Phantom Crash is not like
other mech games.  You don’t control a big, slow, mechanical thing that
resembles a human that towers above buildings.  In fact, these mechs – actually
referred to as "Scoobees" – are smaller than many buildings, rather fast, and
light.  Okay, so ten tons isn’t that light, but compared to the behemoths of
Steel Battalion, it is.  Another thing that separates the game from others
is its quirky, almost lighthearted atmosphere.  People aren’t trying to kill
each other, but rather battle for money, as sort of a sporting event.  This
event is called Rumbling, and is where you’ll be fighting several other Scoobees
at once.

The rules of rumbling are
simple: There aren’t really any.  Basically, you enter the closed-off arena
through one of several gates.  You have a shield that will protect you as you
emerge, but it will only last for a few moments until you start strategizing.
Now it’s a total free-for-all, every man for himself.  There are never any teams
or allies.  While this could become disappointing, thankfully there are several
things you can do to spice things up.  The first of which is your AC – Active
Camouflage, not air conditioning, mind you.  By turning on your AC you become
pretty much invisible for a period of time.  It is still possible for enemies to
see you, as your outline is visible from light steering away from you, but
unless they’re very close you should be safe.

A very interesting aspect
of the game involves assembling your actual Scoobees.  A map interface, similar
to that of Gran Turismo’s, will allow you to visit various shops and locations.
There are three major distributors of Scoobees, each focusing on either light,
middle, or heavyweight machines.  The ones offered by the distributors are
usually pretty pricy, so it may be a better idea to head on over to Wild Arms, a
sort of shop that sells used mechs, as well as modules for them, and Chips.
Chips are, in a sense, your co-pilot.  During battle, they will warn you of
incoming missiles, let you know that your Active Camouflage fuel is running low,
as well as of course sneering at defeated rivals.  Each Chip has an animal
personality, such as a cat, dog, or horse, and depending on which you pick,
various attributes will be changed, such as the height and width of your
targeting reticle.

Each Scoobee can be
customized to your liking by modifying its arm weapons (assigned to the left and
right triggers), shoulder weapons (set to Y and B, by default), it’s lower body
(there are ones on wheels, ones with legs, ones that hover, etc), colors, name,
and more.  Shoulder weapons tend to be more heavy and powerful, such as missile
launchers, compared to arm weapons that are usually lighter and weaker, like
pistols or machine guns.  Shoulder weapons vary, from simple homing missile
launchers, to grenade launchers, or ones that shoot four rockets at once.
There are also melee weapons that can be equipped to one’s arms, such as a
knife.  These tend to deal a lot of damage, but require that you are very close
to your target.

Of course, customizing your
Scoobee is only half the fun.  Rumbling is really a lot of fun.  It’s very
frantic, and trust me, your adrenaline will start pumping on more than one
occasion.  There’s nothing like cloaking yourself, taking out an enemy from
behind with a knife, only to find your AC run out at this point.  Uh-oh!, your
Chip informs you that some missiles are locked on to you.  With some quick
maneuvering, we’re now in the air, spinning around, and aiming our machine gun
at the attacking Scoobee.  Things get even more intense when one of the "bosses"
comes into the arena.  The bosses are much like any other mech, except they’re
usually a lot stronger.  Taking down one of these guys is a real accomplishment
when you’re only starting out, and will net you a lot of money to spend on parts
or whatnot.

Or perhaps you’d be more
inclined to spend your cash at the music shop.  This place offers a wide
selection of albums, which offer one track a piece.  You can configure play
lists with all of your owned albums later, and blast some metal along with
them.  The music itself is quite varied.  A good bit of it brings back memories
of titles like Sonic the Hedgehog… it has a quirky, fun feel.  There’s also a
lot of techno, and some rock, and other stranger stuff as well.  I found myself
with a decent collection of tracks I rather liked, but I can imagine someone
else might really wish this game had a custom soundtrack option.

The graphics in the game
aren’t bad, either.  In fact, they’re pretty nice and I don’t have too many
complaints about them.  A few more special effects might have been nifty, but as
it is, fire looks good, and environments aren’t that bad.  It’s got style, for
sure.

Is the game flawed, then?
Yes, it is.  It could use some more variety, for sure.  The rules of Rumbling
never change, so it’s the same every time.  Some team play matches would have
been appreciated, or at least some varying conditions.  Also not helping is the
lack of arenas – the three that are there are good, but they can become tiresome
after awhile.  You would think that only three maps would give you time to learn
each map and create some strategies, but the stages don’t offer much in the way
of complimenting your mech.  In some spots, it feels like you shouldn’t even be
there.  But for the most part, they’re good.

The game is actually a
pretty fun, and certainly original.  If you’re looking for a mech game that
isn’t so serious and similar to others out there, you’d do good to pick it up.
The Multiplayer elements are hardly worth mentioning, which is unfortunate,
because the game’s multiplayer could have been great.  A delay to add Xbox Live
support would have been wonderful – the controls take a bit of getting used to,
so your casual gaming friends might not have a blast with you playing the game.
Online support would have been wonderful, so people who have actually played the
game could get online and battle.  The nature of Rumbling would make for awesome
matches, honestly.  So, aside from my few gripes, by all means, keep an eye out
for this title.

Gameplay:
8.4

Phantom Crash is more of an
action title in the vein of Gun Valkyrie than a regular mech game, but
it’s very fun.  The gameplay can be quite addictive once you learn the in’s and
out’s of the game, and you’re bound to get an adrenaline rush when up against
tough opponents.  The only thing missing is some much-needed variety from fight
to fight.

Graphics:
8.6

The graphics in this game
are not lackluster in the least.  Everything is stylish and usually smooth.
Animation, or what there is of it, is done well, along with nice textures and
lighting.  Nothing really breathtaking, but cool nonetheless.

Sound:
8.0

This point is definitely
arguable.  You cannot use soundtracks you have ripped to the Xbox hard drive,
which seems unfortunate.  However, what music there is, is actually kind of
cool.  A lot of it has an old-school gaming feel, something that might remind
you of Sonic the Hedgehog.  There’s also rock, techno, and a few other styles of
music around to hopefully satisfy people, and the music managing system is
actually pretty neat.

Difficulty: Medium

Phantom
Crash is by no means an easy game, especially in the beginning.  It took several
rounds of fighting for me to figure out what was going on, but once I did, I
started kicking some butt.  Of course, there are always higher-ranking matches
to offer some difficulty, but they aren’t necessary to play in.

Concept:
8.5

This game is dripping
freshness like a wet towel.  While some might think it could be compared to "Gran
Turismo with mechs", the actual gameplay is so much different from anything out
there that you can’t help but play, or at least watch.

Multiplayer: 7.0

This game has the potential
to be very cool in multiplayer thanks to the nature of the game and the
fighting, but there is a problem.  Most people probably won’t be able to pick up
and play the game, and actually win easily – it takes some time to get used to.
And despite the lack of customization, it can still be fun with someone who
knows what they’re doing.  This game screams for online play.

Overall:
8.1

Unless you have a good
friend (or a few) who’ve also spent a good amount of time with the game,
multiplayer probably won’t be too great, which is unfortunate.  However, the
game is still fun and very cool when you play alone.  Customizing your mech is a
lot of fun, and taking it into battle can be a blast.  Literally.  If you’re
looking for a mech title that isn’t quite like most others out there – or just a
fun action title, perhaps – do not pass this up.