Original Release: Nintendo, 2001, Gamecube
The final entry (thus far) in the Wave Race series had the most pleasant graphics but arguably took a step back in terms of play control.
Wave Race: Blue Storm (Gamecube, Nintendo, 2001)
Where to Buy: Amazon
How to Emulate: coming soon!
Review by: C. M0use
You know, it’s been a good 10 years or so but I remember enjoying the N64 Wave Race a lot more than I did this game … maybe it handled better, maybe I’ve just got that much less patience after a decade for the random bouncy inherently chaotic style of racing in a fluid. Whatever the case, I found this entry real hard to get into.
I think part of the issue is that it was one of the three launch titles for the Gamecube, so it’s among those with the lowest possible level of programming expertise for the system. It sold on its graphics to a great degree, particularly the revolutionary-for-the-time water effects and physics. Of course, what was impressive in 2000 is something you’d expect from a very modest budget game now so that aspect hasn’t held up. And even at the time, the character models looked kinda previous-gen.
It’s a lot more than just the graphics, though. The whole series to this point was a bit more of a party game than a serious racer, with the water and antics of other racers causing all sorts of chaos (plus all sorts of unsafe obstacles scattered around the race course). Nothing wrong with a good party game, but the tradeoff is usually that they don’t offer much to the lonesome solo player and that’s definitely the case here.
The finicky play control is just the absolute worst, though. And it’s compounded by an asshole “coach” in your ear insulting and berating you for not doing every little thing right (“I TOLD YOU TO STAY INSIDE THE BOOOOOOOEYS!” every single fucking time you get pushed around the wrong side of one by waves or another racer), plus some of the most vicious rubberbanding I’ve ever seen in a game that keeps the other competitors always constantly around you in an obnoxious chaos-generating pack.
Aside from just the “ooh pretty water” factor, another big selling point of the game was a fairly impressive weather system with waves that were tied to its random vagaries (which could be a gameplay positive or negative for you). In other water-based racing games, you can adjust to how choppy waters are handled in certain portions of the track since it’s the same every time. In this one, you’re kinda at the mercy of whatever the RNG decides to throw at you when the wind and rain starts up. Another point in the “more like a party game than a serious racer” column.
As one would expect for a Nintendo in-house title, Wave Race BS is a well-made game but it’s just too finicky to play. That’s fine for party chaos, or maybe someone who is REALLY into the nuances of watersports, but not for the more general racing fan who wants a single-player game with a lot of meat to it and an emphasis on developing skill over just hoping that random shit doesn’t happen at a bad time.
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