Juiced

There are a few different racing events that you can participate in, but it really doesn't feel like there's enough here. The main one is the circuit race which consists of doing a few laps around a track. Other races involve point-to-point which is where you simply race from one spot to the other, and the sprint races which is traditional drag racing. One last type of event is the showoff, where you perform wild tricks for massive amounts of points and respect. You drive around a specific track while performing anything from donuts to full 360s. Your car's visual appearance also plays a role here as you'll receive more points when showing off your car's looks.


Juiced also includes an arcade racing feature allowing you to jump right into a race and unlock more items in the game by completing all of the races. Multiplayer is supported here, but it tends to lag quite frequently making it virtually useless to play. One last racing feature is the ability to call up other racers who you've bet against in the past. You can either race against them for pink slips or cash, or you can take their challenges which normally consist of doing some laps in a certain amount of time.

It's the driving physics in Juiced that really bring the gameplay down. It's hard to describe the driving here. It feels like arcade racing such as what can be found in the Need For Speed Underground series, but it also has a somewhat simulation feel to it. Overall it feels rather clunky and can sometimes be a pain to make sharp turns around corners. Sprint races are also made even more difficult since there is really no helpful way to tell when to manually shift.


As far as the graphics go Juiced is no spectacle. The car models look very generic, and the overall textures look too flat and low-resolution. All of that could be the result of this title being co-developed for the consoles at the same time. Also there appears to be quite a lot of aliasing even when turned up on the highest of resolutions with anti-aliasing cranked up.

Probably one of the absolute best parts about Juiced is the soundtrack. While the sound effects themselves don't exactly sound too realistic or detailed, the soundtrack delivers some nice racing music with a great mix of hip-hop, rock, and techno.

Conclusion

When all is said and done, Juiced just can't stand up to the competition. Perhaps if it arrived much earlier it would have received a larger applause for its unique respect system and many customization features. However not even these characteristics can save Juiced from its untimely demise and faults. It can offer up a few moments of enjoyment, but there are so many other racing titles out there that can do the same thing better and for a cheaper price. If you're desperate for a new street racing title than maybe Juiced is worth a very quick look. Otherwise we'll be sitting in the stands waiting for the next installment in the Need For Speed Underground series.