Obscure XBOX games: Powerdrome, Yager

[Flojomojo]

Anyone give these a spin? Neither one got much press but they look interesting to me. There's so much coming out these days, it's easy for smaller titles to fall through the cracks.

 

Powerdrome Racing is by the makers of Starfox, and looks to be a nice Wipeout clone.

 

Yager has been compared to X-Wing. That makes me want it, even though I have tons of A-list games to chew on first.

[goatdan]

Yager is $9.99 at Best Buy.

 

But I haven't tried it, sorry.

[Flojomojo]

Yager is $9.99 at Best Buy.

 

But I haven't tried it, sorry.

At that price, I can afford to give it a blind purchase. Too bad they don't have it online... guess I need to check a brick and mortar store. Thanks for the heads up, Dan.

[goatdan]

Whoa...

 

I just checked out GameFAQs about it, and the four reviews there ranked it 8, 10, 9 and 9.

 

I'll probably be heading back to that Best Buy within the next couple days. I've had horrible luck snagging things that were $9.99 that I go back for, but if they have it I could pick you up a copy if your BB doesn't have it

 

I think I might end up with one too

[Flojomojo]

You are the man ... er, goat .. er, a great individual, Dan!

 

Check out the Metacritic scores as well. Mixed reviews, but some are *very* positive. I remember hearing buzz about this when it first came out in Europe only, and didn't even know that it had been released here as a budget title.

 

I have the big hits like Burnout 3 and Halo 2 already, but there's something about "sleeper" games that I really like.

[Clock]

Yager is very common over here...

 

It's actually a good game but it is spoilt by terrible annoying voice acting. Personally I prefered Crimson Skies.

[SteveW]

I bought Powerdrome Racing for the PS2 because I used to like the original Amiga game. I didn't care for it. I'm not much into racing games anyway, but I didn't like the controls. They seemed a little too stiff. I just kept slamming into the walls over and over. Oh well. I only like driving games if there's shooting involved, anyway!

[Flojomojo]

I bought Powerdrome Racing for the PS2 because I used to like the original Amiga game. I didn't care for it. I'm not much into racing games anyway, but I didn't like the controls. They seemed a little too stiff. I just kept slamming into the walls over and over. Oh well. I only like driving games if there's shooting involved, anyway!

That's funny ... I turned off all the weapons options in the Wipeout games because I thought they were slowing down the racing action.

[SteveW]

I've always found driving around a track over and over to be incredibly dull. But, if I can blow someone up on that track, it piques my interest. If I can drive around completely off the track and blow someone up, the game's a winner in my book. I'm all about vehicular combat games. My favorite games on each console are always car combat related. Outlander on the Genesis, Vigilante 8 on the Dreamcast, Roadkill on the GameCube and PS2. After I completed Halo 2, I would play, over and over, the section of the game where I drive the Scorpion Tank over the bridge in New Mombasa. What can I say? Automobiles and rocket launchers equals "Game of the Year" to me.

[Flojomojo]

I like to battle against the track (though bumping up aganst opponents is fun, too). SHORT laps keep it interesting for me. Therefore, F-Zero X and Wipeout are fun, but Star Wars Racer and Beetle Adventure Racing are not, even though I love SW and VWs.

 

You keep your rocket launchers. There's something unsatisfying about them to me when in driving games. Take the Spy Hunter remake game for example. Don't you think that would be more fun on an open highway without all the objectives to memorize? I do ...

[SteveW]

I just bought Yager tonight, along with Pinball Hall of Fame. Yager's pretty good so far, but the controls are a little hard to wrap my head around. I was hoping for something along the lines of Cybermorph/Battlemorph, but it's a little different than that. It's kind of a generic futuristic 'freelance fighter pilot with a heart of gold' type game. It's kind of fun to hear all these British voice actors try to talk like Americans.

 

All in all, not a bad game for $9.99. I'm definitely getting my money's worth. And it's better than some of the other dogs i've bought for the Xbox at several times the price.

[Flojomojo]

I was hoping for something along the lines of Cybermorph/Battlemorph' date=' but it's a little different than that.[/quote']If you want a modern version of Cybermorph, look no further than Star Wars: Rogue Squadron/Rogue Leader/Rebel Strike. And since you have an XBOX, Defender, I suppose.

It's kind of fun to hear all these British voice actors try to talk like Americans.

That's always fun. But I thought the developers were German? In that case' date=' the voices might be even more amusing!

 

Been playing a little "Secret Weapons Over Normandy," the console-ized sequel to the old Larry Holland PC games. It's kind of X-Wing Lite, not unlike the Star Wars Starfighter games, but seems to have a bit more going on in the brains department. I'd love to see this developer do something with the Star Wars license again. They really seem to have a handle on that universe that Factor 5, despite their graphical skills, seem to lack.

[SteveW]

I bought Defender not too long after I bought my GameCube, and I couldn't get into it. Some levels were okay, but it lacked in the fun department. And I also bought Star Wars: Starfighter, but I didn't get too involved with that one either. Speaking of Xbox games, I bought Gun Metal early on, and that was pretty disappointing. The idea of flying a jet fighter that transforms into a robot sounded pretty good, but totally blew in practice. I was hoping it would be a Battlemorph-meets-Iron Soldier type game, but it turned out to be just crap on a DVD.

[Clock]

 

Been playing a little "Secret Weapons Over Normandy," the console-ized sequel to the old Larry Holland PC games.  It's kind of X-Wing Lite, not unlike the Star Wars Starfighter games, but seems to have a bit more going on in the brains department.  I'd love to see this developer do something with the Star Wars license again.  They really seem to have a handle on that universe that Factor 5, despite their graphical skills, seem to lack.

 

If you manage to complete Secret Weapons Over Normandy then you actually unlock a Tie Fighter and a X-Wing

[Clock]

Speaking of Xbox games, I bought Gun Metal early on, and that was pretty disappointing. The idea of flying a jet fighter that transforms into a robot sounded pretty good, but totally blew in practice.

 

Have you played Battle Engine Aquila on the Xbox? - It's one of those rare brilliant games that everyone seemed to ignore. Well worth tracking down.

[Sega Ages]

I have an Xbox copy of Powerdrome, Yager and also Battle Engine Aquila which was just mentioned. I think all 3 are Euro developed, they certainly feel like it. Yager has a next gen Colony Wars thing going for it (no space missions though). Powerdrome is probably Argonaut's best game in a LONG time, with blinding speeds. And Battle Engine Aquila is an exciting blend of TRON-ish tanks, lavish Halo-like visuals, and a dynamic RTS-influenced battles. All of them actually get the thumbs up from me, if you can find them at nice prices. Try before you buy, however, as these are pure action and your tastes may vary...

[dinovelvet]

Count me in on the Yager club, I got one for $10 at Best Buy, and its pretty cool. Most of my favorite games this year have been cheapies like Second Sight, Katamari Damacy etc, whilst bloated overhyped fare like Halo 2 didn't come close to justifying its "most anticipated of the year" status. Of course when you shop cheap, you're going to end up with some crap too, like Alias (another licence murdered by Acclaim)

[MegaManFan]

I haven't been able to find either of these at Best Buy in Omaha, but I keep looking!