Star Wars Racer Revenge

The Revenge part of the title comes into play in that Sebulba has returned to the pod racing circuit. To make matters even more complex, Anakin Skywalker has taken a vacation from his Jedi training and has also taken up the controls to his pod once more. So now the stage is set for revenge.

Star Wars Racer Revenge features your standard set of racing options. Single Play is you against the track, last one standing wins. Vs. Mode is you against only one other player in a split screen race. And Tournament mode is the career racing mode that is the main part of the game.

The Tournament mode that Racer Revenge sports a lot more features than were seen in the original Episode I Racer. There are 23 total racers (which includes 5 hidden characters) and 14 tracks spread across five planets. Also new is the bonus system used in the races. You are given credits to upgrade your pod for the amount of damage you cause to the other racers. You are given even more credits for making the other racers' pods blow up. And then they'll give you even more credits the more recklessly you drive your pod. What happened to anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering, and that was the path to the Dark Side?

The game also sports a unique control style that shows driving a pod is a bit more difficult than gas and brake, just like in the movie. The left side of the screen will have a damage gauge that shows the condition of your pod. There are four colors: green, yellow, orange, and red. When the red bar is gone, your pod will break down and the race is over. You will be able to repair your pod with L2, but this will slow you down. On the right side of the screen will be a temperature gauge. You'll be able to give your pod a speed burst with R2, which will increase the engine's temperature. If your engines stay too hot for too long, well let's just say you'll be one with The Force. Rainbow Studios has made this more than an arcade racer and added a little strategy to the races. It sounds interesting. There is also a secondary control scheme you can use that let's you use the left analog stick to control the left engine and the right analog stick to control the right engine. Just like how Anakin controlled his pod in the movie.

The graphics look sharp from the screenshots I've seen with Tatooine never having looked so good. The other planets also feature that distinct Star Wars look and makes me wish for a next-gen sequel to the old SNES game Hyperzone. And Rainbow Studios has said one of their main goals will be to keep the framerate constant throughout the whole game. This is definitely a step in the right direction.