It's time to get out the chain and cattle prod from the closet, warm up the motorcycle and head out on the highway for racing the way it should be: no rules. Road Rash 64 marks the debut of Electronic Arts' famous franchise on the Nintendo 64, courtesy of THQ and developer Pacific Power Light, with 3D graphics, thirteen weapons and 300 square kilometers of all-new terrain. For those who have never experienced previous games in the series, Road Rash 64 involves racing against other motorcyclists on the open road. Since these races aren't sanctioned events, you'll have to avoid oncoming traffic, outrun police officers and watch out for fellow bikers with weapons. To help even the odds, you'll be able to pummel them with your fists or give them a swift kick to send them flying. Winning each race will also earn you some cash that can be used to purchase faster bikes
New features in this version include power-ups (that award you double or quadruple damage for each blow), a special attack that involves using a weapon to jam an opponent's wheel, and four-player simultaneous racing on a split screen. A total of three game modes are available right from the start: Thrash, Multi-player and Big Game. Thrash Mode consists of single races against the computer, while the Big Game spans a series of races where you try to place third or better. If you manage to place within the top three, you'll be able to race on the next track until you are crowned champion.
Multi-player competition is divided into five different game types: Thrash, Deathmatch, Tag, Ped Hunt and "1, 3 and 7 Laps." Like the single-player event, Thrash Mode involves one race against up to three friends, while Deathmatch involves playing for points. Each lap around the course is worth one point, and the first player to seven points wins the game. There's one little catch: if you cause another player to crash, you can take away a point Tag Mode has one player as "it" and the other players trying to knock "it" to the asphalt; each crash is worth one point and the first person to three points wins the event.
Ped Hunt (short for pedestrian hunt) challenges you to run over as many helpless bystanders as possible during a race. As you can probably imagine, the player who collides with the most pedestrians on the course wins the game. The final mode has you and your friends racing in special arena tracks filled with weapons and power-ups to put the hurt on each other.
Besides the different multi-player contests, Road Rash 64 features a number of options to customize the game. Players can switch screen resolutions (if they have an optional ~Expansion Pak), set the number of computer racers and their overall ability, and adjust the frequency of police officers, oncoming traffic and pedestrians. ~ Scott Alan Marriott, All Game Guide