Dreamcast

Test Drive 6

This game has some redeeming qualities but it is not the best racer on the system. I did not hate it, nor did I love it. I enjoyed playing it for the most part but just think it could have been so much better. I know it is a port and the first efforts on the Dreamcast from this developer so hopefully next year they will focus on making a great Dreamcast game first and port it out to the other systems second. Keep your fingers crossed because as always, I see potential here for a great game if they can just fix the nagging problems.

There's some minor slowdown and pop-up, but the action is fairly smooth for the most part. The two-player split screen mode forces you to race on a vertically split screen, which is hard to get used to. Besides the normal and versus modes, there's also an amusing "cops and robbers" mode, and a less-than-challenging "challenge" mode. Test Drive 6 worked well with my steering wheel controller. It won't blow you away, but if you can get this for under $10 (like I did), it's a steal.

Test Drive 6 is an arcade game that tries to mix in some simulation elements. Ultimately, it fails to fully succeed at either. The Tournament mode where you earn credits and customize your own car is very unfulfilling, since you can use those cars in any track using the Single or Practice modes. The upgrades also have a negligible effect on your car, so you’ll find that saving your money for a higher-class car is the more attractive option. After an hour or two you will get tired of this mode and start racing in the single races. After another hour you will tire of single player mode and will be looking for some one to race against. After another hour you will be playing a different game. As you can see, Test Drive 6 does not have that much depth. Unless you don’t have anything else to play for your Dreamcast, which is unlikely since the Dreamcast is inundated with great titles, pass up on Test Drive 6.

In the end it's difficult to call Test Drive 6 a disappointment; having played the game's earlier incarnations has left me with an idea of what to expect. If the arcade-style aspects of the game had worked out more, then perhaps this title would have had an edge in the already-huge market of racers. As is, though, TD6 tries to go in too many directions, which, unfortunately, end up undermining each other. It was sort of weak on the PlayStation. On the Dreamcast it's a primped-up clone of a sort-of-weak game. There are a handful of great racers available for the Dreamcast. It's inconceivable for one to choose TD6 in lieu of a game like Speed Devils or Sega Rally 2.

Overall, Test Drive 6 only escapes "completely forgettable" because it left such a bad taste in my mouth. Take shoddy visuals, uneventful gameplay, and poorly schemed car physics and you've got one truly unrewarding experience on your hands. I was just starting to get over the gruesome play experience of Slave Zero when I was hit with this one -- Infogrames needs to hire some quality control if they care one iota about their track record. I don't think their Dreamcast reputation can afford another stinker after this.

This series dates back and after 15 years of programming, we get this?? The once lucrative Test Drive name has been scarred to a point where not even plastic surgery could fix it. Gamers should expect more from such powerful hardware. Go buy and old PC and play the first game in the series. It has more redeeming features than this lazy entry.

I can't think of a single redeeming thing to say about Test Drive 6. Unless you really want a copy of the Fear Factory "Cars" video on MPEG-CD then you have no reason to buy this game. It is an insult to racing fans and Dreamcast owners everywhere. The Test Drive legacy of poor and uninspired sequels continues even on the most powerful console system available. This is "strike two" for Infogrames. I'll be anxious to see what they release next, but I'm not holding my breath.