Jet Grind Radio

What people search:

Title : Jet Grind Radio
Author : Sega of America, Inc.
Release Date : 20001110
Binding : CD-ROM
Regular Price : $49.99
Amazon.com Price : $9.99 (80 %)
VISIT AMAZON.COM'S PAGE

Editorial Reviews :
In Jet Grind Radio, you play a whacked out kid who's completely torqued off about the system. It seems that the city of Tokyoto is not terribly kid-friendly and wants to keep things neat and pretty. You, the skater punk, figure that the only way to rebel is with your inline skates and a couple of cans of Krylon. That kind of attitude can lead to trouble when you're in the real world; but, in the world of Jet Grind Radio, there are no paint fumes, and it's all done in the name of fun and scoring points.
Jet Grind Radio's gameplay has some of the feel of Crazy Taxi. As you skate, you see little floating arrows that indicate where you should go (and where you should be tagging). Also, like in Crazy Taxi, the pace of the game is absolutely nonstop. There is moving traffic in the street, and nearly everything can be jumped, hopped, or ground. Underscoring all of this action is a DJ at the local hip-hop station, who spins cool tunes while you tear up Little Tokyoto.

The game starts out with a training course that's designed to bring you up to speed. Pay good attention to this section; it teaches you the basics, and you're tested on one of the lessons right away. Learning how to hop over obstacles while keeping a rail grind going is particularly helpful.

After graduating into the real game, you have the option of going it cool or easing up and figuring out how to do the flips, splits, and other midair antics that make this game so much fun. Once your skating skills are set, you'll learn the spray-can side of things. You pick up cans of paint as you maneuver around (keep your eyes open--some cans are placed in those hard-to-reach places, so that you'll have to catch serious air to get them). After securing your fill, use the left trigger and the analog to spray as you pass by areas that have been indicated by the arrows.

The game's tunes are right on schedule. Much of the Japanese soundtrack has been retained, with new tunes rounding out the selection. The new playlist additions give the game that special flavor that U.S. audiences crave: Jurassic 5, Mix Master Mike, and Rob Zombie, to name a few.

Much about Jet Grind Radio has 'classic' stamped on it; but, of course, liking it or not liking it will be up to the individual. With its fresh characters, cool design, great music and audio, and high replayability, Jet Grind Radio is likely to lodge itself into the library of many a Dreamcast owner.

Buyer Reviews :
Jet Grind Radio is yet another impressively creative title to come out of Sega (which is why I'm so fond of Sega), and definitely rates as a success.

The concept is simple, you skate around towns, tagging (spraypainting) certain objects while evading police officers, police dogs, rockets from helicopters, and other baddies. The animation style is really what cements the experience as being something out of the ordinary, though. Dubbed 'cel-shading', the end result is something that looks very much like a cartoon. It's really beautiful to watch as well as play.

The gameplay is fun, but has some problems. The first, which likely everyone has addressed, is camera control. There are 3 unused buttons on the controller, and the developers still decided for some unknown reason to double up controls. It's annoying, but you learn to live with it. The other issue that bugs me is that you're constantly on the run from police with no real defense other than fleeing.

One other problem I have is with the menu system. When you boot up, you're given the choice of starting a new game, playing a tutorial, or loading an existing file. However, once you have a game in play (through creating a new game or loading), you have to reboot the system to load another. This is really a patently ridiculous feature and particularly annoying if you like alternating w/ a friend but keep seperate game files.

One other note I should make is that the worlds may seem smaller than they were described by other reviewers at first. I was pretty aggravated and disappointed for a while until I got far enough that I was actually given the opportunity to skate more or less freely without worry of harassment by police, etc.. It's a bit into the game, but worth noting if you get discouraged.

All in all, Jet Grind Radio is still a fantastic game, and definitely a game to get for the Dreamcast. There are minor points that really should have been taken care of, but other than that, a solid effort.

(by Matt Novack)

Features/Technical Specs :
* Choose from 10 cartoon-style characters
* Go on 18 missions in 3 worlds
* Create your own logo by combining letters, colors, and special effects
* Cars and pedestrians move in real time
* Urban-industrial soundtrack

back

What people search: