The arcade incarnation of Jaleco's GT 24 was one of the few games NOT made by Sega to run on the revered Model 2 arcade hardware.  Dead or Alive by Tecmo was another of these rare games, and the Saturn conversion set the import scene abuzz with some people calling DoA better than the classic Virtua Fighter 2.  DoA came to Playstation and even caught the eye of the US gaming community, going so far as to capture the cover spot on US videogame magazines.  Will GT 24 follow in the footsteps of its cousin?  Well, I doubt it will get any US magazine covers, but it's a surprisingly solid racing game.

First, a couple of warnings.  You saw the pictures of GT24 on the web (NCS, Seganet) did you?  They looked absolutely stunning, but the actual game is not as beautiful as the shots may lead you to believe.  It is still a very good looking game and the visual quality is nothing like the drop in graphics suffered by Sega Touring Car Championship or House of the Dead.  The road textures are cleaner than STCC, the cars look nice, and the background graphics are solid.  Screen draw-in and some pop-up are present but they don't affect anything. To tell the truth, with the action of the game you don't have much time to look for pop-up.  Warning number two: there is apparently NOT a two player vs. mode or any sort of split screen.  There IS a very unique two player mode, which I'll get into later.  Some people may be very upset over the lack of 2P, but considering most racers hard to see split-screens and big drops in graphics and frame rates I don't miss it too much.  Who REALLY loves playing Raly, Manx, or STCC in split screen anyway?

Now onto the game features.  The options are mainly standard fare, but with a couple twists.  There are only three tracks (short, middle, and long) playable from the start in regular and reverse mode.  The game was promoted as having 6 tracks, but it's really only 3 forward and backward.  We can hope for hidden tracks that have to be won.  The cars are decent designs, but nothing too memorable.  Six cars are available at the start, each with varying characteristics of Acceleration, Top Speed, and Handling.  Three cars are labelled "Beginner" and three for experts.  You should be able to make the transition to expert in a short time though, they aren't too hard to drive.  Speaking of control, it is first rate.  You will be navigating with ease after a short learning period.  The style is on the "arcade" side, none of the super tough physics in STCC are here.  The cars are more like Daytona/Ridge Racer driving style.  There are powerslides, which look to be quite helpful (and tough to control - you will spin out a few times), but they are not as important in GT24 as in other games like Ridge Racer or Daytona. Also, the NiGHTS Analog Pad is supported and is really perfect.  Jaleco really got the game to work nicely with analog.  I would almost call the pad a necessity just because of how amazingly well it controls.  The frame rate is smooth, much better than D:CCE or STCC.  This was my big fear, as the choppy control of some racers is hard to overcome.  I'm glad to report that GT24 has excellent arcade-like control.

The ever present Time Attack mode is here for you to practice a track with the now common ghost mode.  Grand Prix is the standard race 3-5 laps (5 for "short", 3 on the other tracks) on one track against several computer opponents.  Be warned, the computer is tough!  You will need practice to get first place.  If you have just played these modes you would think the game is decent, but kinda generic and slightly dull. But you will change your mind after trying the 24 Hour Race mode.  The race actually lasts 12, 24, or 48 minutes (selectable in options) but is a simulation of endurance racing.  Time actually passes, kind of like Ridge Racer Revolution for PSX.  You will start in the day, see the evening, night, and eventually morning.  The transition is kind of sharp, all of a sudden the sky will change from the pink and orange of sunset to a nighttime blue.  Still, a good feature.  Once you select 24 Hour Race you will not only pick a car, but one of five PIT CREWS!  Each one has different strengths in speed, quality of repair, and other areas.  It really adds to the game, and good pit stategy is VITAL if you want to capture the checkered flag.  There are gauges for car damage and fuel, and you will need to monitor them.  Damage will affect your driving, so it's a good idea to keep the car in good shape and check into the pits if you're in trouble.  After selecting your car, track, and crew you will see a really cool feature - a course preview.  It's a nice littly fly-by of the entire track and is a nice feature.  As for the race, this mode is the bread and butter of GT24.  Outlast your opponents, use the pits, and when the clock hits zero be in first.  It's fun to try to top your records, as they are kept by number of laps completed. It really is a fun way to race, and it's a fresh concept. 

Now that two player mode I mentioned...  During a 24 Hour Race when you enter the pits, you can get fuel, repair damage, and change drivers. However, when you change drivers you actually change controllers!  You can be 1P and race for a while, then your partner on the 2P side will actually take over the race.  A cooperative mode in a racing game, how cool is that?  I actually like it better than a watered down versus mode.  You can still compete for times in 1-on-1, but a whole new way of playing two players in a racer is introduced. 

Overall, GT 24 is a great buy for racing fans.  It is quality stuff, like the great Sega racers.  It's not a Sega Rally beater (I haven't found one of those yet), but it adds nicely to any racing collection. If you hated the demanding precision of STCC, this game is for you.  Or even if you like STCC, but want to pull out a fun arcade style racer, give GT 24 a try.  The main strength of the game is little subtle things.  These include things like the course preview and time of day changes.  Direction arrows show you which way to turn, but are unobtrusive - no Sega Rally stlye "LONG EASY RIGHT, MAYBE" stuff here. Another great subtle feature is the way you track your opponents' positions.  If an opponent is in front of you they will be in yellow, behind you they turn red, retired (or in the pits - I think) they will be blue.  A great feature to tell if you are going to pass someone or just lap a slow moving car.  Also, a display shows you a little picture of rival cars as they enter the pits. Subtle features like that make an enjoyable game, and some of them could even be a lesson to companies like Sega!  There are some down sides, like lack of 2P versus, 3 tracks, and a slight disappointment in graphics from the still shots.  However, overall the positive features win out.  If you are a hardcore racing game fan, you need to at least see the innovative features in this game.  Casual players will like the easy to learn controls and fun arcade gameplay. 

In my opinion, it looks like we have another 3rd party Model 2 port that will give a lot of home enjoyment.  You may not see a lot of hype, but it's a solid game.  Who knows, maybe in a few months a PSX port will come out and bring broader interest in the game.  But for now, enjoy the Saturn import.  It's probably the last really good racer for the system, and it should satisfy any racing fan.....