Carmageddon

The Good
Well, it is very addictive at first (not as much as GTA though...)

The Bad
For one, the 3D engine is horrible. Really horrible. Slow even on a P2-350, and doesn't even look good enough to justify it. The controls are really, REALLY bad and even the pedestrians' screams aren't enough to satisfy the unwary buyer.

The Bottom Line
Leave it alone, and get it over with.

The Good
I hope you don't mind if I make a list...

*1)Free movement: you can drive the track backwards, over hills, or on roof tops - its up to you.

*2)All opponents defeated win scenerio: You don't have to win the game by running the race. I've been playing this game for over 5 years and I still haven't completed a race. Your opponents won't run the race if you don't, so you don't have to worry about them winning while you're mowing over pedestrians. They will eventually find their way back to you if you get distracted. And you can actually win the race by destroying all of your opponents vehicles, which is a good way to earn credits and time bonuses.

*3)All pedestrians murdered win scenerio: It takes time and effort to run over 400+ pedestrians, but the 50,000 credit completion bonus sure is worth it.

*4)The artistic impression bonus for running over peds in a creative manner. ;)

*5)You can use your hard-earned credits to upgrade your car: Armor, Power, and Offense.

*6)You can destroy cop cars. (Though you should probably avoid them until you've upgraded your car a couple times.)

*7)You can 'steal' your opponents vehicles. That is, you can obtain certain cars/trucks after destroying them. Note: This does not apply to all of your opponents, and the chance of getting one of these vehicles is small - you usually won't get your opponent's vehicle the first time you wreck it, though it is possible.

*8)Good physics engine. The physical contraints governing the behavior of vehicles is pretty realistic, though not perfect.

9)Real time repairs. You don't really have to worry about loosing the race, because you can always repair your car as it gets damaged. However, repairing costs credits, and if you don't accumulate enough credits during a race, you will not advance in rank.

The Bad*
Pinball mode. Only fun when you have plenty of credits to spare... :)

The game is slightly unstable in windows, and may occasionally crash during gameplay.

The Bottom Line
This is one of the most entertaining games I've ever played. It does have outdated graphics, but I don't even notice. If you can't get it to run in a dos box under Win2K or XP, try downloading and installing VDMSound at:

http://ntvdm.cjb.net/

Once installed, right click on the executionable file (Carma.exe) and select 'run with VDMS'. It's a DOS emulator that is capable of running many DOS applications that Win2k and XP can't.

The Good
A SCOTUS Judge sits impatiently as he listens to lawyers bickering about video game law. One argues that video games are pushing the boundaries of art and any attempt to categorize them will be short sighted. The other argues that they have unnecessary levels of graphic going to mention games where players are allowed to urinate, and encouraged to beat up hookers and go on drive by shootings. The judge feels a bit of vomit in his mouth. He finds it disturbing that people like to perform these virtual acts of sadism and call it “entertainment”. He doesn’t remember the day when the screams of 500 grannies were silenced by the screech of burning rubber, made by homicidal car drivers. Those drivers, they will never forget what it was like to be out on a Sunday drive in the countryside, the fresh smell of morning air, the usual screaming of the lambs and the whistling of the Postman Pat tune as the windscreen wipers would scrub off the bloody remains of their girlfriend’s torso. Nor shall they forget the little moments when the sound cars horn would be enough for a herd of blind people to jump off a building. Ah yes those were the days when hurling your best friends vehicle into a stone wall at 180mph was considered friendly communication. Not to mention the sheer force of it being done with a V8 engine with granite armor. They will never forget.

The Bad
Unfortunately time can impair our memories. Like an old photograph, it loses its colors and begins to fade. But the satisfaction of hearing the voices doesn’t change and only gets better with each round.

The Bottom Line
The people at SCOTUS will not remember such days. But for those who were in the middle, right there in the driver’s seat as they heard the squishy sounds of a lamb being ripped apart. They will never forget.