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GamesRelay Score
Above Average
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Name: Destruction Derby: Arenas
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Destruction Derby has been around the block a few times now, with the first game releasing on the PC, PlayStation and Sega Saturn it gained many fans when it released way back in 1996. This new game in the series; Destruction Derby: Arenas, builds on the success of the original games, bringing vehicle carnage to the PlayStation 2 for the first time along with online multiplayer.
Destruction Derby: Arenas brings with it similar if not almost identical gameplay from the older games to this new version, while this shouldn't put fans off at all, it can certainly become repetitive after a while. Starting off with exhibition races, these are your quick play games, some cars are locked however and need to unlocked and upgraded through playing the championship mode. Each of the seasons you progress through contain various racing and wrecking style competitions where you gain points by either smashing up other cars and finishing in top position, or in the arena style events being a last man standing affair where you need to cause as much damage to the other opponents while making sure your car is the last one running. Points are earned in a similar fashion to the previous games, hitting cars and making them spin out of control, pulling off skids, jumps, hitting another car incredibly hard, and the penultimate being, knocking a car completely off or out.
The problem with Destruction Derby: Arenas is its lack of proper destruction, yes the cars lose parts with some effect, take damage and generally get wrecked, it's how they accumulate to this which is the real issue. The game rewards players more for making the opponents spin out of control than actually causing heavy damage. As you will most likely know, attacking key areas of a car is vital, the front, where the engine is and the tires which would increase the difficulty of controlling the car, unfortunately the game doesn't work like this. A destruction derby should be exactly that, destruction, not making cars spin out because it rewards you with higher points.
Where Destruction Derby: Arenas really comes alive though is in its online multiplayer. New to the PlayStation 2 and one of the few games to currently support online play, the game can be a lot of fun online, allowing a maximum of twenty drivers to play at the same time. While the game isn't compatible with dial-up connections, lag is present somewhat even on a broadband connection. Cars sometimes warp and skip around the track occasionally which can be frustrating considering your objective is to hit them. For owners of a USB headset, you'll find the game supports voice communication while on the lobby screen or postmatch, it's unfortunate that you cannot talk while playing however, but with the lag as it is, with voice communication on top it no doubt would of tarnished the experience more than would be acceptable. While the singleplayer is limited in its game modes, the online multiplayer throws a few more into the mix such as; speedway, which is a simple race between competitors around different tracks, and capture the trophy mode which is more a king of the hill game mode. For owners who aren't connected online, the game does include upto four-player split-screen as well, so you can of course enjoy the game with a friend or three, though if you can get online it's much more enjoyable.
Graphics wise, the game isn't anything to brag about. The car models are fairly blocky considering what the PlayStation 2 is capable of, they look more cartoonish, like toys. Tracks are well sized mind you, and are fairly colourful in their presentation. While the cars do fall short in their looks, the game does suffer from noticeable frame-rate drops, it's usually when a lot is happening on screen at once and while it isn't terrible, it can get annoying especially when you're trying to hit a specific vehicle. The sound is quite disappointing as well, the sound of cars smashing into each other is quite realistic but the music and announcements are nothing you'll remember, their isn't anything defining about them and probably something you'll soon forget is even there.
Destruction Derby: Arenas is something that could of been great, with such high calibre titles behind it, it was riding on a well liked game, however this first venture on to the PS2 hasn't done it any favours, with repetitive gameplay only saved marginally by its online multiplayer their isn't much to keep you playing beyond the racing or destruction.