Johnny Crash Does Texas Hands-On

San Francisco--Like its predecessor, Johnny Crash Does Texas seems like a great game with an original and addictive design. Johnny's still launching himself out of cannons, but he's got some new, Texas-themed stunts in his repertoire.

Johnny Crash is hoping to shake up the denizens of rural Texas, just as he shocked and awed city folk in his last outing. To accomplish this, he must perform progressively more-challenging stunts. The completion of each level improves his reputation with the generally uninviting agrarian community.

What's new, aside from the setting, is Johnny Crash's ability to string together stunt combos. Hit a bird, two planes, and a bolt of lightning in rapid succession, and you'll incur a huge bonus multiplier. This adds a cool dimension to the gameplay, and finally makes all those birds floating about useful.

After fielding complaints that the original Johnny Crash was too challenging (we didn't think so), Sumea has added an indicator that shows the location of the objects needed for each level's required stunt. While this reduces the challenge a bit, it's not a bad addition. It's a good idea to avoid frustrating the casual gamer.

While Johnny dons a 10-gallon hat this time around, Sumea has kept the game's graphics close to those of the original. The music isn't quite so metal in this game, and we are treated to some down-home tunes instead.

Johnny Quest may think we're sellouts, but Johnny Crash just wants to hang out and show us his skills. When this game launches, sometime in the second quarter of this year, we suggest you let him do that.