Most games are either lookers or screamers. That's to say, companies either go hog-wild creating beautiful, cinematic cut scenes and neglect the mechanics of performance, or they create games that run at 30 frames per second but look like Plan 9 from Outer Space. Not so with Wipeout, a driving game that artfully balances function and form.
Before you say "Not another futuristic racing game!" you owe it to yourself to check this out. The look of Wipeout owes much to England's Designers Republic, the enfant terrible of pop culture graphic design. Best known for creating compulsively detailed, psycho-sci-fi record covers for the likes of Pop Will Eat Itself and Warp Records, DR was enlisted to create team logos, game graphics, and packaging (not to mention a series of highly desirable promo T-shirts). The net result is as close to a work of art as you're likely to see in a videogame. Wipeout looks so cool you'd think DR designed the whole game all the more power to those who did.
The gameplay is akin to tearing down a mammoth ski slope, flying around monster banked turns stomach churning, palms a-sweating. In gamespeak this is a good thing. The sensation of extreme speed and serious Gs is exceptionally convincing (read: you can't stop your head from bobbing back and forth while playing). Racing options include solo time trials through each of the six tracks, a one-player championship series against three other teams, a network multiplayer for up to eight in the PC version, and two-player head-to-heads using two TVs, two PlayStations, and the linkup cable for the PlayStation version. (Head-to-head play is such a blast that I've been known to pack our 35-inch TV into the car at a moment's notice.) You can pick up weapons to slow down your opponents and powerups to make you go faster. Nobody dies in Wipeout, so it's fun in a PC sort of way. The learning curve can be gradual, so prepare for some incredibly depressing race times the first few outings. Pay close attention to the performance specs of each team's craft: they really do matter. One hint: choosing a tight turning radius and nixing the air brakes will greatly increase your odds for success.
For more hints and tips, check out www3.primenet.com/team0/pro_page/faq/wipeout.html.
Wipeout for PlayStation and PC CD-ROM: US$59.95. Sony Interactive PC Software America: (800) 438 7794, + 1 (415) 655 8000, fax +1 (415) 655 8031, on the Web at www.sony.com.
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