Test Drive 6: An Oldie But a Goodie

As a veteran of the Test Drive Series, that was first released back in the 1980's, I have found some versions to be great while others lacking. Its amusing to look back, and think of the first Test Drive, with its horrible graphics and sound. Even though today it would be sorely outdated, I think it would be fun to outrun the cops on some desert road, with a cactus that looks like a green blob on the right side of the computer screen. This series has been released on PC's and video game consoles, and I've had the honor of having serious road time on the Playstation 2, xbox 360, and Sega Dreamcast.

People may make fun of me, but I like the Sega Dreamcast. It never had the market success of the Playstation, but it had exciting graphic capabilities, and deserves more respect than it gets from gamers and associated publications. One of the best games for this platform is Test Drive 6, and it is my favorite of the entire series, even better than subsequent releases. The main reason for this, is because you can purchase older cars, such as the Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang.

Its so neat being able to have these older muscle cars, which are class I vehicles according to this game, and getting to race them through city streets around the world. You get to actually paint them whatever color you want, and you can upgrade the engine, transmission, suspension, brakes, etc after you keep winning earnings from the races you enter. They even have the old 1960's colors on here, so your old Mustang can have that psychodelic purple, and its groovy. If you want something newer, or more expensive, there are plenty of choices.

I'm going to guess off hand, that there are at least thirty vehicles you can pick from, and they start from the older muscle cars and go up from there. The most expensive one is the Toyota GTR-1 at $500,000, and that is one heckuva ride on this game. Personally I like the muscle cars for their rumbling capabilities, but its a joy taking one of the higher classed vehicles like the Toyota or a Shelby, and just gunning it through London or Rome.  The muscle cars are a lot of fun, but these vehicles offer a lot more potential for higher speeds, and their cornering abilities are a huge improvement. However, as you start out, you'll have to drive the muscle cars or vehicles such as a Plymouth Prowler or F-150 Lightning. This is not a bad thing by any means, as it forces you to earn money and improve gradually, so when you get to the big leagues of near million dollar cars you'll be ready from the time the screen says "GO!".

The graphics in this game are fantastic. Even at high speeds you will be able to say that the cities are fairly accurate, and I think this game was ahead of its time due to these capabilities. London is the best, as you get to cross over recognizable bridges and past Buckingham Palace, while trying to outrun your computerized opponents. You can also roar through the streets of Paris, Rome, and New York. They all look like the actual cities, and this includes some traffic jams in unexpected places, tunnels, and police that seem to want to nail you at every major intersection.

This is a good thing, because the police chasing your vehicle or the computers, is an extra element of realism. You might get caught every once in awhile, say if you wreck, but for the most part you can get away from them. The traffic can be a nightmare though, as you have to cut through intersections so congested, that it will remind you of those scenes in Independence Day where the fighter pilots are trying to go through that herd of little UFO's. Wrecking won't damage your car, but it will slow you down, and ultimately enough will cause you to not get money for your next upgrade or car purchase.

I love the handling in this game. There have been some that don't like it for whatever reason , but let's be honest, and admit that at 100 mph you cant stop on a dime. You also can't take a corner at that speed, and expect your car to flawlessly maneuver without sliding tires and moving several feet. This is a driver's game in every regard, but video gamers who want to see unobtainable physics might be disappointed by this. However action junkies will love how you can catch air that is just not possible, and fly over substantial parts of the city, and make better time due to it. This is a bit silly, but I love it.

Sound quality is awesome, as you can hear your cars engine rumble while going over 100 mph. Braking is that squeal that reminds you, of how expensive it is going to be to replace the rotors, and the horn honking is an amusing quirk. I think its funny to be driving at some ridiculous speed, and honking the horn, because none of the cars driving will get out of your way. The music in this game is among the best I've seen, as there is not one song that I like. There is a variety of punk, techno, rap, and the best of all songs "Cars" from Fear Factory. You can actually watch the music video of this great remake when the game loads up, and its perfect for jamming to. This music adds a level of excitment to the game, and I think its great they put this much effort into it.

Replay value is among the best in any car based game I've spent time with. You can enter single races, or go through a series in exotic locales such as Hawaii or in Egypt. The fact that you can enter in all of these races, or even drive in two directions through the larger cities, adds a degree of difficulty to the game that guarantees you'll have to play it for quite awhile. Plus, I just love saving all of my cars that I've bought, and looking at them from time to time. While I have a beat up van in front of my house, my garage on the television is loaded with everything from old muscle cars to brand new Lotus's and Jaguars.

Since this game was released in 1999, its going to be harder to find than newer productions. However, with some digging it can be found at used game outlets, or on ebay. It's not going to cost more than a few dollars to own, which makes it an excellent value, because I would gladly still pay more than $25 for it even with today's game's capabilities. You can spend plenty of hours building your collection in the garage, upgrading these cars, and racing them through streets all over the world. I don't know much that is more fun than that, and race car game fans will be thrilled with this game.