Keeping on my streak of GameCube game Reviews, this is a Review of XG3, a very fast motorcycle racing game. It is also available on the PS2. The characters are all various humans who look pretty similar. Their bikes really aren’t that different either. The tracks aren’t very involved, like XG2 from the N64. You can
choose your weapons beforehand and your engine class, if you’ve unlocked the higher classes. You can also use turbo if you have any left. As if I need to say it, this Review is rated from zero to four stars.

Graphics: ***

The graphics are good, but not great. They’re a big improvement from the N64. Like the XG2 version,
everything gets pretty blurry and dark at times. That hurts this rating a little bit, but on the most part, it’s pretty good.

Sound: **

I wasn’t too impressed with the soundtrack. The music is not very audible and doesn’t really interest me to
call it good or bad. The sound effects are pretty accurate, if I knew what a 1000-mph motorcycle sounded
like.

Difficulty: ****

This category, being the only one in which a high score isn’t necessarily good, is one of the problems of the game. With 14 computers, you start off 15th, and the computers start quite a bit ahead of you. Considering you go about the same speed as them, there’s no real comeback, except for your turbo button, which I believe is X. Your weapons really don’t hurt the computers, just weaken them, and if you turbo past them, or just pass them altogether, they shoot rockets at you immediately and you’re back behind them. Eventually your turbo and weapons are gone and you’re either knocked out of the race or racing in 13th or 14th, or maybe still 15th. If you can’t win, you can’t unlock more than the first track. How’s that for a fun game?

Gameplay: 1/2

It’s really boring, to be quite honest. You race alone for most of the race, and when you do pass someone,
you get blasted and you’re back behind them. It’s really no fun and not really good gameplay at all.

Controls: ***1/2

The controls work pretty well. A is accelerate and B is brake. X is your turbo, while it lasts, and Y is your weapons. I think Z cycles through the weapons you can use. The Control Stick moves and the Start button
pauses. They all are easy to use.

Characters: no stars

Uh, I don’t know who the heck these losers are, but they certainly don’t make a name for themselves. They
don’t even have bike names like XG2, when I knew that Vex was the best.

Tracks: *

They’re boring. Simple as that. You’re mostly by yourself on them, and most of the time there’s not even that much excitement on them. Not to mention that you have to win to unlock them, which makes very few
available.

Replayability: *

Again, with playing the same boring tracks, with the same boring people, after a while the game loses
interest. It doesn’t fare too well here.

Fun Factor!: *

Racing alone isn’t fun. Not only when you’re playing one-player, but multiplayer as well. The cycles are so
spread out, you really don’t see each other often. Plus, the fast speed can make one more dizzy than
actually experiencing fun.

OVERALL: *

Three GameCube games I’ve said yes to, but this is the second that gets a “no”. It doesn’t contain a battle
mode like the first, nor does it have many of the fun tracks like the first. If you want a good space racing
game, try XG2 for the N64 or even F-Zero X for the N64, the best space racing game ever. This one misses
the mark, and isn’t worth more than a rent. Like SSX Tricky before it, skip it!