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DODGEM ARENA
A Perfect Formula..?
 
Over the past few days we have been getting to grips with the forthcoming futuristic combat sports title from Formula Game Developments.

Looking quite similar to Wipeout and playing like no other title on the Playstation, Dodgem Arena is shaping up to be an early winter warmer.
 

What's it all about..?
 
      It's AD 2049. Superconducting materials and high-grade hydrogen fuel have changed the world.

Kids all over the galaxy participate in the thrilling sport of Dodgem. They see themselves as the outlaw skateboarders of the 21st Century.

Sponsored by bookmakers they travel the world, and the solar colonies, to participate in the Dodgem Elite League.

Four pilots steering dodgems hover in huge bowl-shaped arenas, trying to shoot ice hockey like pucks into a goal located at the top level of the arenas.

The Rules...
 
      After the pucks have been released from a central point in the arena, players have to pick one up in the lowest level and increase their speed. Enough speed enables them to climb higher and higher until they reach a new level.

On the way up enemies must be avoided - other human players and CPU controlled - who are all after the pucks as well. When the top level is reached players still in possession of the puck try to shoot it into the moving goal beam.

In the first round four pucks are available, in the second round three and so on, until the final round of every game when four Dodgems battle it out for one single puck.

Weapons and power-ups are scattered around the arena adding to the excitement. These are used to upgrade your dodgem and to distract or disable enemies.

Clever navigation around the arena, fast racing, jumps, intelligent collection of weapons and fast interaction with other players are the key elements for success.

Each time a puck is 'scored' you are awarded a number of points and the player with the highest score at the end of a round is deemed to be the winner.

Time For Playtest...
 
      We have to say that Dodgem Arena is a game that gradually grows on you and perseverance is required in abundance... I'll explain!

Remember the very first time you played the original Wipeout? Damn, it took a while before you felt in total control of the craft as you stumbled around those twisting, turning circuits! Well, the handling of the dodgems brings those memories flooding back... or were they nightmares?


Using a standard joypad we found that the directional controls were a little over responsive for our liking. The face buttons are used to accelerate and fire weapons, while the shoulder buttons allow you to perform a wonderful side-flip that throws the enemy away from your craft. However, switching over to analog proved much more favourable as the left stick can be configurated to control steering, acceleration and brakes.
Of course the handling of each craft depends very much on which of the seven dodgems you select. Each has it's own individual attributes depicting speed, response, acceleration, handling and toughness. In single game mode there are eleven different arenas, each staging four competitive rounds.

The game begins after a three second countdown when your craft is launched into the arena along side three opponents. The fight begins immediately as you scramble towards the loose glowing pucks hoping to grab one of them before all are snatched up. Initially there are enough to go around, but this doesn't stop the CPU opponent from ignoring the free pucks and smacking head first into your craft, thus releasing your collected cargo.

This can be quite frustrating as each collision severely reduces your energy level and this must be quickly replenished if you want to keep up with the lightening pace of the game. To fully re-charge you must seek out and drive over a floating health icon. Weapons power-ups are gained in a similar way. Now that your batteries have been recharged it's time to climb that hillside and shoot a few pucks into the hovering 'goal'.

Visually Dodgem Arena looks pretty cool. Everything is constructed from polygons and first impressions are very good indeed. Collectable icons glow in the dim surroundings as if lit up by neon lights while the futuristic dodgems look like a cross between a Wipeout craft and a rather large magnet. But it's the pace of the game that impressed us the most as the graphics shift along at a commendable rate, offering a gameplay that is both fast and furious.

We are very much looking forward to play testing the final code of Dodgem Arena next month. Hopefully with a few tweaks on the control system this game should offer endless multi-player fun when it is finally released this October/November.

Bring Along A Friend...
 
       If you like your games to have options then Dodgem Arena has them in abundance.

Game modes include:
* a single player battle against three other CPU controlled opponents,
* two player battle in split-screen mode,
* two player battle in link up mode,
* two player team event in split-screen mode,
* two player team event in link up mode,
* two player head-to-head in split-screen mode,
* two player head-to-head in link up mode,
* four player battle,
* four player team event.

 
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