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Dom Robinson reviews
Sony
- Price: £44.99
- Players: 1-2
Wipeout Fusion must rank alongsideGran Turismo 3as the most eagerly-awaited PS2 game since the launch of the console inNovember 2000.
Now in its fourth incarnation, it has to be said that the thing that strikesyou on first impressions are of the much-improved graphics. The first threegames were one of the few series that actually went to the trouble oftweaking the PSX just that bit further – like the first Die Hard Trilogygame – and making you think “WOW” a lot.
Due to the hype I couldn’t help but feel a bit sceptical when approachingthis new release, initially because the game had already been released inAustralia in December 2001, while the UK release missed Christmas and was pushedback to February 2002. Word has it Sony wanted to tweak the game a bit more,but since Oz already have a perfectly playable PAL game, according to reports,the cynic in me thinks it was delayed to bring it out closer to the UK releasedate of the Xbox.
Let’s look at the statistics. There’s more of everything. More tracks, moreteams and more options.
There are 32 different ships you can pilot, gaining access to ones furtherup the chain as you progress, eight different teams each with four ships andeach race handles up to 16 pilots all vying for pole position. There areseven different courses with a total of 45 different tracks, including theability to reverse the course and try it the other way round.
Firing power is as many and varied as before. As a sample of what’s on viewand in addition to the power-ups that speed you up and slow you down,the photon cannon shoots singleshots directly ahead of you, to the cool sound akin to the firing inAtari‘s Asteroid on the Atari VCS; grenades fire three abreastmaking it fun to hold back a little, let someone get just ahead of you andthen let rip – and the same can be done with the explosive missiles; there’sthe usual shield option here but my favourite is the Quake. Shoot this oneand the ground in front ripples like an earthquake disorientating everyoneahead of you. This was in the previous games, but the effect used here isdoubly impressive and I first experienced it by someone else doing it to me.If it doesn’t get you exclaiming “fucking hell” the first few timesyou see it then you must be brain-dead.
Graphically, it does look fantastic, but after all the time we’ve been waitingand the delays surely someone could have removed the occasional jaggies ondisplay? I know it looks sharp, crisp and very colourful, but a littleanti-aliasing in that department would not have gone amiss. There are somefantastic touches in it along the way, though, such as when an explosionoccurs and the whole screen shakes and at times when dust rises from theground and you pass through it.
However, when your craft has had enough and the energy shield goes critical, Imuch preferred it before when you slowed down and simply exploded. Here youexplode not quite as spectacularly, turn into something from an 80s arcade gameand get swallowed up by a rescue capsule. Eh?
Soundwise, things aren’t much further forward than before. Explosions andgunfire are fine and there are musical contributions with Papau New Guinea(Future Sound of London) and Stakker Humanoid 2001 (Humanoid) but afterreading a Dolby press release not so long ago I’m sure we were promised DolbyDigital 5.1 in this game? or was that just for the eventual Xbox release?
The playability’s the same as before too. Controlling your craft takes a littlegetting used to, but you eventually work out how to twist and turn in theair so as to take advantage of the individual tracks and bounce of some ofthe enemies.
My first foray into the world of Wipeout was with the second game, Wipeout2097. It was the absolute dogs bollocks and like nothing I’d played in along time for sheer speed and captivation. There’s no doubting that WipeoutFusion is anything less than a must-buy, but the “WOW” factor has definitelygone for those of us who’ve been there before. Those who haven’t will bejust as bowled over as I was from day one.
Disappointments? Well, the music’s okay but while being quite a fan of FutureSound of London I’d like to see plenty of their tunes here and I only likedthe “Humanoid” track because it came from the 80s arcade game Berserk.The other tracks are rather dull and tuneless.
I can’t think why a Dolby Digital or DTS soundtrack wasn’t used for the musicand game sounds. It revolutionises a game likeSSX Tricky, buteven games likeJames Bond: Agent Under FireandExtreme G3sound effervescent without it, so why doesn’t Wipeout Fusion sound asmeaty? Once “Dolby Digital Intro” is selected from the preferencesmenu, there is such a logo upon loading up, but it’s for their much-trumpted”Dolby Pro-Logic II”, which is just meant to make normal stereo or Pro-Logicmaterial sound a bit more juicy, but if you’re used to DTS or DD5.1 soundtracks,the latter only used in the opening FMV sequence, then it does pale a bitby comparison.
If you think you had your fill of the previous games in the series and aren’ttoo sure then I’d definitely advise a rental. For anyone else who definitelywants more but isn’t expecting the earth, or anyone who loves racing games andhas never experienced the Wipeout phenomenon before, then you must make thatpurchase.
SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC
PLAYABILITY
ORIGINALITY
ENJOYMENT
OVERALL
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.