Destruction Derby Arenas Impressions

Sony is showing off a brief demo version of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe's Destruction Derby Arenas at E3 2003. The game follows in the footsteps of the original DD games, but it does so in a much smoother fashion, and it takes its act online.

The version being shown at the show has only one track, but it's set up to run online with what appears to be 16 players. The track is an airfield with barriers set up on it to force turns, but there are a few shortcuts to take, including one that has you driving through the fuselage of an airplane. At one point during the race, a huge cargo plane lands on the track, causing complete and total chaos.

Scoring in Destruction Derby Arenas appears to work much like it did in previous versions of the game. You earn points for causing opposing racers to spin out, rather than for damaging them. You can also score points by forcing cars to roll and knocking them out entirely. Unlike in previous entries in the series, cars respawn after they've been destroyed, though with only the online mode on display, it's hard to say if that will carry over to the game's other modes.

The game runs at a faster pace and a much higher frame rate than previous entries in the series. However, the frame rate does fluctuate a bit, especially when you head around turns. Destruction Derby Arenas hasn't been announced for release in North America at this time, but it should be available in Europe sometime this year.