#Carmageddon max damage controls upgrade
#Carmageddon max damage controls series

Sadly (there is always a sadly), the impressive levels of content are completely undermined by the games’ utterly shocking handling model. The solid collection of open world battles and more track-based races do imbue Carmageddon: Max Damage with a sense of scale, and when combined with the unlockable upgrades, certainly makes for a content rich experience. If the sign of “Get yer’ flaps out” flashing up on screen brings a smile to your face, Carmageddon: Max Damage’s attempts at humour might be for you, but for everyone else, expect to find this a painfully cringe-inducing experience. The thing is, being crass is totally fine if it’s funny, but my word, funny this is not. Some might find it mildly amusing, but I for one found it crass, lazy and largely unpleasant. Then there is the tone I get that they are going for that OTT 90s vibe, but like Mr Nukem, none of it is clever, funny or entertaining by modern day standards. Yes, it is a budget title, but that is no excuse for delivering a game as resoundingly ugly as this. In its defence, it does run relatively smoothly and the destruction can look pretty decent, but again, despite the power ups (and power downs) providing a sense of fun, the low polygon count, dodgy textures and general lack of fidelity make for what amounts to an incredibly primitive experience by modern day standards. Beyond the low rent visuals, which really are rather shocking at times, it is the handling and tone that really do for a game that feels plain old rather than old school. Sadly, while it does have its moments, those moments are often fleeting with the overriding sense of disappointment ultimately prevailing. The open world levels provide solid playgrounds for wanton destruction and the impressive level of collectibles and game modes certainly makes for an undoubtedly robust package.Īt its best, Carmageddon: Max Damage is silly fun and a well-intentioned throwback to 90s gaming. Smashing into vehicles is fun and blowing up your enemies can be hugely entertaining. Mowing down pedestrians as they dance in the middle of the street is oddly and somewhat disturbingly cathartic. This all sounds incredibly negative, and, well, yes it is, but make no mistake, despite the lack of polish and its resolutely old-fashioned gameplay, there is still fun to be had here. There is nothing wrong with keeping true to the traditional aesthetic or sticking with the mechanics that made the original a success, but making what is an objectively ugly game and failing to iron out the faults that were present back in 1997 doesn’t make for an enjoyable video game experience. Carmageddon: Max Damage fails on both fronts. The best remakes/reboots deliver on that sense of nostalgia while providing enough in the way of modern comforts to make them strong enough to stand on their own two feet.

#Carmageddon max damage controls upgrade

Sadly, that led to the incredibly poor Carmageddon: Reincarnation being released back in 2015, and while this 2016 upgrade is certainly a marked improvement, it remains an undoubtedly disappointing return to a somewhat bizarrely beloved series.

Still, when it showed up on Kickstarter, no doubt driven by an air of misplaced nostalgia, the Carmageddon reboot/remaster/remake hit its $400,000 goal without too much in the way of trouble. Sure, it wasn’t outright bad, but is it deserving of a sequel that is almost 20 years too late? Absolutely not. Beyond the violence and the relatively open nature of many of the courses (something of a big deal at the time), Carmaggedon was never actually all that good. This gave Carmageddon something of a reputation and, as is often the case when it comes to video games being vilified in the press, probably made it more popular than it would have otherwise have been.Īnd that’s the thing – it never really deserved its popularity in the first place. Released on the back of the kind of media furore that rarely greets video games nowadays, the original was banned in a number of countries thanks to its high levels of violence and, perhaps more specifically, its core mechanics that rewarded players for mowing down pedestrians (or ‘peds’ as they are referred to in the game). Yes, some gamers with love for the original will find something to like amidst the games’ defiantly old school structure, mechanics and uhhhh, visuals, but for the majority, this will serve only to remind that the original wasn’t up to much back in 1997.

#Carmageddon max damage controls series

Like Duke Nukem Forever before it, Stainless Games, Carmageddon: Max Damage series feels like an immediately ill-judged return to a video game series that feels horribly out of time on modern day consoles.