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Silverback Reviews
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7800 Rank: Unranked
Genre: Racing
Awards: None
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In This Cross-Over Classic, You Can Race on the Surface of Fractalus! |
Pros:
Decent Graphics, Smooth Scaling
Cons:
Bad Audio, Slightly Stiff Controls |
See That Ferris Wheel? I Lost My Wallet on That Thing Once |
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***Funkmaster V's Second Opinion on a Review No One Will Read: I agree with Silverback that this game gets overlooked too often, but I don't think it is because of the gameplay. I tend to think that people compare this pack in game with Nintendo's pack in games, Super Mario Brothers and Duck Hunt. That was completely fair to do in 1986, but that's not really fair to do that to PP2 in 2022. If this system launched in 1984 (like it was supposed to) Pole Position 2 would have been an exciting game to get... for reasons Silverback spells out below:
Overview: Everybody that has an Atari 7800 (probably) owns at least one copy of Pole Position 2. You may own 17. It was the NTSC pack in game and still had a boxed copy being sold on shelves
separately for whatever reason. If you decide to collect for the Prosystem, you're going to end up with this game whether you want it or not. For that reason I feel that Pole Position 2 gets overlooked quite a bit, but it is actually a pretty notable game. While the original game had it's fair share of ports from the arcade, Pole Position 2 was only available on the Commodore 64 and the Atari 7800 prior to all the Namco game compilations around the PS2 era. Some people like to knock this game for various reasons, but I think those people aren't giving this one a fair shake.
Graphics: This isn't a half bad looking racing game on the Prosystem. It's easy to tell that your vehicle and all your opponents are modeled after formula one racers and there is a nice variety of colors among them. Each of the 4 tracks have their own personality as well, and the backgrounds stand out nicely. I especially like the look of the Seaside track, but the Ferris Wheel and carnival in the background of Suzuka isn't half bad either. The draw distance is a little short but it won't hinder your ability to maneuver and drive around the track. My only other complaint graphically is the lack of variety in roadside signs, but in the overall scheme of things that's very minor. Outside of Pole Position 2 being a very popular game in the arcades, I believe Atari selected it as the pack in for it's full screen color graphics and smooth animations. The explosions look good, but you'll still want to avoid seeing them!
Sound: The 2 channel sound of the 7800 really holds Pole Position 2 back in some ways. One channel is exclusively for the hum of the motor and the other switches between the motor of your opponents, the squealing of your tires and other various effects. It's most notable when more than 2 sound effects try to play, and you hear one abruptly cut out. Honestly there isn't much to hear in Pole Position 2 unless you like the generic 2600 sound of a motor running nonstop. I say mute the TV, throw on some good music and you'll have a much better time. The "Prepare to Qualify" voice is sorely missed, as well.
Gameplay: While true to the Arcade version that it's ported from, I still think most modern gamers are turned off by the fact that this is not a race against other AI drivers, but rather a race against the clock. Whatever. The developers focused on what was fun--- and what ate quarters. Running alone at the front of a racetrack for 5 laps isn't very much fun (kind of like Mario Kart on 50cc) so we get the race against the clock here. There's plenty of lap traffic to navigate through in the turns and bends of the track itself. You have the left button for gas, the right button for brake, up and down on the joystick for hi and lo gear respectively, and left and right obviously turn. Most of the time you can let up on the gas to take corners comfortably, but you'llneed the brake mostly to negotiate traffic. The 4 tracks each have their own feeling and act as the difficulty selection for the game, with Test being Beginner, Fuji being Easy, Seaside being Medium and Suzake being Hard. You can tackle the tracks in any order you want, but I recommend mastering each before moving on. Playing this game with a joystick mars the experience compared to playing the arcade version with a steering wheel or playing on a fight stick with a spinner, but it's the best we got. All console racing games suffer from this to varying degrees.
Interpretation: I booted the arcade version of Pole Position 2 up on MAME for the first time for this review, and I was really surprised how closely the Atari 7800 version follows it. The graphics are obviously better on the Arcade, and the roadside signs that only show the Fuji
symbol actually show a variety of real world advertisements. But other than that the 7800 is a very faithful port, and is made all the more impressive if you enjoy the original. This may be controversial, but I prefer the 7800 backgrounds to the arcades!
Value: It will take most players a lot of play to finish all four tracks. The first 2 can be completed in your first couple of tries, but you're going to have to take the time to master the game in order to complete Seaside and Sazuke. Gamers with modern sensibility may not be willing to invest the time to complete every race, but if you enjoy retro racing games than there is something to sink your teeth into here, at least for a little while. Hey, there's 4 tracks here instead of Pole Position's 1. That's gotta count for something.
Overall: If you want an old school racing game on the Atari 7800, then Pole Position 2 is your best bet. It can't compare to Gran Forza Racing School Simulator 9 on the PS5 and Xbox, but it isn't meant to either. It's a fun little race against the clock with some charming visuals and good controls, but do yourself a favor and mute the television. It comes recommended, but chances are you already have 6 copies sitting with your console anyway. I encouraging you to dust off copy #4 and give it a whirl with fresh eyes today.
Other Reviews:
The Atari Times: 7 out of 10
CV's Panoramic Froo-Froo: 3.0 out of 5.0 (Fair)
Video Game Critic: D
Additional Info:
This review was graciously written by Atari 7800 Forever contributor Silverback.
I would like to thank Atari Age for the use of their screenshots in my reviews.
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