In the days of Gran Turismo, Need for Speed, among other racing franchises out there, the futuristic racing hasn't been explored very deeply, but one company has decided to tread these waters. A game recently released on Steam by a young company by the name of Eipix, Pyroblazer is a game of futuristic racing. Pyroblazer promises exceptional graphics, intense fun and gameplay, over 40 levels, 15 vehicles, and 20 weapons plus more. The question is will Pyroblazer get people into a racing version of Twisted Metal? Let’s find out…
Story:
The story here is quite simple; you have wanted to be a Pyroblazer for a long time and finally have gotten your chance to join the ranks. The game gives you a good amount of maps and ships but the story itself is just bland. You choose your ship and battle race through level to level to attain new ships and glory. It seems just to basic or more or less, a Hexen remake from the N64. The story is simple yet relevant, but nothing to WOW yourself at.
Story: C+
Gameplay:
The controls are clunky as hell and hard to get used to. Learning the ropes is the most difficult part along with attempting to race and fight at the same time through the tiny racing holes. I think if you took the time (a lot of time!) to get used to the game it could be thoroughly enjoyable, but honestly most people get turned off by a game they can't "master" or at least feel confident with in about 5 to 10 minutes. It seems like they took Jet Moto and made the racing tougher but not in a good way. It turns into a big turnoff. Jet Moto on the original Playstation is honestly a better and more enjoyable racing game than this. Simple controls, basic story (a.k.a. no story just f-ing race!) and a better overall experience. Pyroblazer just doesn’t hold up.
Gameplay: D+
Graphics:
The graphics are okay but nothing to make you jump. They aren’t too bad but do nothing to impress, if ya know what I mean. Graphics, the backbone of racing games today is just seemingly put on the back burner here. In racing, gameplay and graphics are interesting things. Some offer good variations of both while some lack one over the other but still perform well. As for Pyroblazer they are good as I said before, but they seem a bit sacrificed to the gameplay which made no true sense. They are good looking in their own right yet nothing that will make you go "ohhhh! Ahhhh! Hot diggity damn!" This is something that went overlooked or was sacrificed to the gameplay which is my belief. The graphics are not bad, I reiterate they are good just nothing new/exciting. Unfortunate yet true.
Graphics: B
Sound:
The sound is enjoyable and quirky, but is, in the end, bland. Beyond the explosions of other vehicles or yours, there is a large amount of zoooooooooooooooooom! and zooooooooooooooooooooooom! and occasionally a "bang!" here and there but lots of scraping against the sides of the racing tunnels. It is unfortunate, I wish it had a better sound track to it as well which could have really set the mood for the game. Racing games can be helped by music like the F-Zero series with their robotic announcer and catchy tunes. It could use some techno or some rock or just something besides add your own track kinda stuff. Kind of a knife and fork being scratched on a plate feeling here…
Sound: C
Replay:
Yet again, you can get the same enjoyment out of Jet Moto or Jet Moto 2 for the PSX which is considerably cheaper. The problem is this is nothing new and the gameplay is clunky and hard to get used too. I constantly found myself struggling to get into it due to my coming in mid- to last-place most of the time. Racing games are a big hit or miss genre so I cannot fault them against replay value. Racing games are just difficult to gain replay value in. Few racing games produce quality replay value and Pyroblazer falls into that black hole of games as well. Unless you and friends get into the game itself, I don’t think it has much replay value.
Replay: D
Overall:
I just couldn’t get into the game honestly. I like futuristic racing games as Jet Moto is one of my personal favorites of all time to this day. Pyroblazer has a lot of great ideas but just has control problems,an awkward weak story, and in some parts just too many laps. I mean 15 laps is a crap ton! It feels like future NASCAR…although I would watch NASCAR if machine guns, missiles, rockets and lasers were involved…anyway Pyroblazer seems more like a work in progress than a good game. I love seperate companies that try to make something unique, but as we have seen in years past it can fail terribly. Pyroblazer is not a failure by any means, it just needs some tweaking and turning is all. With a few add-ins maybe some characters or something this could be like Armored Core with racing in it, which I for one like the sound of. I am interested to see if they do a 2nd one; I think some vehicle customization and stronger story lines could help this franchise. The game has strong points but too many weaknesses to give it the benefit of the doubt. I know they can do better and hope they do a 2nd one which I would look forward to playing very much if they add a few things here and there!
Overall: C
"Pyroblazer (PC)" is on sale November 13, 2008 and is rated E. Racing.
