Beetle Adventure Racing!

Today I learned there's a genre called 'advergame', and it's this and little else that holds back Beetle Adventure Racing--more cars would've been nice. It hardly matters, though; the game may forever sit on the throne of the genre, and it set a new standard for racing on the N64.

Beetle Adventure Racing is structured in a similar manner to other racers on the console: you select from a pool of vehicles with different stats, slap on a different coat of paint if you like, and compete in championships of increasing difficulty and speed. Whilst the setup is nothing new, track design is where the game shines; the tracks are mind-blowing and were at the time unlike anything seen before. They're longer, more open, more realistic and incredibly dynamic, filled with different settings, set pieces and well-designed shortcuts. Invisible walls are kept to a minimum, meaning you'll often jump over--and sometimes land on--areas and things that you might've thought would be out of bounds. Coupled with an excellent hybrid of sim and arcade handling, it all makes for exciting gameplay that hasn't aged a bit. Detailed visuals, nice weather effects and great sound and music are icing on the cake.

Naturally, I also checked out the game's Australian counterpart, HSV Adventure Racing, which replaces the Beetles with Holden Special Vehicles. Also replaced is the original announcer, who now has a very Aussie accent. If I'm not imagining it, handling is different, too: the Holden is a little faster, steering is looser and it powerslides more easily. You can pull off some huge slides not possible in the stiffer Beetles. The game is otherwise the same as the original, though it's worth noting the faster speed and PAL format makes the framerate slightly worse.