Are you ready for some pure adrenaline-pumping fun?

The censorship hype surrounding the release of the original Carmageddon has thankfully not been repeated with the sequel. Sure, the pedestrians have been replaced by green blooded aliens in the UK version, but the gameplay has remained intact and censorship groups have generally been more accepting this time around. The accurate physics engine, combined with gorgeous graphics and extremely addictive and diverse gameplay won Carmageddon a myriad of awards. Now, with the release of the sequel "Carmageddon 2: Carpocalypse Now", the magic of the original has been re-vitalized.

Carmageddon 2 boasts 30 new tracks in 10 different environments with an additional 10 mission levels. The move to total 3D has shrunken map sizes to about half that of the original, but that is still huge. Objectives in missions vary from killing escaped hospital patients, blowing up satellite dishes to destroying a giant dumptruck! There are 40 new vehicles at your disposal, 7 of which are redesigned old favorites. 3D support is through Direct 3D, with specific 3Dfx glide versions for Voodoo 1 and Voodoo 2.

So, just how good are the physics in Carmageddon 2? Well, every part of your vehicle is accurately modeled and can break off, bend or distort in any way depending on how and where you are hit. Your car will crumple, bend, twist and if you hit a wall at the right angle your car breaks into two halves which go flying off in different directions! The physics in Carma2 are perfect - almost. The only gripe I have about this part of the game is that the cars seem a little sluggish at low speeds. Even at low speeds the turning circle of all vehicles is too large. This makes some of the missions frustrating when trying to maneuver your vehicle in confined spaces.

Glass windows will shatter into tiny fragments, and get this - when driving you can even open your car doors for extra pedestrian coverage. There are plenty of roadside objects for you to play with, the type of objects being specific to the environment in which you are playing. Similarly there are heaps of different pedestrians, but only some appear in each environment, giving each track a truly distinctive feel.

City tracks have lots of human peds with their dogs, whereas forest tracks are populated with all kinds of animals including deer, cows, sheep, wolves, elephants and even penguins! With over 150 types of pedestrians, and 90 different power ups, Carma2 has lots more of the good stuff. Weapons are an important tool of the trade. Carmageddon 2 goes over the top with weapons such as the "mutant tail thing" which is a giant ball and chain attached to the rear of your car. We also see the return of the beloved pedestrian annihilator, as well as a flame-thrower, mines and the slaughter mortar! It's all at your disposal, so use your imagination and be creative to score bonus credits.

Upgrading your vehicle is now done on the fly. Provided you've got sufficient funds, you can upgrade engine power, offensive capabilities and armor. As you become accustomed to the driving model, you will begin to develop crazy ideas and techniques which are more efficient in completing your goal, whatever that may be. Carma2 is a go anywhere, do anything, no-rules-barred game of destruction and mayhem.

Carma2 features music by Iron Maiden. If you have never heard this group, lets just say their musical style and attitude fits in perfectly with the game and adds a lot to the atmosphere, often aiding you when it's time for aggressive driving. The new menu system is a definite improvement, with plenty of graphical options to fiddle with. One of the less favorable aspects of the sequel is that after each race, your game is "auto-saved". What this means is you can't save the game manually, give it a suitable name etc, but rather your game is saved after every single race. In no time at all, you will have so many saved games that it is often difficult to determine which one you want to load. All saved games are stored in a single file, so deleting the unwanted ones is impossible. On a more positive note, the atrocious load times of the original have been severely reduced, and it's now a mere wait of seconds before you're thrust into the action.

Multiplayer support is through TCP/IP or IPX for up to 8 players. With new multiplayer games such as "Fox and Hound", this is a must for any LAN party! Overall, the sequel stays true to the original concept, but improves upon nearly every other aspect of the game. Die hard Carmageddon fans and newcomers alike will be thrilled with what Carma2 has to offer.

In an ideal world, racing games would either be a perfect simulation of the real life experience of driving a racing vehicle, or the opposite of this. Carmageddon is a favorite to most racing fanatics for the reason that it is the closest thing to the opposite of a racing "sim" ever made. If you feel like a challenge, go play Grand Prix Legends, but when the time comes for some pure adrenaline pumping fun you can't go past Carmageddon 2.

Reviewed by Richard Manley, PC Gameworld.