1997 video game
1997 video game
Total Drivin, known as Car & Driver Presents: Grand Tour Racing '98 (or simply Grand Tour Racing) in North America, Gekisou!!! Grand Racing (激走!! グランドレシング) in Japan and as M6 Turbo Racing in France, is a racing video game developed by Eutechnyx exclusively for PlayStation.[2] The game saw highly mixed reactions from critics due to its broad stylistic approach and unusual steering controls.
Gameplay
Total Drivin is a racing game that features six courses set in different locations across the world, each with different weather variations.[3] The game supports the Dual Analog Controller.[3] Multiplayer is available via both split screen and the PlayStation Link Cable.[4]
Development
Total Drivin was developed by the UK-based company Eutechnyx.[5] The developers created a zoom-capable, 360 degree camera for use as a programming tool, but later decided to leave it in so that players could look over the track landscapes while the game is paused.[4]
The game's North American publisher, Activision, acquired a Car and Driver sponsorship for the game, leading to "Car and Driver Presents" being added to the game's title in that region.[6]
Reception
The game received above-average reviews. In Japan, where the game was ported and published by Atlus under the name Gekisō!! Grand Racing: Total Drivin' (激走!! グランドレーシング Total Drivin', Gekisō!! Gurando Rēshingu Totaru Doraibin) on 23 April 1998, Famitsu gave it a score of 23 out of 40.[11]
While Edge praised the game for successfully combining the realism of a racing simulator with the style of an arcade racing game,[2] most reviews assessed that by taking on every single racing style in one game, Total Drivin failed to excel at any one style and came out highly inconsistent.[10][14][15][17] Next Generation, for example, stated that "It's a nice idea, but for the most part, it's neither well-executed nor well-integrated into gameplay, and comes across like more of a gimmick than anything else."[15] Both Next Generation and IGN remarked that most of the tracks are too easy, while the buggy tracks feature extremely difficult handling, making the challenge too uneven.[14][15]
Some critics complimented the sound effects as realistic,[5][3] while others found the engine sounds grating, likening them to motorcycles or blenders.[10][17] The graphics also met with mixed reactions, with critics noting grainy bitmaps[14][15][17] but a pleasing lack of pop-up.[3][15] A few reviewers praised how the aggressive A.I. leads other cars to cut opponents off or push them into walls when going around curves.[15][17] Kraig Kujawa of Electronic Gaming Monthly summarized that "With so much depth, GTR has something for all, despite its rough edges", and his co-reviewer Dean Hager similarly concluded, "In the end, the good elements outweigh the bad."[10]
Gary Mollohan of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine highlighted the game's selection of vehicles and large environments, noting that a single lap can take up to four minutes to complete. However, he criticized the game's questionable car physics and unconventional controls.[5] IGN likewise found that the controls make the steering oversensitive.[14] GameSpot reviewer Jeff Gerstmann felt the controls were decent, but admitted that they can take a lot of getting used to due to the game's unique steering system.[3] GamePro summed up that "You'll either love using the D-pad in conjunction with the L and R triggers, or you'll hate it."[17][b]
