Genre: Racing
Developer: Argonaut Games
Publisher: Global Star Software
# of Players: 1 - 8
ERSB: Everyone
Released On: February 24, 2004
Supports: 480p, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Features: Xbox Live Multiplayer
MSRP: $19.99
Also On: None
Website: http://www.take2games.com/carve/
Let’s get straight to it. Any water sports racer, whether it’s on SeaDoos, Jet Skis, or fictional watercrafts, will be, or have been compared to one of Nintendo’s two home console Wave Race games: Wave Race 64 and Wave Race: Blue Storm. Of course, there’s a just cause for it. Nintendo’s Wave Race games have delivered both depth in control, and water physics so incredible, that the competition just seems to have no chance at outdoing.
As you can imagine, many developers have attempted to imitate Nintendo’s Wave Race games, with the latest “imitation” being Argonaut’s Carve.
Carve is very much like Wave Race. It has water, it has Jet Skis, and it has polygonal characters riding these Jet Skis. See the likeness? Of course you do. However, in order to save itself from being labeled a clone, Carve brings forth a new dimension, a dimension unbeknownst to the genre of watercraft racing, and that my friends is the addition of online multiplayer. Carve, is the very first of its genre to feature online multiplayer for up to eight players in a variety of gameplay modes, and in addition the game has been launched with a retail price of $19.99 in order to make things more appealing to potential buyers.
The premise of Carve is to navigate your rider through a chain of red and yellow buoys, respectfully passing each buoys on there left and right sides. If one is missed, you’ll be penalized with seconds being chopped off the race’s clock in between checkpoints, but there’s no need to worry, since you’re allowed five misses in total. However, it seems as if the game is specifically designed to feature a handful of shortcuts that intends for players to miss a buoy or two.
The tracks themselves are pretty generic in terms of design, but thanks to the power of the Xbox, they’re beautiful, with each of the game’s locales featuring distinct environments that are vibrant and colorful. In fact, as a whole, Carve is good looking game. While the characters may look a bit dull, the game features decent lighting, and nice use of particle effects, with water droplets splashing all over the game screen. However, the Argonaut could learn a thing or two from Nintendo about water physics, since at times the water feels almost static.
On a similar note, the audio portion of the Carve could have been much better. While the game may feature many licensed songs, it does not allow for use of custom soundtracks, and the music which is featured doesn’t manage to add anything beneficial to the game’s environment. In addition, the voice acting is terrible, featuring tons of repeated dialogue and poor stereotypes. As for the sound effects… They fit the bill, yet they still seem to lack the intensity of ripping through waves at high speeds.
As for the gameplay modes, the offline aspect of Carve seems to be pretty standard fare. The game features the traditional Quick Match, Arcade, Tournament, and Trick modes. However, most players will find themselves spending the majority of their time offline in Tournament mode. This is simply due to the fact that playing Tournament mode unlocks new tracks (27 in total), new crafts, cheats, and tricks. However, a problem exists with the varying difficulty levels featured in Tournament mode. Unfortunately, it feels as if earlier circuits are bit too easy for their own good, and then when players are tossed into the Pro circuits, difficulties with the game seem to arise, specifically as a result of the game’s poor controls…
Wave Race veterans like me are used to handling their watercrafts in-game with the utmost ease. While at first the controls of Wave Race may have seemed overwhelming, the use of the analog stick in the original, and the additional implementation of lean function with the GameCube sequel, made the control of each of the game’s riders fluid. However, the control scheme in Carve seems to resemble a stripped down version of the controls featured in the Wave Race games.
There is no lean function and practically no way to execute sharp turns. Carve essentially gives players a gas trigger and the ability to turn left and right. Luckily, the game features an easily accustomed and efficient trick system; one which, once again, bares great resemblance to Wave Race. However, in addition to pressing, for example, left and right on the analog stick to perform a barrel roll, button combinations such as XX, XYXY, XABY, etc… also perform trick maneuvers such as a handstand, and even a superman. When accumulating 2,500 pts or more with a single trick, or trick chain, your character earns a boost called RUSH. Depending on how many points your trick is worth, the length of your RUSH will vary. And eventually, when executing many tricks on target throughout a race, the RUSH meter will fill and earn players a Double RUSH, which is a longer and faster RUSH. Surely this boost should benefit players in-race, however this is not always the case. With a RUSH, the game’s control tends to feel even more flawed (even bulky) and can often send players speeding off into a course barrier, or some other obstacle. Also, it is unfortunate that when in RUSH mode, no additional tricks can be performed when soaring off ramps. Truly a disappointment.
…Carve uses its Xbox Live features very nicely. It features all the usual stuff, such as leaderboards, voice chat, friend lists and all of that nonsense, in addition to two playable gameplay modes: Arcade and Team Race. Arcade, is the same as in the offline portion of the game, you against seven other players in race to the finish. Team Race on the other hand, is something completely new. While this game mode does exist to some extent in the offline portion of Carve, in multiplayer it actually proves to be something useful. In Team Race, you and a friend work together in order to earn the most points at the end of a race. However the mistakes that one makes affects the other, such as missed buoys, etc… So, a great deal of teamwork IS necessary.
For the most part, the online portion of Carve is well worth the money spent on the title. Not only does it provide the thrill of playing against human opponents, but it also runs very well, with no major lag or any problems of the sort ever affecting gameplay. Unfortunately though, the thrill doesn’t last too long. Eventually the game’s faults will begin to take its toll on the game’s overall enjoyment.
Carve is without question a good game. However, even with online play included, it cannot compete with those games like it which practically created and conquered the genre.
