Sega GT 2002

"This Game Feels Like An Early Demo Disc For Gran Turismo 3"

Sega GT 2002 is pretty much Xbox's wanna-be equivalent to Gran Turismo 3 A-Spec on PlayStation2, and it failed horribly at doing this. Sega seems to think that all people want in a racing game is hard enemies that are relentless and compete cheaply and pretty graphics. And they wonder why their games aren't selling well. Oh well, on to the review of Sega's less-than-average racer, Sega GT 2002.

The controls are very good. You have a button to accelerate, use an emergency break, use the foot break, go in reverse, change your camera angle, look behind you, and that's pretty much it. They're also very responsive. Overall, great controls.

The gameplay is average, and if anyone tells you different, this is either the first racing game they'd ever played or they're a liar. It's as simple as that. It pales in comparison to simulation racers like the Gran Turismo series. It just lacks the feeling you get when playing other games that just draws you back for more.

The actual racing is pretty damned hard and boring. It feels like you're always racing the same damn track over and over with the same cars trying to beat you. The game is also too damned hard. If you choose the wrong car and you invest too much money in it, you're going to be ****ed and have to restart your whole game. The enemy AI is very relentless and their cars are pretty much ALWAYS better than your's, and will kick your ass. Then again, Sega just did this to add ''depth'' to their short ass game, I guess.

The main mode in the game is called Sega GT 2002. It's pretty much your season or whatever. You'll be playing single races and license tests and stuff like that, which is pretty much the same thing as the event mode, minus the license tests. It's pretty much the main mode, and there's nothing in it that actually draws you and makes you want to play it more. It's basically race this track you've already played 50 times, win a few thousand dollars and maybe a car, and repeat the process 60 or so times and you've finished the main mode.

The event mode is basically a bunch of races that have special criteria for you to be in them. Other than that, it's pretty much the Sega GT 2002 mode in a smaller form. Chronicle mode is a mode where you race older cars and stuff. That's pretty much it. Time Attack should be self-explanatory, and Quick Battle is pretty much a single race where you can race with around 1/3 of the cars in the game available on a few different tracks. As you can see, it seems like they just recycled all of the modes and called it a game.

When you race, you're going to eventually earn money. What can you spend it on? Either a poor selection of cars considering you'll probably be near broke or a few different mods for your car that if you buy, you'll never have enough to have another car. Anyway, the upgrade system is kind of like the one in Gran Turismo 3, but 50 times less complicated, which can either be good or bad depending on how much you know about cars and stuff. Speaking of repairing, when you are racing, you have a damage meter. According to how bad you screw up your car, you'll be paying to fix it. This will be taken out of your account or out of your winnings, which is bull****, in my opinion. Definitely not a factor in the game I like.

The tracks are designed averagely, but the fact that there are probably only around 10 real tracks (not counting all of the designs of the same track that have parts cut out and stuff), it makes the game even more disappointing. A few of the tracks seem to have been based off of each other, too, and it always seems as if you're just playing the same few tracks over and over. Attention, Sega: no variety = boring.

There are probably around 40 or so cars in the game, which pales in comparison to Gran Turismo 3's 200+ selection. When you first start off, it's a ***** to choose the right car and actually beat your competition. Since you start off with a crappy ride, you'll want to upgrade it, but you'll have little to no money left so you can't. The makes of the cars in the game range from French Fiats and Peugeots and German Mercedes and Opels to all-American Chevrolets, Dodges, and Fords to your Japanese makes like Nissan, Toyota, Subaru, Honda, and a few more. There's less cars in each category than in Gran Turismo 3, too.

The replayability is pretty poor. I'm about 3 hours in, according to my game saver, and I'm already starting to get tired of this game. The multiplayer is alright, but it gets old in around 20 minutes. If you call those recycled modes, replay, well then there you go. Have fun.

The graphics are great, but still not as good as, say, Project Gotham: Racing or Gran Turismo 3. The lighting effects and everything are good and all, but nothing to get excited about. I've even had instances where they've blinded me and made me hit a wall. Not a good thing. The soundtrack Sega put in the game sucks. Bad. It's a damn good thing this game supports custom soundtrack.

Overall, the game is below average. You can find this game packaged in with Jet Set Radio: Future at ebgames.com for around $7 right now pre-owned, and if you don't buy it there, I highly recommend not buying it or renting it. I bought this and JSRF with the $7 price tag and I'm not as disappointed with the game as I would be if it were $50. So in closing, if you want a racing game, Gran Turismo 3 is the best racing game ever until Gran Turismo 4. If you don't have a PS2, you can always substitute with Project Gotham: Racing, I guess.

Reviewer's Score: 4/10, Originally Posted: 10/28/03