VMX Racing

Although the PlayStation has a surplus of racing games, they re all four-wheel racers. Playmates Interactive must ve had this in mind when it picked up VMX Racing. However, this mud-splattered motocross title is so beset with problems, it makes it difficult to accept it as the only two-wheeled racer available.

VMX Racing took forever to come out, as developer Studio E kept having to pull it back in and make more adjustments. Apparently they never got it quite right, as the control is incredibly faulty. Navigating on the tight courses is a real chore with the loose steering. Tracks of this type demand tight turning, and it just doesn t work without it. The brakes are too strong, and stop you on a dime when you should just be slowing down.

If control was the game s only fault, it might be passable. However, this is the least of its worries. The graphics are, well, deplorable. It s impossible to tell where you re supposed to go, and when you re racing neck and neck with other bikers, they have a tendency to clip in and out of the screen. Good graphics probably wouldn t have saved the game, but they couldn t have hurt.

To its credit, VMX Racing does have a two player split-screen mode, but this is too little, too late. Even if you re dying for a motocross game, pass up VMX Racing.