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GRAPHICS: A+ (10) Wipeout XL’s graphics are splendid, and for their age, revolutionary. The first Wipeout came out the day the PlayStation was released, and its graphics were seen as unprecedented. Wipeout made the system look more advanced than it really was, and was one of the reasons gamers chose the PlayStation over the Saturn. Outstanding graphics seem to be a hallmark for Psygnosis. Every game made by this company (with only a few exceptions) looks fantastic and usually sets a new standard for the genre. Wipeout XL is entirely polygonal and everything in it is sharp and clear, with not much pop-up to be seen other than the what's expected when a game is this fast. I'm not sure what kind of framerate WXL runs on, but I can assure you that it's way much faster than the first Wipeout, and is even faster than the recently released Gran Turismo, the greatest racing game ever made, in my honest opinion. WXL made the best use of light-sourcing and transparencies from any PlayStation game I'd ever seen before the release of Colony Wars. To this day, this game's graphics mesmerize me when I see it in motion, and when you get to the fastest class offered in this game, you will not believe how fast and exciting the experience of playing Wipeout XL can be.
SOUND/MUSIC: A+ (10) Even if you do not own a PlayStation, buy this game, at least for the soundtrack. Wipeout XL has the best soundtrack you'll ever encounter in a video game. The CD contains the best music of the best electronica artists, which include Future Sound Of London, Fluke, Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy, Underworld, Photek, and Psygnosis' own in-house artist; Cold Storage, with an average of two music tracks by each. You get to chose which track is to be played as you wish in case you dislike a certain track. So really, I cannot mention anything bad as far as music goes. Nor can I mention anything that disturbed me about the sound. Every area of sound has been covered by Psygnosis, making this game as audially-pleasing an experience as video games get (for now). Flawless. GAMEPLAY: A (9.75) Here are the reasons why it doesn't get a perfect score for gameplay: First of all, it is not as long as it should be. A game this good needs to have more tracks, more vehicles, more everything. I'm not saying it's short, it's just that it's too good, and it leaves you wanting more. Second, It does not support an analog controller (it does support the Negcon or whatever it's called, but I can't get ahold of one, and I don't really like the idea of twisting a controller...), so control is digital... not a good thing. I guess I'm spoiled by analog control or something, but playing digital games is becoming a harder thing to do lately. Besides those two things, this game is a blast to play, and it supports the link cable as a bonus if you actually have all that money to spend on connections and extra TVs/copies of the game. The stages are designed flawlessly and will take you quite some time to memorize. The controls are very simple, it will take you no time to figure them out, but it will be a challenge to master all the techniques you can do with these anti-gravitational craft.
FUN AND REPLAY VALUE: A (9.50) WXL has 10 tracks total including the two secret ones, and has two extra challenges upon beating the "practice" championship (you just choose the hovercraft, the track, then you race). You only get to use 5 different craft, which was sort of a dissapointment considering the first game had about 8. All the craft look completely different and have different attributes for you to choose from. All in all, this game is a very entertaining experience, and it gets better as you meet various tasks. It is not a typical racing game, as you will find that at many points in the game the only way to win is by annihilating your competitors. This is done with the many different weapons you can get when you fly above a certain spot of the track which is randomly activated. I've found that even non racing fans thoroughly enjoyed this title. WORTH BUYING: YES If you are not a fan of racing games, I encourage you to give this title a try, it can also be classified as a shooting game, and its futuristic looks and sounds may make you want to stick with it. I can recommend it to just about anyone. OVERALL: A (9.75) This game demonstrates how a sequel should be done, and fully lives up to the expectations of fans of the first game and surpasses them. Wipeout XL, after all this time, has still not begun to show its age, and it will be considered a classic when it does. Psygnosis has achieved what not many other game companies have been able to do by introducing the Wipeout series, sell systems. To order Wipeout XL, click on the button
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