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Reviews Home  »  Action Games  »  Carmageddon
Carmageddon

Released: 17 Oct, 2012

Reviewer: Andrew Nesvadba

Version: 1.0   Size: 102.0 MB

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Save: 80% Was: $1.99Action Games1.0Stainless Games Ltd

PROS

  • Carmageddon, just as you remember it; a boon for the nostalgic fan.
  • Brutal, no-holds-barred derby-style racing; choose an objective and have fun.
  • Huge stages packed with secret areas and super-items to boost your vehicle.
  • Large range of unique vehicles to unlock.

CONS

  • Tilt-based controls disorienting; camera delay makes an already jittery game almost unbearable.
  • Lack of multiplayer feels like a huge omission.
  • Retains some of the flaws of the original, including physics that can leave your vehicle stranded all-too-easily.

VERDICT

Carmageddon is the '97 classic given just enough of a tweaking to make it feel at home on the iOS platform - there are still some quirks left over from the original, but smashing your way through pedestrians and vehicles alike makes for a disturbingly fun distraction.

Video Review

Full Review

When you have cars, a race-track and checkpoints, your first assumption is generally that the game you're playing is a racer. If we were to forget about Carmageddon's colorful history, you'd likely approach the game like any other, but you'd be playing it wrong. See, it's not that you can't race to the finish line, but rather that it's not the most profitable, be it for your in-game piggy bank or for your more intangible emotional piggy bank. Some days you just want to tear something apart and Carmageddon is just what the doctor ordered.

Originally released in 1997, Stainless Games' smash'em-up racer was a run-away hit, with players heavily encouraged to win their races by demolishing the opposition or, if you're patient and meticulous, by running down every last living thing on the stage. Morbid? Sure, but in that over-the-top fashion that went on to cause so much controversy as you gain multipliers and score bonuses for running over entire football teams or a pack of wandering grannies.

Each track has three objectives - race, smash, and (for lack of a softer term) genocide. Whichever you choose you'll be earning cash for just about everything you do. The opposing AI are often more interested in your destruction than 'winning', so you'll be in for a rough ride unless you can find one of the many power-ups scattered across the stage to help you. These come in several flavors including positive and negative, affecting either your car alone or the entire stage. There's nothing finer than scoring a pinball-mode with a granite car and a turbo-boost... you'll ricochet off the entire stage, demolishing anything in your path with abandon.

The iOS version nails just about everything that made the original so amazing with the exception of a missing multiplayer mode, hurting its long-term appeal. The default 'digital' controls get the job done without much fuss, and while 'analogue' and tilt based options are available for both the steering and acceleration, they can be somewhat disorienting by comparison.

Screen space has been saved thanks to a swipe-accessible map, but the downside is that this does make navigation confusing, especially if you find yourself in one of the many hidden or offroad areas in a stage. Swipe in the other direction though and you'll pull up a replay system, complete with the ability to edit and save your best moments.

Earning vehicles, upgrades and smashing your way through the huge amount of stages is nothing short of a nostalgic gamer's dream. While not the prettiest game on the market (its rather blocky stages do scream for an update), the higher resolution and sharper textures do a lot to ease in those new to the franchise.

With any luck this is only the beginning of Carmageddon on the iOS platform and no matter what, if you love mindless violence with an arcade twist, this is a definite must grab.

App Store Info

--- Free for the first day as a thank you to our Kickstarter Backers! ---Carmageddon is the original freeform driving sensation, where pedestrians (and cows!) equal points, and your opponents are a bunch of crazies in a twisted mix of automotive killing machines. The game features anarchic drive-wherever-you-like gameplay and over-the-top surreal comedy violence. It’s the racing game where racing is for wimps. Now the same Mac & PC classic that was BANNED AROUND THE WORLD is back and available on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch!Carmageddon features real-world environments that have been turned into killing fields, where the locals stay out on the streets at their peril. As well as using your car as a weapon, every level is sprinkled generously with power-ups that have a vast variety of mad effects, adding a whole extra level of craziness to the proceedings. In every event you have the option to “play it your way”… Waste all your opponents, kill every pedestrian, or (perish the thought) complete all the laps. Oh and watch out – the cops in their super-tough armoured patrol vehicles are lurking, and if they catch you being bad they’ll be down on you like several tons of cold pork!FEATURES• 28 dangerously deranged Opponents• 11 wildly exhilarating Environments• Career Mode featuring 36 satisfyingly violent Levels• Race and Wreck opponents to unlock 30 playable cars!• Universal App• iCloud Support • 27 Cunning Stuntworthy Achievements• Leaderboards• Game Center integration• Multiple control methods: digital, analogue (mix ‘n’ match), tilt• Edit your control layout in game to your preferences• Comprehensive Action Replay System• Movie editing; Save your movies straight from the game to YouTube; Share links using iOS 6 • Retina display and iPhone 5 support • Environment maps and other special effects• Enhanced pre-lit environments• Buckets of gibs• Tons of laughsPlus the opportunity to make in app purchases to unlock ALL the cars (apart from the secret one) and ALL the races! Carmageddon requires iOS 5.1 or later.AWARDS AND RECOGNITION FOR THE ORIGINAL GAMECarmageddon won the “Game of the Year” trophy in the 1997 PC Zone Reader awards. Carmageddon 1 & 2 were “Driving Game of the Year” 1997/1998.SELECTED REVIEWS OF THE ORIGINAL GAMEOriginally released for the PC in 1997, Carmageddon was an instant hit and the titles went on to sell over 2 million copies worldwide. Here’s what a sample of the gaming press thought at the time:“Carmageddon is visceral, violent, vehicular fun...” - GameSpot 8.8 out of 10 “Carmageddon, to get straight to the point, is one of the best computer games I've ever played… Carmageddon is God!” - Duncan McDonald 95% Classic Award PC Zone Magazine“Carmageddon is one of those games that only come along once in a blue moon. An essential purchase.” - Escape Magazine 6 out of 6“The gameplay is spot on and anyone with a dark enough sense of humour should give it a go.” - Computer Gaming World 4 out of 5 “So next time you gun down coppers on GTA VI, just remember, Carmageddon’s controversy was there first, and you have a lot to thank it for.” - RetroGardenABOUT STAINLESS GAMESStainless was founded in 1994 by Patrick Buckland, a veteran of the games industry going back to the Jurassic period of 1982, and Neil Barnden, who used to have hair like a mammoth. A team of 8 worked on the original Carmageddon at Stainless, and 5 are still with the company today, although a couple of them are now kept manacled in a small padded room in the cellar. Stainless Games now employs well over fifty mad, dedicated people of assorted gender, height and width. They can all be found dangling precariously from a small chalky rock just off the South Coast of England.

Languages

  • English
  • Italian
  • German
  • French
  • Spanish

Rated 12+ for the following:

  • Frequent/Intense Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
  • Infrequent/Mild Mature/Suggestive Themes
  • Infrequent/Mild Horror/Fear Themes
  • Infrequent/Mild Realistic Violence
  • Frequent/Intense Profanity or Crude Humor
  • Infrequent/Mild Alcohol, Tobacco, or Drug Use or References

Requirements

  • Compatible with iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPhone 4S, iPhone 5, iPod touch (3rd generation), iPod touch (4th generation), iPod touch (5th generation) and iPad.
    Requires iOS 5.1 or later.

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