World Driver Championship Nintendo 64 Publisher: Midway Developer: Boss Game Studios Players: 1-2 Difficulty: Medium Camera: Rear chase, in Car, In Car With Rearview Mirror

There Are Many Nice Views To Choose From Like The "In Car" Mode Above World Driver Championship Has Some EXCELLENT Looking Tracks And Backgrounds Just Like Most Racing Games There Are Day Driving But This Game Features Night Driving As Well TACH- O -METER Control: (3.5) Graphics: (5) Sound: (3.5) Replay Value: (4) Overall: (4)

OK, there have been about 12,000 racing games for the N64. Not literally, but N64 owners know what I mean. And through all the Cruisn' USA's, and all the F-1 Pole Positions, no one has really been able to hit the nail on the head. No one, until Boss Game Studios. Their game, World Driver Championship, is the very best racing game for the N64.

Developed by the makers of Top Gear Rally (which was also a great racing game), World Driver Championship brings N64 owners the first solid racing game on the console. Playstation owners, and N64 owners who enjoyed Gran Turismo on the PSX, will love World Driver Championship. This game is basically the same principal as Gran Turismo. Earn better cars by earning points in races. But, instead of buying cars from dealerships, you will attract the eye of increasingly skillful racing teams, each of which have increasingly better cars. This adds a sort of role playing element to the game, which I thought was a great addition.

The graphics of World Driver Championship are picture perfect. The sharp, clear effects will dazzle anyone playing the game, making you think twice about going back to Gran Turismo. Pop-up is non-existent, as is fog and blurry graphics. The cars in WDC are beautifully represented. They are generic models of real-life cars, and mirror their counterparts beautifully. There are 10 tracks in World Driver Championship, spanning all parts of the globe. Every one of these tracks, without exception, are absolutely stunning. The Coliseum of Rome, the dark streets of Kyoto, and the snowy peaks of Zurich are just a few examples of the near-perfect looking environments. Additionally, there is absolutely no slowdown. The game allows 8 cars on the screen at the same time without a frame-rate hitch, while keeping the beautiful visuals steady. As if that wasn't enough, there is an optional high-resolution letterbox mode. Although the graphics look even better in this mode, I don't recommend changing from the normal settings. The normal game graphics look stunning by themselves.

The sound in World Driver Championship is a double-edged sword. The sound effects of the in race action are superb. Engine sounds are unique for each car, and the other various sounds of a car canonballing down a cobblestone street are represented accordingly. Also, instead of opposing cars simply floating past with no sound, each opposing car's engine wanes and fades as they pass you. The music in World Driver Championship, although adequate, seems a little uninspired. I personally like to put in a Pink Floyd CD and mute the music, but that's just me. The in game music doesn't really add anything to the gameplay.

Speaking of which, the gameplay of World Driver Championship is the only place where the racer fades. The control of WDC is realistic. But, it reaches the point of being almost too realistic. Once you get to the faster cars, control is nearly impossible. Bouncing off the walls and impacting landmarks will be a normal occurrence after a while. The control on the slower cars is better, but the sense of speed in these cars is almost non-existent. Which is another problem. While driving many of the slower cars, you feel like you're driving a golf cart. This is realistic, but speed would be nice. The lack of control at high speeds will have you flinging your controller trying to get enough points to obtain the next team, while the lack of speed in early cars will bore you. But, the storyline of developing your driving skills and courting better racing teams will have you feeling like a hot commodity.

Early on in World Driver Championship, I can see how some might say that the game is bad. But if you stick with it, you will find that World Driver Championship shines on almost every level. The great graphics, and realistic racing will appease racing fans, while it's role-playing element will leave non-racing fans occupied. WDC is a great game with some flaws, but they do not keep it from winning the title of best N64 racing game.
-Andrew Sturgeon