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Little-known developer Sidhe Entertainment delivers an unexpected yet fun game for the PSP. GripShift isn’t really a racing game; it is more of a puzzle game with cars. Nonetheless, its unique qualities make it worthwhile. The concept is something pretty unexpected in this day of safe sequels, including a bunch of insane cars in a new puzzle package.
To begin a race in the game you first pick a racer (for aesthetic purposes, they have no stats) and then car (which is rated). You’ll race through a number of insane courses with plenty of twists, hovering platforms, jumps, teleports and loops. Don’t worry too much though since the game does a good job of giving you a feel for it at the beginning with some easier tracks. As you race through these tracks you’ll have to accomplish some sort of goal like hitting all of the checkpoints, or completing the track in a certain amount of time. Completing these goals will earn you credit that you will use to move on to the next set of tracks. The goals despite their simple promise are pretty interesting since the developer placed the checkpoints for instance in clever locations requiring that you think it through before going it.
While the game is certainly challenging, two bits of it make it more frustrating than challenging. Some of the goals have very specific completion methods, requiring a lot of trial and error before you finally get the proper route. Secondly, the cars are all pretty loose in turns. This takes some getting used to since it occurs with all cars even those that allegedly turn well. Nonetheless, if you think of it as a puzzler, these make sense and don’t detract too much from the game.
Aside from the goal-based racing, the game includes a typical race mode. The racing is pretty solid with plenty of power-ups (shields, etc) and weapons to pick up along the way. There are also minigames included, like the penguin bowling mode.
GripShift includes local, wireless multiplayer for up to four players. Multiplayer mode includes the expected: standard races, combat deathmatch, and tag. There is also a track editor to complement the 100 included tracks. You can send friends your custom tracks to play in for multiplayer.
The game’s visuals are respectable. The different tracks are attractive though not unbelievably detailed or varied. The same can be said of the car models and drivers. They look good and very charming, but there is nothing overly exciting about them. The frame rate is stable throughout, pumping the racing at 30 frames per second. The art style is essentially nonexistent, though the game has that charming in a generic sort of way look going on.
The game’s audio is less admirable. The soundtrack is hip-hop based though no big names were licensed for the game. The sound effects are expectable, again nothing great but nothing poor either.
GripShift is a fun little game that came out of nowhere. Though the racing is a bit frustrating at first, you can get used to it. The game includes a lot of content, so you’ll get a lot of bang for your buck. -- Jose Liz, PGNx Media
---- Oct 3, 2005
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