huh?

I played both of these on demo disks at CompUSA and Best Buy. I was reading reviews and both seem to give the edge to WaveRace, and am trying to decide which to purchase.

Anybody have any opinions about either of these?


I though both of them played well, and am leaning toward Wavrace because I like the gamecube controller.

Your thoughts?

Groucho

I haven't played Splashdown, so I can't comment on that. However, I am in love with Waverace. It's gotten a lot of play on my Cube. Some of the graphics are mediocre, but the water effects are amazing! There is a lot variety as well, as you can replay the courses with different weather which makes a big difference. Multiplayer runs great as well. I can't say enough good things about the game. Highly Recommended.

huh?

that is cool about the weather effects, i didn't know that. gamespot apparently thought it was the best water sports game ever made, and that can't be a bad thing.

has anyone out there played a lot of splashdown?

Kellehair

I haven't played Splashdown either, but I love Wave Race. The realistic weather and waves are the real treasure. The realistic waves make for some incredibly intense races because you're not always in control of you racer. The 5 types of weather look very cool and effectively triple the number of courses.

Decker

I have Splashdown and love it. It's a very different game than Wave Race. There are very few waves in it, actually. But the tracks are a lot of fun. There are plenty of jumps and shortcuts. I like the way it handles better than Wave Race (which is very touchy IMO). The water effects are better in Splashdown; it really looks great. Both games are very good, but they do play very differently. Maybe you should try the demos in a store or a rental first.

Josh H

I prefer Wave Race. For one their are actually waves, whereas their are hardly any in Splashdown. Also I prefer the control of Wave Race, it is more realistic, whereas splashdown is very arcadey. Put it this way, if you prefer the control of Ridge Racer then go with splashdown, if you prefer games with realistic (which means harder to learn) control like Gran Turisimo, then go with Wave Race. As others said, the weather and wave effects in Wave Race are simply stunning.

huh?

i played the demos, and find both of the water effects to be amazing. does splashdown have good multi-player options?

DavePack

Pretty much my thoughts exactly. I owned WaveRace back in the N64 days, and I spent most of Christmas Eve playing WaveRace on the GC that one of my wife's cousins brought over. I own Splashdown for the PS2, and in my opinion, I MUCH prefer Splashdown.

Why? First of all, I much prefer the lack of waves in Splashdown. That's just me. Sometimes, I just felt like I was spending way too much time bouncing around and fighting the waves in WaveRace. I felt the control was much tighter and better in Splashdown, and of course, from a graphical standpoint, I thought Splashdown won hands-down. But gameplay's the important thing, and to me, I just found Splashdown to be more fun.

My wife also likes the ease at which to pull off tricks in Splashdown (basically just a button hold and then a press in a direction). I also preferred Splashdown's selection of tracks, especially those incredible stadium courses. Wow.

By the way, side-note here: if you haven't seen the water effects in Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance, check it out. Absolutely incredible. I think it probably wasn't the winner for best water because there's really no physics involved with it, but the visuals of it, including the generated waves that interact and the transparency of it is amazing.

Outlaw

Another vote for Waverace, it rocks!! The waves are awesome how you can see your rider jumping off them. Whats really cool is how the weather changes in some of the stages and they become completely different. What was once a flat stretch of water suddenly becomes a ferocious obstacle of waves. Plus because the waves are rendered in real time you never know what to expect and it can change the outcome of multiplayer matches. There is a slight learning curve compared to other games but when you start figuring out tricks its awesome.

I never played Splashdown but from what I've been hearing I'll have to check it out now. I'm not sure what it is but I really like alternative type racing games like jet ski's and snowboards compared to driving (with the exception of mario kart) .

Goldberg74

I have WaveRace and am not very good at but I'm getting better... spent a few hours playing it last night. I love it whne it rains and gets really stormy. Great effects!!! I highly recommend it for GCN owners, but have never seen SplashDown...

(is that a WWF title for PS2? )

jeffdsmith

The key thing to understand about these games is that they don't play the same at all. You really should what you enjoy more.

Waverace is much more "realistic" water racer, in that the enviorment and the water actually has a major effect on how you race, just as it would in real life. This is where both Waverace games have tried to do, re-create a true water experiance. It's a much trickier game and something that takes time to master.

Splashdown is much more of a normal type racer. It's almost like any other game, except they replace the cement with water graphics. That's not completly correct, but is much closer to the truth then otherwise explained. Splashdown is much easier to pickup and learn then Waverace.

So, are you looking for a super realistic water experiance where you actually have to factor in water movements and weather, or a more action based arcade type game?

huh?

hmmm, i can see your point from the realism stand point (waves, weather, etc.). i think i will rent waverave and see if it convinces me to buy it.


thanks for your input...

Gallant Pig

Wave Racer is very fun, but also difficult and simulation like. It actually feels like a waverunner. Think of the difference between SSX and Amped.

Decker

Nope, just a 2 person vs mode. Splashdown's lack of extra modes (having no stunt mode is shocking) is perhaps its biggest flaw.

mmconhea

I played the SplashDown demo the other day. The gameplay felt like Hydro Thunder for the DC, but since I only played for 10 minutes I can't be sure. It was more like racing OVER water than WaveRace which is racing ON water.

I haven't played much of the cube version, but the interractive waves and the ability to use them to win a race just puts it over the top.

Atari did a good job with Splash though.