Keep this in mind while reading this review - I'm no major fan of racing games. At their best, I find such games monotonous and dreary, while most of the titles often tediously lapse to the point of my questioning whether or not they still fit the definition of "game". About the only time I personally appreciate racing games is when they start to mutate away from their genre into Autoduel type shoot-em-ups such as the excellent I76 for the PC. With that in mind, take my review at face value.

INDY 500

It has been commented that racing games are becoming more and more like detailed war simulations, with the wargames becoming more and more spontaneous. To see the truth in such a statement, one merely need to look at the current gaming trends. Racing games have taken on a degree of detail strict enuf to discourage the most fastidious of sim-fans, with such titles as the NASCAR and INDY series for the PC having you not only race the car, but design it, repair it, and plot your career thru the year's events. On the other hand, wargaming fanatics aren't too happy with the glut of realtime simulations and their more simplistic gaming models, started by the popular Warcraft and Command & Conquer titles. Personally, I find this change-up refreshing, especially with the racing titles. Without added detail, the game often comes down to an endless series of loops around a boring, circular track. But does Indy500 offer any of this complexity?

Unfortunately, the answer is a complete "No!" First of all, the track selection - totally non-existent. You are presented with the Indy-standard oval track, and without the more interesting bells & whistles found in many other racing titles, this track gets old quick. Choices in vehicles if often an important part of racing games, but not much choice is available here. There is no option of car customization, and only three cars (with a mere three defining stats) are choosable. With these important features missing, perhaps you might expect excellent graphics or a highly accurate physics engine to fill in the gaps - you would be mistaken. The graphics are nice for the Com, and there is a rather impressive visual effect of changing the camera view from inside the car to an above & behind cam, but nothing special. The physics model is lacking, especially in the department of how easy it is to crash my own vehicle, and how seemingly impossible it is to crash other cars. Some well-done speech clips are present in the game, but are repetitive. And perhaps the worst sin of all for a racing game is the lack of multiplayer support. Sure, it would require two game.com systems, two Indy500 carts, and the linkup cable, but even Joust in Arcade Classics managed to have this feature included. Would it have been so difficult to expect the same in a racing game?

So far, Indy500 has been the biggest disappointment in the game.com line. Even hardcore racing fanatics will find this title too dull, too simplistic to suffer thru. Instead of this title, take the $20 asking price, buy a friend a copy of Arcade Classics, and have fun with multiJoust.

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