Boss Rally should have never left the N64

Boss Rally
Genre
Reviewed On
PC, PlayStation
Available For
Difficulty
Easy
Publisher(s)
ESRB
ESRB

I don’t understand why it seems that every N64 game is being translated over to the PC. While some I have seen some turn out to be pretty good [Turok 2 and Rogue Squadron] there are also those that turn out to be very bad.

Two years ago, there was a little known racer for the Nintendo 64 called Top Gear Rally. Back then I considered it to be pretty average, and now in 1999, its PC sibling, now titled Boss Rally, is just as average.

First of all, you will notice that the graphics are almost identical to that of the N64. Granted the resolution went as high as 1024×768, and ran at an almost constant 60 frames per second, not counting when more than 2 cars are on the screen at once where the frame rate and actual speed takes a nose dive. But in essence, everything still looks like it did on the Nintendo 64. For a PC game, you should expect more.

Also, the control is sloppy. I know this is supposed to be a rally game, but still I had a lot of trouble controlling my vehicle. Even when using a Gravis Xterminator, which passed the test on other racing titles like Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit and Episode I: Racer, my car constantly felt like it was running on ice, and when making a hard turn, my car ended up at a complete stop a lot of times.

Sound is also pretty forgettable, and is made up of just your usual driving sounds. Even the musical score by Dragline can easily be passed on. I found it much better to put my own music CD in the drive.

If the slippery control, mundane graphics, and average sound did not ruin this product, it might have been something. With 19 different tracks and the ability to customize your racer (sorry GT fans, no real car makes it to here either) it might have been a contender, but in my point of view Boss Rally is nothing more than another N64 translation gone bad.

With titles like Sega Rally 2 coming out for the Dreamcast, publishers had better think twice about how their release will stand up against the best, and if that means holding back a two Gem title like Boss Rally, then it might be for the best.

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