|
|
New International Track and Field
|
|
|
|
|
|
Graphics & Sound:
While it may be that Konami's New International Track and Field is a bit cartoony in both graphics and animations, there is still a great quality and polish that retains the old-school look and feel of the original arcade (and NES) hit. There are a handful of player models to choose from (with more unlockable as you progress); an equal amount of men and women, each with their own attributes, including speed, power, concentration, and all-arounders. All characters look great and have unique animations for each event, as well as general animation for excitement, disappointment and everything in between.
In addition to great looking athletes on-screen, the environments look outstanding, and are very reminiscent of the original. The 2D style of layered environments shines, and the sprite look brings back memories. When you also combine these visuals with the 8-bit style audio, New International Track and Field is a winner. All of the original sounds are present and have never sounded better. Whether it be the chime of the events' starts or the presence of Chariots of Fire playing during the Menus, the old nature of Konami's smash hit has been brought to the DS (and the 21st century) in true fashion. |
|
|
Gameplay:
Just like the audio and visuals present in New International Track and Field, the gameplay will also bring you back to a time when game-playing was at its purest form. The only difference is that this time around, there is little button-mashing and a lot more stylus activity to build power, spin your character, and aim your shots. Purists may find themselves changing the control scheme to a more conventional power-building method, but even I found that the stylus activity seemed to be a bit easier for all but the single-button presses for jumping and other actions (in fact, a combination of the two methods worked best for me). Either way, you'll be reminded that simplicity can still be extremely entertaining.
Unlike the original arcade hit, New International Track and Field has many more events to choose from; there are 24 in total. In addition to the standard track events like the 100m Dash and 110m Hurdles, New IT&F also adds more swimming and diving events, as well as some gymnastic events. Don't worry. You'll still also be able to enjoy skeet shooting and archery just like you did back in 1983.
New International Track and Field allows for different single-player options, including playing in a Career Mode that progresses in difficulty as you go. In addition to this, as you go deeper into a Career, you'll also be able to unlock different character outfits, medals, and personal and world records. All of the events that you've participated in will also be unlocked for play in the Single Event Mode as well. Here you can either practice or try to beat your best time, distance, weigh, or height, which is a good thing considering that there are a few events that can easily give players a bit of trouble.
Another welcome addition to greet International Track and Field's return is that of Nintendo's Wi-Fi play. New International Track and Field allows for both single and multi-card play, as well as Internet play with anyone in your community or across the globe. You can also compare your times and scores with that of the worldwide high scores. Unfortunately, in numerous attempts to connect to someone via the Internet, I was unable to ever even see a single player. I know there are people out there, but Nintendo's Wi-Fi service lacks ease of connection, so don't count on finding people unless they are connecting to you directly through a local connection. As thus, the single card download play is, of course, extremely limited, but in a pinch, you can still play with up to 3 other friends in 4 total events. There are, however, long load times between each event, which does get highly annoying. For full features, you and your buddies will each have to purchase the game. |
|
|
Difficulty:
Going back to its roots, New International Track and Field is extremely easy to pick up and play, and thus, you would think that it would in turn be easy to play. This is simply not the case. There are three difficulty settings to work through, and you'll have to earn your way to unlock each. While it's true that the Easy Mode (within your single-player Career) is generally too easy, the moment you unlock the Medium difficulty, you may find yourself repeating events that you genuinely thought you would have qualified for, or losing to the CPU players that you previously thrashed in competition.
Remember, the difficulty begins at Medium, and there is a whole other difficulty (Hard) to deal with from there. In short, New International Track and Field offers ease of use for newcomers and the younger crowd, but also enough of a challenge that veterans will also fall in love with the game as they try to master each event.
Aside from the difficulty modes present in the game, each event can sometimes offer its own degree of challenge. The most notorious examples are that of the Discus and Hammer Throws. With the Discus, specifically, in my efforts, I was not able to even throw the discus even once; that being in dozens of tries. It wasn't until I read some tips online (check out New International Track and Field's Official Website) that I was able to release the throw... and then I couldn't do anything except toss it too far left and foul every time. It turns out that you have to switch characters to be able to have a better judgment (at least when you're learning) as to when to release the discus. There are only a couple of events that were this extreme, but they are worth noting since the instructions included with the game were no help at all. |
|
|
Game Mechanics:
New International Track and Field brings back the button-mashing/timing goodness of the classic arcade smash hit to the DS with new player models, similar environments, and an updated control scheme. While you can set up the controls to the classic alternating (A) and (B) buttons, with a quick press of the up arrow to perform an action, you can alternatively use the stylus for many of the power-building and spinning events (the default controls), or you can use a combination of the two, which is the method that I recommend. Regardless of the method that you choose, all events offer very simple gameplay, reminiscent of the old days of gaming. Just a word of warning: rub your stylus gently on the screen or risk permanently scratching it.
A true sequel and long-awaited release, New International Track and Field offers players a great challenge (after the initial phases) and addictive gameplay. The inclusion of 24 events really helps with longevity, and the ability to play wirelessly, even with a single game card, increases the game's replay value, although the lack of online players to connect to and the limited single-card multiplayer drag the game down a bit. Even by yourself, however, a game like New International Track and Field offers personal goals and times to beat, and the game includes not only Qualifying and World Record times as a guide, but also keeps track of your Personal Best scores to keep you interested in always improving your play.
Anyone interested in sports games in general, and especially those who love to compete against themselves or against others, should give New International Track and Field serious consideration as your next game purchase. The combination of a new way to control your Olympic athletes and the old-school gameplay and presentation make this title one for the record books.
|
|
|
-Woody, GameVortex Communications AKA Shane Wodele |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
