Tokyo Xtreme Racer Advance

"Decent iteration of the series on a handheld, but not without flaws"

The Tokyo Xtreme Racer series is now proving to have stood the test of time. Beginning its life as Tokyo Highway Battle on the PlayStation in 1996, it has since evolved onto the Dreamcast, PlayStation 2 and, now, the Game Boy Advance. Tokyo Xtreme Racer advance differs from the console series in quite a few ways, not least the fact racing takes place in three different cities worldwide - Tokyo, London and Los Angeles.

Story - 6/10
It's rare to see a racing game with a proper story, so to find one in TXR Advance is rather refreshing. That's not to say it's a storyline to end all storylines though, as you're simply a new driver to the highways who wishes to defeat all other drivers in order to be crowned king of the highways. That's it.

Graphics - 8/10
The car models are detailed and large, and differ between different types. The actual graphics on the highway are generally clear, detailed and well-made. There are some pleasing effects such as the streetlights shining on the cars and the rubber marks when taking corners. There is a decent variety of driving vehicles - London buses, coaches, petrol trucks, container trucks, cars and taxis. Graphically, the three types of course do look different, and there are some good additions here. All three types have different scenery on either side of the road and different night-time backgrounds. The London courses, for example, have multicoloured graffiti on the walls as you exit a tunnel, which does look very good.

The letdown is the slow framerate meaning much of the course can actually appear whilst driving. This isn't too great a problem as you're bound to be concentrating on the road and the obstacles while driving, but you will spot the disappointing appearance of the road and its objects as you go along. All the rival cars also look the same - black general cars which shouldn't be the reality. Generally however, the graphics leave a positive impression and are a credit to the developer.

Gameplay - 8/10
Four modes are offered: Quest, Time Attack, Free Run and Quick Race. The heart and soul of TXR Advance lies within the absorbing Quest mode, which has you racing around six highway loops in search of 128 different rivals. Buy a mid-range or cheap car to start with, and save up for a better one, then tune it to the max. Defeat all your opponents and you will be crowned the Highway King. Needless to say, this is a lengthy task and the later rivals require real skill at avoiding walls and civilian cars which slow you right down. The Quest mode is long and addictive, making this certainly one of the longer GBA racing titles. Basically, as you drive freely, find a rival and drive behind them. Honk your car's horn by pressing the R button to trigger a race. Win and you'll get money and a 'Beaten' message added to the rival profile; lose and you'll get nothing.

There are six tracks in the game - two for each of the three cities; Tokyo, Los Angeles and London. The Tokyo courses offer fewer turns and a lot of high speed, while the second London course is tight, long and difficult to emerge victorious from. Different rivals do boast different driving styles and this adds to the interest of Quest mode. Beat a certain number of rivals and you'll receive a new course to race on... this pattern continues until all regular team members are beaten. Thereafter, you'll have to beat several very challenging Wanderer rivals who race alone and don't belong to a particular team. Around 16 cars are offered in the regular A, B and C classes. Most models capture the real-life counterpart moderately well, but there have been a couple of isolated mistakes (such as the Dodge Viper looking more like an Audi from the front!). Classic Japanese cars such as the R30 and R32 Skyline are present, with the deadly Porsche 911 and Dodge Viper GTS also thrown in to the mix. There is an excellent range of parts to add to your dream ride and these range from power-increasing Body Upgrades to Spoiler and Bumper changes.

The other modes offer an added dimension to the game, but you'll play them little. Setting and beating your own records in Time Attack might keep you going for a bit, but the other modes seem pointless. Overall, there is little to fault with the gameplay, other than the limitations of cars and tracks when compared to the console versions. There is also a slightly different SP battle mode where both player's health decreases and you need to be ahead by the end to ensure your health doesn't deplete first.

Controls - 7/10
Cars can be a little tricky to handle, as with most of the CBA racers. The first cars you buy understeer prolifically, and you need to buy Drive Train parts to cure this completely. The Class A cars, by and large, steer much better as soon as you buy them. Otherwise, the button setup is sensible and fine.

Audio - 6/10
The sound effects your car will make are decent and pleasing for the most part, with good car engine sounds and screeching as you turn corners. That said, the quality of the background music is absolutely dire, and sounds about original Game Boy standard. It's fuzzy and sounds cheaply done, although some of the actual tunes are pretty catchy. All music is techno style.

Challenge - 10/10
The steepening difficulty level is superb - it starts off relitively easy, but by the time you're at Wanderer level, you'll struggle every race and have to crash into rials and hope they hit civilian cars to achieve victory. This is certainly one of the main selling points of the game: almost anyone can pick up and play, but comparitively few will beat all 128 rivals in a matter of, say, two days...

Lifespan - 8/10
...which brings me to another plus point... the game will certainly, for a GBA title, last a while. There are many rivals to win against and the later ones are certainly not at all easy. It may well take a day alone to beat some of the final ones. There is a decent selection of long courses and well-made cars which will keep you interested and the general four modes adds more time. It's well worth your money for the time you'll be playing it.

Other - 4/10
Disappointingly, the box design and manual scream 'Cheap' down your ear. The blurb on the back of the box says "Need for Speed Underground allows gamers to..." What? Need for Speed? A mistake and a half, that one. The manual is marginally above completely useless - there is no explanation of how to control the cars and menus... oh no... all you get is a page listing the features, another trailer about Need for Speed and a couple of dreadfully captured screenshots. Before I took the decision to buy the game I actually thought it was a very cheap off of an NFS game, but thankfully it isn't. Simply put, see beyond the rubbish box and manual - the game beyond is worth it.

Overall Stuff
Story: 6/10
Graphics: 8/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Controls: 7/10
Audio: 6/10
Challenge: 10/10
Lifespan: 8/10
Other: 4/10

OVERALL SCORE (Not an average): 7/10

UPPERS:
-Decent graphics.
-Good selection of cars, courses and opponents.
-Very good learning curve.
-Plenty of replay value.
-Take a unique street racer anywhere you like!

DOWNERS:
-Some car depictions are wrong.
-Some needless changes from the console version.
-Won't appeal to everyone.

Final Thoughts:
If you enjoyed the console TXR games, certainly buy now; if you didn't, think twice. Generally speaking, it's a dumbed-down console port with some new traits added for good measure. The poor presentation shouldn't put you off though - if you like cars and car games, you'll likely enjoy this one quite a lot. I know I did.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 07/29/05