PC CD-ROM minimum system requirements: Pentium 90mhz; 16MB RAM; 80MB hard disk space; Quad speed CD-ROM drive; Windows 95; SVGA. £29.99
WHAT was it that typified the 1970s? Was it the funky music, the flares, the jumbo-sized collars, the platform shoes, the hairstyles, or the oil crisis? Maybe it was Starsky And Hutch
Whatever it was, everything 1970s-ish seems back in fashion and Interstate 76 brings that whole attitude to the PC.
Activision, those pioneers of the gameplaying world who brought us classics such as Pitfall on the Atari, are the people responsible for this trip back in time. You play the role of one cool dude aptly named Groove Champion. It's been pretty hairy in southwest USA and Groove's sis is cleaning the place up - vigilante style: unfortunately, she gets blown away by some heavy-handed gangster and Groove is out for revenge.
He takes over her 425-horse-power V8 gas-guzzler, armed with two 50-calibre M60 machine guns with a flamethrower on the side, and meets up with his sister's former partner Taurus, who, being black and in the 1970s, has the standard Afro hair do.
Basically this game is all about car chasing - and destroying. There are two modes of gameplay - Melee and Trip. Melee is a collection of one-off scenarios in which you can choose from 30 different vehicles and is just a pre-cursor for the real game, the mission-based Trip. Melee also offers a host of multi-player options.
In Trip you try to get the guy who killed your sister. After each mission you rendezvous with Taitrus and Skeeter, another vigilante, to discuss the latest situation and get the low-down on the next objective. However, before you embark on a mission it's advisable to use the training option to become familiar with all the gadgets as controlling the cars in Interstate 76 is only part of the bargain. You've also got to consider targeting, map and radar reading, weapon cycling and altering the camera angles: this, you can be sure, takes a lot of getting used to. In fact, there are few keys on the keyboard that don't have a function.
Interstate 76, it would seem, was influenced by the antics of Mel Gibson and co in the movie Mad Max. It certainly has that feel about it. If you have a very high-spec machine and are willing to put up with the tedium of having to learn all there is to learn you will, no doubt, extract a reasonable level of enjoyment from it.
Graphics: 80%, Sound: 85%, Gameplay: 70%