racing video game developed by Reflections Interactive and published by Psygnosis. Based on the sport of demolition derby, the game tasks the player with racing and destroying cars to score points. The developers implemented simulated physics to make the results of collisions easier to predict, and they kept the game's tracks small to increase the number of wrecks. Versions of Destruction Derby were released for MS-DOS, PlayStation and Sega Saturn. Critics found Destruction Derby enjoyable and they praised its graphics and car damage system, but the Sega Saturn releases received mixed reviews. The game started the Destruction Derby franchise, beginning with its 1996 sequel, Destruction Derby 2
.
Gameplay
The player engages in a Destruction Derby contest at The Bowl.
Destruction Derby is a
system link play for two players,[7] while the MS-DOS version has an online multiplayer mode.[5]
Development
The British development studio
Ridge Racer upon the PlayStation's release.[7][10]
To make the results of car collisions easier to predict, Reflections implemented
Daytona USA, had achieved until that time. However, a single wire-frame model, differentiated by texture maps, was used for every vehicle. Damage to vehicles is modelled in real-time, based on the speed and angle of the cars involved.[9] The team made the game's tracks small to "keep the density of the cars on the track very high", which allowed for large-scale wrecks.[10] Plans were made to support up to eight players with the PlayStation Link Cable.[6]
Destruction Derby was ported to the Sega Saturn by Perfect Entertainment. This version lacks transparencies. GameFan's Ryan Lockhart estimated that the port was "80% ready" in the magazine's August 1996 issue,[11] and it was released in August 1996.[12]
Victor Lucas of The Electric Playground stated that "the beauty of the game" is the strategy involved in making "calculated strikes" against enemy vehicles, and he wrote, "If you go all out and try to make big noise on the track, more than likely you'll be limping to the scrap yard in seconds." He believed that the game's Stock Car racing mode "is no match for the white knuckle inertia of either Wipeout or Ridge Racer", and that the demolition derbies in The Bowl were "most fun to be had" in the game. He praised the game's graphics and physics, and concluded, "Destruction Derby is a winner in every capacity."[4] A reviewer for Next Generation was extremely pleased with the concept of smashing into other cars, saying it taps into a near-universal fantasy. He remarked the single-player mode is indefinably "lacking" but the multiplayer offers unqualified enjoyment.[15]
The PC port was also well-received. Lee Buchanan of
PC Gamer US praised "the spectacular visuals that bring to life the most jarring collisions I've seen on a computer", and he noted that "[car] damage is depicted beautifully". Like Lucas, he wrote that the player "can't just mindlessly smash into other cars; this is thinking man's destruction". Although he found the game too easy "even at the toughest difficulty level", he found this to be a minor issue that did not detract from the experience. He considered the game's online play to be a high point, and he finished, "Destruction Derby is a blast, and a welcome change of pace from high-end driving simulations."[5] Peter Olafson of Computer Gaming World called the game "a great simulation" of demolition derbies, and he wrote that the wrecks are "convulsive and realistic". He believed that the game "has never-before-seen quality that will instantly make it a showpiece game to demonstrate to open-mouthed friends and relatives", and he considered the car damage to be "especially marvelous—and unprecedented for this sort of game". However, he found that its "useful life span is surprisingly short" and he hoped for a track editor in its sequel. He summarised, "Despite its limitations, this is a great game, but it has a lot more potential."[2] A reviewer for Next Generation remarked that while the game is a straight port of the PlayStation version, it is an impeccably accurate one. He applauded the authentic modelling of vehicle crashes, multiple modes, smoothness of gameplay, and inclusion of both network and modem options, and found the game's only downside is that the camera zooms out so little that it can be difficult to see nearby cars.[16]
Reviewing the game's Sega Saturn version, Kim Randell of
Computer & Video Games noted its "inferior graphics" that do not have "the sheen and glossiness of its PlayStation counterpart". Randell believed that it was made "much too late to cause the kind of sensation that WipEout did. Comparisons with the PlayStation version are inevitable, and the rather haphazard conversion means that the Saturn version lacks the polish of its rival."[13] Rob Allsetter's review in Sega Saturn Magazine (from the same publisher as Computer & Video Games) recycled most of the text from Randell's review, including the closing remarks.[17]
Destruction Derby spawned the Destruction Derby series, and was directly followed by
Destruction Derby: Arenas (2004), the last of which was developed by Studio 33.[19]Destruction Derby was re-released through the PlayStation Network store in 2007.[20]
