Cel shading was a novel form of approaching graphics when first introduced in games such as Jet Set Radio and Wacky Racers. This cartoonlike approach to visual style lends itself naturally to certain types of games, and at first glance, Cel Damage appears to be the most impressive use of cel shading yet. Cel Damage is vehicular combat of the demolition derby sort--what sets it apart from other games in its class is how it attempts to emulate a slapstick cartoon show, in which a cast of unique characters smack each other around with comical weapons to win over the viewers (or appease their own sick and twisted desire for violence).

Visually, Cel Damage is an impressive experience. The characters, their vehicles, and the active landscapes are all well drawn and nicely animated--with a touch of temporary suspension of disbelief, you can easily think that you're playing a real-time cartoon. Introductory movies allow you to get to know the cast of characters and their vehicles, and while some may argue that they are derivative and simple, they are most assuredly easy on the eyes. There are six characters to begin with, including an Elvis-impersonating construction worker, a duck frozen in time as a Tommy-gun-toting '30s mobster, and the consummate bespectacled nerd--or rather, boy genius--for the politically correct. It's a shame that there are only four different landscapes to choose from, which include the desert, jungle, Transylvania, and space, because it would have been very interesting to see what the artists could have done with a city-based level. In fact, after only a handful of hours, you've seen and heard everything that Cel Damage has to offer. Across each of the different levels, you can take in the Warner Bros. feel and admire the details, like boulders that erupt in clouds of smoke when destroyed or space fungi that chime as they act as pinballesque bumpers, each sending you careening into another. Aside from a number of amusing taunts and death messages, the sound effects and music are simply passable.

Cel Damage offers Quake-style gameplay, albeit greatly modified to fit the game's vehicular nature. Aiming at targets is a nonissue; instead, the control is focused on evasive maneuvering and lining up opponents with the area of effect of your current weapon. The control is intuitive and responsive, albeit severely dumbed down. At any one time, your racer can carry only a single weapon, essentially turning Cel Damage into a one-button game. The other buttons allow you to honk the horn or unleash a signature taunt, but some real variety would have been much more welcome.

Each character is outfitted with a default weapon, which is essentially useless. Firing at two battling CPU opponents with the basic ranged attack will serve only in getting you blown up or sliced in half, so it's best to always race for the power-ups--or rather, that map's one useful power-up in particular. Aside from your character's personal weaponry, there are a number of weapons littered across the various maps, although any one map never features more than three or four. These weapons include the baseball bat, chainsaw, chain gun, ax, boxing gloves, freeze ray, and grenades. There are other weapons strewn throughout the game's dozen levels, each with different characteristics. All of the weapons have their own uses, be it for disabling an opponent, or simply destroying them, but from what we've seen, some are grossly overpowered in comparison with others. The ax and chainsaw in particular are one-hit kill weapons and thus extremely unbalanced in nature. While the comparison may be made by some to the rail gun in Quake, it's entirely inappropriate--it takes considerable skill to use a rail gun efficiently, while the one-hit kill melee weapons in Cel Damage are far too easy to use, especially considering how useless the other weapons feel in comparison. Thus, matches in Cel Damage become extremely repetitive races to pick up the "good weapon," and the only challenge becomes the number of opponents you can slice in half before someone else gets you. It doesn't help any that you can hold only a single weapon at a time.