The Speed Devils Review Page.

(Compatible with Race Controller steering wheel, VGA monitor and Vibration Pack.
1 - 2 players.)
While I was looking for a new racing game for the Dreamcast, I decided to do a bit of research on Speed Devils, which had been out for like ever. There were a few copies of it at trusty old Cash Converters, so if I was impressed enough about it, I would go & buy me the game. :-) So, I mosied on in one day, and checked out the 2nd hand copies on sale. I wasn’t too impressed with the way the GDs had been treated by their previous owners that were for sale in the cabinet, so the dude who works there showed me over to the copy of the game that was playing in the shop. A ha! A decent looking, not so scratchy version of the disc. I was happy with that, and for $15, I took it home. What I had just bought turned out to be one pretty cool racing game, with great car handling, a nice selection of tracks, and various cars inspired by real makes. Apparently this game originated as a PC title under a different name, but was converted over to the Dreamcast back in the days before Sega Rally 2 was even released. (Outside of Japan that is.)
Now for a game that is probably almost 5 years old, this doesn’t look too bad. There’s lots of nifty effects, such as reflections, fire works, dust trails and some pretty decent weather effects also. Okay, now let’s talk background animation and interactivity here, because this game has it in bucket loads. Whether it’s rocks tumbling down a mountain side, or stalactites dropping down on your car, to a tornado lifting you off the track or even dodging road works and traffic, you’ll find all that and more in this nifty racing sensation. On the Nevada track, you’ll get to drive through the colourful, brightly lit streets of Las Vegas, and out into the mountainous desert regions surrounding it. Watch out for the UFOs that attempt to lift your vehicle from the track and the big one that crashes down onto the bridge on the 2nd lap! Take a short cut past the ship towards the end of the track, and avoid its cannon fire to make up extra time. On the Hollywood track, you can race down the beach and through the studio back lots, but keep your eyes peeled for the dinosaur blocking the track and the big ape also. Steer too far to the left in one region, and you might be the victim of a shark attack. On the Canada track, you’ll need to watch the underside of your car, ’cos a trip through the sawmill could be nasty while flying over a saw blade, or through a large rotating fan. Find the jump towards the end, and you can cut short a turn by driving through an opening in one of the buildings also.
Your car may already be a beast, but you can knock it up a notch with the Nitro button, which will send you zipping forward ahead of everyone else. Use it wisely though, ’cos it’s limited, and if you’re driving in the Championship mode, you’re going to be paying for refills!

Easy to play with the standard Dreamcast control pad, with the usual L & R Shift buttons for brake & accelerate. There’s also a look behind feature by pressing sideways on the digital d-pad, and view change is simply done by pressing up or down on it. Steering is obviously with the analogue pad, and button B fires the nitro.
I’m also very pleased to see the inclusion of a reset feature in the main menu. Instead of trying to press A + B + X + Y + Start all at the same time, you can reset the Dreamcast, simply by choosing this option. A simple & effective way of quitting the game, that is a nice welcome feature.

Nevada	Canada Autumn
Canada Autumn	Hollywood
Nevada	Louisiana

Graphics: Back when this came out, this was excellent, and even now, it’s pretty well done in most places. The texturing is pretty good, and the cars are reasonable looking. There’s definitely a lot of good effects, such as fire works on the Nevada track, the truly reflective ice on the ? track, the tornados in Louisiana, and the general weather stuff you get also. The car lighting looks great on the Nevada track at night when you see other vehicles going along further back in the race on the track you were on off in the distance. 90%
Animation: Overall, the game is very smooth, and you’ll have absolutely no trouble with the 60Hz mode. The backgrounds are usually always busy with something going on. You can find road works, rock & snow slides, a dude on a hang glider, a saw blade that will upset your car, mooses running down the road, (“Mr. Smithers, Mr. Smithers, that moose is on fire!”) fire works, stalactites falling, chair lifts in action, trains going by, a budget holiday bus losing all the luggage, giant birds flapping their wings, a dinosaur roaming on the road, and the list goes on. Excellent! 99%
Sound: Reasonably decent effects and what not, but awful music. 60%
Playability: All of the game play is great. The Championship Mode is challenging, and all the cars drive pretty well. Feels a bit like an arcade style racing game. 97%
Lastability: There’s plenty of tracks and variations to each to try out, and a decent line up of cars also, plus the Championship Mode offers some good play also. Playing with a buddy is a good idea also. 83%
Overall: Speed Devils is quite the fine racing game, and definitely a good buy. If you can still find it. 81%