'Gran' Is Miles Ahead of Others in Racing Field

By AARON CURTISS

June 22, 1998 12 AM PT

As a native Californian, I tend to believe--rightly or wrongly--that I know a fair amount about driving. After all, I’ve spent the better part of a life either behind the wheel or in the back seat.

And although I hold a few household speed records for the morning commute, I’ve never really thought about going pro. “Gran Turismo” makes me reconsider and, for at least a little while, provides the illusion that a speed-soaked career as a professional race car driver is not only possible, but probable.

This practically perfect racer for Sony PlayStation offers something for everyone: high-speed racing for adrenaline freaks, technical car assembly for gearheads, long-term strategy for connivers and lots of money management for wannabe financial gurus.

For most of the past 20 years, racers have been about the most straightforward of all video game genres. Hit the gas and hang on. As fun as shrieking through the digital countryside at 120 mph can be, it gets a little old after a while--particularly as the market for video games matures and outgrows the simple twitch required for mastery of most titles.

The danger in bridging traditional racing with a technical simulation is that neither usually comes across very well. One or the other--and usually both--end up suffering as two very different genres get stitched together and slapped on a disc.

But “Gran Turismo” delivers the goods with 160 sports cars and 11 seizure-inducing racing environments. As the game progresses, players race for money and invest in better, faster cars to compete in ever more lucrative matches. Players who want a Corvette have to earn it. And you know you’ve got a lot to learn when a game comes with not one, but two 65-page manuals.

Players start “Gran Turismo” with a little cash and no wheels. The game whisks players to a variety of dealers where they try to find a car that fits their budgets. As in life, the Corvette and the Acura NSX are out of reach, so the first car in “Gran Turismo” is usually a used four-cylinder job with a horsepower barely in the triple digits.

The indignities don’t stop there. No one races without a license. So even before players put their Honda Civics to work, they’ve got to pass a series of seven basic driving tests to ensure they don’t stink up the track. Finally, players can qualify for a race.

It’s worth the effort.

Courses are perfectly drawn, and the physics of driving are about as real as they come. After a few races, drivers get the feel of their cars and can experiment with different braking and steering techniques to zip between some pretty smart computer opponents. Control is easiest with Sony’s analog controller, but the standard unit works just fine. The game also supports Sony’s recently released Dual Shock controller, so players can feel every bump in the road.

By itself, the driving portions of “Gran Turismo” would put the game in the top tier of PlayStation racers. But the strategy and simulation components aren’t just gravy. They too stand alone.

Victory brings the standard trophy, but also some sweet cash that can be used to upgrade vehicles with all sorts of optional equipment. From new clutches to suspensions, players can trick out their cars to beat the next batch of opponents. When the upgrades tap out, it’s possible to trade in a car--of course, players get the shaft from the dealer--for more expensive models, which in turn opens up new levels of racing.

I did pretty well, trading my Civic for a proper car and actually scoring high in some pretty nasty heats.

But I don’t think I ought to quit my day job just yet.

MONSTER TRUCK MADNESS 2: Handy as they may be in rush-hour traffic, monster trucks have never held much fascination for me. They’re big and they’re noisy--two qualities I tend not to value much. Those two qualities manifest themselves in abundance in Microsoft’s sequel to “Monster Truck Madness.”

Players sit nice and high in trucks with names such as Executioner, Nitemare and Grave Digger as they run roughshod over God’s country. Despite some nice terrain and tight control, “Monster Truck Madness 2” suffers from a decided lack of fun.

Because the trucks are geared low, racing just doesn’t seem that exciting as players plod through canyons and across mesas in contests that really don’t seem all that competitive. Stay on track at a decent speed, and it’s possible to come in first within a few tries. That’s not good for long-term playability.

One nice feature: full range of motion. Although players have to follow tracks through checkpoints to win a race, it’s possible to steer off course and engage in a little free-form four-wheeling. I doubt the Forest Service would appreciate it, but it’s pretty fun.

“Monster Truck Madness 2” requires a Pentium 133 with at least 16 megabytes of RAM and supports force-feedback controllers.

BIO FREAKS: “In the not-too-distant future, the mighty country known as America has fallen like . . .” Blah, blah, blah. Yes, there’s a story behind “Bio FREAKS,” but it’s unlikely that the audience for this violent spectacle really cares much about plot or character development.

As with any fighter, the object of “Bio FREAKS” is to inflict as much pain and suffering on an opponent as possible, preferably with an exotic implement such as a chain saw or a mallet. But this one goes beyond the norm in its depiction of violence and mutilation.

Even with Nintendo’s strict content controls, it’s possible for players to set an opponent on fire and watch as a victor celebrates the fact that he or she only lost one arm during battle. (For the curious, the stump squirts.)

Beautiful graphics only make the game that much more disturbing. Despite some novel tricks--such as the ability to fly around the ring--”Bio FREAKS” strikes out. Parents looking for a Nintendo 64 game to feel good about should look elsewhere.

Times staff writer Aaron Curtiss reviews video games every Monday in The Cutting Edge. To comment on a column or to suggest games for review, send e-mail to aaron.curtiss@latimes.com.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

ESSENTIALS

Title: “Gran Turismo”

Platform: Sony PlayStation

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

ESRB* rating: Everyone

Price: $49.99

Bottom line: A racing dream

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Title: “Monster Truck Madness 2”

Platform: PC

Publisher: Microsoft