"Rally racing bliss"

The racing genre of videogames was one that I never really got into that much. Aside from the multiplayer aspects of Nintendo's Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64, I never really enjoyed racing games as a whole. Even when I first bought my SEGA Saturn, the Daytona USA game didn't even impress me at first. It was not until years later that I was talked into buying SEGA Rally Championship by a friend of mine. It was only $15, so I thought that I would give racing games another try. After playing SEGA Rally Championship for the first time, I made a discovery about myself in terms of videogames. I learned that I loved rally videogame racing.

Gameplay: The control in SEGA Rally Championship can take some time to get used to. Players will probably bounce off a few ''walls'' until they get accustomed to the way their car handles on the various tracks. However, with the Car Settings option from the main menu, players can adjust the Transmission, Handling, Tires, and Front and Rear Suspension to their liking. Also, from the main menu, players can choose between Arcade, Time Attack, and 2 Player Battle mode. The Time Attack feature is handy for the player if a certain portion of one of the tracks is giving them problems. Players can just re-race that track until they get their problem(s) resolved. The game also features a steady framerate.

Story: Race to win, win to race.

Audio/Video: The SFX to SEGA Rally Championship are quite good. Engine sounds are accurate and clear in the game. The music is also good with a nice selection of rock tunes to accompany the fantastic gameplay. The polygonal graphics are quite crisp and really show off the Saturn's capabilities. The occasional graphical glitch that happens every now and then can easily be overlooked. In fact, it doesn't detract from the overall experience and enjoyment of the game at all.

Replayability: Personally, I never really liked the 2 Player Battle mode in SEGA Rally Championship (for reasons that I never could put my finger on). However, the solid control always had me coming back to the Arcade mode though. Just the thrill of trying to race around the track one or two seconds faster than before had always made the replayability aspect of the game very high for me.

In all honesty, I actually enjoy SEGA Rally Championship more on the SEGA Saturn than SRC2 on the Dreamcast. I know that statement might be blasphemous to some, but I just had more fun (overall) with the original. The only drawback is the limited amount of courses and vehicles that players can choose from. However, thanks to SEGA Rally Championship, I now enjoy almost every rally game on the various next generation consoles. I finally found a racing genre that appeals to me.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 11/30/00, Updated 11/30/00