a scale of 1–6 in five different categories which affect that character's performance, with six being the best. Each character also has his or her own crew chief, which is nothing more than a voice offering encouragement and advice to the player: Ryota Hayami (age: 23 from Japan) is the most balanced character, good for beginners and experts alike. Ryota Hayami is also a returning character from Wave Race 64. Akari Hayami is his younger sister. David Mariner (age: 37 from the USA) has high top speed and a strong grip, but is very difficult to maneuver and has slow acceleration. He is best for experienced players. He is also a returning character from Wave Race 64 Akari Hayami (age: 21 from Japan) has a low top speed and a weak grip, but high acceleration and maneuvering, making her recommended for beginners. She was not originally from Wave Race 64, but rather from 1080° Snowboarding. Ryota Hayami is her older brother. Nigel Carver (age: 28 from Great Britain) is one of the heavier character, but he is easy enough to control. Ayumi Stewart (age: 26 from the USA) is a fairly balanced character, good for beginners to experts. She is also a returning character from Wave Race 64. Rob Haywood (age: 24 from the USA) is a heavy character, similar to David Mariner in terms of strengths and weaknesses, best for the more experienced players. He was originally from 1080° Snowboarding. Ricky Winterborn (age: 18 from Canada) is similar to Akari Hayami, but more stunt-oriented. He was originally from 1080° Snowboarding. Serena Del Mar (age: 19 from Brazil) is not particularly heavy, but she is challenging enough to control and is more directed towards advanced players. Reception Blue Storm received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. The game was praised for its water effects, weather effects, and physics. The weather effects in the game, most people agreed, were outstanding. They caused wave height to vary and often came on slowly, or would let up surprisingly in the middle of a race. The weather also affected course layout, adding to the game's variety. Physics in the game were unmatched by any other water-based game at the time. Waves that varied in height and intensity, wakes from other riders and more all attributed to the overall feel of the game and was usually mentioned as one of the games