Developer: Gust Publisher: Ubi Soft Release: 03/22/02 Genre: Racing
When you think of futuristic racing games Wipeout is synonymous with PlayStation. While there were many contenders for the throne on Sony platforms none would ever come close to dethroning the king. Psygnosis knocked it out of the park with Wipeout 3 as one last hurrah for the original grey box meaning there was not enough time to prepare a new entry for the upcoming PlayStation 2 at launch like the original. That means there was an open field for a competitor to establish itself. Jet Ion GP, known as Hresvelgr in Japan tried to be the alternative to Wipeout for the PS2 early on. But the fact that no one picked it up for release in the US is telling. Despite an interesting premise Jet Ion GP fails at nearly everything it attempts.
There is an interesting bit of history behind Jet Ion GP. This is one of the last non RPGs developer Gust would create before they would go full steam ahead with the Atelier series. In Japan Hresvelgr was released not long after the PS2 launch. But it was critically panned for its subpar framerate and awful controls. Crave Entertainment were going to publish the game as Fusion GT with promises to fix the game’s flaws and add a two-player mode. They also promised not to release the game if its quality did not meet their standards. Ultimately they would pass on publishing Jet Ion GP in the US. Considering some of the slop they would release soon after it says a lot about Jet Ion GP’s quality.
Jet Ion GP is a futuristic racing game in the vein of Wipeout with a twist. The road is not a confined track; instead it is a glowing field of energy that serves dual purposes. It is both the path through the course and the energy source for the anti-gravity cars. Rather than being confined to the track you can freely fly above and below it. However if you stray too far from it you gradually lose speed and power until your vehicle shuts off completely. Each race has a qualifying round that determines your starting position before the final run. Like Wipeout there are weapons and you can choose one prior to each race. They cover most of the popular staples and you earn more as you progress. I will be honest, outside of turbo acceleration I found most weapons useless for reasons I will get to shortly.
Generally speaking regardless of my problems with the game the track design is at least imaginative. The tracks take advantage of your free flight to plot courses through tight tunnels, sharp corners, and vertical drops that were barely possible on previous consoles. You are taken on a literal roller coaster as the courses wind through factories and massive vertical ascent followed by drops that allow you to build up speed. The art direction is fantastic as you fly through beautiful cityscapes at varying times of day, lush forests, and giant mountain canyons. I like the vehicle designs as well; they clearly take inspiration from Designer’s Republic yet still manage to look distinct from that series and a good omen of things to come artistically.
On paper I like what Jet Ion GP is presenting. But in practice the game is an absolute mess. The glowing path goes beyond being a nice idea in theory and is critical to navigate the often times confusing track design. Even following the path it is easy to fly off track because the map is unclear. The open areas are prone to camera glitches and focusing on walls rather than the track. The controls are sluggish and a large part of that comes from the dodgy frame rate. I will get to that momentarily. The AI racers might as well not even exist as they put up little resistance until you reach the master level. Content is light as Jet Ion GP’s Grand Prix mode has six levels. But these are all variations of the same five tracks. You only unlock new weapons and more cars which is disappointing.
Perhaps the biggest culprit as to why Jet Ion GP feels so awful to play is the atrocious frame rate. The game attempts to hit 60 fps but never comes close, let alone reach that target consistently. The entire game moves at a sluggish pace and the controls feel laggy. The severe input delay makes it hard to navigate let alone stay “on course”. Because the frame rate is inconsistent the sensation of speed is non-existent. You can hit speeds upward of 2300 mph yet it never feels close to that. The rare times where the game’s numerous issues fade in to the background you can see what they were going for and enjoy yourself a little. But you need to overlook to much to experience these fleeting moments.
In Closing
Jet Ion GP has its heart in the right place but completely misses the mark. This game needed a lot more work to be serviceable at best. It says a lot that even with the dearth of software at release for the PlayStation 2 no publisher would pick this one up for a US release. To be honest even if it were released during the system’s launch window in the US you would still be better off playing Wipeout 3 in backwards compatibility mode for your futuristic racing thrills. Jet Ion GP just does not cut it.
