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The original Track and Field
arcade game has a lot to answer for. It's rather
simplistic but addictive button-bashing, stick-wiggling
gameplay was converted to practically every home video
game system ever made. If it wasn't a straight
conversion of Track and Field then it was a clone of it.
Summer Games, Daley Thompsons Decathlon and Olympic
Games to name but three. Over the years there must have
been a profusion of broken joysticks, all caused by the
desperation to do a sub-10 second 100 meters. However,
if this is your idea of video gaming heaven then your in
luck on the Sega Saturn thanks to Athlete Kings.
Athlete Kings is a conversion of the 1995 Sega coin-op
Decathlete in which you get to compete in all 10 events
involved in a Decathlon. The game is split into two
modes. First is the Decathlon mode itself in which you
can play through all 10 events in standard order. Points
are awarded for your performance in each event and, when
completed, you will be rewarded with your final
decathlon score. There is also Arcade Mode which,
unsurprisingly, is a straight port of the arcade game.
In this you can select which of 5 events you want to
play from day one but must achieve a qualifying mark on
that event in order to progress. Once you've qualified
from all five events you then move on to the next five
in day 2.
The main thing with athletics game is how the actual
events play. You can have all the bells and whistles in
the game you want, but if the events suck then the game
will suck. Also with 10 events involving running,
jumping or throwing there needs to be enough variation
in gameplay between them. Athlete Kings succeeds on both
these points - just! Of the running events, the 100m and
the 110m hurdles are the same with just the odd button
press to jump. The 400m and 1500m are slightly different
in that you need to strategically pace your
button-bashing to conserve energy over the extra
distance. The throwing events are standard fare with the
objective being to achieve full power and the optimum
release angle. The discuss tries to shake things up a
bit by having you rotating the joy-pad or stick to
accumulate power. The jumping is slightly more complex
with both the Pole Vault and High jump requiring you to
use the joy-pad to arch your body during the jump.
Before each event there is a nicely animated explanation
of how to play the event. However anyone who's familiar
with any track and field games before will quickly be at
home with all events.
The graphics are certainly more arcade style than
simulation. You have a choice of 8 characters all of
which have a rather cartoony appearance, from Jef
Jansens with his huuuge afro, Aleksei Rigel with his
huuuge muscles to Ellen Reggiani with her huuuge, err,
ability. The animation is smooth enough although one
gripe is the lack of a feeling of speed in the game. No
matter what the event, and no matter how fast you're
going, you never get the impression that your character
is really shifting. The backgrounds to the events are OK
without being jaw-dropping and the obvious problem with
the appearance of games of this ilk is that most events
look very similar. There is a good use of bright primary
colours which again portray a cartoon style atmosphere.
The sound is fine during the game but the noises as you
navigate the title menus are very annoying. "Uh-huh",
"Uh-huh", "Uh-huh". Sounds like a poor Elvis
impersonator!
Where Athlete Kings does become great fun is in multi
player mode. Games like this are always about
competition. Who can get the highest score, who is
better at which event and can you break the world
records. The field events are mainly 'turn based' but
the track events are directly against each other. If
you've played the game enough times then eventually you
can get decent world records set which last for weeks,
and the satisfaction of turning round and taunting
you're mate after finally breaking his 5 month old
Javelin world record is great. Obviously in single
player mode it's not as fun. If you've played enough to
set your own tough-to-beat world records then you've got
a competitive edge. If not however, then there's no
computer character to play against so you're relying on
the Arcade mode to pose a challenge. This is fine
although it can be very frustrating as you can qualify
from most events easily but then there is just one event
where the qualifying time seems ridiculously hard.
In summary Athlete Kings is a decent athletics sports
game. If you're fans of the genre and have mates to play
it with then it's a great title. If you're playing it on
your own then you may find the game limited but should
it should still provide some enjoyment.
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