I really, really wanted to like this game.

I haven't played this game to any great extent yet -- the day it came out, I borrowed it from someone for a couple hours, and that's what this article is based on.  I used Spectre for my test, as he's my favorite from TM2 and I know how he handled in that game.

Before you say "How can you rate a game based on such a short time of gameplay!" let me mention a few things... First, this isn't an RPG.  It's a driving/shooting game, and you can tell pretty early in the game whether it controls nicely and so on.  Second, just like the shampoo commercial says, "You only get one chance to make a first impression."  The first impression of the game is what you get in the first hour or so of playing it.

Oh, and you're going to see a lot of comparisons both to Twisted Metal 2, and to Rogue Trip, the unofficial sequel to TM2 that GT Interactive produced.

That having been said, let's move on to...

• Passwords are back!  Well, they never really "left" the TM series, but I'd rather have passwords than RT's set number of lives and saved games.
• Axel's voice is the sole cool voice in the game.
• More realistic handling, I suppose, but see under "The Bad" for my thoughts on that.
• Outlaw is now two people -- Buzz was rescued by Jamie, so there's some continuity there and with some of the other characters.  Continuity is good.

• Everything's darker.  When I see a "dark" atmosphere, be it in movies, video games, or TV shows, I don't think it's moody, or atmospheric.  Instead I think "They made it dark to hide the poor artwork/decorations".  TM3 just feels dark most of the time.  TM2 and RT are more candy-colored, but somehow it was easier to see what the heck was going on and where the other vehicles were.
• The cars now handle more "realistically", I suppose, which means the handling is both stiffer and looser than before.  Spec's car was out of control on slow turns and too hard to handle on small turns.  This may be more realistic, but it means you really fight for control of the car during even basic maneuvers.
• No more spinning on a vertical axis anymore; now you have to physically move the car around.  It bites, especially when you've narrowly missed an item.
• I never have carpal tunnel problems in TM2 (just "numb thumb" at times), but started having wrist pain toward the end of the tryout, mostly from trying to make the car go the direction I wanted it to.

• That opening cinema.  What in the world was going on there?  Have I been spoiled by Metal Gear Solid's relatively lifelike faces and bodies?  By Final Fantasy 7 and 8's decent graphic work?  Why does Calypso look like he's made of dark grey plastic?
• The truly awful voice acting.  NOoooooO!  Is it really that difficult to find people who can read lines without either sounding scripted or way-over-the-top?  Better to leave the voices out than to have this kind of painful voice acting. (Axel being the sole exception)
• The new power-up icons.  They're not as easy to see against the background as in TM2 or RT, and just plain don't look attractive.
• Watching someone else play this game, I started to get queasy from the motion.  This was a first for me in any video game.

• How did Hammerhead change from being Mike'n'Stu the homicidal goofballs in a 4X4 to some little old lady in what looks like a Jeep?  Shouldn't the "driving name" have changed?
• Buzz is now dark-haired and Jamie is blond.  Wasn't it the reverse in the earlier games?  Jamie doesn't look anything like she did in TM2.
• Why the radical change in Spectre's background?  Most other returning characters had reasons for why they were coming back to the arena.  Spectre is now a whole new character, with no explanation of who he is.  And he looks like a poseur, too.
• They couldn't get Calypso's first voice actor back for this?  The new voice just doesn't have the same edge to it.

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