8-Jan-2004 Picture the scene: you've got your mates round for a Pro Evo footie-a-thon and everyone's having a laugh - until your dad gets home. Suddenly, in a misguided attempt to prove he's 'down' with 'da kidz', your old man performs his (ahem) 'hilarious' Ali G impression, prancing around in a banana yellow tracksuit and shouting "Booyakashaa!" Nasty.
Roadkill's impression of Grand Theft Auto is almost as cringeworthy. Most of the ingredients that made Rockstar's crime 'em up so successful are here but, like your dad's Pound Shop Ali G, it lacks the special something that made GTA so amazing.
Poxy Post-Apcalypse Part of the problem is the drearily unoriginal setting - a (yawn) disease-ravaged, post-apocalyptic future where rival crime gangs battle for supremacy - and the uninvolving plot which drops you into the middle of the mayhem as the ludicrously named driver-for-hire, Mason Strong.
More annoying is the fact you never get to leave the air-conditioned comfort of your car and explore on foot. This wouldn't be so bad if the vehicles offered a genuinely thrilling ride, but they don't. Instead, they glide and bounce around like spring-loaded shopping trolleys, while the combat lacks any real finesse or skill - often you find yourself simply driving around in a circle, hoping your enemy explodes before you do.
Once you get used to Roadkill's little quirks, things do improve (if nothing else, the 'extreme handling' lets you pull off some insanely impressive stunts) and you get plenty of game for your cash, but unless you're absolutely desperate for something to ease your GTA withdrawal symptoms we can't recommend this.
PC Zone Staff
// Overview
Verdict
Although clearly, er, 'inspired' by GTA, Roadkill lacks that classic's depth and grittiness. But assuming you can stomach its childish shock tactics, it's still fairly entertaining.
Roadkill has an '18' rating, and it doesn't take a brainiac to see why - everything in the game seems designed to shock and outrage the average Daily Mail reader. However, this slightly desperate attempt to give the game an 'adult' edge doesn't quite work - the end result is so over the top that it's almost cartoonish.
Everyone and anything is fair game – and that includes pedestrians. Just mount the pavement and crush the fools to a pulp
Everyone has a nasty case of potty mouth in Roadkill – even the radio DJs cuss
like they’re suffering from Tourette’s
Feminists are sure to find Roadkill insulting, as the women you meet are mainly
Jordan-esque mammary monstrosities who do little more than giggle and wiggle
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