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PS2
Tourist Trophy
- New Import
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NCS
Game Synopsis
«©NCS»
Tourist Trophy refers to the motorcycle races which
take place on the Isle of Man. In Polyphony
Digital's latest racing game, players ride on two
wheels instead of four where pedals and air are all
that separates rider from asphalt floor. The
mechanics and maneuverability of a motorbike are
radically different from that of a car. For example,
when turning left on a bike, the lean to the left
starts by turning the front wheel to the right which
is known as countersteering.
Polyphony has
engineered a highly technical racing game which
takes into account rider posture as well as the
positioning of a bike as it races through a curved
track to determine if wipeout is imminent. Unlike
other motorcycle racing games where one may jump in
and zoom off without practicing first, Tourist
Trophy requires a bit of patience, a fair amount of
learning, and subtle tweaking of the ride as one
shoots through hairpin turns. The rudimentary
control scheme works well where the L-Analog
controls side to side movement of the rider and the
R-Analog accelerates and decelerates the bike. When
playing with manual transmission, the R1 and L1
triggers shift up and down while the L2 trigger
tucks the body. No other controls are required
although the SELECT button changes camera views from
visor view to a behind-the-rider perspective.
NCS
Game Notes
» In the
intro to the game, a red blur gives way to the shiny
red armor of a motorbike which soon glides across
asphalt with a throaty rumble as competitors muscle for rank, hang on, and move
realistically through the track. Venues change from
courses to glimpses of city racing, and back to the
regulated confines of the track. An omnipresent
world camera keeps track of the racers and the
perspective changes for world view to rider view and
back to world view.
» On the title screen, a view of the road ahead
winds in whipsaw fashion. Leave it alone and footage
of riders racing on tracks eventually spool off from
the DVD and show off their speed and deft handing of
their motorcycles.
» The default controls are as follows
but each button may be mapped to one's preference:
L-Analog / Shift weight and move the rider
(not the bike)
R-Analog / Accelerate by pushing up, Decelerate by
pulling down.
X Button / Accelerate
SQUARE / Brake (Front and back)
TRIANGLE / Reverse
O Button / Toggle camera view (front/back)
R1 Trigger / Shift up
L1 Trigger / Shift down
R2 Trigger / Rear brake
L2 Trigger / Tuck body
SELECT / Change camera
» In addition to a normal joypad
control configuration, there is also a professional
configuration which distinguishes between the front
and rear brakes on the motorcycle. In Normal
configuration, only the SQUARE button is used to
brake. In professional mode, the SQUARE button
activates the front brake while the R2 trigger
engages the rear brake.
» The riding posture of your onscreen
racer may be adjusted for head lean, chin position,
upper body slant, underarm posture, riding position,
hip movement, and knee placement which all affect
the movement as well as the center of gravity of
your bike/rider as you motor through the tracks.
» Upon pressing START the following options appear:
* Arcade Mode
\
1 on 1
\
Race
\
Time Trial
\
2 Player Battle
The Arcade Mode is meant to allow a quick racing time which doesn't
require a lot of time investment. All of the tracks
and bikes featured in the game are available in
Arcade Mode. The uniform of your racing hero may
also be chosen along with a natty helmet.
* Tourist Trophy Mode
\ TT Challenge
Start from the low rungs of the racing world and work
your way to the top. The bikes that are available to
a new racer are meager but successful completion of
missions opens up a world of possibilities.
\ License School
Learn the basic operations of the
motorcycle and pass tests to win helmets, racing
suits, and other needful gear. License School is
staggered into four levels which brim with a large
number of lessons which test all aspects of
motorcycle handling. As more tests are conquered,
the number of bikes that become available in TT
Challenge expand.
\ Riding Form Editor
Create a unique riding profile for your racing champion
whether it be conventional or aggressive. The riding
posture affects the performance of a motorcycle and
gamers may adjust the position of a rider's head,
the twist of the torso, the position of the knees,
lowering the forward profile, and changing the
center of the rider's gravity.
\ Photo Mode
Snap a shot while you're hurtling along at over
200km/h.
\ Closet
Every serious racer keeps his collection of helmets,
racing suits, and assorted gear in a closet which
stores everything safely within its confines.
* In the Tourist Trophy World, players enter a name
and create a save game file on the memory card.
After taking the requisite License driving tests
such as braking and bike handling, a Challenge Mode
ensues where racing tasks are completed to earn
motorbikes. As more races are won, sponsors hand
over nifty gear such as jackets and helmets.
* Replay Theater - View 15 racing demos and replays.
The camera in the racing demos may be switched from
Normal Replay mode, Dive Replay, or Display (which
is normal replay mode with the map, meters, and
position indicators on screen). To focus in on the
action, press the TRIANGLE button and to silence the BGM, hit the O button so the roar of the bicycles
are played without musical accompaniment. The X
button toggles between external camera view of the
action and rider view.
* Music Theater - Listen to 13 music tracks from the
game including "I against speed" by Sun Paulo where
he mutters, "I against speed-beed-beed-beed..." in
relentless monotone, "Rock & Tonic" and"The chase is
better than race" by Bio-Tonic, "Wind Jammer" by
Wrecked Machines, and three selections by Kasai -
two of which are mispelled as follows, "Bragilian
Wind" and "Califolnia Wind." There's also a Slide
Show where six songs with photographic slide
accompaniment may be enjoyed.
* Option menu for setting AT/MT transmission, camera
mode, screen aspect ratio, progressive mode
(480P, 1080i), sound volume, metric system or US
miles, controller configuration, and many more
options.
* In the Credits screen, three pages of copyright
information in small typeface may be perused.
» If the penalty feature is toggled, every time you skid off your bike and crash into the
railings, the game penalizes you for a few seconds
where you're able to throttle up to 50km/h but no more
above that until the penalty expires.
» The game's handling and control
responsiveness is accurate and our otaku questions from last year
appear to have been addressed with each bike feeling
and handling uniquely and speed serving as the
balancer for center of gravity - for example, as the rider speeds
up, stability increases but as speed drops, chaos
ensues.
» Upon starting an Arcade Mode game,
the full array of tracks
may be selected as follows:
Tsukuba Circuit
Fuji Speedway 2005
Fuji Speedway 90's
Fuji Speedway 80's
Twin Ring Motegi West Short Course
Twin Ring Motegi East Short Course
Twin Ring Motegi Road Course
Twin Ring Motegi Super Speedway
Suzuka Circuit East Course
Suzuka Circuit West Course
Suzuka Circuit
Laguna Seca Raceway
Infineon Raceway
Circuit de la Comunitat Valencia Ricardo Tormo
Beginner Course
Motorland
High Speed Ring
Midfield Raceway
Apricot Hill Raceway
Autumn Ring Mini
Autumn Ring
Trial Mountain Circuit
Deep Forest Raceway
Grand Valley East Section
Grand Valley Speedway
Tokyo R246
Clubman Stage Route 5
Special Stage Route 5
Seoul Central
Hong Kong
New York
» Over 80 available motorbikes range from the 250cc to
1000cc class with the following highlights in each
class:
223cc Honda FTR '95
249cc Yamaha TZR250 '85
249cc Yamaha Grand Majesty 250 '05
398cc Suzuki DR-Z400SM '05
399cc Honda VFR400R '99
499cc Yamaha TMAX '05
636cc Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R '05
748cc Honda C8750F '81
996.3cc MV Agusta F4-1000S '05
999cc Suzuki GSX-R 1000 '05
999cc Ducati 999R '05
1157cc BMW Motorrad K1200S '05
1198cc Yamaha Vmax '05
1284cc Honda CB1300 Super BOLD'OR '05
1299cc Suzuku GSX 1300R Hayabusa '05
» Enter the class of bike categories and a large
assortment of bikes that fit under the cc umbrella
may be viewed. The bike rotates slowly as its stats
are listed on the bottom and the manufacturer logo
and model are displayed on the upper right corner of
the screen. The amount of detail and modeling in
each bike is lovingly recreated and upon selecting a
bike that suits your fancy, its color may be chosen
from available hues. The rider may also be outfitted
in official gear from equipment manufacturers such
as Shoei, Arai Helmet, Fushitani, and other
manufacturers.
» The engines of the various bikes
have distinct sounds - some bikes emit insect-like
whines while others rumble with deep and sonorous
growls.
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This document is ©NCSX 2006. All rights reserved. No
reproduction in whole or in part of this document
may be made without express written consent of
National Console Support, Inc.
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