Stuntman: Ignition
PS2
Paradigm Studios/THQ


The general agreement on the first 'Stuntman' title was that while movie stunt driving providing a great setup for a game, the execution was somewhat lacking. Not that it was a particularly bad game, just that it was an extraordinarily frustrating one. While making your way through levels, certain stunt marks need to be hit - whether it be sideswiping another car, making a jump, or so on - and if you missed a single one, you would have to go through the entire level to try it again. Those who completed the last game came out of it with horror stories of having to repeat a level in excess of 60 times. There's challenging, and then there's just plain irritating.

'Stuntman Ignition' fixes this to some degree by offering extra chances: you can miss up to five of the marks, but after that you'll need to retry. Barring any inconveniences like running into lakes or lava, that should mean that passing a level on a single run through in the early stages of the game is generally possible. The difficulty certainly ramps up however, and you'll soon find that while you're not attempting a level 60 times, 20 times definitely isn't out of the question.

Even once you do manage to complete a level, scoring the highest rating is a different matter entirely. Ratings are given out based on your score, but a five star rating will involve "chaining" tricks the whole way through, by making sure that you're passing close to objects or drifting around corners to keep your chain going.

The presentation of the game is sharp, with six movies to provide stunts for, ranging from super hero material, to 'Dukes of Hazzard' style stupidity. The scene setting explanations from the unseen directors are fun with their comicbook style visuals, as are the movie trailers after you've wrapped all six stunt runs from each film - it's over the top action cliches and stupid dialogue to a hilarious degree.

The PS2 version reviewed does feel like it's missing something in terms of multiplayer - this is clearly a game developed for online play, and the split screen play just can't live up to what was envisioned. Still, as a single player game it's innovative and enjoyable, as long as you can resist the occasional temptation to pitch your controller through the TV.

Alistair Wallis