Jumping Flash

lf you are just expecting another variation of full-polygon Doom, get ready for a surprise! Jumping Flash! combines typical 3-D polygons with a first-person, platform-leaping game! You are the pilot of a goofy rabbit and are armed with different lasers that will help you reach the goal of each level--collecting the four big carrots that open up the exit. The fun part is that you m can learn (visual approximation) 20 feet into the air to get to items!

FIRST IMPRESSION

... very silly looking. As you start to wander around, you feel like you are in a polygon Doom-style game. That is, until you jump! Once you start up with that ability, the game then becomes an original and a cool visual blast!

BEST FEATURE

Well, I'm sure that's a tough one! Definitely the Super Jumping! Just seeing yourself go 20 feet into the air, then landing on high objects or hapless enemies is extremely fun indeed!

WHAT'S MISSING

Larger levels would have been a definite plus. But don't take it the wrong way, they are still adequate enough to provide a challenge (and some quirky fun, too!)

WILL YOU LIKE IT?

Hard to say, really. Some (like me) will love the silly atmosphere and the spectacular super jump ability. However, that gimmick may get old quickly. Some may just get motion sickness!

Once again, it's time to climb inside that giant bunny-rabbit mechwarrior to protect your home planet from the menacing Captain Suzuki. A sequel to last year's quirky but critically acclaimed mech shooter, JF 2 hops into town with six new worlds composed of three stages each. Racing against the clock, gamers must rescue four of their compadres on each stage, collecting new weapons and power-ups while searching for pitfalls, bonus levels, and secret rooms. If the first Flash was any indication, quality gameplay could be lurking underneath this game's youthful exterior.

What's up, doc? You're up -way up - in a huge mechanical rabbit. Your long-eared mech is actually a mean battle machine in which you take on a weird world full of bizarre adversaries.

Playing from a first-person perspective you bounce your strange rabbit mech onto elevated platfonns scattered across colorful 3D landscapes. With eveiy leap you'll fly hundreds of feet into the air and then watch the ground come rushing toward you as you land.

You also get breathtaking skyward views as you scan the air above for enemy action. Keep your eyes open for strange foes such as bombardier ducks and missile-hurling giraffes. On some levels, you'll even have to do some fancy Doom-style maze work.

The mad dictator Baron Aloha has scooped up six cities from Earth and transported them to outer space and tethered them to giant floating octopus robots. It's up to you to get those cities back by boarding a bunny-shaped/jumping spaceship, flying to each captured city and securing a series of hidden jet-pods. Like Nintendo's Mario games, Jumping Flash takes place in an elaborate, intricately detailed cartoon world--a world full of secret levels, goofy animal opponents, hidden power-ups, and collectable secret weapons.

In a strange break with videogame tradition, you never see your cyber-bunny from the outside (except for its appearances in the game's hilarious animated video sequences). Instead, you experience the world through the rabbit's eyes. It's almost as if you are sitting in a cockpit, but the effect is far more seamless than any previous first-person flying shooter.

Here's where Jumping Flash busts once and for all the tired mold so prevalent in previous Doom-style games: Your rabbit jumps. High. Really, really high! We're talkin' so high, you can see the entire city laid out below you before you plummet to a soft landing on the surface. Sure, you can just hop around on the ground, too (on some underground corridor levels you're forced to), but you'll normally need to jump if you want to grab jetpods and goodies.

The feeling of jumping flight comes across here amazingly. Everything is perfect; from the trajectory angles of the jumps to the gradually increasing speed at which you fall from great heights, to the way that everything in the air (including your rabbit) casts a shadow on the ground. When I've dreamed of being able to fly, it usually feels a lot like the effect I get playing this game.

Jumping Flash is unique, wholly innovative and destined to become a classic. It's perfect, in fact. PlayStation owners: Buy this game. Period. (And pick up some carrots while you're out--you'll be craving them after the first level).