pwnophobia
07-26-2010, 07:36 AM
Title: Hydro Thunder Hurricane
Platform: XBLA
Platform Reviewed: XBLA
Developer: Vector Unit (http://http://www.vectorunit.com/)
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios (http://http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
MSRP: 1200 MSP ($15.00)
Writer: Adam 'pwnophobia' Cogswell
Hydro Thunder Hurricane Review
Damn The Torpedos!
Many years ago I would spend my Wednesday nights at a roller skating rink enjoying cherry flavored slushies and their small arcade room. Tucked in back near the other racing games was a small cabinet with the words "Hydro Thunder" written on the side. Normally a racing game wouldn't grab my interest; I've never been one to want to sit down and pretend to drive a car, but something about this title screamed "play me!" After many hours of play I found myself in a Funco Land purchasing a Nintendo 64 and Hydro Thunder so I could take the experience home. Now, quite some time later, you may be over joyed to hear that the fun and competitiveness of the original Hydro Thunder has been captured and spit back out in Hydro Thunder Hurricane.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth1.jpg
In Hydro Thunder Hurricane you are the 'captain' of a Super Boat that travels the world racing for money and fame. Well, not so much money and fame as it is "because you can". Hydro Thunder Hurricane doesn't have a story mode, but instead has five different modes to choose from to test your racing skills. Your first option is a simple single player race mode wherein you choose your boat and track and go head to head with the AI. Each track is wildly different and a faithful recreation of the original. If you remember all of the little nooks and special places from the arcade, you'll feel right at home when you step foot in the Sewers of Paris circuit. For those of you that are unfamiliar or don't remember, you may be pleasantly surprised to see that each track takes a page out of a fictional book. One track pits you in a jungle that is infested with dinosaurs and giant dragonflies, another puts you in the Antarctic racing along side frozen Wooly Mammoth's and even Poseidon himself. Graphically, everything is pleasant to view but you'll never have more than a split second to catch what is going on as you whiz by at over 200 mph.
The speed and difficulty of the race is determined by which boat you pick. There are three boats in each category: Novice, Pro and Expert. Additionally, each boat has its own properties including handling, speed and acceleration. At the start of every race, you will always begin in last place with zero boost. You'll then have the length of the track to pass the leader. This makes the game always feel like an uphill battle, but gives you a reason to try and find any secret passages on subsequent play throughs so you can better your time and pass the leader sooner. While racing on the higher difficulties you may notice that the boats are always equal to or better than your own in stats. This was imported from the original to try and keep the game balanced (so you're not trouncing over the earlier boats on each race), but at the same time is frustrating because you have to go against the Expert boats when you are playing Advanced.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth2.jpg
Now you probably want to know how you can unlock the boats and tracks. Well, while progressing through any of the modes you'll earn credits that are used to unlock these boats, maps and modes. Think of it as more of an experience system because you never spend the credits in a store; they just rack up and unlock more than one item when you reach a certain number of them. Each of the boats has a unique feel because of their attributes, but the "speed feel" that you may get in other racing games isn't quite there. When you engage boost your speedometer will go from say 160 to 200, but you don't feel like you've gone that much faster. I couldn't tell if this was because the game is trying to compensate for the lack of land or if the boost is just really used to cut corners quicker, but it leaves a bit to be desired. It doesn't necessarily take away from the overall experience because you'll be too busy trying to keep control of your boat, always dangling on that egde of crashing if you hit too large a wave. Anyone who has controlled a real jet-ski or speed boat can relate to this feeling.
The other challenge modes consist of Ring Master, Gauntlet and Championship. Ring Master pits you on any race track you choose and has you racing through rings which give you boost and keep you on the designated track. Gauntlet is your speed race mode; start at the beginning and try to beat the fastest time on the track for more credits. Finally Championship puts together all of the modes and has you race two or three times in a circuit completing challenges to get the top score overall. Each of these modes also offer credits and an online leader board to challenge your friends.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth3.jpg
If you're looking for an exact replica of the original Hydro Thunder, then you'll be more than pleased with Hydro Thunder Hurricane. As soon as you fire up your first race on Lake Powell, you'll be hit with a wave of nostalgia and that muscle memory from your N64 or Dreamcast days will come flooding back as you jump into that hidden shortcut that "only you knew about." If you've got friends to play with, you'll enjoy hours of fun in the multiplayer. Or if you're a leader board junky you'll find that Hydro Thunder Hurricane has a place for you. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to jump into Damn The Torpedos and finish my last time trial.
Score: 4 out of 5
http://evavhost.com/public/4.gif
The Good All race tracks and boats are brought back in High Def. Extra challenge modes for new colors and tracks. The water physics are as great as ever, waves feel extremely realistic.
The Bad Needs more boats.
The Ugly I've just hit this jump, I'm going to win! *boat hits hidden wall*
Platform: XBLA
Platform Reviewed: XBLA
Developer: Vector Unit (http://http://www.vectorunit.com/)
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios (http://http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
MSRP: 1200 MSP ($15.00)
Writer: Adam 'pwnophobia' Cogswell
Hydro Thunder Hurricane Review
Damn The Torpedos!
Many years ago I would spend my Wednesday nights at a roller skating rink enjoying cherry flavored slushies and their small arcade room. Tucked in back near the other racing games was a small cabinet with the words "Hydro Thunder" written on the side. Normally a racing game wouldn't grab my interest; I've never been one to want to sit down and pretend to drive a car, but something about this title screamed "play me!" After many hours of play I found myself in a Funco Land purchasing a Nintendo 64 and Hydro Thunder so I could take the experience home. Now, quite some time later, you may be over joyed to hear that the fun and competitiveness of the original Hydro Thunder has been captured and spit back out in Hydro Thunder Hurricane.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth1.jpg
In Hydro Thunder Hurricane you are the 'captain' of a Super Boat that travels the world racing for money and fame. Well, not so much money and fame as it is "because you can". Hydro Thunder Hurricane doesn't have a story mode, but instead has five different modes to choose from to test your racing skills. Your first option is a simple single player race mode wherein you choose your boat and track and go head to head with the AI. Each track is wildly different and a faithful recreation of the original. If you remember all of the little nooks and special places from the arcade, you'll feel right at home when you step foot in the Sewers of Paris circuit. For those of you that are unfamiliar or don't remember, you may be pleasantly surprised to see that each track takes a page out of a fictional book. One track pits you in a jungle that is infested with dinosaurs and giant dragonflies, another puts you in the Antarctic racing along side frozen Wooly Mammoth's and even Poseidon himself. Graphically, everything is pleasant to view but you'll never have more than a split second to catch what is going on as you whiz by at over 200 mph.
The speed and difficulty of the race is determined by which boat you pick. There are three boats in each category: Novice, Pro and Expert. Additionally, each boat has its own properties including handling, speed and acceleration. At the start of every race, you will always begin in last place with zero boost. You'll then have the length of the track to pass the leader. This makes the game always feel like an uphill battle, but gives you a reason to try and find any secret passages on subsequent play throughs so you can better your time and pass the leader sooner. While racing on the higher difficulties you may notice that the boats are always equal to or better than your own in stats. This was imported from the original to try and keep the game balanced (so you're not trouncing over the earlier boats on each race), but at the same time is frustrating because you have to go against the Expert boats when you are playing Advanced.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth2.jpg
Now you probably want to know how you can unlock the boats and tracks. Well, while progressing through any of the modes you'll earn credits that are used to unlock these boats, maps and modes. Think of it as more of an experience system because you never spend the credits in a store; they just rack up and unlock more than one item when you reach a certain number of them. Each of the boats has a unique feel because of their attributes, but the "speed feel" that you may get in other racing games isn't quite there. When you engage boost your speedometer will go from say 160 to 200, but you don't feel like you've gone that much faster. I couldn't tell if this was because the game is trying to compensate for the lack of land or if the boost is just really used to cut corners quicker, but it leaves a bit to be desired. It doesn't necessarily take away from the overall experience because you'll be too busy trying to keep control of your boat, always dangling on that egde of crashing if you hit too large a wave. Anyone who has controlled a real jet-ski or speed boat can relate to this feeling.
The other challenge modes consist of Ring Master, Gauntlet and Championship. Ring Master pits you on any race track you choose and has you racing through rings which give you boost and keep you on the designated track. Gauntlet is your speed race mode; start at the beginning and try to beat the fastest time on the track for more credits. Finally Championship puts together all of the modes and has you race two or three times in a circuit completing challenges to get the top score overall. Each of these modes also offer credits and an online leader board to challenge your friends.
http://evavhost.com/i/reviews/hth3.jpg
If you're looking for an exact replica of the original Hydro Thunder, then you'll be more than pleased with Hydro Thunder Hurricane. As soon as you fire up your first race on Lake Powell, you'll be hit with a wave of nostalgia and that muscle memory from your N64 or Dreamcast days will come flooding back as you jump into that hidden shortcut that "only you knew about." If you've got friends to play with, you'll enjoy hours of fun in the multiplayer. Or if you're a leader board junky you'll find that Hydro Thunder Hurricane has a place for you. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to jump into Damn The Torpedos and finish my last time trial.
Score: 4 out of 5
http://evavhost.com/public/4.gif
The Good All race tracks and boats are brought back in High Def. Extra challenge modes for new colors and tracks. The water physics are as great as ever, waves feel extremely realistic.
The Bad Needs more boats.
The Ugly I've just hit this jump, I'm going to win! *boat hits hidden wall*