Lotus Challenge | |
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Developer(s) | Kuju Entertainment |
Publisher(s) | Virgin Interactive (PS2) Xicat Interactive (Xbox) Sold-Out Software (Win) Ignition Entertainment (GC) |
Platform(s) | PlayStation 2, GameCube, Windows, Xbox, mobile phones |
Release | PlayStation 2
GameCube
20 September 2004 |
Genre(s) | Racing |
Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Lotus Challenge is a racing game developed by Kuju Entertainment and published in 2001 for PlayStation 2 by Virgin Interactive. Versions followed for Windows, GameCube, Xbox, and mobile phones from different publishers.
Virgin Interactive first announced the game for the PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows in August 2000 for an early-2001 release.[1] The game was renamed Lotus Extreme Challenge in November 2000[2] with a North American release planned to be published by Interplay Entertainment,[2] although this never came to circulation. The game would eventually see its release under its former name. The PlayStation 2 version was later ported to Japan and published by MTO on 26 December 2002.[3]
In March 2002, Virgin Interactive announced they would release the game on the Xbox under the name of Lotus Arcade[4] before reverting to its former name, with the announcement that the Xbox version would feature major improvements over the PS2 version. The game was due for a release in Europe by Virgin in September[5] but this never happened. In November 2002, Xicat Interactive announced they would release the game in North America instead as an Xbox exclusive,[6] with a GameCube port also announced.[7] In December 2002, Xicat secured a licensing deal with Motor Trend to rename the title as Motor Trend Presents Lotus Challenge,[8] with the Xbox version originally scheduled for release in late January 2003,[9] before it was somewhat delayed to the end of April. The GameCube version was due for a release in August[10] but was pulled for unknown reasons.
In May 2004, Ignition Entertainment's website listed a title named Lotus Extreme for the GameCube.[11] However, the game was renamed again back to its original title a few weeks later when it was officially announced by Ignition,[12] and was released shortly after.[13]
Aggregator | Score | ||
---|---|---|---|
GC | PS2 | Xbox | |
Metacritic | N/A | N/A | 61/100[14] |
Publication | Score | ||
---|---|---|---|
GC | PS2 | Xbox | |
4Players | N/A | 71%[15] | 69%[16] |
Electronic Gaming Monthly | N/A | N/A | 4/10[17][a] |
Gamekult | N/A | 5/10[18] | N/A |
GameSpy | N/A | N/A | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
GameZone | N/A | N/A | 7.3/10[20] |
Jeuxvideo.com | N/A | 8/20[21] | 8/20[22] |
Nintendo Power | 1.5/5[23] | N/A | N/A |
Official Xbox Magazine (US) | N/A | N/A | 7.2/10[24] |
TeamXbox | N/A | N/A | 5.8/10[25] |
X-Play | N/A | N/A | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
The Xbox version received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[14] GameSpy, GameZone, and Extended Play gave it above-average to mixed reviews while it was still in development.[19][20][26]
The game sold more than 130,000 units for the PlayStation 2.[27]