PC CD-ROM minimun system requirements: 486DX4/100m mhz; 8MB RAM; 40MB hard disk space; Dual speed CD-ROM drive; DOS 5.0 or Window's 95, SVGA. £30.99
MICROPROSE, who should know better, claims Track Attack "changes everything" and every other race game is dead". This is a bit rich coming from the maker of the best of the lot, Formala One Grand Prix, not to mention that game's sequel, which is supposed to be even better, and is due out at the end of June.
What then brought on these brave proclamations? Well Track Attack, at first, seems like your average racing game. And even the storyline (beware of a racing games with storylines) fails to show any originality. This one is based in the future, the racing used to be illegal but now it a worldwide spectator sport enjoyed by millions.
There are 39 tracks to select from and the auto-shop feature allows you to upgrade and repair your car depending on how well you do nothing new here either. But there is one fundamental difference between Track Attack and other racing games and it's called Dynamic Track System (DTS). This allows the player, via switches on the tracks themselves, to activate certain functions. For example, driving over one of these could result in a draw bridge ahead to drop, the surface of the track to change or to cause sliding blocks to move out from the walls, dangerous obstacles.
This feature is an admirable addition, but sadly when you do get down to the racing it is appallingly poor. Even on a Pentium, the screen is extremely jerky and steering the car is nigh-on impossible. What a pity.
Graphics: 80%, Sound: 84%, Gameplay: 51%