Tokyo Xtreme Racer 2

I loved Tokyo Highway Battle on the PlayStation, but I thought the first TXR for Dreamcast sucked. Knowing that, I didn't expect much from TXR2, but guess what: I love it. Yeah, I dig Ferrari's and Porsche's as much as the next guy (that would probably be Greg), but I won't be driving one any time soon. That's why I dig TXR2 so much. The gameplay is roughly the same as the first game, but the car models look so damn accurate, you'd swear you're driving around in your '97 Honda Civic. These are the best-looking car models in a racing game for any console (not including GT3). The fact that you can customize the bejeezus out of your cars is the best part, with all the upgrades visually displayed in real time. Too bad the parts cost so much you'll spend days racing just to purchase and upgrade the dozens of parts available for your car. There's no two-player mode, because the poly counts in the cars were too high to run a split screen with a decent framerate, so Genki dropped it. Sucks in theory, but racing against a friend for short, sharp bursts of time wasn't so hot to begin with. The sense of speed is amazing once you've bought the better cars, and the framerate is 60-fps swift. The addition of some non-Japanese cars (Dodge Viper, Porsche 911, Firebird, etc.) makes TXR2 an awesome racing game that, in my eyes, is a must-buy. One question though--why do all these Japanese cars have California plates?

What's the deal with the California license plates in a racing game based in Tokyo? Little weird. I wish they'd tighten up the handling in these games, too. The skatey feeling you get when diving into a tight turn just doesn't seem right. It feels even less responsive than the original game. Otherwise TXR2 is just more of the same. Loads of unlicensed sports-car lookalikes take to the Tokyo freeways in order to run illegal races, make money, upgrade their cars and generally go as fast as possible. It's good fun. The graphics are much improved over the original too, especially the wonderful car models. Even if you never tried the first game, check this out.

Being an import-tuning enthusiast, I loved the realistic customization and street racing TXR2 offers. The cars and upgrades are true to their real-life models, and a high framerate and rich colors keep appearances clean while you race. Unfortunately, the control is a bit sloppy, which really hurts during turns, and the pre-race autopilot will run your car onto an off-ramp and end the race--a bad thing if you spent 15 minutes tracking down a particular rival. If you're looking for a no-nonsense racer, rent this one, because that's only about half of TXR2. If you're into (apanese and European car customization, however, this is a must-have.