The Best Radical Entertainment Games

Key Takeaways

Radical Entertainment developed licensed games for iconic IPs like The Simpsons and Mario with unique mechanics.
They faced challenges but created gems like The Simpsons: Hit & Run & The Incredible Hulk with love for source material.
Despite ups & downs, Radical Entertainment’s impressive roster included titles like Crash Tag Team Racing and Scarface: The World Is Yours.

As a gamer with over three decades of experience under my belt, I must say that Radical Entertainment was a studio that truly knew how to bring the fun. From their early days working on classics like Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon, to their later projects that showcased their unique blend of action, humor, and destruction, they left an indelible mark on the gaming industry.

Few developers can boast a roster of licensed tie-ins to rival Radical Entertainment, the plucky Canadian studio that was once all over the map. Just take a look at some of these colossal entertainment properties that have committed their IPs to Radical Entertainment titles over the years: Super Mario, Crash Bandicoot, Pixar, Marvel, Scarface, The Simpsons, and even CSI for some reason (and more than once).

Reflecting on a gaming legacy dating back to the Nintendo Entertainment System, Radical Entertainment is sometimes overlooked as industry veterans. Regrettably, the company has mostly merged into Activision, with only remakes of their classic games being released under the Radical Entertainment brand in recent years. Let’s seize this opportunity to acknowledge ten exhilarating, memorable, and at times eccentric games that Radical Entertainment brought to life.

10. Crash Tag Team Racing

Backseat Driving

In Crash Tag Team Racing, while it might seem like a straightforward follow-up to Mario Kart: Double Dash, it’s not just another clone. Instead, this game in the well-known racing series offers an unexpected dose of platforming elements, adding a unique spin to the karting genre. Let’s save the comparison talk for later and delve into these new features first.

What racing is present adds a very novel mechanic of Clashing, where any two racers can combine their cars on the track to form a powerful dual-action car for a burst of speed. All the combinations are unique, even if they share some similarities, and it adds a layer of strategic depth far above simply selecting two characters per Kart. Sadly, this comes at the expense of the series’ steep learning curve, meaning the game struggled to satisfy fans.

9. The Simpsons: Road Rage

Hot Stuff Coming Through

It’s time now. The game The Simpsons: Road Rage shared many similarities with the well-known arcade game Crazy Taxi, leading to the parent company Sega filing a lawsuit for potential copyright infringement. Ouch! To be honest, it was quite evident that this was an instance of plagiarism, even down to the details in the user interface.

Put simply, wouldn’t it make any game more appealing if it were adorned with memorable quotes from the famous TV family and sprinkled with references to its original content? This particular game features subtle homages, such as Seymour Skinner expressing a desire to be taken to the box factory. Additionally, it offers an engaging arcade-style driving experience, where you race around town to ensure Springfield residents reach their destinations within a set time frame.

8. Mario’s Time Machine

Where In The World Is Super Mario?

Platforms: NES, Super NES, MS-DOS, Microsoft Windows
Released: 1993
Publisher: The Software Toolworks
Genre: Educational

Finding genuine reviews for Nintendo’s quirky spin-off games from the early console gaming era can be quite challenging. It’s odd how they seem to guard their intellectual properties more closely these days, but in fairness to Radical Entertainment, the goal of their Mario spin-offs was to offer educational content, which inevitably reduced their widespread appeal.

In the game “Mario’s Time Travel Device,” Bowser snatches artifacts from various points in history to exhibit in his fortress, putting the timeline at risk. To rectify this situation, Mario borrows a device known as the ‘Timulator’ (Time Machine) and embarks on a journey to restore each item to its original time period. The gameplay blends light side-scrolling action with answering trivia questions about historical locations and figures to assist Mario in his mission.

7. Jackie Chan Stuntmaster

Rumble In The Bronx

Platforms: PlayStation
Released: 2000
Publisher: Midway Home Entertainment
Genre: Beat ‘Em Up

Among the most unusual licenses ever obtained by the company, acquiring Jackie Chan ranks high. This brand has given life to numerous video games and a remarkable animated series, both sharing no canonical links but featuring the legendary Kung Fu actor, portraying himself, in extraordinary situations that echo his movie-inspired fantasies.

The “Jackie Chan Stuntmaster” game is a 3D brawler, incorporating platforming aspects, where you control Jackie Chan as he battles through New York to rescue his uncle. It stays true to this concept and remains enjoyable even today, with one of its highlights being the amusing use of Mario’s well-known phrase “Let’s go” when starting a new level, delivered by none other than Jackie Chan himself.

6. MTV Sports: Pure Ride

Shredding The Slopes

Platforms: PlayStation, Game Boy Color
Released: 2000
Publisher: THQ
Genre: Sports

If you weren’t into video games during the 90s, it can be tough to grasp the impact of the snowboarding/skateboarding game genre. For a long time, the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater series was considered the epitome of gaming excellence on Metacritic, receiving exceptionally high scores and near-perfect reviews from critics everywhere, as suggested by the pun.

Radical Entertainment attempted to seize an opportunity in the sports gaming market with their MTV Sports series, and among all the contenders, MTV Sports: Pure Ride emerged as the standout. The game boasted a variety of modes common to the genre, while balancing speed and trickery. Additionally, it offered an attractive mountain builder mode that enabled players to strategically place various obstacles to showcase jaw-dropping stunts to their peers.

5. NHL Championship 2000

One For The Road

Platforms: PlayStation, Windows
Released: 1999
Publisher: Fox Sports Interactive
Genre: Sports

Throughout the ’90s, Radical Entertainment raked in cash from sports titles, having developed and released 12 licensed sports games in just 7 years. Among these, NHL Championship 2000 stood out as a clear favorite. Given that ice hockey was their most frequently revisited sport, it’s not surprising that they perfected the system to its utmost potential over time.

The Fox Sports-supported series had its final installment as well, since NHL video games were gradually taken over by the popular arcade-style NHL Hitz series and the expansive EA Sports brand. Like many sports games, there’s not much reason to revisit it now unless fans have a strong fondness for vintage titles.

4. Scarface: The World Is Yours

The World Chico, And Everything In It

In a twist from Brian De Palma’s gangster masterwork, this game presents Tony Montana’s continued story. After his downfall, Tony sets about rebuilding his criminal empire and seeking retribution against Alejandro Sosa. Despite initially appearing contrived, the plot manages to hold its own, offering more depth to characters that were somewhat underdeveloped in the original film.

In Scarface: The World is Yours, there’s a stronger focus on intense action within the game compared to other open-world gangster games of its era. This makes combat more exciting, and the playable 80s soundtrack really adds to the fun. It’s like Grand Theft Auto but with an extra touch – the portrayal of Al Pacino’s iconic performance, complete with cursing and gunfights as you rise to power. What’s not to enjoy?

3. Prototype

Sticking The Landing

Regrettably, it was often the case for Radical Entertainment that their ambitions outstripped their achievements, and this was particularly evident in their titles like Prototype and its follow-up. The Prototype games dropped me into the role of a super-powered character, allowing me to unlock an expansive roster of new powers and abilities through an impressive skill tree, offering unparalleled freedom of choice.

Despite boasting a wide range of combinations, the game often presents too many options to remember, coupled with repetitive mission design that doesn’t require essential upgrades for progression. This leads to most abilities feeling interchangeable and unnecessary. Moreover, the game is excessively populated with enemies, resulting in more time spent battling than actually playing. However, when everything aligns, it offers a satisfying power fantasy where you can tear through the gameplay.

2. The Simpsons: Hit & Run

Chilling With Some Homies

The Simpsons: Hit & Run stands as a striking contrast to the flaws often found in other titles, demonstrating the unique charm and talent of Radical Entertainment. While the game could benefit from a bit more polish, it certainly offers more driving in its open-world action-adventure setting than Crash Tag Team Racing. Yet, who else could merge the worlds of The Simpsons and Grand Theft Auto to create this timeless masterpiece?

The defining game based on “The Simpsons” series is currently a highly sought-after remaster in gaming history, with developers potentially missing out on significant earnings. The game was brimming with charm and character, seamlessly immersing players within the world of the original content, much like any outstanding adaptation.

1. The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction

Hulk Smash

Among Radical Entertainment’s creations, one game stands out as the peak of critical praise, skillfully showcasing the company’s strengths in devotion to the origin story and raw entertainment: The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. In essence, this game served as a precursor for the Prototype series. However, despite advanced gaming hardware, it struggled to capture the level of mayhem that a rampaging Hulk could unleash.

In this game, not only can a significant portion of the environment be damaged, but it can also be used as a weapon. Throughout your gaming experience, you’ll continue to find exciting new weapons and combinations to cause chaos against the Hulkbusters. The boss battles are impressively large and demanding, drawing inspiration from popular hack-and-slash games from that time period. In essence, no other game has offered the power fantasy of becoming the legendary Marvel character quite like this one does.

2024-12-01 11:35