For better or for worse, a lot of racing games are coming out these days. Thunder Truck Rally by Psygnosis does nothing to revolutionize the genre, nor is it completely stale; it's a fairly average driving game with a few new bells and whistles (monster truck excitement among them).
Thunder Truck Rally offers three modes of racing: a circuit mode, with seven different courses to run; an endurance mode that encourages off-roading and features nine checkpoints spread out around the track that must be passed in order; and the game's cheapest thrill, a car crushing mode, which allows you to pulverize a series of vehicles and rack up points. In addition to the three gameplay options, there are four ways to play the game: a championship mode; a practice mode; a multiplayer mode, which supports up to nine players through alternation; and a time trial mode that allows you to race through a circuit track. All these racing modes take place on a variety of well-rendered terrains that range from snowy glaciers to lava-filled canyons to grassy islands. There are also nine different racers with corresponding monster trucks to choose from. That said, Thunder Truck Rally offers decent racing action. The play control is smooth and the courses offer challenging terrain, but a few things bog the game down. For instance, when you get too close to an opponent you can get "locked" together and slowed down to almost a standstill. Other times it's very easy to hit a jump accidentally and get thrown way off course. Most frustrating is that even if you are winning you can be taken out of the race should your energy bar deplete (and believe me, it does rather quickly when you bump into obstacles). Once you have the hang of the game though, it's not that hard, but every course starts to feel the same - regardless of what mode you are playing in (even the cool sounding car crushing mode degenerates into incredibly shallow and repetitive action).
At first glance the graphics in Thunder Truck Rallylook impressive…until you play the game. The term "pop-up" is used a lot when describing 3-D games and can best be described "an effect where the horizon 'draws in' as you move closer to it." Should a multimedia dictionary ever need an example, Thunder Truck Rally would be an ideal candidate. The 3-D rendered trucks and texture mapped scenery look good; they just don't animate so well. The sound is also lacking, unless you are still thrilled every time a game uses pseudo-house meets industrial music (Wipeout XL it is not).
Thunder Truck Rally is an interesting game trying something new with the racing genre. Unfortunately, while the game offers short-term fun, it lacks the polished look and solid gameplay that makes a great racing title. Since Psygnosis has been in the habit of releasing four-plus racers a year as of late, it won't be long until the next one.
