Road Avenger

"So much fun it should be illegal...um, not quite"

The Sega CD had a handful of good games with its name on them. One of them was a little title revamped from an old arcade laserdisc game called Road Blaster, given a zippier title for its new release.

I've bought a bunch of Wolf Team games in the past and most of them have simple premises that the company thought they needed to make more elaborate in the manuals. The story the manual gives is that you're an agent of S.T.O.P., some kind of undercover police organization, out to get the evil group called S.C.U.M. I don't remember what the letters stand for for either of them. The real story is that after a car gang runs you off the road, your wife dies in the crash and you make a super-charged car to take to the streets and get revenge, hence why it's called Road Avenger.

Graphics-7/10
Not bad, things are clear despite the inherent grain on any Sega CD game. You'll be able to recognize a semi and a wall of flame when one's about to crash into your car.

Sounds-9/10
The game's strong point. When it's not making the noises telling you to perform a certain action, the gripping music ans sound effects (thrill! to the screams of a bunch of teenage shoppers!) will add to the experience of trying to kill some gang members at 120 MPH. Just wish I could tell what the lyrics of the opening song are.

Gameplay-6/10
So it's like Dragon's Lair in a sports car. You drive through a variety of scenariors like a beach, a farm and a canyon looking for members of the gang who killed you wife (which is easy because they painted evil faces on the trunks of their cars), then try to smash them. You have a couple general actions, and performing them all at the right times will see you through whatever the gang can throw at you and onto the next level.

Basically you're a good hit and run guy. Wonder how that's possible.

Overall-8/10
Some games are good because of their complexity. Because they make you think hard and develop strategy to win. Some games are good because they're simple. Road Avenger is one of them. You're out to avenge your wife and ain't nobody and nothing gonna stand in you and your car's way. And it works. So amidst all the Final Fantasies and Xeno Sagas out there, let's not forget that sometimes simplicity is a gamer's best friend.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 02/14/04