In 2000, the world was graced with 'ATV: Quad Power Racing,' a game that promised off-road excitement and the thrill of quad bikes, but left many players wondering if they should've stuck with their manual transmission in a parking lot. It's as if the developers thought, 'What if we took the adrenaline rush of racing and threw it in a blender with a lack of polish?' Spoiler alert: the result is a curious blend, indeed.
The gameplay features four modes: championship, single race, time attack, and a two-player option that lets you shove your friend out of the way—or just challenge your mom to a race to see who can finish a lap first without crashing. Championship mode offers an impressive cast of six characters, though one can’t help but ponder if anyone but the most ardent ATV aficionados could name them without looking it up. The tracks are themed around deserts, forests, and snow, making them suitably diverse for a game that essentially recycles the same engine sounds every ten seconds. Each mode requires you to race against five computer-controlled opponents who, let’s be honest, seem to have either taken the wrong turn or are on an eternal coffee break. The AI is about as effective as a family member trying to help you find your lost keys. In time attack mode, your goal is to not question your life choices as you attempt to win against an invisible timer. Weather effects? Absolutely! Look forward to scenic rain and snow that does little more than remind you of your wet socks left by the door after a muddy day out. At its core, the game begs the question: can changing your tires give you a better sense of speed? Unfortunately, the answer is no. While you may want to pick up speed at the cost of falling behind or crashing into a cactus (yes, you’ll do that a lot), you’ll likely just find yourself stuck merely wishing you were playing a complex game of 'Who can keep their sanity longer'.
Visually, if you were expecting an explosion of detail worthy of the PlayStation, prepare to be strappade-chained to the harsh reality—it looks like a bad ‘90s music video intercut with static. The environments have the charm of your neighbor’s unkempt lawn and the character models look like they were cobbled together from LEGO bricks in a hurry. If you’re someone who thrives on a nostalgic sense of rawness, then enjoy the jagged edges and occasional frame drop as if it’s vintage art. Yes, folks, the graphics might just induce a throwback to a simpler time… when you paid full price for a dial-up connection and questioned your friends’ judgments about the internet.
In summary, ‘ATV: Quad Power Racing’ successfully manages to embody the phrase 'less is more' in ways that make you ponder life, the universe, and where your time went. If you enjoy engaging in a title that gives off the charm of a beloved but clunky lawnmower, this might be a suitable experience for you. However, for those not entrenched in a dangerous loyalty to the ATV franchise or who merely relish the thrill of racing games, it might be wiser to steer your console hobbies elsewhere. After all, there’s a vast world of racing games that don’t require a towel and a session with your therapist afterward. This one might just sit on your shelf collecting more dust than your vinyl copies of ‘NSYNC’ albums, but you’ll have a story to tell—at least until someone asks why you ever decided to play it in the first place.
Another SquareThought Site