That Powerdrome game again......

[satriani]

Hi folks, long time no post!

Just a quick line to ask if anybody else has heard anything about Powerdrome (an old amiga game being given a complete overhaul). I rememeber seeing some mindblowing FMV scenes on Thumb Bandits about a year ago and the Argonaut site is actually showing a ship with PS2 and XBOX formats but no iminent release info. Now considering I thought this was going to be a Gamecube only release...............................

Any ideas anyone?

[Lance]

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hey mike, how goes it? you've become a rarity around here, all righty. tsk tsk.

i just deleted the installed primitive PC version of powerdrome yesterday [mouse control was way too touchy, but it looks like it has potential] while getting rid of a bunch of things before defragging, but i haven't followed game development at all lately, so no news from me. sorry. i'd like to see a modern version of this game
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[satriani]

Hey Lance

Been really busy with the boy, trying to find a way of keeping him away from my console, he likes to teethe on the controllers!

Argonaut are developing and it's been in the works for quite a while now, what I saw way back when was impressing me more than QR but who am I to say. If I get any more info I'll post it.

Hopefully I'm back regularly for the moment.

TTFN

[Wiseman]

LOL, I just did a search on Google for "Powerdrome PS2", and the first result was this thread! :lol:

Goes to show you how much info is out there...

Anyway, upon digging in Argonaut's website(w/ help from Google), they do make a small mention of it in their Annual Press report, with some screenshots on page 7 and a small tidbit on page 9.

http://www.argonaut.com/assets/press/yearly_results_jul_2002.pdf

And also, you might have better luck asking about it on the offical forums, someone else already got a bit of info out of Joss, who is Argonaut's COO.

http://forums.argonaut.com/forumdisplay.php?s=80a8012878ac2d90e667ee03858bffc a&forumid=23


One things for sure, after reading that, if this game turns out to be any good, I'll be getting the X-Box version. :wink:

[satriani]

Thanks for that Wiseman, I had already seen the financial report but hadn't thought about looking on the forums (doh! :oops: ). This is a NO weapon racer concentrating on pure speed so Al may have something to say about this one when it appears on the shelves. And what do they mean by X-Box Live being more 'mature' than PS2 ?? (That was rhetorical)

[JABBERJAW]

so is it supposed to be really fast? :D or slow? :cry:

[satriani]

:evil: FASTER than fast I am led to believe but I never was one for believing the hype (after Fusion that is!).

The only thing that doesn't make sense to me is if M$ have ditched a QR sequel what would make 'another' futuristic racer attractive to them if they can't see any profit in it? Or is it Argonaut's marque. Go figure. :roll:

[infoxicated]

Well, it is on PS2 and XBox, so Microsoft wouldn't have anything to do with funding it. I haven't looked it up, but I imagine that Argonaut have a long standing publishing deal outside of Microsoft. :)

[satriani]

Argonaut have put up a microsite for Powerdrome at http://www.argonaut.com/ follow the link. You may be interested....... :wink:

TTFN

[infoxicated]

Oh goody.... *sigh* characters... :roll:

:wink:

From the trailer it's amazing how much hairspray the chick must use. Lets see - she's in an open cockpit craft, doing what I assume to be well over a hundred miles an hour, yet her hair is perfectly in place the whole time. Not to mention her head.

I thought that mistake was made already with Wipeout Fusion?

They are so desperate to make it mass market and throw in characters that I wonder how good the racing can be.

For me, due to the above, it's a wait and see - I'm not going to be getting excited about it.

[satriani]

:lol: I agree, my cycnical gene is warning me against THE HYPE and this one looks like it'll be hyped up to the hips.

Still....no harm in looking at those gleaming ships (look a bit like jet skis on steroids).

[The Boye]

I was looking forward to this being released last week but it's been delayed until August. Xbox Live and PS2 online remains intact though. This is as close to online WipEout as we are going to get /for now/, anyone interested in some online shenanigans keep note of my gamertag, a difficult to remember The Boye for future reference.

[G'Kyl]

I was just watching the video and screenshots for the first time (didn't know there would be a remake of PD until yesterday). I gotta admit I don't see a lot of potential in the game. The tracks looked like they consist mostly of long straights and a few wide turns, and there was no feeling the game would run at an acceptably high enough speed. Plus, I also listened to the music samples - they sound like a lot of "fun", the thrill of breakneck speed racing is totally amiss, though. Well, I never liked the original ST-game anyway! ;)

[satriani]

The release date for this seems to be confused to put it mildl, it was released in the UK on the 11th. Amazon are currently offering it at £16.99. WTF!!!!! This makes me think it's a stinker. Come payday I think I might have a punt on it though. :wink:

[The Boye]

6th August at play.com

[faB]

I dont think they are aiming at the wipeout fans. Personally I'm not crossing my fingers given that the 'highly visible' characters are a priority for them... yes yes I am cynical but hey. They don't even wear helmets, lol. I hope they don't have insects on their planets :roll: This game looks too .. um.,... 'nice'. :x

[AmishRobot]

Wow, that doesn't look very good at all!

Let me know how it is, guys! :P

[Mogaar]

C'mon, you guys! It's the Race of Champions!

I like the Jed Clampett er, Clanton guy. Is he a fat World War II vet or something? And he appears to be ridden with acne... not a good look.

[satriani]

The more I'm seeing now the more it's turning me off. The first thing that is coming to mind is one of those bad Hanna Barbera cartoons from the eighties!

Can't say I should be surprised. :roll:

[Shem]

Nothing can compete with Wipeout. That's the only thing that comes to my mind after getting familiar with Powderdrome.

[Wiseman]

Apparently, according to the latest EGM, their requests for a copy of Powerdrome to reivew were denied.

This can not be a good sign.

Somehow, I hear the vacuum starting already... *suck, suck, suck, suck, suck*

[infoxicated]

Oooh - great Spaceballs quote! ;)

I spotted a review of Powerdrome recently and it didn't do too well - cant remember where I seen it, probably Gamespot or somewhere else I don't visit frequently.

[Roger]

Metacritic's (http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps2/powerdrome/) page on Powerdrome.

[zargz]

did u c the release date in the left column? :)

[jrutz]

GameSpot's review:

http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/driving/powerdrome/review.html

7.9 / 10, looks to be a solid racer.

Jeremy

[Roger]

Read the review, found some fun stuff:

"...acceleration and braking controls mapped to the shoulder triggers..." So where are the airbrakes, then? (perhaps there aren't any...)

"There's a boost system... this boost reservoir can also be used to instantly repair your battered vehicle..."

"In a somewhat interesting touch, Powerdrome gives you the option to shift manually..." Interesting indeed. Gears on an aircraft?!

"The underlying soundtrack is comprised of rather nondescript post-Wipeout techno tracks..." Nice reference to "our" game, there!

[JABBERJAW]

REdshift blows this game out of the water as far as handling is concerned. It's not bad though( I actually bought it on a whim) The brake is a slide button, and there is no pitch control(kinda a downer, probably would have made it better).

[Shem]

I never played this game, and I surely won't, but there are 2 things that I liked the most:

1) engine exhaust
2) cockpit view

This screenshot (http://www.gamespot.com/xbox/driving/powerdrome/screens.html?page=81) explains it quite good. Look at it, if it weren't for the ship design, I'd say it's Silverstream cranked up massively.

[Thruster2097]

Powerdrome scheduled to be released 27/8/04 in the UK and Europe.
No matter where I look, everybody is refering to WipEout in the reviews, which can only be a bad thing...... Wipeout is 9 years old. Powerdrome hasnt been released yet. The two are making direct comparisons.
So, there ya go. Another tale of a genuine racing arcader being given nothing more than make-up and re-released.
Sad day.
:cry:


And it also shows that WipEout is still the best.
:wink:

[G'Kyl]

I wouldn't be surprised to find modern games still being compared to Wipeout (or F-Zero). The latter more or less invented the genre, while the Wipeout made it what it is now. They are like the blueprints, in a manner of speaking.

But as for the make-ups you mention, they are a pitty indeed: You hardly get any game these days that brings some innovation or does at least SOME things a little different than the rest. Besides, the peak of futuristic arcade racers pretty much seems to be over now for while. Just where are the Wipeouts, PODs, Dethkarz', Killer Loops etc.? :( Every system has its "GT" now, for sure. Too bad I find them boring as hell (no offence here).

Ben

P.S.: Just curious... does anyone here happen to still play Motorhead online?

[xEik]

Game companies that strive for producing innovative games usually end up being bought by a bigger company when a row of poor selling releases (mostly games not understood by the masses) puts them in a difficult economical situation.

Innovating is like the agressive driving in Burnout. The performance is better but the risk of crashing is, obviously, higher.

[G'Kyl]

Oh, I know. But then they wouldn't have to do something completely different than anything that has been there before. Just something that has a certain special feel about it.

[The Boye]

I wouldn't be surprised to find modern games still being compared to Wipeout (or F-Zero). The latter more or less invented the genre, while the Wipeout made it what it is now. They are like the blueprints, in a manner of speaking.


The original Powerdrome is the blueprint from what I can remember. It predates the original SNES FZero by 2 years.

[G'Kyl]

Zou are right, of course. There were a number of futuristic racing games long before anyone even thought of F-Zero. But F-Zero was the first game to make the genre popular on the big scale. Just like Wolfenstein came out long before Doom, while the latter is the one everbody refers to when naming the first great FPS.

Ben

[Nick Burcombe]

http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/914929.asp?q=powerdrome

poor game. But I would say that wouldn't I ;)

[Lance]

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well, yes, you have an incentive [ :lol: ], but on the other hand, i suspect that you're objective enough to be fair 8)
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