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In the past (starting with the PS1), whenever you heard the phrase "budget title",
it usually meant two things: it was cheap (ranging from $9.99-$19.99), and it probably wasn't very good.
But in this current generation, one thing has changed about budget titles. They were still
cheap, but they've also gotten better. Games such as Colin McRae Rally 04, Katamari Damacy,
Guilty Gear X2 Reload, and the Midway Arcade Treasures line, have shown us that a game
can retail for $19.99 and NOT suck. But that doesn't mean there hasn't been budget titles
in this current generation that are just too poor to even deal with. This is one of them.
While Road Trip seems like an original title (in this country), in actuallity,
this is a part of the popular "ChoroQ" racing line in Japan, where you race minaturized, deformed
versions of popular automobiles (at least by design). Basically, it's their version
of Micro Machines. Anyway, Road Trip is a far from spectaculor. In a spectrum of racing
games where the Gran Turismo franchise is the best available, Road Trip is among the worst
on the market. The design is plain, almost of a kart racer, but for some god-given reason, there's
also a free-roaming environment and an awful storyline (whichever car wins the GP becomes
president? WHAT?!!). The racing itself is slow and clunky, with a very lacking sense of
speed and some rather unresponsive controls. In about an hour (or less), you'll be sick
of this game, or beat it, whichever comes first. I'm sure this game was meant for a younger
demographic, but I think even an 8 or 9 year old child would not like Road Trip too much.
The visuals are as plain and devoid of detail out of most games I've played this
generation. The environments usually consist of low-poly objects, low-res textures (although
I noticed a higher resolution texture thrown in for laughs) and gaudy colors. The cars themselves
are rather deformed looking, but also somewhat resemble actual cars, like the Chevrolet Corvette,
the Lotus Europa, and a Subary Legacy wagon. But like the cars would actually be LICENSED.
Maybe they were in Japan, but not here. The sound is even worse. There are music and
sound effects that sound like they have been drawn out of the 16-bit era. I'd rather listen
to Ashlee Simpson's "Pieces Of Me" on loop than listen to the crap in this game.
Final Thought
Simply, Road Trip is ride not worth taking. I really can't see why these games
are popular in Japan, because this is among one of the least entertaining racing
games this generation.
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