific area, as the director yells commands- hit this item, jump that item, etc.- and on-screen pop ups direct you what to do. The Stuntman Career Mode spans a few movies with varying scenes that require you to master the overall skills of a driver. You'll need to fishtail, reverse a 180, hit those sharp turns, and always, always go as fast as gravity allows.

Gameplay

There are 3 basic modes in Stuntman: Career, Stunt Constructor and Driving Tests. Career is the main mode in which you'll go through several movie shoots and perform various stunts in different scenes. You're rewarded in the way of cash, the level total consisting of the basic stunt pay, a time bonus, and an accuracy bonus (if you complete the scene well). Along the way you'll pick up new cars (those you've used in Career mode) and new Stunt Constructor pieces (covered later in the review). There's a timer counting down to each check point, and if you miss, game over. The main goal of Career is to complete the stunt quickly and efficiently- too many takes and you're fired. As you drive through the level, the director will call out commands. It's a nice little feature that's player friendly, but needless to say a half an hour of ''Hit that box!'' gets old, fast. Now, not to say that you need to hit the box, but the more objects you hit the more cash you'll get in way of accuracy. The major goals of a level- keeping close to a chase car, hitting a ramp or cutting through a designated area- are necessary to complete that level. Miss the turn or run out of time, and game over junior.

Career is often difficult to the point where you feel like breaking something. Often a time comes when a game is so challenging, my wall gets a new dent and Sony gets an extra $40 for a replacement controller- courtesy of yours truly. It's easy to get hung up on a passing car, or nick a corner on a turn that sends you fishtailing. Luckily, the game isn't in real time- the same cars will pass you in every take of a scene, so it's easy to plan a route and execute it accordingly. Unfortunately, the load times are longer than most other PS2 games (save Simpson's Road Rage), and with a load time before and after each cut-scene and take, you might find yourself spending more time staring than playing.

Messing around in Stunt Constructor is a great way to learn the basic controls of each vehicle, and is a fun place to hit a barrels at 75 mph before jumping a 40 foot ramp into a crowd of screaming people. You can set any accessory in any direction- 360 degrees of fun, oh yeah! As mentioned before, completing scenes in Career will unlock more pieces, with larger ramps, bigger smash-ables and yes- pyro. Ever want to jump a police car 300 feet over a pile of scrap cars as 18 tons of fire and gun powder explode in your wake? It's possible.

The driving tests include speed, precision, and stunts. You're given a task and old to do it- sort of like Career but less exciting. This is meant more as a training more, but I prefer Stunt Constructor as means of preparing for the big time.

The controls are simple to get used to. The layout is very ''Pick-up and play'' in that anyone who has even an ounce of GT or Driver experience will be right at home. By taking advantage of the handbrake, you can master sharp turns and reverse 180s, which you'll need to have down pat for career mode. All in all, anyone can adapt to Stuntman's basic controls and not have a problem with the one button layout.

Graphics

What can I say? Average? Meh... sadly, the graphics are nothing to gawk at, nor curse to hell like some other horrible PS2 games (SmackDown: Just Bring It, anyone?). The game seems to run slower than most games- though I'm not clear on the frames per second ratio for Stuntman- there's a noticeable difference. The pop-ups on screen during Career are bright and flashy, large enough to get your attention but not distract you from gameplay. They're a real treat when you need them most, and compliment the overall feel of the levels. Reflection took over 1000 photos in cities around the world to model the gameplay world after, adding to the authenticity of the various scenes.

The DVD Extras are awesome. There are several interviews with developers and programmers, as well as previews for other Reflections games. You Driver fans will be happy to know that you'll have Driver 3 by Christmas, while you Superman fans- although the N64 version was enough to turn any Superman fanboy the other way- will get to see a preview for the new PS2 title. There's also a behind the scenes of the making of Stuntman, which is definitely worth a look. For what it's worth, The DVD Extras are a great feature to take a look at if you get bored of playing... and you will get bored, believe me.

Sound

With each movie, a different sound scheme accompanies it. You'll have fast-paced dance music for some parts, and creepy orchestra music for others. The only problem with the music is the lack of variation in the Stunt Constructor mode- I would have liked to hear some heavy thrasher metal as I jump over 11 cars and into some barrels, not the rejects from our local rave. The car noises are great- each collision with a wall or loss of a tire fits perfectly. A major draw-back is the director's constant barrage of instructions. ''Turn here!'', ''Do a reverse 180!'', ''Hit that barrel!''- someone should hit that director. But overall, the sound does it's job- even if the dance music is annoying.

Overall

Stuntman on the PS2 scores a 7. At times it's fun, but the lack of sufficient replayability and often extremely challenging scenes are big factors in considering a purchase. Give Stuntman a rent, and if you don't wrap the game in the 3 day BlockBuster limit, go ahead and pick it up.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/03/02, Updated 07/03/02