The first impression I had of this game wasn't very good.  The graphics looked sub-par, and I couldn't hit anything.  I just started and got creamed in the first level.  The learning curve of such of game was too intense.  Car combat is so simple, why should it take a while to get used to it?  Anyway, with no advancement and no visual aesthetics, I quickly dismissed this game.
Fortunately, I came back to it.  I grew accustomed to the drab, gray graphics, I figured out some strategy, and I switched the difficulty to easy.  What happened amazed me.  This game which I thought was terrible turned out to be pretty good.
You get to choose between around 12 different characters.  Each character pretty much goes through the same levels, so once you've been through a few characters, you've seen all the levels in the game.  Each character controls another car, and more importantly, gives you a cool movie describing his or her ordeal.
These movies are what make the game.  Though very, very short (nothing close to Final Fantasy X), these little 30-second clips are disturbing, intense, dark, and simply amazing.  The credits, with a montage of the various cut scenes played to Rolling Stone's "Fade to Black" is worth the price of this relatively inexpensive game alone.
Even though the graphics could have been better, and the game easier, playing a few characters is worth it.  Though I would love to see all the movies, the game gets pretty repetitive.  Despite these flaws, I recommend this game.
Pros:
Movies
Ending Credits
Interesting gameplay
Interesting characters
Difficulty levels
Simple game
Cons:
Too gray and drab
Takes forever to kill a vehicle
Initial learning curve
Not enough levels - repetitive
Hours to complete: 6 hours for the first character, 2-4 hours for additional characters (12 characters total)
Difficulty: Medium (for easy level)
Frustration: Medium (mostly from the beginning)
The first impression I had of this game wasn't very good. The graphics looked sub-par, and I couldn't hit anything. I just started and got creamed in the first level. The learning curve of such of game was too intense. Car combat is so simple, why should it take a while to get used to it? Anyway, with no advancement and no visual aesthetics, I quickly dismissed this game. Fortunately, I came back to it. I grew accustomed to the drab, gray graphics, I figured out some strategy, and I switched the difficulty to easy. What happened amazed me. This game which I thought was terrible turned out to be pretty good. You get to choose between around 12 different characters. Each character pretty much goes through the same levels, so once you've been through a few characters, you've seen all the levels in the game. Each character controls another car, and more importantly, gives you a cool movie describing his or her ordeal. These movies are what make the game. Though very, very short (nothing close to Final Fantasy X), these little 30-second clips are disturbing, intense, dark, and simply amazing. The credits, with a montage of the various cut scenes played to Rolling Stone's "Fade to Black" is worth the price of this relatively inexpensive game alone. Even though the graphics could have been better, and the game easier, playing a few characters is worth it. Though I would love to see all the movies, the game gets pretty repetitive. Despite these flaws, I recommend this game. Pros:
Movies
Ending Credits
Interesting gameplay
Interesting characters
Difficulty levels
Simple game
Cons:
Too gray and drab
Takes forever to kill a vehicle
Initial learning curve
Not enough levels - repetitive
Hours to complete: 6 hours for the first character, 2-4 hours for additional characters (12 characters total)
Difficulty: Medium (for easy level)
Frustration: Medium (mostly from the beginning)