E3 2007 Preview
Last year’s roller coaster
thrill-ride from LucasArts, Thrillville, proved to be a success with the younger
generation of gamers. By the time its sequel is released, these gamers will be a
little older, a little wiser, and have a stronger craving for more outrageous
content. Thus, the Thrillville series must grow up as well, leading to the
creation of Off The Rails, a game that takes its subtitle literally. Rather than
stay locked onto the safety of a roller coaster track, players (and riders) will
now be thrown from one end of a ride, through the air and hanging freely, to
another branch of the coaster. It’s like an extreme racing game that the rider
has no control over. All he or she can do is hold on tight and hope the ride’s
engineers hit the bull’s eye in their development. Otherwise…splat!
Actually, that’s what you’ll think
is going to happen, and that is the whole point. Should a player be willing to
take a risk and build an unstable coaster, two things will occur: (1) You’ll be
warned that the coaster isn’t safe, and (2) if allowed to be in your theme park,
and if anyone is daring enough to jump inside, all riders will be safely ejected
from their seats before the coaster crashes and explodes. Look up at the sky by
pointing the analog stick up and you’ll be able to view the passengers
parachuting to the ground.
The graphics have been upgraded over
last year’s edition, but that’s minor news compared to the gameplay
advancements. The off-the-rails coasters go beyond ramp-jumping and move into
adjustable track territory. For example, if you go high up and lay a flat,
vertical piece of track, the player has a couple of ways to finish it. He or she
can either attach other track pieces to it for a ride that’s safe, or add a
wobbly piece that’ll cause the track to move back 90 degrees, send the car
flying into the air, and will come slamming down on the track from a 90-degree
angle.
In a word, AHHHHHHH!
The best part is how many different
view points are being employed. Players can watch from a multitude of
third-person, near and away from the coaster views. If you want real excitement,
strap onto the first-person view for a surreal, in-your-face look at what the
coaster’s virtual passengers see as they soar across your handcrafted track.
For most console editions, coasters
will be created using buttons and the analog stick.
