Rally Cross

Straight out the gate from Sony s in-house development team, Rally Cross is the PlayStation answer to Sega Rally. And while we won t dwell on the similarities (they end with the name), you wonder why it took Sony so long to make a rally game. Sony s game pace aside, Rally Cross is an above-average racer with a few debilitating problems.

Let s start with the graphics, as it s the game s best feature. They are, in a word, gorgeous. Each of the six tracks is splendidly textured, from jungle to sand to snow. As it s essentially an off-road game, the tracks are composed of loose material that kicks up behind your car. There are also streams and mud puddles to drive through, and the effect of the spewing mud is just awesome. In a slightly different variation on things, Rally Cross has put transparent windows on the cars, so you can see your driver s and navigator s heads in through the window. No, they don t flip off the other racers, but what do you expect?

Rally Cross does sport a number of cool options, making it one of the more replayable racers that have come out in a while. Not only are there six tracks, but each of these tracks can be raced backwards. After beating the first three tracks, the second three open up. And after beating those in each successive difficulty level, shortcuts and other goodies open up in the tracks. In addition, you can race in a suicide head on, and can race two-player, and even four-player with the multi-tap.

Rally Cross biggest drawback is the control. The cars turn extremely loosely, and have a tendency to flip over if breathed on too hard. The best way around this is to ride your brakes. Add to this the aggressive opponent AI, and the narrow tracks, and you ll be on your back in no time. Of course the opponents hardly ever flip over, so one good spill and you re toast.

Rally Cross, because of the too-tough enemy AI, works best as a multi-player game. When you re both flipping over all the time, it s kind of fun. But when it s just you, it can become frustrating.