#212 – Eliminator Boat Duel

Only the strongest boats survive.

PLAYERS: 1-2 alternating

PUBLISHER: Electro Brain

DEVELOPER: Sculptured Software

GENRE: Racing

RELEASE DATE: November 1991

Last night, I explained about the action that took place in, on, or around elevators between one rogue agent and the men in black. Tonight, I will throw you into the exotic and challenging world, where boats eliminate one another in a dueling fashion. The developer Electro Brain has concocted a series of races whereby you eliminate the other racer. Well, you don’t actually eliminate them. That would be murder. Instead, you “beat” a.k.a. eliminate the opposing racer. The other racers are hard too. They’re a bunch of aging hippie beatniks who were forced to become corporate, leaving them bitter and rich. In other words, they’re racing for keeps. It’s wise to leave no boost power-up behind on the waterways, as they will use their far superior hemp fuel to beat your pathetic fossil fuels. Study the tracks, learn where every power-up is, and victory (trophies and babes) shall be yours. Once the race is over, whether you win or lose, you are rewarded a certain amount of cash. You then have the option of maintaining or upgrading your boat. I recommend at least maintenance as your boat will take quite the thrashing. The course layouts themselves aren’t very interesting and while the controls are surprisingly tight and excellent, the game doesn’t maintain interest for long. This makes for some very average boat duels by one’s lonesome, but two-player is highly enjoyable if only so you can bash and destroy your boats together.

C+