Totaled!

UPC: 096427012856

Platform: Xbox

Publisher: Majesco

Developer: Rage Software

Category: Racing

Style(s): Demolition/Combat

Synopsis: Forgoing the simulation aspects found in traditional racing titles, Totaled! is an arcade-style demolition derby game where the object is simply to ram other vehicles until the player's car is the last one running. Three modes of play are available, including Career, Arcade, and Multiplayer. Career has players unlocking tracks and cars by completing certain game types, such as racking up a specific number of points while in an arena or surviving for certain duration of time. As players unlock the eight arenas in the single-player game, they will reveal four special challenge arenas. These offer players a break from the demolition action by presenting a series of stunts or missions to accomplish within a time limit. Examples include jumping over 10 buses, knocking barrels into specially marked areas, or racing laps around a speedway. The eight demolition derby arenas range from snow-covered fields and dirt tracks to city streets and a football stadium. An additional four multiplayer arenas can also be unlocked, bringing the total number of courses to 16. After players select their vehicle from the available models on a given stage, each individually rated in acceleration, speed, grip, weight, and toughness, they will enter the arena from a perspective behind the car. If a demolition event is selected, players will then try to eliminate the competition by slamming into rival vehicles as quickly as possible. Points are calculated depending on the severity and location of each hit, with bonus points awarded for spinning, rolling, or crushing a car. Performing stunts such as leaping off ramps or jumping through hoops will also net players points during competition. Three types of cars from a roster of 12 are available to smash and crumple: hot rods, performance cars, and muscle cars. Each can be customized to a degree by selecting various pre-defined paint schemes before each event. While competing within an arena, each car will show the effects of collisions, with real-time damage resulting in dents, billowing smoke, sparks, and pieces flying off the vehicle. Players can also watch and save replays of each event, controlling the camera to show the best view of the action. Up to four players can crash into one another on a split-screen in an assortment of game variants. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

Package Contents: 28-page Instruction Manual

Controls: Joystick/Gamepad, Steering Wheel

The full-color manual offers a complete breakdown of the point system, modes of play, types of cars, as well as hints on effective vehicle bashing. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The real-time damage modeling is the star of the show, with the vehicles coming in a close second. The arenas are also varied in appearance. The one aspect needing some work is the fire effects, which are far from impressive. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

A slam-bang thrill ride from start to smoky finish, Totaled! offers players frantic demolition derby action with blistering speed, car crunching visuals, and near-perfect arcade-style physics. Alas, Totaled!'s strength is also its weakness. The fast-paced nature of play means each event is over within minutes. The smash-or-be-smashed mentality works well for those looking to channel their bouts of road rage into a more productive medium, but the game's bare-bones structure lacks the sense of gradual progression and depth one expects from more traditional racing titles. If all you care about is smashing cars, however, Totaled! delivers. From the moment you rev the engine and begin tearing through one of the arenas, looking for something to hit, you'll be hooked. A well thought-out point system rewards skilled players for performing certain maneuvers and puts some strategy into the adrenaline-filled action. If you're down a few thousand points, it may be best to hit random cars a few times and hope for the best, but more substantial deficits must be overcome by planning specific attacks -- like ramming full speed at the car resembling a smokestack on wheels. Totaling a car earns players big points, so it may pay to become a vulture, circling the arena until a helpless car sputters its way nearby, then slamming on the accelerator and going in for the kill. While Totaled!'s game engine is in pristine condition, with a smooth frame rate and tight controls, not much else is underneath the hood. There's a career mode, but it's largely a misnomer -- it simply involves choosing events taking place in a handful of arenas, with more opening up after first-place finishes. There's no money to be won, no season to embark on, and no upgrades, power-ups, or sponsorships. The action is straightforward, with a few stunt events sprinkled in between the demolition competitions not unlike the mini-games found in Crazy Taxi or the bonus levels in Stuntman. None are particularly difficult to beat, and the majority of events seem to be last-minute throw-ins. What is emphasized in this title -- the demolition combat -- is faithfully re-created in a forgiving manner, meaning players won't wreck their cars within a few seconds of action. The graphics are razor sharp, with reflective surfaces on cars making them look like they were driven right off the showroom floor. Players can select different paint schemes on the vehicles, but there is no customizing or enhancing their basic attributes no matter how well you perform in the arenas. And these arenas are more than just large, dusty bowls. Players will slip across snow and ice, zip through the narrow tunnels in Kobe, Japan, race on a Daytona Speedway look-alike, and have fun jumping off huge ramps or hills in an attempt to land on rivals or to earn bonus stunt points. The main focus of play is either earning a specific number of points before rival players (as many as ten cars on the field at once) or surviving the onslaught until yours is the final car remaining. Computer AI is solid and realistic -- rival cars don't all come after you from the moment the race begins, so it's not you against the world for the entire match. Rather, computer players will mix it up with one another, making each event feel like a random experience. There's also an announcer during the action, who is funny without becoming overbearing. He'll comment on a nice sideswipe and criticize a poor jump, but he won't take away from the action like some other video game broadcasters do. You will feel like he's always watching your actions, however. General statistics are also saved during career mode, but the total number of points tracked seems meaningless since they are cumulative. It would have been better if the game tracked the highest points earned for Free For All (further broken down by minutes), Last Man Standing, Hunter, and the rest of the game modes. There's also no taunting during the action, which is a bit disappointing since players are challenged by the same characters each time. Some of the personalities you compete against could perhaps be fleshed out in a possible sequel. Another gripe is that matches end abruptly and players have to manually exit the game to return to the menu screen. Loading times before each event are rather lengthy too, which disrupts the flow. On the flip side, the game pulls you in with its damage modeling and sense of speed. There's nothing more thrilling than seeing a car stall near a wall as you hit the nitro aiming to either spin him out by hitting his back tire or flip him over and cause him to roll -- all of which are taken into account in the scoring system. Control could not be easier, but players shouldn't expect true-to-life vehicle physics -- the game plays like a Need for Speed title within closed-in courses. And players can have a lot of fun hitting cars and seeing the results in crumpled fenders, smashed doors, billowing black smoke coughing from a chugging engine, and parts literally flying off. The attempt at game mode variety is also nice, but Last Man Standing and Free for All are still the best. Hunter is somewhat difficult since everyone is gunning after a single vehicle and it's hard to get a hit or two in with all of the cars swarming around the target. There are also some difficult timed races in career mode, which doesn't really fit the gameplay model but does break up the action. Unfortunately there's not nearly enough depth to this title, so replay value is completely dependant on how players enjoy the demolition derby action. If that's really all you want, then Totaled! should be viewed as a smashing success. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The four-player action can be difficult to see with the split-screen view, but the game is designed to be played over and over again with its short, fast-paced matches. The career mode can be finished within six hours, but players can customize events in the arcade mode. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

The announcer is not a blabbermouth, but he will make appropriate comments for each hit, saving his enthusiasm for the powerful hits. The included music offers a nice mix of catchy songs, but players are free to import their own soundtrack from the Xbox hard drive. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

While the career mode could offer more depth in vehicle customization and goals for each event, the heart of the game is fun for those looking for demolition derby action. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide

the game requires Joystick/Gamepad, Steering Wheel.