Test drive 4

How it was in 1998?

Test Drive 4 is an arcade racer that includes 10 exciting cars. The game vehicles are: '98 Jaguar XJ220, '98 Dodge Viper, '98 Corvette, '98 TVR Cerbera, '95 Nissan 300ZX, '66 Shelby Cobra, '69 Corvette ZL-1, '70 Chevy Chevelle SS454 LS-6, '71 Plymouth "Hemi" Cuda, and the '69 Camaro ZL-1 COPO 9560. Each vehicle has its own performance characteristics such as: speed, handling, and acceleration.

There are 5 race tracks: San Francisco; Keswick, England; Bern, Switzerland; Kyoto City, Japan; and Washington D.C.

The Options screen allows you to race with or without traffic. Racing in traffic and getting chased by the police is pretty exciting. Also, you can turn checkpoints "On" or "Off" and select either a "manual" or "automatic" transmission.

The 6 racing options are: Single Race, Challenge Cup, Championship Cup, Pitbull Cup, Masters Cup, and Drag Race.

The graphics are good but there are a number of annoying problems such as clipping and occasional game pauses. The cars look like they're floating above the track similar to hover craft. Also, the other cars in the race seem disproportionate in size compared to your car. Skid marks look cool until you notice they aren't permanent and seem to follow your car like smoke trails and then disappear.

There's authentic engine sounds and other game related special effects. Nothing really spectacular here in the sound department. The soundtrack is your generic racing music which unfortunately won't make the Top Ten list on any music chart.

The game does support analog controllers. The steering is touchy making it a little difficult to control your car. Some practice is required before you feel comfortable behind the wheel.

Test Drive 4 has a low learning curve so you can quickly jump into the game. There aren't any set-ups for your car or much of anything else to adjust. Simply select a type of race from the menu, a car, a locale and then get behind the wheel and race. After you've completed several races the game begins to feel repetitious. Replay Value isn't that great because there's not enough here to keep you coming back for more. Racing fans who enjoy playing against human opponents will find some redeeming value in this game.

Bottom Line: Test Drive 4 provides some limited thrills and excitement for arcade racers looking for a 2 player game. Hard-core racing fans will most likely be disappointed. Definitely rent first before buying and judge for yourself.

Graphics: 8
Sound: 7.5
Learning Curve: Easy
Difficulty: Easy
Control: 7.5
Manual: Average
Replay Value: Low

FINAL SCORE: 7.6