Pulse-Pounding beats? Check. Stomach-churning rollercoaster tracks? Check. ArbitraRy weapons? Check. Flashy visuals? Double-check. While Extreme-G 3 more or less plays like a "Futuristic Racing's Guide to Futuristic Racing" manual, the end result is actually pretty good, and Extreme-G 3 is easily the best game in a fairly mediocre series. The third volume is where the series steps into its own, offering gameplay at a full sixty frames per second, and there is no denying that this visual feat comes off as most impressive... everything is very smooth, and although the graphics lack a whole lot of inspiration, the smooth, contoured look of the game is still very attractive, and the way each bike has trailers that follow is also very neat. The controls have also improved from the previous offering on the N64, and although they are a bit touchy at first, given time, the player will find a nice middle ground as they handle their bikes with a feather touch and slightly tap the sidebrakes... overall, the controls are consistent, but it does take some getting used to. Also, the player can lean back or forward, and it makes a small dfifference in climbing and descending. There's a lot to learn and a lot of ways to apply it. However, as is usually the case with sensitive controls in racing game, there is a positive end result in this. The amount of finesse that the player can input becomes nigh-infinite, and once the player has mastered a given course, it really is fun to watch. The audio is repetitive, but that's pretty par for the course. Just lots of generic techno, and although I've definitely heard worse, it doesn't stand out very much, and even a bad WipEout soundtrack tops this one. Easily the game's weakest aspect. But like most games in this racing subgenre, it's the track design that matters, and here, XG3 delivers, with gut-wrenching drops, killer loops, and harsh angled banks. It's all very well-done, and it follows the game's overall smooth, rounded look. A game that adheres all aspects of itself to the same aesthetic is remarkably rare, and these little touches go a long way for XG3. The races are a standard bout of "race, fire, repeat", and although it's usually the same "climb through the ranks and hope to finish ahead of some guy who had a huge lead to start off", it's all very intense and enjoyable, and although starting in the back always can get grating, doggedly moving up through the ranks as a race progresses has its own intense charm. Multiplayer vs. is a bit of a drag, but when playing cooperatively, it's neat to actually move through the ranks with a friend... it's even harder than going solo, but it's nice to move through something with a friend in a racing game, as it is rarely an option. Overall, Extreme-G 3 is one of hte better futuristic racing games available, and although it's not perfect, it does offer a challenging and deep experience worth playing.
Extreme G III is a futuristic racing game set in a warped, neon metropolis of the near future. Previous entries have featured on the Nintendo 64 and the Playstation 2. This is the series first outing on the GC and has pr... Read Full Review
The Extreme-G series always lacked the hype that the F-Zero and WipeOut franchises got (for good reason; those games were great while X-G wasn't) but the third installment in the series aims to change all that. Did they ... Read Full Review
