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Have you ever tried playing a driving game while eating an ice lolly? It's not at all easy, I can tell you. Half the time you get so involved with the lolly's hidden subtleties that you completely forget to keep your eyes on the road, and the other half of the time you get so carried away with steering the car that you end up with molten Cornish Strawberry Mivvi streaming down your arm. Both situations are equally dangerous and undesirable, and I've yet to find a way round the problem.
You're probably wondering why the screenshots of Grand Prix Circuit look so familiar. There are two reasons for this. Firstly, it's a driving game, and hence looks pretty much like every other driving game which has ever come out, and, secondly, it's a sort of sequel to The Cycles which Jackie reviewed back in the August issue. Both games are based around the same framework, with the simple substitution of cars for bikes in this one.
What this means is that you've got to wade through screens of the same options before you can start the game, choosing whether you want a practice race, a real race or the whole racing season, what sort of car you'd like to drive and where you'd like to drive it. Having done that you'll find yourself in a straightforward 3D road-comin'-at-ya driving game with lots of other cars to race against. What you actually have to do from then on depends on which difficulty level you choose, with steering, accelerator and brakes as the bare minimum, and manual gears as a luxury option on higher levels.
So which should you choose (out of Cycles and Prix)? Well, it's not actually a simple case of whether you prefer bikes or cars. And here's why...
When Jackie reviewed The Cycles she grumbled about it rather a lot, giving it a savagely low mark. What got up her nose most was the wobbly steering system which sent her swerving all over the road every lime she tried to go round a corner. At first we thought this was due to the old problem of her legs not reaching the ground properly, but even after lowering the seat as much as possible, and sellotaping broom-handles to her legs to extend them a bit, she still had trouble keeping in a straight line. This problem has been almost entirely cleared up in Prix. As well as a much tamer response to your joystick waggling there's also a little blob on the steering wheel to let you know what position it's in - all you've got to do is centre it to get the car going in a straight line. The graphics have been jazzed up a bit too, although a few glitches occasionally appear on the road.
So why doesn't it get the massive megamark Accolade were probably hoping for? Well, for a start there's your car. It's not really as 'hot' as it might have been. It'll only do about 110mph flat out, and it takes years to get up to even that. Then there's the general 'easiness' of it all. Even I, undisputed holder of the Crap Games Player of the Year title, managed to win practically every race I entered, even on the higher levels.
Apart from that, though, Grand Prix Circuit is a huge improvement over The Cycles and one of the best straight racing games around (but not such good news compared with more arcadey driving games). It's got a pleasantly scrolling road, responsive controls and plenty of raceability. Worth a look. Probably.

Here's your chance to sit behind the wheel of one of three turbo powered mean machines, and drive 'em! There are plenty of options to get you going. Pick to race in Practice, Single Race or Championship mode and at what skill level.

Choose from three cars: a Ferrari, a McLaren or a Williams - a list of technical specs for each car is shown to help decisions.

Grand Prix Circuit features eight tracks (Brazil, Monaco, Canada, Detroit, Britain, Germany, Italy and Japan) and, unless you're in championship mode, you can pick which one to race on.

The first race is the qualifying round: no opponents, but you're racing against the clock and your finishing time determines your placement on the starting grid.

Most of the tracks consist of tight turns, and all of these can be taken at fairly high speeds, but pranging the car pushes op the damage meter. Don't panic it the damage meter hits the red because when the pit is reached you can pull in and get the old bodywork repaired.

I had a terrible feeling of deja-vu when playing Grand Prix Circuit, change the main sprites to motor cycles and you have... yep. The Cycles.

Graphics are pretty simplistic, the best being the opposing cars, though they appear to drive straight through my vehicle! Sound is just a grating engine roar.

Grand Prix Circuit is a disappointment after the enjoyable The Cycles.

MARK ... 60%

CRITICISM
'This is simply The Cycles, another Accolade game, with slightly changed graphics! The racing tracks are uninteresting, undetailed and even tatty with pixels being left behind as the track scrolls towards you. The sound effects (there is no tune) are awful. A grinding noise is heard throughout each race as the car accelerates. Grand Prix Circuit is not impressive. A mediocre racing simulation from Accolade - the kings of 16-bit sims, not 8-bit.'
NICK ... 46%

A mediocre racing sim with looks too similar to Accolade's previous release The Cycles.

Presentation 57%
Graphics 59%
Sound 45%
Playability 52%
Addictivity 51%
Overall 53%