Vanishing Point
Unrelated to the movie by the same title, thought they do both center around driving, Vanishing Point was a unique racing title that seemingly came out of nowhere and then disappeared without a sequel. I was, in fact, at EB looking for an entirely different game; Metropolis Street Racer I believe, which turned out to be delayed, or I got the date wrong or something. This was when I saw Vanishing Point on demo; a title I had never heard of but was completely entranced by.
It looked genuinely spectacular, boasting virtually unlimited draw-distance and therefore no pop-up whatsoever. Which some of us can recall was a big issue with early racing titles, especially the likes of Cruisin' USA and even the first Gran Turismo and Wipeout games. Though more of an actually detriment for some than others.
So as the story goes, I shrugged off my disappointment and bought this game instead. Vanishing Point turned out to be not only a visually stunning racer, but also a very challenging game that I poured hours into without question. VP was not your typical race title. Instead of your standard trophy races where you complete a circuit or point-to-point map against other AI players, you were always racing against time. Even on tracks where there were AI players, they really were only there to get in your way; time was your real opponent. Since that was the case, unlike other racers you had to learn to run the track perfectly. Simply pitting a lead opponent's car, then leaving him in the dust as your claim first won't do. In order to place podium, you have to do so under the strict set times. Which was frustrating at times as there was traffic in most maps that could easily throw of your perfect lap.
Vanishing Point also featured a very unique stunt mode. This was where all the replay value was at. The time restrictions on laps in the tournament mode was one thing, but the stunt mode was a whole new level of difficult. With dozens of challenges to play and unlock, stunt mode has you crossing tracks full of jumps, dips and bumps in various vehicles between point A and B error free. You have to learn how to position your car to land a jump perfectly, perform that clean drifting U-turn and master the slalom or risk losing too much time to complete the challenges. Most of the challenges require you simply try them over and over and over again until you nail it with perfection. This was easily where the majority of my time was spent and I've yet to find a game that offers a mode that was quite as much fun and still skill testing.
Vanishing Point was definitely one of those one-offs that I would love see return. It still stands on it's own over a decade later as offering unique racing gameplay and some well designed fictional tracks. The short car list offered a great range of licensed cars that included everything from a BMW 3 series, Volkswagen MiniBus, Lotus Esprit, Toyota Supra and a Ford Ranger. It was great fun and I still can't understand why anyone hasn't picked up this property for a sequel.
Unrelated to the movie by the same title, thought they do both center around driving, Vanishing Point was a unique racing title that seemingly came out of nowhere and then disappeared without a sequel. I was, in fact, at EB looking for an entirely different game; Metropolis Street Racer I believe, which turned out to be delayed, or I got the date wrong or something. This was when I saw Vanishing Point on demo; a title I had never heard of but was completely entranced by.It looked genuinely spectacular, boasting virtually unlimited draw-distance and therefore no pop-up whatsoever. Which some of us can recall was a big issue with early racing titles, especially the likes of Cruisin' USA and even the first Gran Turismo and Wipeout games. Though more of an actually detriment for some than others.
So as the story goes, I shrugged off my disappointment and bought this game instead. Vanishing Point turned out to be not only a visually stunning racer, but also a very challenging game that I poured hours into without question. VP was not your typical race title. Instead of your standard trophy races where you complete a circuit or point-to-point map against other AI players, you were always racing against time. Even on tracks where there were AI players, they really were only there to get in your way; time was your real opponent. Since that was the case, unlike other racers you had to learn to run the track perfectly. Simply pitting a lead opponent's car, then leaving him in the dust as your claim first won't do. In order to place podium, you have to do so under the strict set times. Which was frustrating at times as there was traffic in most maps that could easily throw of your perfect lap.Vanishing Point also featured a very unique stunt mode. This was where all the replay value was at. The time restrictions on laps in the tournament mode was one thing, but the stunt mode was a whole new level of difficult. With dozens of challenges to play and unlock, stunt mode has you crossing tracks full of jumps, dips and bumps in various vehicles between point A and B error free. You have to learn how to position your car to land a jump perfectly, perform that clean drifting U-turn and master the slalom or risk losing too much time to complete the challenges. Most of the challenges require you simply try them over and over and over again until you nail it with perfection. This was easily where the majority of my time was spent and I've yet to find a game that offers a mode that was quite as much fun and still skill testing.
Vanishing Point was definitely one of those one-offs that I would love see return. It still stands on it's own over a decade later as offering unique racing gameplay and some well designed fictional tracks. The short car list offered a great range of licensed cars that included everything from a BMW 3 series, Volkswagen MiniBus, Lotus Esprit, Toyota Supra and a Ford Ranger. It was great fun and I still can't understand why anyone hasn't picked up this property for a sequel.
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