Ten years ago Midway made waves with Hydro Thunder. The speedboat racer was not only a hit in arcades, but in living rooms everywhere after getting ported to the Dreamcast and ultimately to the N64 and Playstation. Now, more than a decade later, Vector Unit is breathing new life into the classic with a full-fledged sequel.
The original was well-known for its high tech boats and zany tracks (arctic circle, flooded New York City). Vector Unit is promising to bring back what fans loved “with top-notch visuals, brand new over-the-top themed environments and dynamic water-based racing”. Does it deliver?
The Story
No story here. This game focuses strictly on racing. The moment the title screen surfaces, you hit start, pick your track, pick your boat, and begin racing. There is no sissy introductory race–you jump right in. It’s probably for the better. Imagine trying to carve out a story based on speedboats which race on super unrealistic tracks.
The Gameplay
Hydro Thunder Hurricane plays out like a classic arcade racer. The controls are fairly shallow, allowing you to steer, hit the gas, jump and boost.
There are four main modes to the game. Race speaks for itself. You always start in last place (16th) and must work your way into the top three. Ringmaster (newly added mode) will have you racing around your favourite tracks with the goal of driving through rings. Miss a ring and you’ll have time added to your overall completion time. Gauntlet (one of the more exciting modes) throws explosive barrels into the water. Hit one and your progress around the course will be delayed. Finally, Championship mode chains together two or three of the modes back to back. Complete all the races thrown at you and see where you come out in the standings.
Winning an event gives you points. The more points you earn, the more boats, tracks and events you unlock. You start with almost everything locked so you will have to win a few events before progressing further in to the game.
The boats each have their unique properties. Fans of the original title will recognize a few (Damn the Torpedoes, Miss Behave) as Vector Unit brought back a few fan favorites from the original title. Some have fast acceleration, some are slower but handle better. If you’ve played any generic racer before, you’ll be quite familiar with how it all plays out.
Each boat can perform what’s known as a “hydro jump” (simple jump up out of the water for a split second). Driving in the wake of another boat will give you a boost–so will collecting icons around the track.
The courses are what really make this game shine. They are an absolute blast. From a river that winds through a canyon (which gets bombed from up above by an angry biplane) to an Amazon river infested with giants crocs and other reptilian monsters, the environments make this game lots of fun. Each course has a ton of secrets and hidden passages; each time you play through you may discover a slightly different route to take. The game’s water physics only add to the enjoyment, giving you the feel of racing on real water.
The Graphics and Music
Hydro Thunder Hurricane looks good. Incredible detail has not only been given to the boats and most of the courses as well. Throw in some cool looking creatures and incredible racing environments and you have an impressive looking package. It may not be as colorful as the original but as they say “times change”.
The music is upbeat but fairly generic. While it’s quite good, I wouldn’t say it’s memorable by any means.
The Downsides
My one beef with this title has to be how you are forced to play the same tracks over and over in order to open up new ones. It takes quite a few points to open up some of the earlier tracks. That means one of two things. You can either race the same track over and over, or you can play some of the other modes in the game to amass more points. It kind of feels like grinding for XP in a role playing game. Okay, maybe not that bad, but if you’re tired of the tracks you’ve already opened you’ll begin to lose interest.
The Bottom Line
Hydro Thunder Hurricane is an enjoyable pick-up-and-play-racing-title. The game doesn’t have a lot of depth, but it was never intended to. You can play for as little as you want or as long as you want and feel satisfied with your experience. Completionists will have fun trying to find all the hidden items while others will simply enjoy the thrill of the race. A great arcade-style racer.
The Good
Simple controls
Amazing courses
Fun new racing modes
4 player split-screen or 8 person online multiplayer
The Bad
Not enough tracks
Grinding for points to unlock new tracks and race modes
8/10