Monster Jam review

A monstrous disappointment

12DOVE Verdict

Pros

  • +

    "Extreme" monster truck action

  • +

    Rewards dangerous driving

  • +

    Not difficult

Cons

  • -

    Ugly even for PS2

  • -

    Horrible controls

  • -

    Stupid

  • -

    worthless AI

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‘Experience extreme monster truck action!’ proclaims the press blurb – and when a promotional sentence is one of the game’s highlights, you know you’re in for a bumpy ride. Whether in the stadium or out on one of this outing’s barren new exterior stages, Monster Jam’s vehicles defy your commands like snot-nosed out-takes from a brazen episode of Supernanny. Even for a PS2 game, it’s so ugly, the developers would be advised to lock it in the attic with pictures of Wayne Rooney – we’re not exaggerating (much), it really looks like a PSone game.

As for the racing itself, Monster Jam tries to mimic Burnout by rewarding you for smashing things up and driving dangerously. Unlike Burnout, however, the opponent AI is so dumb that even if you balls up massively and drive into the ocean, you’ll regain first place within seconds. Consign it to the scrap heap and be done with it.

Jul 29, 2008

More info

GenreRacing
DescriptionThere's almost nothing appealing about Monster Jam, from its PS1 level graphics to its maddeningly horrible controls.
Platform"PS2","Xbox 360"
US censor rating"Everyone","Everyone"
UK censor rating"Rating Pending","Rating Pending"
Release date1 January 1970 (US), 1 January 1970 (UK)
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