Off-Road Redneck Racing Review

If you witnessed the 3D revolution in the gaming industry, you surely remember Redneck Rampage... The game appeared in the middle of the doom-hype, and even though no one can say that it was a technological masterpiece, just like Duke Nukem 3D, it was remembered for its unusual situations, mature humor and phrases like "I'm on you like a stink on shit!" or "C'mon, squeal like a pig!"

Interplay decided to refresh our memory by publishing another game set in the Redneck universe. (That's an awkward way of putting it - Redneck universe - Ed.) You can guess from the title that this one has little to do with running around and shooting, and that it in fact incorporates a bunch of rednecks driving their weird vehicles, trucks and buggies on off-road terrains. The situation isn't as funny and interesting as one might think after this introduction, but you sure can expect a good arcade ride.

Now, this is exactly what the programmers had in mind while creating this little game, so all of you in pursuit of a perfectly realistic off-road driving sim. can just skip Offroad Redneck Racing... Unfortunately, that also goes for those of you who expected something as hilarious as the ole' Redneck Rampage. I have to say that I did not take that as much of a disappointment at first: Before I first loaded the game I had this feeling in the back of my head that the entire thing will completely rely on cheerful country, stupid songs about drunken women (Drunken women?! Wtf?!? - Ed), and interesting, seldom decent, sounds. Even the main menu insinuated something like that, but then, after the first race was over, well, I'm sure I heard all samples in the game. I think that I heard "Sunday, Sunday....", "I'm the law, stop or I'll shoot!" or "iiii-haaaaa" at least ten times per race... If this was supposed to be the big difference in comparison with Rage's Offroad, well it ain't enough...

As for the ride itself, the focus had been put on sheer arcade fun, rather than on any verisimilitude. It took me some time to get used to the game (well that goes for any newer driving game) and from there on everything went swimmingly. The vehicles act a bit funny, as they never seem to slide properly, which will cause you some trouble until you get used to it. Car crashes are pretty benevolent, and will rarely ever interrupt the course of your race. Driving on different surfaces (snow, rain) will affect the behavior of your vehicle, yet not too drastically.

You'll have a chance to race on 24 tracks altogether, set in six different environments. Even though the environments have been placed all over the world, they are all mostly the same redneck terrains with forests, villages, big rocks, dirt roads, and mountains. Getting all these terrains "unlocked" will require passing all the pain-in-the-ass championships. This all functions the same as in other racing games, with a slight difference that you will spontaneously be rewarded with a car upgrade, or a new machine if you've got guts to show 'yer skills and finish a race first...

Advancing through the game won't be that easy, though, as your opponents are pretty good drivers themselves. There are several levels of difficulty you'll have to pass through, but even the easiest level might present some trouble if you want to finish first. Even if you make it, the others will be right behind you. A single mistake will frequently take you from the first to the last place. As you advance through the game, you will face stronger opponents in better cars. Fortunately, when in championship mode, you can save your position after each race, and there is an unlimited number of save slots, which is less than typical for games of this type. (You mean, RR is not a PSX port - Ed.)